i was just thinking, i always see everyone getting "economy" cars cuz face it, rotaries are expensive to drive in this tough economy. obviously the common choice is a cheap 4 cylinder gas sipper, while saving the 7 for having fun. the thing that puzzles me is i always see people going cheap honda civics. why does no one show the mazda line some love? great gas mileage, cheap, reliable, easy to find parts. and if you really want there are some great powerful engine swaps, just like civics. so is there something im missing or do i just hate hondas too much?

 

honda's are kind of a known quantity, but the Mazda 3's are nice too, the handle great, and mileage is good too.

power is all tease, like most modern cars the first 30% of throttle, and it feels great, but then the other 70% does nothing

 

B13 Nissan SE-R/NX2000. Nice engines, and not a Honda (Though I still like Honda's too)

Wife drives a 2006 Mazda3 hatch with the 2.3 and 5 speed auto. I like it. Electric steering sucks, but otherwise a very nice car with a lot of versatility. She has been know to lift the inside rear tire around tight corners. :-)

 

My 'economy car' is a 20 year old big block Suburban. Hondas are just too small.

 

I'd chime in but my daily is a F350 dually crew cab ... lol .. not sure which is worse on fuel

 

id say because hondas are the most known for reliability and gas mileage. The mazdas are great but the thing is they just arent branded in societies mind as that gas saver.

 

Hondas are in copious supply, good on gas, relatively reliable, cookie cutter designed, and cheap (and easy) to fix as the aftermarket was petty much built on hondas. I would have considered a protege, if I could find one not rotted out or for a good price

 

My current dd is a 2012 versa hatchback with cvt tranny...woulda got the 6 speed but my wife wanted an auto..

My dd before that was a 1997 lexus sc300..still in my driveway..

Both were gas savers compared to my 7.

Honestly I would get another 93 sentra with a 1.6 if I could find one in decent shape. I had one and ut was great on gas, fun to drive, cheap to fix and the little 1.6 in that thing was impressively powerful.

 

I'll open myself for flaming and say I've been thinking about getting a 1st Gen Prius for a daily. Old school body style, new out of the ordinary car frontier to enter (same motivation that got me into Rotaries), and of course the gas mileage.