2020 Honda Civic Hatchback vs 2021 Mazda MAZDA3

Half a decade ago, Honda redesigned the Civic, positioning it against rivals like the Subaru Impreza and Toyota Corolla. For 2020, Honda made subtle styling tweaks to the Civic Hatchback, including body-color crossbars on the fake air intakes, a new grille, and smoked headlights. New wheel designs also debuted. The top-of-the-line Sport Touring trim, with its Platinum White Pearl paint, garnered admiration from onlookers, who mistook it for a Type R. Inside, the Sport Touring trim featured stitched leather on the steering wheel, soft surfaces, and quality materials, though hard plastic was still present. The six-speed manual gearbox, previously reserved for Sport trim, was now available with Sport Touring trim, bringing the price to $28,980, including the destination charge.

The 2021 Mazda3, redesigned in 2019, won the prestigious World Car Design of the Year for 2020. Its bodywork reflected drama and sophistication, with the 5-door hatchback adopting an aggressive stance. The 2.5 Turbo model, available in both sedan and hatchback body styles, included all-wheel drive and Premium Plus trim. The base price for the sedan was $29,900, while the hatchback with Premium Plus trim was $33,750. Our test car, a sedan with Premium Plus trim and Machine Gray Metallic paint, cost $33,890, including the destination charge. The interior featured supple Nappa leather, with the hatchback offering black and red leather options, while the sedan offered black or white. The Mazda3 Turbo's interior exuded quality, with close attention to design detail and bright metallic accents.

The 2020 Honda Civic Hatchback, equipped with a turbocharged 1.5-liter 4-cylinder engine, produced 174 horsepower in LX, EX, and EX-L trims, and 180 horsepower in Sport and Sport Touring trims. Torque measured 162 lb-ft with the CVT and 177 lb-ft with the six-speed manual transmission. The front-wheel-drive Civic Hatchback offered a quiet, refined, and well-mannered engine. The transmission's clutch travel and gearbox throws were long, differentiating the driving experience from the Civic Si, which was tighter and tauter. The Civic Hatchback Sport and Sport Touring trims provided a softer, more compliant ride, wider seats, and a quieter cabin, making them easier to live with daily. The EPA rated the test car at 32 mpg in combined driving, and it achieved 32.7 mpg on the testing loop.

The 2021 Mazda3 Turbo featured a turbocharged 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine, producing 250 horsepower and 320 lb-ft of torque with 93-octane fuel, and 227 hp and 310 lb-ft with 87-octane gas. The Mazda3 Turbo came with a six-speed automatic transmission and i-Activ AWD system, enhancing corner-exit capability. The turbocharged powertrain added no more than 120 pounds to the Mazda3, yet supplied 64 extra horsepower and 134 added lb-ft of torque, transforming performance. The car's dynamic tuning and smooth, predictable engine and transmission response delivered stunning speed without freneticism. The Mazda3 Turbo averaged 20.4 mpg during the test drive, falling short of the EPA estimate of 27 mpg in combined driving.

The 2020 Honda Civic Hatchback offered 25.2 cubic feet of cargo space, slightly more than the Honda HR-V Touring. While the Civic Hatchback couldn't match the HR-V for maximum volume, it provided better acceleration and fuel efficiency. The driver's seat in the Civic Hatchback was low, but the Sport Touring's heated leather front seats offered ample thigh support. The center console storage area was long and deep, with a sliding armrest, tray, and cupholders. Rear-seat comfort and legroom were good, but the lack of air-conditioning vents and dark tinted rear glass made passengers uncomfortable.

The 2021 Mazda3 2.5 Turbo's interior, lined in Nappa leather, featured heated front seats and a heated steering wheel. However, it lacked front seat ventilation and rear-seat air conditioning vents and USB charging ports. In-cabin storage was adequate but limited, especially if opting for wireless smartphone charging. The sedan's trunk space measured 13.2 cubic feet, while the hatchback offered 20.1 cubic feet behind the rear seat and 47.1 cubic feet with it folded down.

The 2020 Honda Civic Hatchback featured a 7-inch touchscreen infotainment system with Bluetooth, Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, satellite radio, text-messaging support, a navigation system, a quick-charging USB port, and a 12-speaker premium sound system in the Sport Touring trim. Automatic climate control and Smart Entry with Walk Away Auto Lock were standard on most versions. However, the infotainment system lacked a tuning knob, a larger screen, and reliable voice-recognition technology.

The 2021 Mazda3's Mazda Connect infotainment system combined an 8.8-inch display with Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, and a three-year trial subscription to Mazda Connected Services. A WiFi hotspot and MyMazda smartphone app provided remote operation of the car's door locks and engine. However, the infotainment screen was not touch-sensitive, and the voice-recognition technology was subpar. The system was paired with a 12-speaker Bose premium sound system, which included Audio Pilot road noise reduction. An Active Driving Display (HUD) was standard on the Mazda3 2.5 Turbo.

The 2020 Honda Civic Hatchback included the Honda Sensing suite of advanced driving-assistance and collision-avoidance safety features as standard equipment. This suite included forward-collision warning with automatic emergency braking, automatic high-beam headlights, lane-departure warning, lane-keeping assist, and a Road Departure Mitigation system. Adaptive cruise control was also standard, with low-speed following capability in CVT-equipped versions. However, the lane-keeping assist lacked smoothness, and the adaptive cruise control occasionally braked for no reason. The Civic Hatchback did not have a blind-spot monitoring system or rear cross-traffic alert, relying on LaneWatch for the right-side blind spot. The 2020 Civic Hatchback did not earn a Top Safety Pick rating from the IIHS due to Poor headlight performance.

The 2021 Mazda3's i-ActiveSense collection of advanced driving assistance systems (ADAS) was designed to keep the driver engaged and prevent collisions. The adaptive cruise control included stop-and-go capability, and the automatic high-beam LED headlights featured an Adaptive Front Lighting System. The Premium Plus trim added a high-definition surround-view camera, front and rear parking sensors, low-speed reverse automatic braking, and Traffic Jam Assist. The Mazda3 excelled in crash tests, earning top five-star ratings in every NHTSA assessment. The IIHS had not yet carried over the Mazda3's "Top Safety Pick+" rating from 2020.