Fifth Gear drive the 2010 Mazda MPS 3

[Nirvandan]

Its funny though, I drove Postie Gen II on the weekend and it felt like the Golf GTI I drove tested before buying my MPS.

Its definately closer to a Golf GTI than the previos MPS model.

[duglet]

Its funny though, I drove Postie Gen II on the weekend and it felt like the Golf GTI I drove tested before buying my MPS.

Its definately closer to a Golf GTI than the previos MPS model.

Well thats obvious that they have REFINED the MPS in the Gen2.

But its still more brutal than the other hot hatches on the market.

Gen1 MPS are ANIMALS....and you really need to know the car to drive it well.

Im sure the next model...should one be made will be even more refined again....

Shame really....I really like the raw and brutal power of the original MPS...just most ppl didnt

Happy Motoring
duglet

[Nirvandan]

Gen1 MPS are ANIMALS....

Im sure the next model...should one be made will be even more refined again....

Shame really....I really like the raw and brutal power of the original MPS...just most ppl didnt

Happy Motoring
duglet

True that, however i could live with the refined bit if they fix the looks inside and outside. Thats is if they make a Gen III

[STEALTH_MPS]

gen 3 but without that fugly smile lol

[YOU LOSE]

Its called a bet each way can't be seen to disagree with all the other testers and jurnos ,doesn't matter cause we luv em

Col

[shakespeare]

I like her (ahem) I mean the review

My take away was

Golf = refinement/class but tame

MPS = Fun/not as glamorous but great value!

Unfortunately in a sales race the points that make the Golf what it is, also help it sell really well to the masses. We all like the feel of the MPS, which is why we bought one, so all we need to do is convince more people who are buying a new hot hatch that the MPS is the best (globally!) and then the 3 MPS will be a great cash cow for Mazda which means they'll have lots of spare money to spend on R&D for a new 6 MPS

[Stera]

Im sorry, did someone say Vicki is a babe??

On a serious note... Yeah, mixed review!
In essence its a hot hatch, power and handling with a slightly more refined version available at a higher cost... Isnt that always going to be the case?
MPS, GTI, BMW, Porsche.. There is always someone better and someone worse!

Take heart in the fact that the more people that dont like them, wont buy one and yours will be even more significant!!

I like that fact the MPS' are reasonably rare!

[ManicMPS]

Interesting!! Even though I understand that Vicki is a genuine racing driver in her own right, it is still just her opinion. I'm suprised they didn't back this up with a track session or a shootout along the same lines as the Lexus vs BMW test posted by Crusher_13. On the track, raw vs refined is just a difference in the way a car reacts and needs to be driven to deliver its best, hence this almost predictable result. I expect it would have been very much the same result if the Golf and MPS were pitted together on the track. After having driven a number of fast, refined cars, it was actually the rawness and sense of controlled unpredicatability that attracted me to the MPS over and above the rest. In a world obsessed with safetey and refinement, it's nice to see a manufacturer that can build a bit of "white-knuckle" attitude into an otherwise equally safe, thouroughly modern car. I like the idea of having to fight the thing to get the best out of it. Such rewards shouldn't be given away through clever technology, you should have to work for it.
Besides, outright buy price was a lesser concern to me than the ongoing servicing costs through its lifetime. The MPS is virtually as cheap to maintain as a Mazda 2, whereas the Golf costs a bomb!! One of my customers says that his GTi "minor" service is about $400 - $500 a pop....yoiks!

[mickyj]

Vicki loves it, Vicki hates it.
I thinks she is saying if you have a few thousand extra to spend and need a less powerful car with less standard kit (than a MPS) that won't frighten your grandmother when you take her shopping and then off to bingo, well buy yourself a Golf GTI. In fact if a MPS is too hot for Vicki to handle maybe a Corolla would be a better fit for her.

However if you want a bloody bargain and a hot hatch with all the bells and whistles that VW charges a fortune for then go the MPS.

[holotropik]

I would of liked them to do a track test as well...shame