2019 Mazda 3 vs Toyota Corolla

What's the difference?

The new 3 sedan is just as good as the hatch, but different. Mazda has gone out of its way to make the two body styles look different enough to cover more than a few bases. This works on a global scale - the Chinese market absolutely loves a sedan but in Australia, the 3 sedan only accounts for around 10 percent of sales.

The new 3 really is something else - it looks feels a heck of a lot more expensive than it is (especially in Soul Red), drives beautifully without being startling and in the case of the sedan, rides very comfortably indeed.

I liked the hybrid-engined Corolla but I think I prefer the petrol-only ZR. It's nicer to drive and has a bit (if not substantially) more pep, without a huge impost at the pump. The new Corolla is a much more appealing proposition than the old one, but it has to be - the rest of the segment is so good, especially with the astonishingly good new Mazda3 knocking it out of the park.

Toyota seems to be making an effort to not only build cars well but to respond to what customers want. It's still missing techno must-haves like Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and there's that curious omission of rear parking sensors, which vexes me, and yet it's still a car I can suggest without a long list of buts.

The sedan is oddly anonymous in this new Mazda3. It misses out on some of the cool detailing of the hatch, particularly the gloriously designed tail-lights - the circular sections are flatter and flush with the rest of the housing.

It's not ugly, not by a long shot and certainly isn't as polarising as the hatch. You can also see out over your shoulder. 

The front ends of the hatch and sedan are fundamentally identical, with the funky grille shape and effects along for the ride.

From the side, both have good presence but the hatch's - I hesitate to use this word - stance is much more convincing. The good news is, the choice between them is more than a boot.

Inside is visually identical to the hatch. The new dash is refreshingly button free (although still a bit colourless) and the new screen looks terrific.

There's something about the consistency of detailing in the current Mazda range - all the fonts match on the switches, the instruments and the head-up.

It sounds ridiculous but that makes a huge difference in making the cabin feel resolved. The seats are terrifically comfortable, too.

The new Corolla isn't all that new any more. When I first saw it I wasn't that impressed - I didn't really see the point of building an essentially all-new car with a silhouette virtually identical to the previous one, which was dull beyond belief. New platform, why not a change-up in looks? And yet, when I cast aside my cranky pants and had a good look, I discovered the Corolla is quite a bit cooler than before. It's not pretty like the 3, nor is it as anonymous as an unadorned Hyundai i30. The new headlights are very funky, particularly with the LED running lights. There's more personality in the design than there has been for years. And far fewer random lines.

The cabin is lifted immeasurably by the excellent, racy front seats with the red inserts, Alcantara trim and metallic slots. There are still some unsubtle examples of parts-bin switchgear that no other manufacturer would touch, but everything is where it should be. The screen, unfortunately, grated my gums a bit (sorry, another metaphor - I did not try to eat the screen) - it's really big, sits too high on the dash and is framed by some really cheap-looking and feeling switches.

The sedan rides on the same wheelbase as the hatch but the overall length is up 200mm. That might not seem like much, but that translates to a boot of 444 litres, which is a lot more than the hatch's 295 litres.

The rear seats seem slightly more roomy than the hatch. There are even air vents for rear seat dwellers, which is rather nice.

The Next Generation Architecture -based Corolla is a bit bigger in each direction, but it hasn't suddenly rendered the Corolla roomy for all. Front-seat passengers are in pretty good shape once they're in, but long-legged folks will have to remember not to bash their knee on the dash as they get in.

The chunky front seats eat into what little rear legroom is there and for me to sit behind my driving position (I am, unsurprisingly, 180cm no matter where I sit) is a bit of a tough assignment for longer journeys.

There are cupholders for front and rear seat passengers, for a total of four, and bottle holders in each door. The rear bottle holders look like cupholders because the shape of the door means there's no room for a pocket-style holder.

The boot boasts a 333-litre capacity, owing to its space-saver spare - the rest of the range labours with 217 litres, but gets a full-sizer.

For $30,370 you can have the top-spec ZR Corolla in 2.0-litre CVT. This is very competitive, if you're not worried about engine power. You're also just $1500 away from the ZR Hybrid Corolla, if you're interested.

You get 18-inch alloy wheels, eight-speaker stereo, reversing camera, dual-zone climate control, keyless entry and start, active cruise control, sat nav, LED headlights, heated front seats, head-up display, heated and folding electric mirrors, wireless mobile phone charging mat and a space-saver spare.

Hitting you like a freight train (this is a visual metaphor, obviously) is the huge 8.0-inch screen. The still-dodgy software runs the eight-speaker stereo and USB, Bluetooth and DAB but (deep breath) still no Apple CarPlay or Android Auto. Toyota says this functionality is coming to the range, so here's hoping it lands in the Corolla sooner rather than later.

Mazda's 'SkyActiv' 2.5-litre engine lives on with a few more kilowatts into the bargain, in this case delivering 139kW/252Nm to the front wheels via a six-speed automatic.

The G20 makes do with 114kW/200Nm and feels a lot slower.

As ever, the SkyActiv engine drives the front wheels through a six-speed SkyActiv transmission. 

As with the rest of the non-hybrid range, the ZR arrives with a 2.0-litre, naturally aspirated four-cylinder developing 125kW and 200Nm. As is now Toyota tradition, the Corolla also has a continuously variable transmission, which the company claims is a 10-speed.

It's also front-wheel drive, as has been the case for around three decades, and it will come as no surprise, I'm sure, if I tell you the Corolla is not very quick.

Despite all the extra hardware south of the rear axle, Mazda reckons you'll sip standard unleaded (there's a bonus) at a rate of 6.5L/100km on the combined cycle, 0.1L/100km less than the hatch.

Our week with the car saw us average 9.8L/100km with mostly suburban driving.

As before, Mazda's has fitted 'i-Stop' stop-start which is quite clever. Most people hate stop-start, but this one covers both bases.

You can control whether it switches off the engine. Light brake pressure keeps the engine ticking over while a slight increase will cut the fuel.

The Corolla's claimed combined cycle-consumption figure is what I thought was a fairly optimistic 6L/100km, given I got 5.2L/100km in the hybrid version. While I didn't get anywhere near that, 8.3L/100km wasn't a bad result, especially in what was mostly suburban running.

Mazda tells that the set-up of the sedan is identical to the hatch. Sure there are differences like, say the tyres, but the idea is that the two drive identically. I, uh, I don't think so.

Plenty is the same. The engine and transmission do a good, less frantic job of moving the 3 along than the lower-powered 2.0-litre.

I can't stress enough how much better the 2.5 is. The 2.0 does a good enough job, it's just that you'll find it wanting with a load on about halfway up that steep hill. The 2.5 is much happier in traffic and the difference in fuel consumption is negligible, so the only real extra cost is the up-front spend for the G25.

The steering is just as keen and quick as the hatch's, too. The wheel responds very quickly to inputs and you don't have to do much twirling to get the car into a park.

It's not too quick a sneeze will send you into orbit, though, which is handy. The clever 'G-Vectoring' system is along, too, rapidly building driver confidence in the car's abilities.

What felt a lot different to me was the ride, something I noticed moments after picking up the sedan. I had a hatch overlapping with the sedan so was able to jump in and out over a couple of days to ensure I wasn't making it all up.

It seemed a little less busy than the hatch which felt a bit more loaded for bear. The sedan felt like it had a little more roll and carried a little more weight. There's absolutely nothing wrong with that, a scaled-down 6 isn't a bad idea at all.

In town and at speed, the 3's past problems with road noise are a distant memory. No doubt strategic use of foam, carpets and other clever bits and pieces are a big part of the improvement, as well as stiffer bits and pieces.

The sedan is a bit easier to get around in as the vision over your shoulder is a bit better, unencumbered as it is by that slab of metal that is the hatch's C-pillar. 

While the centre of gravity is lower in this Next Generation Architecture Corolla, you wouldn't know it sitting in the driver's seat. It's a bit higher than I'd like and I was never quite as comfortable as I can get in its rivals. The seats themselves are fantastic and part of a pleasing trend of carmakers equipping vehicles with seats that are as good to look at as they are to sit in.

I can only guess the high driving position will appeal to the SUV crowd?

As I may have mentioned in these pages before, I was not enamoured with the old Corolla. While it was built to outlast humanity, it wasn't appealing to look at or drive and didn't set the spec sheet on fire with useful modern conveniences. During that car's lifetime, the segment played host to machines that were appealing in all those areas - the Hyundai i30, the Mazda3 and the VW Golf. Toyota's chassis engineers have risen to the challenge.

The Corolla rides well, has very good steering and is very smooth across the lumps and bumps of our urban environment. The multi-link rear end ensures rear passengers do pretty well, too. I quite liked driving the Corolla, except for my usual complaint - the drivetrain.

The 2.0-litre engine isn't particularly quiet or especially refined and that is compounded by the rev-hungry CVT. In normal driving it's fine, but as soon as you ask anything of the engine it jams itself at around 6000rpm and makes an unpleasant racket. With just 200Nm to move 1400kg, you will work the engine hard if you're loaded up or need to get a move on.

When you do get a move on, an infuriating voice will wag its finger at you to obey the road rules. While that's helpful if you missed the change in speed limits, if it goes the other way, you may find yourself yelling at the touchscreen that you can make your own decisions about the speed at which you travel, thanks very much.

On board are seven airbags, ABS, stability and traction controls, forward AEB with pedestrian detection and bicyclist detection (during the day), reversing camera, adaptive cruise, lane-departure warning, lane-keep assist, traffic-sign recognition and active cornering control.

There are two ISOFIX points and three top-tether anchor points.

Most of that gear is available across the range, which is impressive. Bizarrely, there are no rear parking sensors (or front ones, for that matter) which seems to be a Toyota and Subaru thing.

ANCAP awarded a five-star safety rating to the Corolla in August 2018.

Mazda offers a five year/unlimited kilometre warranty which, like the clutch of advanced safety gear, is very welcome indeed.

Since the start of April 2019, you also get five years of roadside assist. In the past, you had to pay for that.

The company continues with the weird 12 months/10,000km service intervals, so clearly it doesn't seem to bother its customers too much.

The 'Service Select' program lists the price of each service up to the fifth. Total cost over five services is $1581 at an average of $316 per service (you'll pay either $299 or $342, plus extra items listed on the website).

Toyota has broken its resistance and moved to a five-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty. As everyone knows, Toyotas are generally rock-solid, but that extra two years has brought it in line with most of its competitors.

Servicing comes at 12 months/15,000km (previously it was every six months/10,000km) and for the first five years/75,000km, each service is $175 each. Bargain.