personally, i don't think there's a 8-speaker BOSE system in the Mazda3. It's not available anywhere in the world and not even in Japan as an option. The BOSE is meant to be with a 12-speaker set up.

so, i'd press "doubt" on the SA however if given what the SA said is going to be true then Bermaz is really mutilating the bastardizing the entire Mazda3-BOSE collaboration experience. it's sad but i feel even more sad for those who are going to spent around RM160k for a car that has been stripped.

then again, the MS version is not made by Mazda Japan, it's "modified" here locally. Mazda Japan has nothing to do with the MS version.

the chrome finishing was deleted because of complains that there were peeling off prematurely, not so much of a "cost-cutting" measurement. it's either quality issue or user-problem (eg: pressing with the finger nails, oily fingers etc.) but i would place my best on the latter.



my 2019 had no such problems until the day i sold it off in 2024 but yes, you can replace them back to its chrome counterpart but it's going to be the entire bottom assembly, the buttons are not separate. it is also going to be very expensive.

my advise, don't fix what is not broken. if you have local people tinker with a CBU car then chances are something may not fit right after that and you could very well end up with scratches, panel gaps or worst, rattles.

in any event, the black buttons are much cooler - it is also consistent with all the newer Mazda models.

i personally feel that leather steering cover cheapens the look of the nice interior. perhaps you can consider having the steering wrapped with alcantara OR better still, go all race-y with it and wear racing gloves every time you drive it

this is Bermaz's pathetic attempt in trying to breach the B-segment market, trying to steal clients from Civic (City and Vios even).

the 1.5 was priced at RM139k when it was first launched, it didn't even have a reverse sensor. the High was at RM149k and the High+ was at RM159+

no companies (especially public listed ones) would operate at a loss, just lesser profit.

this is Bermaz being desperate. Granted that the Mazda3 was overpriced across the range and Bermaz was ripping a lot of profits from each sold but that is OK because at least they were being consistent in stating that they didn't want to participate in price wars so even though it was expensive but buyers know that 3 years down the road, the price would roughly still be the same - this helps to retain its value (be it new / used).

simultaneously, it also helps Mazda maintains its "premium brand" status because it makes less accessible. not anymore.

with this cheap fire sale, the market will soon be flooded with Mazda3 and Bermaz will also lose its reputation.

they are now officially worser than China makes.

that car is basically DOA and even at RM198k, i doubt people would spent that amount of money to buy it especially now that people will just wait and see. if Bermaz can sell a RM150k+ price for RM118k, what's there to say that they will not sell the CX-60 for RM150k few years later?

yeah, Ignite buyers are still OK because it's still different. the Burgurdy leather, the BOSE. Bermaz basically just pissed on those High / High+ buyers.


even at 16", the 1.5 feels a little bit underpowered - i can only imagine how bad it is going to be on 18" but this is Bermaz being desperate. they are willing to sacrifice everything that Mazda stood for in exchange for sales figures. Bermaz can flood the market Mazda3 but it's going to be a short lived one before the 1.5 High+ buyers will feel that the Mazda3 is a shitty car - all because how badly Bermaz spec'd the car.

they should have remain with the 16" and also remain with the non-signature LED headlights for the 1.5High+ as this will:-

1) entice potential buyers to upgrade for the better looking one; and
2) appease current owners so they don't feel being f***ed over by Bermaz.

Price wars have been affecting all car manufacturers and Bermaz was the only one that stood strong, until now. I admired their position with Mazda which was why i kept going back to them. Apart from Mazda as a damn good car manufacturer, Bermaz's insistence represent something that resonant with me.

With their introduction of Mazda3 Rahmah in Malaysia, i don't think i'll go back to them anymore. There's just no point in paying a premium for something that isn't premium in any way.

Yeah, they always have a weird way in marketing but that is OK because at the end of the day, they always come through. not this time.

Either way - not sure about others but they have certainly lost me as their customer and i'm not going back. I don't trust them anymore. Once i'm finished with with 5 years loan (and by that time, the streets should be flooded with Mazda3), i'll offload my Ignite and move on with Lexus.

Bermaz wanted to go "premium" but gets undone by their desperation. Foolish.

where did you received the news that the "feedback had been pretty ok"? for all i know, my SA told me that there's very little people who showed interest on the CX-60 and she even offered me a further special discount if i want it, delivery in September. Bermaz is not expecting to sell alot of CX-60 which is why they introduced the Mazda3 Rahmah simultaneously to cover up their sales figure.

There's no denying that car prices drop but what Bermaz did with the Mazda3 Rahmah is despicable. Let's assume that realistically, the Mazda3 Rahmah should at least be priced at RM149k since the High was sold at around that price for much lesser specifications - this would be a RM30k discount and it's a CBU, not a CKD. I was expecting a RM10k price cut across the range, not this.

I don't think either Toyota/Honda ever gave such a huge discount.

I don't feel bad, i just feel annoyed - i really liked Mazda as a brand, their visions, their principles and when Bermaz started marketing the Mazda3, they were bragging about it and how they are not interested in price wars and stuffs (they even repeated the same thing for XPENG). All these as a whole made me inclined towards them and maybe i am getting a little bit melancholic but this feels like betrayal to what the Bermaz stood for.

I'm probably guilty for being over-sentimental as i tend to attach myself emotionally to what i have (all my cars included) so this doesn't sit well with me.

i would flip in my grave if Rolex suddenly re-introduce my Rolex GMT for half the price.

that's exactly my beef with Bermaz - they have failed as a company in trying to achieve what they wanted to achieve but instead of remaining steadfast, they gave up (probably due to shareholders' pressure), they stoop low and reduce their only position and ruin their reputation that they have so painstakingly built. they probably killed the trust in their existing Mazda3 owners (maybe just me) and also killed the brand presence here in Malaysia and reinstating it back as "cheap".

that irks me (a lot) then it should.

the Mazda6 is also another conundrum, it's currently priced at around RM240k with an old drivetrain, all on the pretense of "CBU" tax but they can market the CX-60 (also CBU) at a much lower price with literally, Mazda's newest tech. I don't know about those potential buyers but considering everything that's happening with Bermaz at the moment, i'll definitely wait out until Bermaz decided to give another RM30k off the CX-60 before buying (it's not impossible now since we all know that Bermaz is all talk).

If i want to upgrade from a Mazda6 to a SUV, i'd go for the Harrier and not the CX-60. The Mazda just isn't as reliable and now with its value going down, it just doesn't make any sense. The Accord was abandoned by Honda Malaysia because it recycled too many parts from the 9th-gen and with a 1.5T engine + steering rack issue, asking for RM200k is just suicide. Not to mention it is dead ugly.

the 2.5 High CX-5 is about RM170k and with the additional discount my SA is offering, it's enough to sway to get the CX-60 but i'm saving up my monies now from buying another Mazda.

Lexus, Mercedes and BMWs are not in the premium league but in the luxury realms.

The Mazda now may not be categorically premium but it is definitely not within the reach of other mass produced cars of its competitors. The interior of the Altis couldn't hold a candle against the Mazda 3 and the interior of the HRV (even the RS) couldn't compare with the CX-30.

it's torsion beam buddy.


definitely.

my SA told me the same too and it certainly feels like it. a bit smoother to the touch compared to the normal black leather seats.

it has been on torsion beam since 2019 and imagine the price back then when it was RM149k+ with no specifications (kosong) literally.

this is where we called BERMAZ a cheating dishonest company

impossible to be CKD however CBU from Thailand might be possible

yeah, Bermaz has just joined in the price war of 2025 with a 2019 model but the Mazda3 Rahmah is still quite a bad proposition if compared with the alternatives. Both the VIOS and CITY is cheaper and has better utility and better fuel consumption figures. just look at its power to weight ratio.

the 1.5 felt underpowered with the 16's, can only imagine how much more sluggish it is going to be with the 18's. imagine a weekend drive up to Genting with your buddies who are in Civic/Altis and when they finished dinner, you have just arrived

the Mazda3 has been on torsion beam since 2019 - it was controversial back then but Mazda had to sacrifice that for the sake of cost controlling. Vios/City is definitely the better (smarter) choice but sometimes pride/ego speaks louder - college kids / fresh grads would rather starved to death then to die in satiety caught in poor man's clothes.

expect a price cut also for the 2.0H/2.0H+ and will not be surprised if there's a RM10k discount to both of those variant.

it depends on what the buyer is looking for and what he/she is willing to sacrifice for that.

the Mazda3 Rahmah is definitely going to have better build quality but slowpoke of a car with bad fuel consumption. both the Vios/City will have an acceptable build quality but with commendable fuel consumption rate, superb utility and good power to weight ratio.

i know this very well because i used to have the 4th-Gen 1.5 Mazda3 and now the Ignite so i can tell, the Mazda3 Rahmah is going to sluggish with those 18's. the 1.5 pulling those extra weight on the 18's, pfft - good luck.

i have the Vios (VC100) and also the HR-V (RS) and while both of them doesn't have the interior "plushness" of the Mazda3, i'd rather have the necessary power to pull my own weight rather than have the engine rev to 5k and still struggle to find power.

There is a point for Bermaz because there will be plenty of foolish people who will spent RM120k to get this because of the thought that "woah, this car used to be RM150k leh, it's RM120k now". Not to mention the idea of them thinking they bought a "premium car" because of what Bermaz did with the brand previously. They were successful but decided to fold now - all those effort, wasted in just one night.

I don't know where Bermaz is taking Mazda to here in Malaysia but all i know is that they are basically dragging the brand across the mud with this move. Mazdas are supposed to be a fun and engaging car to drive but when you do not have enough power to the car, these Mazda3 Rahmah owners will soon find that Mazdas are overrated because they weren't given the best representation of what Mazda can be.

it's just tarnishing.

that is given

as for the suspension, yeah - the torsion beam set up was a non issue to me back in 2019 and is still not an issue to me now. people who said they can "feel the difference" are lying unless they tracked the car. the difference between a multi-link and a torsion beam (if any) on daily drive is infinitesimal.

my CX-30 has the same set up but is noticeably more comfortable - so i'd take that if i need to ferry passengers behind but if it's just me or with one front passenger, Mazda3 all the way.

the HRV is reserved for my parents.

either way, Mazda did a damn good job tweaking that torsion beam.

yeap, that is true and melancholic at the same time.

for a car like the Mazda3, i somehow feel like it needs to be understood because it's not just like some other mass produced cars. from its conception to production - so many thoughts, ideas and philosophies went into making the Mazda3 what it is and i feel drivers should know about it. every inch about it has a purpose, has a function and has a story behind it and that is what makes it special.

this is what made me like Mazda as a car company, it's not just the car they made but also what they stood for.

i feel like dealers (eg: Bermaz) as their partners should also work towards fulfilling that objective. i respected Bermaz for standing strong back then when they refused to engage in price wars and insisting on offering what they think is best to reflect Mazda for what it is despite being significantly more expensive than its competitors but they have since lose ground.

they have tried so hard over the years to built Mazda here in Malaysia to be on a different route and just literally burn all of those effort to ashes. to me, it just removed the identity of the Mazda3 from the Mazda3.



This post has been edited by shaniandras2787: Jun 9 2025, 11:48 AM

i could squeeze about 430km ~ 450km from a full tank in the 1.5, very light footed, city drive with the usual office crawl. highway probably gets you better figures. as for the 2.0, i don't see a lot of difference in the range.

i suspect a reduction of probably 10km ~ 20km from a full tank due to the heavier 18" on the Mazda3 Rahmah. it's going to take more effort just to move those extra weight from standstill traffic.

yeah, you are right. my girlfriend who bought her AC100 Vios last year was also very interested in the Mazda3 Rahmah, especially in the PQM but i asked her to forget about it because it's a waste of money. she'd be better off driving her Vios for 5 years and then replace it with something more genuine and honest.

according to my SA, Mazda showrooms had been running dry for months already and the Mazda3 Rahmah have revitalized it - good news for them i supposed.

be that as it may, i as an individual is officially done with the Mazda brand here in Malaysia (no thanks to Bermaz). i've already decided to leave the ecosystem after my 5 year loan tenure is up and move on to a company who is more consistent.

i still like Mazda and will still be rooting for them as the underdog but as for Bermaz - only time can tell how far they will run Mazda down to the pits.

if Mazda3 Rahmah proves successful to them, there's no telling what Rahmah variant they'll do again - probably a CX-60 Rahmah as well.

This post has been edited by shaniandras2787: Jun 9 2025, 06:23 PM

regarding the claims, it depends. i had no issues with my previous Mazda3 but Bermaz seems to taichi alot when it comes to the CX-30 (perhaps on popular/CKD models). i sent in my car for a very obvious clock spring defect but twice they sent me back stating that it has been "tighten" which i know is not the solution.

wrote an email straight to Bermaz and they asked me to come in for a 3rd time inspection! (not sure what they did not catch on the previous 2 times) and even so, they sent me back saying that "it's normal" and "it's the design". i know it's bullshi- because my sister also have a CX-30 and her steering is fine.

i suspect that for CKD models, claims come from Bermaz's own pockets which is why they will try harder to deny you but for CBU models, it's from Mazda Japan because they have to order parts every single time when a claim is successful rather than just pulling it out from their local suppliers which decked their finances.

-----

i came from Hondas and when they denied my ABS pump claim for my Accord back in 2020 (still well within the warranty period), i decided that it's not worth my time to argue with them so i sold it and move on to another brand and yes, Honda Malaysia is notorious.

i bought my X5 x50e just last year December and so far, no complains (i mean as it should be for half a million ringgit car) so i don't intend to get another continental.

i have been eyeing for a Lexus even before i bought my Ignite and had a brief dilemma choosing between the 2 but i still ended up with it because i developed an affinity with Mazda since my first Mazda3 and really wanted to see Mazda make it big here in Malaysia but what Bermaz did recently has now made it easier for me to abandon the Mazda brand here in Malaysia as a whole. if Bermaz wants to make the brand cheap then they don't need people like me to support them, plenty of customers out there.

i know Lexus may also not be perfect but at the very least they have been consistent throughout their presence here in Malaysia and has not been seen yet to engage in price wars because they are desperate. that is something reputable.

maybe i'm naive but Bermaz plays a fair share in misleading by releasing plenty of press releases convincing consumers that they are not interested in price wars and will never participate in it to maintain the brand reputation / quality but like you said "business is business" and i should have spent my monies elsewhere from the beginning.

i don't mind Bermaz giving price cuts to their line ups because it's all strategy but it's how they do it. a car that used to costs RM160k is now RM40k cheaper to own (granted it's a smaller engine but if their previous price list were of any telling, the difference should have only been +/- RM10k, not RM40k).

Bermaz admitted back then that they had to priced the High+ at RM160k because of taxes, so with a RM40k reduction in price - was there a reduction in taxes for CBU cars? I don't want to go into the details but everyone can do their own assessment on this but to me, personally, this is unscrupulous.

like i said before and i reiterate, i rooted for Mazda because i liked what the company stood for and Bermaz seemed aligned as well but if i knew Bermaz is going to fold last minute by pulling shameless stunts like these, i would have looked the other way early on.

then again, there will always be defenders and they are not wrong. each to its own i guess.

at the end of the day, as long as consumers are spending their money happily then it is all good.

honestly, i never once compared Mazda with any of the continentals or even Lexus because Mazda could never touch them even if they wanted to and that is OK because they never set out to be like them or beat them - Mazda was "their own", if you get what I mean. they seem to forge their own ways of doing things and i like that and i am OK in spending monies to support that ideology, "their individualism", so to speak. the only thing they had it going for them was consistency and persistence and Bermaz squandered it.

i agree that Mazda probably had a part to play with the price reduction and i'm OK with that, what i am NOT OK with is how expensive Bermaz priced the Mazda3 before and claimed it was taxes that drove the price up high.

other than Mazda, Bermaz actually do not have a good track record in car dealerships. they eff'd up Peugeot and hearsay KIA is also going away.

3 months later, BERMAZ fire sale the Ignite and give RM20k discount off

Advise is leave the front grill as it is - save the money for something more important. Better tires, better tints, better coatings - better still, channel it towards the PPF fund.

i personally don't think BERMAZ gives a shi- to existing owners or brand loyalists. they are more interested in chasing after sales figure.