Compare the2022 Mazda 3VS 2022 Kia Seltos

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Environmental Friendliness
Brakes and Stopping
Suspension and Handling
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics
Model Availability
Recommendations

Safety

© 1999 - 2024Advanta-STAR Automotive Research, all rights reserved. This vehicle comparison and all of the content in it are provided only by license from Advanta-STAR Automotive Research Corporation of America (“Advanta-STAR”). If you are not a legally licensed user of this vehicle comparison, it is against federal law to access it, copy it, forward it, or use it in any manner whatsoever. Any unauthorized use of this vehicle comparison is a violation of U.S. and international law and is punishable criminally and civilly. Removal of this watermark/notification without prior written license and approval received from Advanta-STAR is an agreement, understanding, and/or stipulation by the person(s), entities, agents, attorneys, and any other persons involved in the removal of this watermark/notification (including but not limited to Search Optics, LLC and any and all parent entities, sister entities, and subsidiary entities of Search Optics, LLC and/or any other entity, agent, attorney, and persons related in any manner to Search Optics, LLC) to: 1) an agreed upon amount of liquidated monetary damages of a minimum of $1,250,000.00 US Dollars in favor of Advanta-STAR; 2) the jurisdiction and enforcement of any legal claims associated with this matter asserted by Advanta-STAR in the United States Federal District Court in Portand, Oregon; and 3) service of process of any legal claims asserted by Advanta-STAR associated with this matter may be accomplished by First-Class Postage by the United States Postal Service or comparable service. XPYNN-M34HG 2a06:98c0:3600::103 2024/05/02

The Mazda 3 has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Seltos doesn’t offer knee airbags.

The Mazda 3 has standard Whiplash Reducing Headrests, which use a specially designed headrest to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Whiplash Reducing Headrests system moves the headrests forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The Seltos doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

The Mazda 3 Turbo Premium Plus has a standard 360-Degree Monitor to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Seltos only offers a rear monitor.

Both the Mazda 3 and the Seltos have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, driver alert monitors, available all wheel drive, blind spot warning systems and rear cross-path warning.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Mazda 3 is safer than the Kia Seltos:

	Mazda 3	Seltos
OVERALL STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	89	129
Neck Injury Risk	17%	24%
Neck Stress	214 lbs.	237 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	205/212 lbs.	460/429 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	153	405
Chest Compression	.4 inches	.6 inches
Neck Injury Risk	30%	41%
Neck Compression	20 lbs.	171 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Mazda 3 is safer than the Kia Seltos:

	Mazda 3	Seltos
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Chest Movement	.9 inches	1.2 inches
Hip Force	239 lbs.	428 lbs.
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Hip Force	620 lbs.	754 lbs.
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Max Damage Depth	10 inches	13 inches
HIC	199	225
Spine Acceleration	30 G’s	33 G’s

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

Instrumented handling tests conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and analysis of its dimensions indicate that the Mazda 3, with its five-star roll-over rating, is 5% to 6.8% less likely to roll over than the Seltos, which received a four-star rating.

For its top level performance in IIHS driver and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, roof strength and head restraint tests, its standard vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, its standard vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its standard headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Mazda 3 its highest rating: “Top Pick Plus” for 2021, a rating granted to only 74 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Seltos is only a standard “Top Pick” for 2021.

Warranty

The Mazda 3’s 5 year corrosion warranty has no mileage limitations, but the corrosion warranty on the Seltos runs out after 100,000 miles.

Reliability

To reliably power the ignition and other systems and to recharge the battery, the Mazda 3 has a 130-amp alternator. The Seltos’ standard 120-amp alternator isn’t as powerful.

A reliable vehicle saves its owner time, money and trouble. Nobody wants to be stranded or have to be without a vehicle while it’s being repaired. Consumer Reports rates the Mazda 3’s reliability 19 points higher than the Seltos.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2021 Auto Issue reports that Mazda vehicles are more reliable than Kia vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Mazda first in reliability. Kia is ranked 15th.

Engine

The Mazda 3 has more powerful engines than the Seltos:

	Horsepower	Torque
Mazda 3 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder	155 HP	150 lbs.-ft.
Mazda 3 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder	186 HP	186 lbs.-ft.
Mazda 3 2.5 turbo 4-cylinder	250 HP	320 lbs.-ft.
Seltos 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder	146 HP	132 lbs.-ft.
Seltos Nightfall/SX 1.6 turbo 4-cylinder	175 HP	195 lbs.-ft.

As tested in Motor Trend the Mazda 3 4 cyl. is faster than the Seltos Nightfall/SX 1.6 turbo 4-cylinder (automatics tested):

	3	Seltos
Zero to 30 MPH	2.6 sec	2.7 sec
Zero to 60 MPH	7.3 sec	7.4 sec
Zero to 80 MPH	12.5 sec	13.1 sec
Quarter Mile	15.7 sec	15.9 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	90.3 MPH	86.9 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

An engine control system that can shut down some of the engine’s cylinders helps improve the Mazda 3 AWD non-turbo’s fuel efficiency. The Seltos doesn’t offer a system that can shut down part of the engine.

Both the Mazda 3 and the Seltos offer an available automatic start/stop engine feature to stop unnecessary fuel waste and pollution at stop lights and heavy traffic. All Mazda 3s with automatic start/stop have a standard disable switch for the system, so a driver can keep the engine from shutting off when the vehicle stops temporarily.

Environmental Friendliness

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Mazda 3 higher (7 out of 10) than the Kia Seltos (5). This means the Mazda 3 produces up to 8 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Seltos every 15,000 miles.

Brakes and Stopping

The Mazda 3 stops shorter than the Seltos:

	Mazda 3	Seltos
60 to 0 MPH	115 feet	122 feet	Motor Trend

Suspension and Handling

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Mazda 3’s wheelbase is 3.8 inches longer than on the Seltos (107.3 inches vs. 103.5 inches).

The Mazda 3 Premium Sedan handles at .86 G’s, while the Seltos S pulls only .77 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

Servicing Ease

A maintenance reminder system is standard on the Mazda 3 to save the owner time and money by calculating maintenance intervals for oil changes based on odometer mileage. This takes the guesswork out of keeping your vehicle in top condition and helps it last longer. Kia doesn’t offer a maintenance reminder on the Seltos.

Ergonomics

When two different drivers share the Mazda 3 Preferred/Carbon/Premium/Turbo, the memory seats and mirrors make it convenient for both. Each keyless remote activates different, customized memories for the driver’s seat position and outside mirror angle. The Seltos doesn’t offer a memory system.

The Mazda 3 Premium/Turbo has a standard heads-up display that projects speed, warning and navigation instruction readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The Seltos doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

The Mazda 3’s power parking brake sets with one touch and releases with one touch or automatically. The Seltos has a lever-type parking brake that has to be strenuously raised to engage properly. It has to be lifted up more and a button depressed to release it.

The Mazda 3’s front and rear power windows all open or close fully with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside the car. The Seltos’ standard power window switches have to be held the entire time to close them fully. Only its driver’s window opens automatically.

On a hot day the Mazda 3’s driver can lower all the windows from a distance using the keyless remote. The driver of the Seltos can only operate the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

The Mazda 3’s rain-sensitive wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically based on the amount of rainfall on the windshield. This allows the driver to concentrate on driving without constantly adjusting the wipers. The Seltos’ manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

To help drivers see further while navigating curves, the Mazda 3 Premium/Turbo/Carbon Hatchback has standard adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle. The Seltos doesn’t offer cornering lights.

When the Mazda 3 Preferred/Carbon/Premium/Turbo is put in reverse, both rearview mirrors tilt from their original position. This gives the driver a better view of the curb during parallel parking maneuvers. Shifting out of reverse puts the mirrors into their original positions. The Seltos’ mirrors don’t automatically adjust for backing.

The Mazda 3’s optional rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Seltos offers an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

On extremely cold winter days, the Mazda 3 Turbo’s standard heated steering wheel provides comfort, allowing the driver to steer safely and comfortably before the car heater warms up. The Seltos doesn’t offer a heated steering wheel.

The Mazda 3 Select/Preferred/Carbon/Premium/Turbo’s standard dual zone air conditioning allows the driver and front passenger to choose two completely different temperatures so people with different temperature preferences won’t have to compromise. This makes both the driver and front passenger as comfortable as possible. The Seltos doesn’t offer dual zone air conditioning.

Model Availability

The Mazda 3 comes in sedan and four door hatchback bodystyles; the Kia Seltos isn’t available as a sedan or four door hatchback.

Recommendations

The Mazda 3 has won recognition from these important consumer publications:

	Mazda 3	Seltos
Consumer Reports® Recommends	TRUE	FALSE
Car Book “Best Bet”	TRUE	n/a