If you’re a car enthusiast with a 9 to 5 job and a finite budget, you know that compromises suck. You also know about the hot-hatch: a vehicle that blends the utility of a small wagon with the moves of a sports coupe.
Most on today’s scene get turbo engines, track-validated support systems and an online community of owners who help and educate one another. Hot hatches can be raced regularly-- but they’re practical for day to day life, too.
Mazdaspeed3, take 2
Mazda says they’re the most owner-raced brand going—and their popular hot-hatch, the Mazdaspeed3, has just entered its second generation. A factory-tuned variant of the standard Mazda 3, it amounts to a hopped-up entry-sized family-hauler with a really cool secret identity.
It’s got enough doors and room for it to be sensible, but it’s also an off-the-lot weapon for weekend motorsports enthusiasts. Your correspondent tested this out during a recent Sunday lapping session at the Toronto Motorsports Park.
Shortly after arriving, I noticed that about a dozen last-generation Mazdaspeed3 owners from the Toronto Mazdaspeed3 Forum were also in attendance. They quickly swooped in to check out the replacement for their beloved machines.
The new grinning cyber-guppy front fascia wasn’t exactly a hit, though most owners of the former car loved the hood scoop on the latter. Ditto the more comprehensively-equipped and revised interior.
“Yes, honey, it’s got that too.”
Original Mazdaspeed3 drivers should feel completely at home inside the new model, though numerous revisions and features make it better suited for both day-to-day driving and track use.
For instance, the 3-position memory seating can store mirror and seat positions for 2 drivers, as well as the lapper's preferred seating position for the track.
The enlarged tachometer is easy to read at a glance, and the automatic wipers self-activate and self-adjust while racing in the rain—no hands required. Standard adaptive front lighting increases after-dark illumination on your favorite side-road or circuit as well.
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| Hot hatches can be raced regularly-- but they’re practical for day to day life, too. (Photo: Justin Pritchard/Auto123.com) |
Most on today’s scene get turbo engines, track-validated support systems and an online community of owners who help and educate one another. Hot hatches can be raced regularly-- but they’re practical for day to day life, too.
Mazdaspeed3, take 2
Mazda says they’re the most owner-raced brand going—and their popular hot-hatch, the Mazdaspeed3, has just entered its second generation. A factory-tuned variant of the standard Mazda 3, it amounts to a hopped-up entry-sized family-hauler with a really cool secret identity.
It’s got enough doors and room for it to be sensible, but it’s also an off-the-lot weapon for weekend motorsports enthusiasts. Your correspondent tested this out during a recent Sunday lapping session at the Toronto Motorsports Park.
Shortly after arriving, I noticed that about a dozen last-generation Mazdaspeed3 owners from the Toronto Mazdaspeed3 Forum were also in attendance. They quickly swooped in to check out the replacement for their beloved machines.
The new grinning cyber-guppy front fascia wasn’t exactly a hit, though most owners of the former car loved the hood scoop on the latter. Ditto the more comprehensively-equipped and revised interior.
“Yes, honey, it’s got that too.”
Original Mazdaspeed3 drivers should feel completely at home inside the new model, though numerous revisions and features make it better suited for both day-to-day driving and track use.
For instance, the 3-position memory seating can store mirror and seat positions for 2 drivers, as well as the lapper's preferred seating position for the track.
The enlarged tachometer is easy to read at a glance, and the automatic wipers self-activate and self-adjust while racing in the rain—no hands required. Standard adaptive front lighting increases after-dark illumination on your favorite side-road or circuit as well.
 |
| The enlarged tachometer is easy to read at a glance. (Photo: Justin Pritchard/Auto123.com) |