[COOLSKELETON95]

This is less of a poll and more that I just want to hear about your experiences with your 3 . . . Please tell me about what trim level and other goodies you got, what your favorite features are, and if you wish you had done something different. I'm especially interested to hear about the active safety features like the blind spot monitoring since those sound very cool to me but I haven't had a chance to test drive so I don't know how useful they are in the real world.

For some perspective, I am trying to decide between a couple of the lower trims. I was looking at the i Touring, but the Sport with the Preferred Equipment package has a lot of what I want like some of the active safety stuff and the nicer cloth seats and the nicer wheels.

 

[louisbosco]

sp25 astina. without a doubt, i never get lower trim models and only the highest with everything included.

i like the bsm especially with the magnified mirror on my driver's side (RHD), but it is a little intrusive with it's beeping when i try to cut someone off for hogging the right lane or zig-zaging through heavy traffic. i've never kept the lane monitoring on so i can't say much about that and the active cruise control is pretty good for long drives. the HID with the adaptive feature is more form than function. is helpful in a way that you dont have to really bother switching high beams and such and the bending lights do help see around sharp bends too.

all in all give the car a test drive and see what you're comfortable with. i'm not sure how the US models are packaged but hopefully it helps

 

[nanxun]

I think the trim packages changed slightly for the 2016 model year. Prior to this, a lot of the driver assist bells-and-whistles (BSM, rear cross-traffic warning, back-up cam, etc) were simply not available on the "I-Sport" (GS trim in Canada?).

Personally, I opted for frugality and simplicity and have had no regrets in my '14 iSport, which came w/16-in steelies and doesn't even have the touchscreen and commander knob head unit! But that's me. The iSport with preferred equipment seems like a nice option, IMO. Hope this helps and happy hunting!

 

[PGOBNJ]

Isn't an i-sport with preferred equipment package, equivalent to a stock i-touring, both in features/price?

 

[lowincash]

I got a 2014 sGT. I've always tend to get the top trims with all the stuffs when I get a car (when budget allows) because I know I will regret it later on if I didn't. I knew I wanted the 2.5 engine and with that, comes the LED DRL/bixenon headlights as well as the LED tail light which I like a lot and knew I'll regret it later on if I didn't get the car with them. Also wanted sunroof so only the grand touring give the sunroof for the 2.5 trim. I could do without the heads up display but it's pretty neat and nice to have the speed displayed higher up making it easier to see. Blind spot monitoring is handy and pretty helpful especially with the blind spots on the hatchbacks. Also love the feature where it beeps when you are reversing and a car is coming from the side. Forgot what that is called at the moment *brain fart*

The only thing I wish my car had was the radar cruise control. However, at the time I purchased the car back in 2013, the tech package did not have the radar cruise control yet and it only came out the next year for $2600 more vs. $1600 w/o the radar cruise control. Other than that, I'm very happy with the car and still never get tired of driving it :nerd:

 

[314]

I got the 2015 Sport only because the dealership didn't have any Tourings left. THey only had Grand Tourings.

the one thing I don't like about the Sport is that there isn't a cigarette lighter under the dashboard.
it's all the way in the arm rest, and it is ALWAYS on. sucks when you have a GPS and fear the battery being drained if I don't use the car for a weekend.

I assume the Touring has a cigarette lighter under the dashboard?

 

[COOLSKELETON95]

Isn't an i-sport with preferred equipment package, equivalent to a stock i-touring, both in features/price?

Not quite, it is missing some things like the moonroof and leather wrapped interior stuff. Probably other things too. And it's cheaper than the full Touring upgrade. The Touring trim is probably a better value now that I think about it though.

 

[louisbosco]

I got a 2014 sGT. Also love the feature where it beeps when you are reversing and a car is coming from the side. Forgot what that is called at the moment *brain fart*

Rear cross traffic alert :smile2:

 

[rdriggett]

2015 iTouring non tech here, I regret it a lot. I bought my car the first week the 2015s were out and dealers didnt know that the s trim had a price cut, otherwise I would have bought a sGT. Other car is a 2016 CX-5 GT non tech and I miss the bose, auto ac, leather, seat heaters, larger wheels, etc on my 3.

 

[Rosamond]

I bought an S GT (2016) - sedan. I felt that the hatch had rather a large blind spot at the rear quarters. Things I really wanted: Bose 9-speaker stereo (Sat radio), Navigation, 2.5L engine, blind spot monitoring, Big wheels were a nice addition. Things the GT came with that I didn't want: Leather seats, sun roof. Since the touring has "leatherette" I really wanted real leather. The Bi-Xenon headlamps are amazing and a nice addition, but if one goes bad, you have to replace the entire assembly (no cheap bulb fix). Fortunately they seem to last a long time. So, what I think of the car? I love it. I wanted the 2.5L really bad and it was worth having to pay a little extra to get it. Regular fuel, and almost as much power as my Civic Si (which I hated anyway). The seats are very comfortable. I think that I would have been rather not-so-happy with the smaller engine. I was not going to pay for the tech package, but I do wish that I could have optioned for the radar cruise - a nice feature that I could'a had, but it wasn't worth the price.

 

[COOLSKELETON95]

Yeah the radar cruise control sounds so cool but you need to get the very highest trim to get it. :\ Not quite worth it to me.

Is the plain vanilla base non-Bose stereo pretty OK? I finally got to test drive a 3 today, and it seemed fine? I'm not exactly an audiophile though.

 

[geeman1082]

3i Touring HB with manual transmission and the Popular Equipment package ... and yes, I'm happy with it.

I wanted the sunroof and the dual zone climate control, and am happy with other other stuff that came with it (blind spot monitor, etc.).

 

[VQ35DE]

I bought an 2016 s GT - sedan.

 

[twitch2021]

The wife and I got a 2016 GS + window tints, all-weather floor liners (so worth it), and remote start. The only things I really feel like we're missing out on are the iActivesense driver assist features (lane departure warning, bumper sensors, etc.) which are apparently only available on the highest trim (GT - 1 step above the GS) which put them out of our budget. Since the GT was just flat out unaffordable for us I don't actually know what else we're really missing out on but the iActivesense systems were things I knew we weren't getting that I kinda would have liked.

 

[twitch2021]

Oh! And now having said all that, totally happy with the car we got. Moved up from an '05 SX 2.0 (Neon) and this car is a dream.

 

[oldfartwithamazda3]

I have the 2014 sGT with Tech package. Enjoy everything on the car. The radar cruise is really sensitive, but you get used to it. Oh, by the way, Rosamond, according to the repair manual, you can replace the Bi-Xenon bulbs yourself without removing the entire assembly.

 

[wolstentech]

I have the 2014 sGT with Tech package. Enjoy everything on the car. The radar cruise is really sensitive, but you get used to it.

I have the 2015 sGT w/ Tech, and I agree, I like all the features. The main thing I don't enjoy is the power windows: why couldn't they at least put auto up/down windows on the front two doors, if not all four, for the highest-end model? The high-end 6 gets four auto windows.

The wife and I got a 2016 GS + window tints, all-weather floor liners (so worth it), and remote start. The only things I really feel like we're missing out on are the iActivesense driver assist features (lane departure warning, bumper sensors, etc.) which are apparently only available on the highest trim (GT - 1 step above the GS) which put them out of our budget. Since the GT was just flat out unaffordable for us I don't actually know what else we're really missing out on but the iActivesense systems were things I knew we weren't getting that I kinda would have liked.

I don't know about your country, but here in the US, bumper/parking sensors are not part of any trim level, they're a separate dealer add-on accessory (and a rather pricey one at that). The model with the driver-assist features comes with lane departure warning, smart city braking (under 19mph), radar cruise control, and i-Eloop. The blind spot monitor system doesn't require getting that model.

Personally, I find the radar cruise control to be the most obviously useful of those extra features. However, the city brake feature is one of those things that you probably almost never use, but when you do it'll save your bacon so it's probably good to have. The i-Eloop is nice too; it does improve fuel economy 1-2 mpg. The lane departure warning is a nice-to-have, but not *that* useful really, unless you're driving tired, which you really shouldn't be anyway... The blind-spot monitoring, however, is so useful (esp. with the rear cross-traffic alert when backing up) I think it should be mandatory. Visibility in these cars, and really all new cars, is absolutely lousy in the rear, mainly for aerodynamics and also crashworthiness; even in the days of lower beltlines, people had problems with blind spots. BCM is a huge help here. The other thing that should be mandatory IMO (and will be very soon in the US) is the rear backup camera. It's amazing how easy it makes it to back up in tight spaces without hitting anything (or running over kids).

 

[mark.h]

I ended up getting a 2016 itouring sedan with the popular equipment package. I was also looking at the isport with preferred equipment. I think that preferred equipment package is a great deal. I had compared the trims extensively assessing dollar value of each feature and how much i could do it myself if i wanted to add them on if i got the sport with preferred package. So really only major differences between the sport with preferred package and the touring are fog lights, sun roof. Fog lights are a relatively cheap add on where as adding a sunroof could cost thousands. All the tourings i saw also had the popular equipment package which threw in bose speakers, dual auto climate and sattelite radio. The dual auto climate was a big seller for me on that. It gives the interior a much more upscale look. I ended up paying 21.5 out the door.

The blind spot monitoring and rear cross traffic alert are great features. I still check my blind spots when merging but if i notice the light is on I know not to even bother changing lanes. So far it seems to be reliable and accurate. The cross traffic alert is definitely helpful and also works consistently for me. It even detects pedestrians.

 

[pcurve]

2014 GT.

I wanted to get Touring with Tech package, but it was very hard to find, especially with manual + HB.

GT was $1,600 more but it came with moonroof, pleather seat, heated seats, as well as power driver seat. Very good value, and gives the car much more premium feel.

So I'm happy.

 

[gregersonke]

I have the 2015 sGT w/ Tech, and I agree, I like all the features. The main thing I don't enjoy is the power windows: why couldn't they at least put auto up/down windows on the front two doors, if not all four, for the highest-end model? The high-end 6 gets four auto windows.



I don't know about your country, but here in the US, bumper/parking sensors are not part of any trim level, they're a separate dealer add-on accessory (and a rather pricey one at that). The model with the driver-assist features comes with lane departure warning, smart city braking (under 19mph), radar cruise control, and i-Eloop. The blind spot monitor system doesn't require getting that model.

Personally, I find the radar cruise control to be the most obviously useful of those extra features. However, the city brake feature is one of those things that you probably almost never use, but when you do it'll save your bacon so it's probably good to have. The i-Eloop is nice too; it does improve fuel economy 1-2 mpg. The lane departure warning is a nice-to-have, but not *that* useful really, unless you're driving tired, which you really shouldn't be anyway... The blind-spot monitoring, however, is so useful (esp. with the rear cross-traffic alert when backing up) I think it should be mandatory. Visibility in these cars, and really all new cars, is absolutely lousy in the rear, mainly for aerodynamics and also crashworthiness; even in the days of lower beltlines, people had problems with blind spots. BCM is a huge help here. The other thing that should be mandatory IMO (and will be very soon in the US) is the rear backup camera. It's amazing how easy it makes it to back up in tight spaces without hitting anything (or running over kids).

Yea, I love my radar cruise. Love love it. San Francisco bay area traffic is a bit bipolar, and it makes me dread my 40k a year worth of driving a bit less.

But the cross traffic, and lane warning things are useful. The I-eloop I don't know how much it actually improved fuel economy as my personal best in 60k is 34mpg for a tank. Normally I get 30-31mpg.