Little brother to 2005s overall winner, the Mazda3 faced strong opposition in the Under £13,500 class. In my book it fared really well, with a free-revving and torquey diesel engine and solid-as-a-rock stability.
The gearbox is just right: hold on to the lower ratios and you get plenty of ‘go’ when you need to overtake, but once you are up to 5th gear you can trundle along nicely from 50mph. Brakes are good too, and the hillstart was easy.
| Make/Model |
Caravan weight |
Drive |
Cyls/CC |
bhp/lb ft@rpm |
Price |
Tested |
| Mazda3 1.6D TS |
1,169kg |
FWD |
4/1560 |
109/180@1750 |
£12,800 |
2005 |
Mazda3 1.6D TS
