Mazda 3s vs. Base Acura RSX

Ok. So I bought a Mazda 3 s sedan not to long ago, but due to relocating states, I have yet to really put my hands on the 3, waiting unitl Aug, 2, when I pick her up. i know most of you might blast me for admitting this, but I opted for the sport auto tranny, cause I have yet to learn stick, and Sann Diego, CA can be quite hilly with traffic lights at the top of hills. Anyways, I was also seriously considering getting a base RSX before I bought my 3. I probably could of gotten the rsx cheaper than the 3, given the S.Cali market at the time(plenty of RSX's, miniscule mazda 3's left). If I was in the market for a stick, I would get the rsx s hands down, if i could of pulled of the payments, but since the "s" only comes with stick, My decision became a mazda3 s sedan, or an acura rsx base. Now I know they aren't exactly in the same class as one is a compact and the other a sporty coupe, but they are similar I think in power/performance.

Do you guys think I made the right decision to go with the 3?. How does the 3 fair with the base RSX? I noticed Acura's retain their value more than mazda's meaing I might get ****** when trading it in in 3 years just like I got ****** when buying it. But, i didn't want to be driving yet another rsx amongst the thousands that seem to be prowling though Cali, and since I am one of those people who likes to get the higher end of a model, the base doesn't seem that great with a ton of type "s's" on the road. I'm over six feet too, and the rsx seemed harder to get in and out of the driver's seat when compared with the 3. But the RSx build quality seems to be much better than mazda's. Anyways, I went with my gut, and my gut told me to go with the three. Was I right in getting the 3 over the base rsx? I know you might be biased towards mazda, but you honest opinion might help.

Also, I heard there will be substantial design stages for the RSX in 2006. I have heard rumors that the 2006 acura RSX type s will have a 20-25 hp boost and a possible sport automatic tranny as an alternative to the current manual standard. If so, I will be seriously considering that in 2 or 3 years. I also heard that Acura will be dropping the RSX off their lineup in a couple of years too. How long do you think mazda will keep the "3" in its lineup?
Any word on a mazdaspeed 3 to come? I heard there might be one after they introduce a mazdaspeed RX-8. Sorry if this question was posed in another thread (I'm a newbie).

As far as the RSX goes, I highly doubt they will remove it from their line-up. Unless they come out with another $20K compact car to replace it. I say be happy with what you have, and then check out the new RSX-S in a few years if they do in fact come out with the manu-matic tranny. My friend has a base RSX, and I hate it. You're way better off with the 3

I drive a 3 i sedan, and my wife has a base RSX. Both are 5-speeds and I love to drive both. The 3 feels much more expensive than it was and has the four doors I need for trips with our two boys. The RSX has more power than the 3. The RSX also has a harder suspension and therefore, handles sportier. I prefer to drive the 3 daily (its softer) and on long trips (it gets great mileage). I prefer to drive the RSX when I want to have fun.

I don't think you couldn't really go wrong with either car.

RSX is just a great car. Why not just go for a 5-spd base RSX? Driving a stick isn't too bad once you start doing it. It takes about 2 hours to get the mechanics of it down, the rest of the learning is done daily driving; Traffic, getting stuck on hills, races. Before you know it, you'll forget you drive a stick.

Replica said:

RSX is just a great car. Why not just go for a 5-spd base RSX? Driving a stick isn't too bad once you start doing it. It takes about 2 hours to get the mechanics of it down, the rest of the learning is done daily driving; Traffic, getting stuck on hills, races. Before you know it, you'll forget you drive a stick.

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A base 5-speed RSX was on the top of my list at one point...I really liked my old 91 integra and am more of a coupe (or 3-door hatch) guy than a sedan guy.

I never really liked the way the RSX looked, and in my eyes it has gotten a bit more "civilized" and not so harshly minimalistically-sporty as the Integra used to be, but I was still willing to put my trust behind Acura. That is, until I researched on the boards and saw a few problems that made me raise my eyebrows. The two biggest culprits were transmission synchros (which would be a MT issue, but I agree w/Replica here), and fog light cracking. While I'm aware that on an online forum, you generally get the "bad" shoved in your face and in the real world, problems aren't as rampantly widespread, there were enough instances of people complaining about the synchros in both the 5-spd and 6-spd transmission to turn me off. Plus the way Acura was dealing with people didn't help turn my hopes upwards - generally, if you were lucky enough to get them to acknowledge either problem, they'd replace with OEM, and it was common to run into the same problems again.

There were some other problems reported on the forums per build quality and stuff like that. I had spent a lot of time on forums for my Integra when it was 8-9 years old and didn't run into the same type of negative energy I saw on the RSX forums about such little problems. But I don't know what to make of this - I don't know how much people expect out of a 20-25k compact sporty car. I know I wouldn't care too much about a rattle here or there, or a minor electrical problem, etc. Still...it seemed there were a number of apparent long-time honda owners that complained about the car for a number of reasons which didn't speak well to me.

Other things worth noting are bang-for-the-buck incentives...the RSX shows a tad bit of age in comparison here I think. I got my 3s sedan with HIDs, 17" wheels with low-pro rubber, side skirts, and a navigation system and the total price was still about $1k less than the cheapest base RSX 5-speed available. Of these, only the skirts are even available on any of the RSXs as far as I know, and even then it's an $450 option on the base as well as the type S. Of course, these things can be addressed after the fact, but... $$$.

Performance-wise, I think the base RSX might still be a tad bit sportier but neglegible in my eyes...but I'm not the modding performance-hound a lot of the people looking at either car would be. The 3s is definitely sporty enough for me. The RSX is slightly more trim, weighing in under 2700lbs (wow), which I'd like just for the tossability, but overall....

All things considered I probably still would have bit on the base RSX 5-speed if it weren't for the synchro problems. Too many people with drivetrain issues in their first two years on a car for me to buy. While the protege has always been pretty darn reliable, I would have probably sacrificed all the pluses just for the comfort of owning an Acura if I was confident they were still there in this case.


Yeah, I've put a bit of thought into this comparison Sorry for the length, I do that sometimes.

Replica said:

RSX is just a great car. Why not just go for a 5-spd base RSX? Driving a stick isn't too bad once you start doing it. It takes about 2 hours to get the mechanics of it down, the rest of the learning is done daily driving; Traffic, getting stuck on hills, races. Before you know it, you'll forget you drive a stick.

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For that matter why not go for a 5-spd 3s and save a couple grand.

I have a base RSX and bought the wife a Mazda 3 5 door. I love my RSX, Its an all around great car!One major plus that the acura has is the absence of fo mo co parts. I've only had the mazda for a week and other than the small brake problems, Ive got no complaints.I am selling my RSX due to funding or the lack there of.

dulog said:

For that matter why not go for a 5-spd 3s and save a couple grand.

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Because the K series motor is the shizznit.

I agree the RSX is a good car too. For my wife and I, the extra doors on the 3 were an advantage so I didn't seriously consider it for that reason. It does seem like a step up in price though. For those of you with both the RSX and the 3, how does insurance compare?

My buddy has a base rsx 5-speed, his insurance is three times as much as mine, if you go to kbb.com and look at the 5-year cost of ownership for both the acura rsx base and the mazda 3s, you will find that the rsx wil run you about 4 thousand more (gas, but mostly high insurance cost on average). But, according to KBB" the RSX won't depreciate as fast (it's an acura-high retainment of value), but it was only a $300 difference than the 3. I assume since the source is Kelley Blue Book this info should be fairly accurate. Oh , my friend pays over 3 grand a year for insurance for his rsx, but he does live in NY. Hope that helps

It's generally pointless to compare insurance quotes if it's not the same car on the same policy with the same driver. On a new Mustang GT i was quoted $1070 for 6 months, my friend was quoted $1500 for 6 months. Both have a record of no tickets.

Location can make a huge difference for insurance too.

As far as resale goes I hope Mazda3 does better than expected. Maybe all these good reviews and best in class kind of ratings its been getting should help. I have nothing against Acura or Honda but I think there a tad overrated and their facing better competition now than they were in the past.

My RSX is 84 bucks a month and mazda is 76.

My insurance is about the same on the two cars.

Our RSX has ABS and side air bags while our 3 has neither. The RSX has a stock alarm and immobilizer, while only Canadian 3's have the alarm. I have bought an alarm but haven't installed it yet in the 3.

We both have a good driving record and I live in upstate NY.
The best quote I've gotten is about $1000 per six month period with the charges split about evenly between the two cars. we are carrying 100/300/50 with standard NY no-fault, uninsured driver, comprehensive, and $500 collision deductible.

Since, I first read this post I've been driving my 3i sedan a little harder to see how the suspension compares with the RSX and it is respectible. I'd like a little harder ride in my daily driver (3i) but because it is the "family" car and we take long trips with it, I appreciate the softer ride. The RSX would be quite tiring on rides longer than 4 hours. It's just to firm to be comfortable for long-distance driving.

You mentioned the resale value of the RSX being better than the 3...

Ever since Mazda released the 3, every car publication, newspaper, web site, consumber reports, etc. are rating this car to be one of the best buys in the compact class. Consumer Reports rated it #1 in last months magazine. If the 3 continues to live up to all this hype, I bet the resale value will be extremely good.