Wasn't sure about it first but it has grown on me. And when you are driving it you don't even see it, you just enjoy the great ride.

 

The smile annoyed me after I bought my 2010 MZ3. After adding the CS eyelids, it gave the front-end a much more aggressive look. It feels like more of a grin now. Hehe. Good buy. Only issue is the 3M two-sided tape does not adhere very well once through the winter. I had to buy stronger tape.


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I was also hesitant about the front-end smile before I bought one but it has grown on to me too eventually. I'm really happy on how the car looks and how it drives now and I never regret having bought one.I'm sure you'll be happy with one too..:yes:

 

I like the smile. It gives the car a lot of personality (which it already has).

 

I honestly never got bothered by the smile. Like Majhankee said, it gives the car personality. Besides I drive a black mz3 so you cant see the smile all as much..good or bad? Don't care cos I love the car!

 

You really get used to the way that the car looks. Plus, when people see it in person their opinion is usually pretty positive. :yes:

 

my cars smile makes me smile!! also if your worried about it like i was at first.. get the black or graphite (i got graphite) as it blends into the car more!! (or paint it the same colour as the car) im really happy with my car and i actually really love how it looks now,

 

I love the smile for its uniqueness - there is no other car on the road (besides other Mazdas, of course) that looks like the Mz3!

 

The smile gives the car character. I wasn't bothered by it at all. But like others, I do drive a black MZ3 so it's probably not noticeable to other people.

 

How easy is the black to keep clean and looking good?

 

I originally owned an '07 MZ3 HB, and when I saw the 2010 come out in '09 I thought it was the ugliest front ends I've seen. Well one thing led to another and I ended up getting a 2010 MZ3 HB in place of a POS 2010 Pontiac G8 I traded my '07 3 for. I only owned the G8 for about 6 months, frigging lemon! Anyway, I still didn't like the front smile much, but I knew the car as a whole was a good one. It had good reputation, reliable, looked good, sporty, ok MPG, lots of tech included/available, and overall fun to drive. And I knew the smile would grow on me, and it has. I don't even notice it now, plus the Nissan Juke has a much uglier front end. I'm happy I got the 3's grin as opposed to the Juke's frog/Gollum face.

 

My dad recently purchased a Nissan Juke!:argh 1:
We liked it for his "Unique" appearance and his cute Turbo.. :blush 1:
I guess, we are suckers for "Unique/ Love it or Hate it" cars!:tongue:

My MZ3 makes me smile while the Nissan Juke makes me LOL!!:stuart:

 

The smile seems to be very catchy specially when you are driving back roads. I've had this car for 2 years and it still puts a smile on my face. :biggrin::biggrin::biggrin:

 

Time and time again I have to point out the smile to people who say "Wow that's a Mazda?" "What a cool car!" The comments don't stop after seeing it either. Something about anthropomorphizing cars seems to have an appeal to non-car people.

Some guy and the women with him moved out of their parking spot with the quickness (with an hour and a half left on the meter) after admiring my car out in Santa Monica this past weekend. Needless to say I've seen way more of these cars on the road around here in SoCal.

The test drive sold me. I'm attracted to average looking women who got hotter as you get to know them- I figure the MS3 is sort of an example of this too, particularly to car folks.

 

The test drive sold me. I'm attracted to average looking women who got hotter as you get to know them- I figure the MS3 is sort of an example of this too, particularly to car folks.

I have yet to go on a test drive (hopefully this weekend). What about it sold you over the other cars (I assume) you test drove?

 

I never cared for the smile much. I just bought a brand new mazda3. I didn't evenn notice until i read the reviews on Yahoo. I went and bought it anyway. I enjoyed the car and its handling. the smile, the grin, the smirk, whatever...i would care less. The only thing i care is that my new mazda3 is a blast to drive. that's all that matter to me.

 

first of, have you driven the car? its an amazing car... bang for your buck... so I say, do not judge the car by its cover even tho u aint judging... but you get my drift...

 

I ended up going on a test drive today, and frankly, I was a bit underwhelmed as a whole. But not because of the looks.

I test drove the MZ3 Grand Touring sedan. But my dealer just did the little "drive around the block thing" and so I pretty much got four lane roads the whole way (of 10 minutes). The car really didn't impress me that much in the handling department. But then, I didn't do very much handling...it was mostly "turn right" and a slight s-bend. Should I be feeling how good the car is during that?

I was also left scratching my head at some little weird things I encountered, but I'm not sure if those are a result of the car's design, my newness to the car, or incorrect setup (steering wheel level, seat adjustments, etc.). I'd love some input if you guys have any:

- I found that with the power seat (and moonroof) in the Grand Touring, my head was less than an inch away from the ceiling (with my seat adjusted for my comfort) at its lowest point. Now, I tend to favor a seat a bit closer to the pedals, but I'm an average sized guy (5'10"), so I didn't expect to be that close to the roof. I just tried sitting in a s Sport and was six inches or more from the ceiling (no moonroof, no multi-way power seat). Is this normal? Am I just too close to the dash?

- Along the same lines, I had difficulty determining the best position for the steering wheel. Where I had it originally was too high, but then when I adjusted it down it was blocking the turn indicators.

- I felt like I had to turn a lot back to the left to check my blind spot. But the giant dealership sticker was on that window, so it's very possible that I just couldn't see as well because of that. Likewise, the standard review mirror seemed really small. I couldn't see much out the back.

- It was a very sunny day, but I noticed the info screens on the dash seemed to get really washed out. Does their brightness increase at all? It was very hard to read the red one at some points.

On the plus side, I noticed the engine felt right for the car...plenty of power, but smooth. Audio system was amazing. Steering felt more weighted than I'm used to, but responsive (the little I used it...).

I'm thinking of going back for another test drive and asking the dealer if they'll let me drive somewhere other than their usual spot. Anyone have any luck with that at their dealer?

 

It does get a bit dirtier than most cars but I think black is just a badass color. The smile isn't very noticeable on a black mica.

 

I was never bothered by the smile... I just hate the new taillights. My 2008 Mazda3 has the best taillights IMO.

 

Agreed, the only thing that bothers me about my MZ3 is the random issues and noises/squeaks/creaks I have with it. But that is what you get when buying the first year of a new generation car. Oh well, still enjoying the ride though

 

Have they fixed most of those issues in the 2011 model?

 

At first, I thought dark car color will make the "smile" less obvious, which is true if you stand close enough. But on the streets when you see a dark Mz3 approaching, it looks like the car has no front end, a big openning hole. So, if the smile bothers you, get a light/bright color and add more color to the front, like fog lights, etc....

I have the 2011 and it's a very solid car, no rattles, creaks or whatsoever. The built quality is much better than I expected, regarless of the price.

 

Irrespective of color, I'm considering getting the Grand Touring which has fog lights, I believe. In your opinion, do you think that will also address the appearance of the large hole?

 

Yes, I believe so. To make sure go to Mazda web site or others to see the difference between one with/without fog lights. Or better go the dealers to check them out. Also look at the dark and light/bright colors from a distance like 30 feet.

 

black ftw! lol :tongue:

 

The smile, grin, whatever you want to call it doesnt bother me. I drive the car, and forget that it's even there. That, and my car is the black mica so it's less noticable.

 

I live is So Cal too and all the other cars we bought rattle and squeak at the beginning until we have them fixed. 05 Odyssey, 04 Titan and 10 Tacoma. I am picky and I hate cars that make these noises but this car really surprises me so far. It's only been 5 weeks though but if it doesn't rattle or squeak now, it won't in the warmer seasons.

 

It took me about a week or two to really get my seat, steering, mirrors, etc. dialed in the way I liked them. I wouldn't let that put you off. If you felt rushed, go back and try again, but spend more time getting it the way you like it. I do feel that the wheel needs more telescoping length (maybe an inch or so), but that's just me. The GT has more ways to adjust the seat (I wish dearly that the S sport models had a tilting seat), so try more than the regular fore-aft and recline adjustments.

You can't get a good judge for handling by doing the four right turns thing. You need to get a feel on a better road. Thankfully our dealer had a few twisties nearby that I used during my test drive. Not all dealers are that fortunate, but if you're selling Mazdas... you gotta have a test drive that people can put the car into!

The power moonroof does rob headroom, but I've heard it's mostly a concern for the six foot crowd.

 

I'm 6'2" and having the moonroof doesn't bother me. Guess it depends if you have a longer torso or legs.

 

That's my guess.

I went to a different (less urban) dealer today and did another test drive. Sadly, they had no s Sedans (neither Sport or GT), so I test drove the s Sport Hatchback. Never seen a hatch move so good. :drool:

This dealer had a mixture route, going down a four lane road, out onto highway, then onto a back road with many hills and twisties. Being new to the car and area, I didn't push it as much as it could take, but I was still mighty impressed with a few of the moves that hatch could pull off. Makes me warm and fuzzy thinking about the sedan. I did take my time and got things a bit closer to correct this time, as far as my driving position. :blush 1:

But that brings me back to the moonroof. I'm pretty sure Mazdas were made for either short or tall people, and average sized people (long torsoed people?) have a disadvantage. In addition to driving the hatch, I also sat in an i Touring with moonroof/Bose added to see how the moonroof affects height. Sure enough, my head is remarkably close to the ceiling. Probably an inch or two.

I'm wondering if that's sufficient distance (I probably wouldn't notice it in normal driving in the sense that my head wouldn't be touching the ceiling). Or will I find that I bump my head from time to time?

What's disappointing to me is that I'm not really attached to the moonroof. But I am to the tech package, which for some reason requires the moonroof.