So i finally managed to test drive the Mazda 3 2.0 base spec (not high/full spec) thanks to a friend who happens to be a SA at Mazda Glenmarie.

Disclaimers:
1) I'm not a professional rider/driver/racer, only an enthusiast whos really passionate in riding/driving/Motorsports
2) I'm already a family man and co owns the latest 11th gen 2022 Honda Civic FE 1.5Turbo E spec (wife being the primary owner) and it is our family's primary mode of transportation especially when baby is sitting along
3) MY own daily car is a 1st gen 2013 Toyota GT86
4) my other Mazda experience is a CX5 2.0 petrol NA, Mazda ND1 2.0 UK limited with Bilstein dampers
5) It was lunch time during my test drive, and the SA was in the middle of his lunch. The test drive area was also around Glenmarie roads that many are very bad condition road works, and a bit of housing area filled with speed bumps. I am totally clueless of the area as well and did not have GPS mapping opened to "see further ahead".
6) I only focused on the driving aspect and did not explore the car further on the side and rear passengers' seats nor the rear trunk
7) i am about 176 cm and 74kg during time of test. blessed with slightly longer than average limbs.

Elephant in the room:
CBU Japan vs another hot competitor CKD Malaysia
Mazda 3 Sedan
1.5 = lost cause = C segment price for B segment engine. i mean, i almost wanted to say "hey, i'm not concerned about power... maybe the car is light... oh 1361kg, nevermind."
but if that's a fancy, 143k
2.0 = 150k
2.0 H+ = 163k

Honda Civic
E = 130.7k
V = 143.7k
RS = 150.7k

let me try to table format it up:

spec	Price	Weight	tire size	power	boot space
1.5	143k	1361kg	205/60R16	118 @ 6,000 / 153 @ 4000	~440-445
2.0	150k	1402kg	205/60R16	162 @ 6,000 / 213 @ 4000	~440-445
2.0h+	163k	1402kg	215/45R18	162 @ 6,000 / 213 @ 4000	~440-445
E	130.7k	1338kg	215/55R16	182 @ 6,000 / 240 @ 1,700‑4,500	497
V	143.7k	1349kg	215/50R17	182 @ 6,000 / 240 @ 1,700‑4,500	497
RS	150.7k	1362kg	235/40ZR18	182 @ 6,000 / 240 @ 1,700‑4,500	497

This is the car:
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The 16" UC6 is interesting
Really budget spec lol
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Interesting tail lamp design!
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Turbo!
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The biggest appeal from the brand to me, is their soul red kaler
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So let's begin!
Interior
Looks wise, definitely a traditional Japanese car kind of look. nothing at a glance seemed "BMW of Asia".

I love the HUD (heads up display) on the windscreen but being only 2.0 base spec, and not having sufficient time to fully explore the options, i would say it's merely gimmick more than anything. i rarely utilize it and muscle memory still got me to glance at the actual meter -  and that's another pet peeve - both cars in my household have a digital meter showing numeric km/h. i gotten used to that and it isn't present in the Mazda 3's cluster (yes the HUD is exactly that, probably why they don't see a need to have it on the meter) which was annoying a bit since i'm not used to looking up for speed information, and looking down forces me to look up which is a bit of latency and taking away from my driving experience.

however after the test drive, quietness aside, i paid attention to the odometer indicating a 15k km and the car age is probably between 1-2 years old? not sure when the car launch and definitely no idea on the silver 2.0 unit i test driven, but one thing's for certain, the CBU interior FEELS more premium, and don't have random loose panels/squeaks that the Civic unfortunately suffered from. comparatively, the Civic is under 10k km and less than a year generally under utilized as both of  us still able to enjoy working from home and generally only picking baby back n forth daycare.

Infotainment is nothing to shout about, and issue is lacking  enough time to fully explore the car. so leaving this out. considering today's infotainment having more stuff for the passenger, the driver facing screen to me, is a minus and a miss.
a plus (to me) however, is that it isn't sticking too far out like those floating screens that today's car infotainment trend is heading. it's taking up a bit of my windscreen visibility estate. ironically, that's what the HUD does

driving ergonomics is a bit on the odd side, the gear lever and knob is a bit in an awkward further front away sorta deal. but i guess it has paddle shifters, no biggie.
seat adjustability is pretty good, i see that it can cater to a wider range of sizes and builds, and the motorize seat with memory settings is definitely welcomed for multiple/co ownerships.
i love the leather seat... surface. cushioning wise, if you're not whacking corners, its  ok. softer than the Civic for sure. but it really begs the question - you're marketing it to be sporty, but if the seats aren't up for the task, then why bother?
no front/rear sensors is a bummer but i am told it is available on the high plus. seriously,  there's no reason on not getting the highest spec considering how they specced the cars... you have to really like the shell (assuming budget constraints as well) to get the lower spec and it again, BEGS the question of, why not other cars?

Exterior
the 16" tires are slimmer 205mm (vs the Civic 215), that's an odd choice. seem to me they just want you to buy the high plus/pigeon hole you towards it.
or just lazy and pick from the 1.5 engine wheels.

the rear LED design is interesting for sure.

and yes, looks, design wise, i do prefer the sportier smoother flowing (too bad i didn't get to see the polymetal grey or soul red Mazda 3 in person!) overall design of the Mazda 3.
that said, as a family man, the matured look of the Civic FE would have an advantage.

The Drive
6 speed auto gear ratios
1 3.55
2 2.02
3 1.35
4 1.0 aka 1:1
5 overdrive 0.74
6 overdrive 0.60
final drive 3.42
why is this important? i am used to a manual 6 speed with ratios:
3.626
2.188
1.541
1.213
1
0.767
final drive 4.1
https://www.blocklayer.com/rpm-gear?frm=cbA...:6,hdnTopGear:6
assuming power and tire diameter are the same, the graph highlights a clear reminder that this is a family/ and if i even dare say, sporty sedan. the gear ratios are pretty tall and the 5th is already overdrive.
i get it, fuel conservation/less high rpm droning when you want to whack it. that's a bit disappointing how the marketing is touting their SkyActiv transmission. again, if i manage my expectations well, that's ok. it's clearly a huge contrast than an actual sports car/roadster like the MX5 that doesn't even have any overdrive gears

but yes, i've LOWERED my expectations on the transmission a LOT and  i can say i was fairly delighted/surprised that it is at least better than the CX5. that was horrible, so slow (purely on shifting speed and feel) i am even comparing with an ancient 1980's developed Saga/Iswara 3AT auto. the Mazda 3 fully auto shifting wasn't too bad, focused on fuel economy/smooth driving, takes a bit of delay (probably need a lot of learning and adaptation) when i am having more throttle/flooring the car a little bit for that gear kick down.

manual shifting are fairly responsive, and way faster than the sibling CX5 manual shifting. i could be wrong or placebo but the paddle shifters seem to react faster than the gear knob. speaking of that, the inverted up/down shift position could use a bit of getting used to as well. but not a critical thing.
the car allows 1st gear shifting! that's nice and you get to do launches, but most importantly, considering the crazy long ratios, you will need gear 1 if you're driving really sportingly and this is a huge + for me (from the top of my head, cars like Proton X70 does NOT allow manually shifted first gear engagement)
my only gripe, is that it shifts not fast enough to actually have more sense of engagement or performance, or slow enough to be a very smooth daily driver/commuter. it's really neither here nor there. you do get a jerk, but the shifts from the price of having those jerks, are not exactly fast or engaging as a 3 pedal manual or DCT would.

now engine... eh. 2.0 NA, really nothing to shout about coming from a turbocharged Civic. I've not tested the Toyota Altis yet, it could be better than it, but for what it is, neither here nor there (not super smooth/efficient, but not super sporty either. )
takes a lot of RPM for the car to move, which is expected of a NA car.

weight (or more specifically, power to weight ratio) is key here and while you can say "oh it is only 60kg difference..." do bear in mind, the lightest Mazda 3 is about the heaviest Civic RS, and from spec sheets (dunno which spec is wrong), and 16" with less bells and whistles weigh the same as the 18 incher high plus sedan? something is definitely not right.

then, there's the issue that turbo charger. yes pesky i know. i personally prefer a NA too!
but when it comes to practicality, convenience, EZ POWER, there's no denying it. why else the world is going that direction?
peak torque (a good 30nm extra!) at less than HALF the RPMs, barely above engine idling speeds, what's not to love?

the throttle input and throttle response i would say, overall experience goes to the Civic. the Mazda 3 is a bit lethargic on the low RPMs, and while the manual shifting to force those RPMs up do help a bit, i am afraid it is just set back by the long gear ratios and over/final drives. maybe longer ownership and better adaptation (if the ECU is capable on refining throttle response towards driving habits) be it from the car to the human, or vice versa human getting used to it, then it could be a negligible/non issue.
I gotten comment that the car feels faster than it actually is, i am feeling neither to be honest, considering the heavier weight, good sound proofing, it is just... a family sedan.
NOTHING KODO about it. (then again my idea of a horse is that it really runs, not trotting around casually munching grass)

Ride & Handling
The suspensions feel very premium and conti for sure, smooth compressions responsive rebounds. and that brings us to the bad roads at Glenmarie area - all those micro vibrations are well transmitted into the cabin and driver and that kinda negates out all the premium feels and good NVH.
it's very in trend with the cheaper/lower tiered conti cars, Mazda is heading towards that direction and i am definitely not liking it.
the weight also plays a role here and the thinner and thicker 16" UC6 of the 2.0 surprisingly didn't help much. it however somewhat worsened the steering feedback that overall goes to the Civic.

ride wise, if your focus is passenger and ride comfort, Civic gets a pretty good edge. again, this is due to the weight and suspension rebound. maybe even the rear torsion beam. and obviously no i am not buying to Mazda marketing on that torsion beam LOL

on the handling part, turn ins are less responsive than the Civic, and corner exits , while the 3 overall have better "feel" and modulation, the turbo from the Civic easily outdone any good the 3 had upon the Civic. furthermore, one can easily adapted/adjusted to corner better with the Civic having a less aggressive rebound, softer compression - just late brake a little bit , tip the car nose further, that will allow the car to turn sharper and maybe slightly understeer a bit but if you modulate your throttle better, downshift earlier, it generally isn't a problem and once you've done cornering (hit/past apex) just smoothly reap the benefits from that awesome turbo!
Cannot replicate that with the Mazda 3 as downshifts are so so with the slosh box and you really need to wring the car further (which i didn't because of the disclaimers above) to get a glimpse of that potential.
Pity, yes. unfair, YES!
i just have to remind myself that it isn't a sporty/sports car, it is a family sedan. and on my earlier feedback with the ride, there are other cars that could do better unfortunately.

CONCLUSION
you really need to ask yourself are you willing to pay that CBU Japan tax to our beloved Malaysian government?

to me, no.
if i wanted to drive spiritedly, sportingly, i will drive an actual sports car.
if i want to have family duties, i get a family car.

admittedly, the Mazda 3 CAN be that 1 car fits all, small sized family car. if you're that person, so long you ignore that turbocharger option, sure it it's a decent option.

Parking post here at i can slowly edit and type from PC (and/or slowly, but surely! Type edit and post over phone) while my phone uploaded pictures
Review completed. Thanks for reading/waiting patiently for my write up! "