MR Car Design Wrenches Out an Extra 50hp from Mazda3 MPS Hot Hatch

German tuning and styling house MR Car Design has announced the arrival of a new performance package for the European market Mazda3 MPS hatchback, which is known as the MazdaSpeed3 in North America. Read more »

Official Photos of All-New 2014 Mazda3 Hatchback and Sedan Allegedly Leaked

If we are to believe a report from UK magazine Autoexpress, this is what the next generations of the Mazda3 four-door sedan and five-door hatchback may look like when the compact model is presented in the summer of 2013.

Before we move onto the details, here's little bit of background on how the images came to be and what Mazda had to say.

The publication claims it received the pictures in an unmarked envelope and then asked Mazda UK about them. A company spokesperson said that they are "digital renderings" made to display how the new Kodo design language could be applied on the next "3", rather than a real car.

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Edmunds Tests 2013 Ford Focus ST, Finds it Slower but with Better Handling than MazdaSpeed3

The fact that Ford did not have an available 2013 Focus ST press car didn't discourage Edmunds' InsideLine from testing the hot hatch in the U.S., as the online magazine went ahead and spent $29,185 to buy a Tangerine Scream example from a local dealer to add to its long-term fleet.

After completing a quick break-in to settle in the mechanical components of the car, InsideLine then took Ford's 252-horsepower hatch to the track.

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2013 Mazda3 MPS Hot Hatch Remains Largely Unchanged, Priced Just Under £24k in the UK

Mazda has released pricing information for the 2013 model year Mazda3 MPS (known as the MazdaSpeed3 in North America) in Britain.

The performance version of the series skips on most of the cosmetic upgrades found on the rest of the range. The only changes made to the MPS are the new graphics on the tail lamps, plus a new gunmetal finish for the 18-inch alloy wheels, and a Black Mica finish for the inner roof spoiler (beneath the wing), door mirror housings and lower rear bumper trim.

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R&T Tires-up Scion FR-S and Pits it Against the Impreza WRX and Mazdaspeed3

By now, the “less is more” dictum that Toyota keeps repeating at every opportunity concerning its GT86 (that’s Scion FR-S in the US) rear-wheel drive coupe must be ingrained in every car fan’s head.

The 86/FR-S/BRZ trio ignores the horsepower and performance war and focuses on pure driver enjoyment like its famous ancestor, the Toyota AE86.

Well, a safe way to have a lot of fun is going to a track. However, here the 17-inch Michelin Primacy HP 87W GreenX tires with which the Scion FR-S is fitted with are below par. This comes as no surprise since they are the exact ones worn by the Prius hybrid and they are made for low resistance and fuel saving, not recording lap times.

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Ford Focus ST, MazdaSpeed3 and Honda Civic Coupe Si Play Around in an Abandoned Warehouse

The second episode of Ford's catchy new web series dedicated to the fastest Focus model and titled "ST Sessions" went live today, exactly two weeks after the series premiered on YouTube.

Joining the 263-horsepower MazdaSpeed3 that made a guest appearance in the previous episode (see here) as well, is the latest Honda Civic Coupe Si, which is powered by a naturally aspirated 2.4-liter inline-four cranking out 201-ponies.

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2013 Ford Focus ST Sessions Video Featuring the MazdaSpeed3, Subaru WRX and BMW M3

Ford has premiered the first of five episodes of its new web video series dedicated to the 2013 Focus ST hot hatch titled "ST Sessions".

Following the one-minute teaser released back in mid-July, the first session shows the 252-horsepower Focus ST measuring up against its natural rivals, the 263hp MazdaSpeed3 and 265hp Subaru Impreza WRX hatchbacks, as well as the more expensive and much faster 414hp BMW M3 Coupe.

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Ford Teases 2013 Focus ST Vs. Rivals Video with BMW M3, VW Golf GTI and More

The Blue Oval continues to heavily promote the new Focus ST ahead of its U.S. market launch in September.

After the crowd sourced video showing Top Gear host Tanner Foust and stunt driver Greg Tracy racing against each other in Focus STs on the streets of Florida's Key West, Ford has prepared another clip titled "Focus ST Sessions", which will come out on July 31.

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You know You Shouldn't be Driving When…

We have watched this video several times and still cannot find a reasonable excuse for why the driver of the Lada Niva crashed into a stopped car on the opposite side of the road.

Even if the pedestrians crossing the road surprised the driver, we can't see why she (according to the YouTube poster) didn't stop her vehicle before it hit the Mazda3.

Head past the break to watch the incident as it was recorded from a dashboard mounted camera.

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Close Call for Motorcyclist that Almost gets Sandwiched Between Two Vehicles

A motorcyclist found himself in a very tight and dangerous spot when he foolishly tried to pass between a Mazda3 sedan and a large truck.

In the process, the biker knocked down the car's passenger mirror and instead of pulling over to apologize, he took off without looking back. The Mazda3 driver caught up him in a move that was probably unnecessary and equally foolish. Go figure….

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Poll: Which Sports Car Would You Buy for Around $25,000?

Let us just start off by saying that if you live in the States, you should feel fortunate that you can acquire a fairly rewarding and fun to drive sports car for $25,000 (approx. €19,300) or even less if you don't care much about all the bells and whistles of modern automobiles. If you are wondering why, head over to this post.

Now, with the recent arrival of the Scion FR-S and Subaru BRZ twins as well as a pricing announcement for the 2013 Ford Focus ST, which goes on sale later this year, buyers searching to buy a sports car for around $25k will have plenty of options to choose from.

The automotive menu at this price point includes front-wheel drive sport hatchbacks such as the MazdaSpeed 3 and VW Golf GTI, rear-wheel drive coupes like the Hyundai Genesis 2.0 Turbo and Chevy Camaro V6 and the Mazda MX-5 Miata roadster.

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Mazda3 Facelift on Sale in the UK with Prices Starting from £13,495

Mazda has released UK pricing for its updated compact hatchback that's available for orders now. The 2012 Mazda3 starts from £13,495 for the 1.6 TS model, however, the price includes a special £2,300 saving that ends on March 31. The regular OTR price will then be £14,795.

The revised five-door Mazda3 has improved aerodynamics (Cd 0.29) and is distinguished on the outside by the tweaked front fascia, new rear bumper and twist-spoke alloy wheels.

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