Nissan Note / Mazda 3 - recommend - Nissan Note vs. Mazda 3

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Sun 9 May 2010 04:58
Nissan Note / Mazda 3 - recommend - Nissan Note vs. Mazda 3 - eustace

I think I have narrowed down my buying choice between the Nissan Note and Mazda.

What I am looking for in a car; 1) Reliability 2) Safety 3) Fuel Economy 4) Not Very expensive servicing and parts.

The car will be used for town driving and motorway driving.

My thoughts on the two:-

Nissan Note

Advantages:-

1) Good fuel economy

2) Bigger size than a typical super-mini (better safety)

3) Decent reliability

Concerns:-

1) Smaller than a compact car (Mazda 3). Hence safety and motorway driving characterisitics may be inferior.

2) Nissan less reliable than Mazda, as per car reliability index stats.

Mazda 3

Advantages:-

1) Larger car segment; Hence better safety and motorway driving charaterisitcs

2) Mazda more reliable than Nissan as per warrant direct stats.

Concerns:-

1) Mazda servicing is more expensive. More difficult to find independent specialists. (As per whatcar)

2) Fuel economy is not as good as Note.

Any thoughts, advice that would help me make a better decision will be appreciated.

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Sun 9 May 2010 08:00
Nissan Note / Mazda 3 - recommend - Nissan Note vs. Mazda 3 - b308

I'd get a Fabia Estate myself...

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Sun 9 May 2010 10:09
Nissan Note / Mazda 3 - recommend - Nissan Note vs. Mazda 3 - eustace

I considered that. But the reliability issues seemed pretty serious; both on the HJ car review as well as on reliabilityindex site.

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Sun 9 May 2010 10:32
Nissan Note / Mazda 3 - recommend - Nissan Note vs. Mazda 3 - eustace

At this momment, I am veering towards the Note. This is because the Toyota Corolla seems to be a better option than the Mazda 3. And the reason I ruled out the Corolla was because;

1) The comment on HJ's car review that a Corolla driven on the motorway at 80mph returned an mpg of 34 b'coz of low gearing.

http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/carbycar/toyota/corolla-and-verso-2002/?section=cabin

2) Potential boreliner problems after 40,000 miles.

http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/carbycar/toyota/corolla-and-verso-2002/?section=bad

While I understand that each car has its own problems, the 2nd issue above would not be something I can check for prior to purchase (checking oil consumption). Hence I would only be comfortable buying this car as approved used from a franchised dealer, increasing the price.

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Sun 9 May 2010 11:44
Nissan Note / Mazda 3 - recommend - Nissan Note vs. Mazda 3 - ohsoslow

We have a Note, 1.4 N-Tec, bought mainly for my wife's use. The main plus features for it are the relatively spacious interior and the ease of access due to the large doors and fairly high stance compared with cars such as the Mazda 3, of which I admit to knowing very little about. The fairly high driving position is quite nice, and the handling is good enough considering what it is. (Mad Cow had a handling problem with his which couldn't be resolved but I am very happy with the way ours behaves).

Our needs were primarily for easy access and space for the transport of MIL and wheelchair which it does well for us. It is just the right height, not too low as a normal saloon type car, nor too high like many MPV type things.

Both my wife and I find the car very nice to drive and suits the uses we require. So far after only 8 months ownership we have averaged about 45 MPG according to the car's computer. Our use is mainly 30 odd mile A road trips with a little town work thrown in, although the odd motorway journey gets a look in. It is quite happy to settle at 70 ish with a bit left when needed.

It is of course early days yet regarding reliability but the reviews are quite reassuring.

Edited by ohsoslow on 09/05/2010 at 11:47

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Sun 9 May 2010 12:23
Nissan Note / Mazda 3 - recommend - Nissan Note vs. Mazda 3 - b308

I'm sorry, but what reliability issues?!

It was one of the most reliable cars around during its time in manufacture... If you check the jd power national surveys done you'll find that it was in the top 5 in many of them, hardly the sign of an unreliable car!

Only one evrsion of the Fabia diesel was known for problems and even then they tended to be inflicted by their owners rather than being a manufacturing issue... that car was the vRS and the problems were usually due to modifications made... The ordinary 1.9 TDi 100bhp was pretty much bomb proof!

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Sun 9 May 2010 13:59
Nissan Note / Mazda 3 - recommend - Nissan Note vs. Mazda 3 - eustace

From JH's car by car review:-

"2000-2001 petrol models were average for breakdowns and faults but poor for problems; 2001-2003 petrol models were average for breakdowns but poor for problems and faults in 2003 Which survey. "

http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/carbycar/skoda/fabia-2000/?section=bad

The feedback on the above page is not generally very good.

Also the stats for the model from carreliability index is also quite mediocre.

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If you cover no more than 100 miles per day and have easy access to a charging point at home or work, then an EV is ideal for you.

Is an electric car right for me?