Compare the2022 Hyundai Elantra N LineVS 2022 Mazda 3

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Transmission
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Ergonomics
Recommendations

Safety

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In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Elantra N Line are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Mazda 3 doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Elantra N Line has a standard blind spot warning system which uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them and moves the vehicle back into its lane. Only the Mazda 3 Select/Preferred/Carbon/Premium/Turbo offers a blind spot warning system.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Elantra N Line has a standard rear cross-path warning system, which uses sensors in the rear bumper to alert the driver to vehicles approaching from the side, helping the driver avoid collisions. Only the Mazda 3 Select/Preferred/Carbon/Premium/Turbo has a rear cross-path warning system.

Both the Elantra N Line and the Mazda 3 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, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras and driver alert monitors.

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

	Elantra N Line	Mazda 3
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Leg Forces (l/r)	66/48 lbs.	205/212 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 Hyundai Elantra N Line is safer than the Mazda 3:

	Elantra N Line	Mazda 3
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	83	112
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	345	371
Spine Acceleration	68 G’s	71 G’s
Hip Force	355 lbs.	620 lbs.
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	184	199

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

Warranty

The Elantra N Line comes with a full 5-year/60,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire car and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The 3’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 2 years or 24,000 miles sooner.

Hyundai’s powertrain warranty covers the Elantra N Line 5 years and 40,000 miles longer than Mazda covers the 3. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the Mazda 3 ends after only 5 years or 60,000 miles.

The Elantra N Line’s corrosion warranty is 2 years longer than the Mazda 3’s (7 vs. 5 years).

Hyundai pays for scheduled maintenance on the Elantra N Line for 3 years and 36,000 miles. Hyundai will pay for oil changes, lubrication and any other required maintenance. Mazda doesn’t pay scheduled maintenance for the 3.

There are over 52 percent more Hyundai dealers than there are Mazda dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Elantra N Line’s warranty.

Reliability

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2021 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Hyundai vehicles are better in initial quality than Mazda vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Hyundai above average in initial quality. With 28 more problems per 100 vehicles, Mazda is rated below average.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the statistics that show that Hyundai vehicles are more reliable than Mazda vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Hyundai third in reliability, above the industry average. With 31 more problems per 100 vehicles, Mazda is ranked 12th.

Engine

The Elantra N Line’s 1.6 turbo 4-cylinder produces 46 more horsepower (201 vs. 155) and 45 lbs.-ft. more torque (195 vs. 150) than the Mazda 3’s standard 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder. The Elantra N Line’s 1.6 turbo 4-cylinder produces 15 more horsepower (201 vs. 186) and 9 lbs.-ft. more torque (195 vs. 186) than the Mazda 3’s optional 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder.

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Elantra N Line gets better mileage than the Mazda 3 Sedan:

			MPG
Elantra N Line
FWD	Auto	1.6 turbo 4-cyl.	28 city/36 hwy
Mazda 3 Sedan
FWD	Auto	2.5 DOHC 4-cyl.	26 city/35 hwy
AWD	Auto	2.5 DOHC 4-cyl.	25 city/33 hwy
		2.5 turbo 4-cyl.	23 city/32 hwy

On the EPA test cycle the Elantra N Line gets better mileage than the Mazda 3 Hatchback:

			MPG
Elantra N Line
FWD	Manual	1.6 turbo 4-cyl.	25 city/34 hwy
	Auto	1.6 turbo 4-cyl.	28 city/36 hwy
Mazda 3 Hatchback
FWD	Manual	2.5 DOHC 4-cyl.	24 city/33 hwy
	Auto	2.5 DOHC 4-cyl.	26 city/34 hwy
		2.5 DOHC 4-cyl.	26 city/35 hwy
AWD	Auto	2.5 DOHC 4-cyl.	25 city/31 hwy
		2.5 turbo 4-cyl.	23 city/31 hwy

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Hyundai Elantra N Line uses regular unleaded gasoline. The Mazda 3 with the 2.5 turbo 4-cylinder engine requires premium for maximum efficiency, which can cost 20 to 55 cents more per gallon.

Transmission

A seven-speed automatic (SMG) is optional on the Hyundai Elantra N Line, for better acceleration and lower engine speed on the highway. Only a six-speed automatic is available for the Mazda 3.

The Elantra N Line offers an optional sequential manual gearbox (SMG). With no clutch pedal to worry about and a fully automatic mode, an SMG is much more efficient than a conventional automatic but just as easy to drive. The Mazda 3 doesn’t offer an SMG.

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the Elantra N Line’s front brake rotors are larger than those on the Mazda 3:

	Elantra N Line	Mazda 3	Mazda 3 AWD
Front Rotors	12 inches	11.02 inches	11.61 inches

The Elantra N Line stops much shorter than the Mazda 3:

	Elantra N Line	Mazda 3
60 to 0 MPH	111 feet	122 feet	Motor Trend

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the Elantra N Line has larger tires than the Mazda 3 (235/40R18 vs. 205/60R16). The Elantra N Line’s optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Mazda 3 (235/40R18 vs. 215/45R18).

The Elantra N Line’s tires provide better handling because they have a lower 40 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Mazda 3 2.0/2.5 S’ standard 60 series tires. The Elantra N Line’s tires are lower profile than the Mazda 3 Hatchback/Select/Preferred/Premium/Turbo’s 45 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Elantra N Line has standard 18-inch wheels. Smaller 16-inch wheels are standard on the Mazda 3 2.0/2.5 S.

Suspension and Handling

For superior ride and handling, the Hyundai Elantra N Line has fully independent front and rear suspensions. An independent suspension allows the wheels to follow the road at the best angle for gripping the pavement, without compromising ride comfort. The Mazda 3 has a rear torsion beam axle, with a semi-independent rear suspension.

The Elantra N Line has vehicle speed sensitive variable-assist power steering, for low-effort parking, better control at highway speeds and during hard cornering, and a better feel of the road. The Mazda 3 doesn’t offer variable-assist power steering.

The Elantra N Line handles at .91 G’s, while the Mazda 3 Premium Sedan AWD pulls only .79 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Elantra N Line executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.8 seconds quicker than the Mazda 3 Premium Sedan AWD (26.3 seconds @ .66 average G’s vs. 28.1 seconds @ .58 average G’s).

Passenger Space

Because it has more passenger and cargo room, the EPA rates the Elantra N Line a Mid-size car, while the Mazda 3 is rated a Compact.

The Elantra N Line has 6.6 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Mazda 3 Sedan (99.4 vs. 92.8).

The Elantra N Line has 2.6 inches more front headroom, .8 inches more front shoulder room, .1 inches more rear headroom, 2.9 inches more rear legroom and 2.1 inches more rear shoulder room than the Mazda 3 Sedan.

Cargo Capacity

The Elantra N Line has a larger trunk than the Mazda 3 Sedan (14.2 vs. 13.2 cubic feet).

To make loading groceries and cargo easier when your hands are full, just waiting momentarily behind the back bumper can open the Elantra N Line’s trunk, leaving your hands completely free. The Mazda 3 doesn’t offer a hands-free gesture to open its trunk, forcing you to put cargo down if your hands are full.

Ergonomics

The power windows standard on both the Elantra N Line and the Mazda 3 have locks to prevent small children from operating them. When the lock on the Elantra N Line is engaged the driver can still operate all of the windows, for instance to close one opened by a child. The Mazda 3 prevents the driver from operating the other windows just as it does the other passengers.

The Elantra N Line’s standard outside mirrors include heating elements to clear off the mirrors for better visibility. Mazda only offers heated mirrors on the Mazda 3 Carbon/Turbo.

The Elantra N Line has a 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. Dual zone air conditioning is only available on the Mazda 3 Select/Preferred/Carbon/Premium/Turbo.

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Hyundai Elantra N Line has a standard wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. Wireless charging costs extra on the Mazda 3.

Recommendations

The Hyundai Elantra outsold the Mazda 3 by over three to one during the 2021 model year.