Mazda3 MPS Review

Mazda3 MPS

But of course the suspension set up pays absolute dividends when you find you favourite ‘B’ roads. You can charge at bends and exit with an enormous smile on your face. The MPS is pretty steady on its feet with little roll through even the most demanding of bends.  Occasionally the front differential lock fought back when powering out of a tight bend, the traction control would flicker on and off, but overall it was never intrusive. I should add that it did not rain when I had the Mazda3 MPS but my assumption would be that it would be more than a handful on wet roads!

Ease of Use

Ultimately the five door MPS is as practical as its sibling in the standard Mazda3 range.

 The only real difference is the ride height and the sport seats. The cabin is spacious with excellent head and leg room in both the front and rear. Visibility is good all round with few blind spots making the MPS easy to park and manoeuvre. The sports aero, twin spoke low drag mirrors certainly look the part, but in practice are pretty poor, offering limited rear vision.

The doors are large and open to reveal wide access points which make it a very easy car to get in and out of for front and rear seat occupants - this is particularly helpful for people with mobility problems, but watch out as the sports seat are snug.

The dashboard is ergonomically laid out, simple and uncluttered. All the controls are tactile and stylish and most importantly logically laid out with everything to hand. The steering wheel incorporates the stereo controls which keep your hands where they belong safely on the wheel. The Mazda3 MPS features Xenon headlamps and they work well at night and in poor weather conditions, but regrettably only on dipped beam. There are also rain-sensitive wipers and auto-headlights which come on automatically as it gets dark or when entering a tunnel or underground car park.