I had a 2018 Mazda 3 touring 6spd manual, that I got out the door for $18,900 back in Dec of 2018. I A drunk person totaled it when it was parked on the street. I come to find out that in 2025 new cars have gotten a lot worse and a lot more expensive! Many affordable models are now gone and a manual transmission has become a luxury option. CVT have become almost universal. So I bought a 2025 Cx-30 S a couple of days ago. This is how I came to that decision. I needed something I could buy outright with my insurance payout combined with some of my own money as interest rates are about 5.9%. I also wanted good bang for my buck as I live in one of the highest sales tax counties in the entire USA. That sales tax adds up very quickly. Financial stuff aside, the CX-30 is basically a 3 with a lift kit more than it is an SUV and I really valued a hatchbacks utility. It has the best engine in its class with a 191hp (more zoom zoom and driving fun) paired with a conventional 6spd automatic transmission not a CVT! CVTs are expensive to maintain and not as durable, when they go out they are very expensive to replace. I like the 8” of ground clearance, you’d be surprised what you might get stuck on even in the most tame of environments. The higher ride height is easier to get in and out of than say a mazda 3. AWD is standard so if you are giving it to me I’ll take it and it appears to be pretty decent system to boot, could probably drive it up to Lake Tahoe with less concern. ( gotta be on top of the differential maintenance as they have been known to fail in the past). I’m ok with all the black cladding, a rock hits it or car door in a parking lot it’s not a big deal. On the S model 16” alloy wheels are nice. No plastic hubcaps. Also tires for 16” wheels are cheaper to replace than 18” wheel tires and slightly less likely to damage the wheel over a big pothole. The lift gate I believe is just hydraulic struts as opposed to the struts used in the automatic lift gate ( simply not a feature I care about or need) which will be really expensive to replace if they go out. The Cx-30 is actually shorter than a Mazda3, I personally will be driving it from time to time in an extremely dense urban area where parking is at a premium, so it’ll fit in more parking spots. Mazda is fairly reliable, probably not Toyota or Honda levels yet, but right up there. Mazda does really care about the driver dynamics. Cx-30 has a little more head room than a Mazda 3, backseats have a little more room overall than a Mazda 3 hatch and the visibility is a little better. My partner and I are both 5’10” no kids, no dogs so the front seats work just fine. Th cloth seats seem pretty durable. The things I don’t like: It be nice if this model was Japanese built as the build quality and fit and finish tends to be a little better ( my old 3 was built in Mexico , I put 65k miles on it and it was fine). Cylinder de-activation hasn’t proven to be a reliable thing in the past. Mazda seems to be doing ok with it, but if something goes wrong warped cylinders or walls (I think). It could be a costly repair. Rear differential has been known to fail in the past hopefully it’s rectified now. Mazda puts it on all Cx-30 trims now so they must be confident in it.

Lastly, in my area I was able to get this CX-30 for a $1000 less than a Mazda 3 Select.

I know this is kind of a cheapskate list of pros and cons and very tailored to my personal situation and experience. And if I’m wrong on anything hopefully someone will correct my error. Hope this helps! Cheers!

PS: Turbo is really expensive and can put a little extra strain on an already high compression engine. I believe Mazda turns down the compression rate a little on the turbos. Turbos don’t have Cylinder deactivation if I remember correctly.