So my cousin is letting me pick between two of his cars to have and I have always loved these two cars and I don't know which to pick. He has a 2005 Celica and a 2007 Mazda3. The natural choice would be the newer car. But if they were made in the same year, which would you pick and why? Thanks soompiers! ()

Toyota Celica- Light Baby Blue


Mazda 3- Charcoal

Newer =/= better. Celica for me cause of it's cool looks . In terms of power they're similar though...

mazda3 hands down


a free car is always a good car

whats the mileage on both.
and see if there were any accidents or whatever.

i mean the celica looks better imo so yea....

mazda 3 even if it was same year.

what's the mileage on each? that should weigh in on your decision more than the model year of the car.

i recommend the celica because of it's proven reliability even through high mileage. i've owned a 7th gen gt and gt-s and had 0 problems on both. only had to change oil. not at all saying the mazda3 is bad - i just never experienced one first-hand. also 2005 was when they discontinued the celica and it's the last and greatest model incorporating all the fixes toyota made every year since 2000. is it stick shift? gt or gt-s?

you might want to consider ease of access for your passengers. for that, 4-door > 2-door
but i prefer looks of a 2-door hatchback coupe over a 4-door sedan.

i would pick celica because it's way cooler... Dunno about hp on celica but mazda 3 is about 250 for the 2010 one. But then again... celica is hard to drive and is "meant" for tall people, not to take into consideration the blind spot is really hard to see.

Driving wise --> mazda 3
Looks and everything else --> celica

(lol no conclusion in the end~)

The blind spot on the celica is mainly because it's a coupe and the quarter window is very small. The mazda 3 B pillar acts as a blind spot also but it's not nearly as bad as the celica.

If both are relatively in the same condition, I'd drive straight towards the Mazda. I drove my friends Mazda3 once and loved every minute of it, albeit it was auto and I absolutely dislike autos.

I wouldn't say the Celica is for tall people. I've had tall people drive my Celica & their head would almost scrape the roof.

I would pick the Celica because it looks better.
I've had two Celicas & they were extremely reliable!

What is meant by 'tall' people? I'm 5ft girl would that be too short? (O__o)

both are great cars
but i would pick the celica
since i like 2 door more than 4 door.

5 ft wouldn't be too short.
I'm guessing tall would be 5'8'' and up. I'm 5'3'' and the car is perfect. =)

so what's meant by a tall person car? Does that have something to do with the Blind spots?

and taking passengers in consideration would the Mazda3 be a more comfortable ride for them?

A tall person car is just a car where a tall person can sit in and their head won't scrape the ceiling of the car. I can't fit in a Celica properly, because I'm 6'1".

And Mazda 3 is far better for passengers. Sedans are always better than Coupes for passengers. It's also more suited to taller people.

I would suggest the Mazda 3 due to a generally better car, unless it has absurd mileage for it's age (For each year of the car's existence, for example, this car would have 2, it should have no more than 15,000 miles a year, which means no more than 30,000 miles). It should handle a bit better, faster, bigger trunk (don't quote me on that!), and a better ride in general.

It is a manual and I believe at GTS
Besides more options and differnt engine powers, are there any physical differences between the two?

BTW, thanks for your input =)

They look different from one another.

You can define physical as much as you want, Celica has 2 door and Mazda3 has 4 door. Suspension in the Celica is stiffer than Mazda3, I think. Mazda3 probably gets better gas mileage. If one's automatic, it's much easier to drive. Both are FWD, and will suffer similar problems from that. Toyota has a better reliability record than Mazda in general. Mazda is sportier than Toyota. Celica GT-S has sport seats I believe, which some find uncomfortable. Celica is lower to the ground than the Mazda3.

OH I"M SO SORRY! I meant the GT and the GTS Celicas...

huh? 250HP on mazda 3? sure thats correct? rsx-s is about 210HP

It basically means you'll have to push your seat more forward. When I test drive an RSX (also applies to any two door cars), I felt so weird driving it because I was so up close to the steering wheel because I needed to be more forward to step on the pedals. So basically my whole body was about 6-7 inches away from the steering wheel so that my feet can gas and break. I'm 5'2'' by the way.

Anyways, I'm more fond of the Celica than Mazdas. So for me, Celica.

GT has 140 hp.
GT-S has 180 hp.

The GT-S is slightly lower than the GT 'cus it's the sportier version.

GT is slower than GTS, that's about it. GT-S is faster than the Mazda3, but GT will be slower. The only notable differences from GT-S and GT are the GT-S has some leather on the steering wheel, something with the seats, different tire options, fog lights, and an engine that produces more HP.

Did I mention the Celica can seat 4 at most?

I would say go with the Mazda3 still. Newer, better car IMO, and seats more people. Plus you can fit tall people in it.

oh you're welcome (:

GT-S has bigger disc brakes all around (versus rear drum brakes on the GT) and bigger 16" wheels which look nicer IMO. these make the GT-S safer with more stopping power and more grip.

GT is 5spd and GT-S is 6spd if they're manual.

a premium JBL 8-speaker sound system comes standard on the GT-S.

the non-leather version of the 2005 GT-S came with soft Alcantara sport cloth seats front and back whereas the GT came with regular cloth. some enthusiasts prefer Alcantara cloth over leather because it's extra grippy.

only the 2005 GT-S has a rev limiter at the start of redline (all previous years could rev beyond the 7800rpm start of redline) to prevent engine abuse when people try to stay in lift (>6400 rpm)

lift is another difference. GT has a VVT-i engine and GT-S has a VVTL-i engine which means in addition to the computer aided variable valve timing (VVT) there's also a mechanically activated switch that lifts valves even longer for an abrupt bump in power at >6400 rpm.

in terms of cargo space, i could fit my 22" tv, printer, microwave, snowboard+gear, all my clothes, 2 filled backpacks, box of textbooks, and miscellaneous other things that filled my college dorm room and also my 430 sq ft studio after college. when i had to buy a bed i could fit a (rolled) twin mattress, its slats, and its frame in addition to other ikea stuff. also consider you can stack long things better in a hatchback because it's one large continuous space with the seats folded down. utility between a mazda3 sedan and celica is debatable, i.e. i fit two 7+ foot surfboards which extended way out to the dashboard surrounding my friend in the passenger seat. we tried fitting everything in my friend's mazda3 sedan and couldn't because its trunk is a separate compartment which only slightly opens up to the main cabin. a mazda3 hatch would win in utility hands down if that's what your cousin has.

the celica served me well through college, moving up and down norcal/socal, surfing, and on snowboard trips to the mountains (packing snow chains just in case) for 9 years so it definitely has utility.

also people who are 5'7" or taller sitting in the back of a celica can bump their heads against the ceiling if you go over speed bumps too fast. if you're only using it to transport friends around town, a celica will do. if you plan on doing a lot of long road trips, the rear passengers will be uncomfortable. whenever i had to move people + cargo i just borrowed someone's suv

I would take a Mazda3. I already have a two door and realized a 4door is nice to have everyday. I might just be complaining.

I like Mazda's because they're fun to drive, reliable and easy to manage (minus rotary engines, not everyone knows what kind of special little toy they are buying, do the research!!! >.<). My Miata's got 141k on the clock and still going strong.

I read a lot of the reviews and rode in the Mazda 3. Smooth, simple, gas sipping 4 door box car. Nothing too special about it. Never got to drive it. From my 30 mins in the shotgun, its so simple and plain.

I rode in my friends GT-S (he is a Celica lover to death). I gotta say, the interior was very nice and the ride was very compliant. Not too hard, closer to softer side, exhaust sounded nice, girls liked it a lot.

For me, if I were to chose, I would take the Mazda3. Just drive it till the wheels fall off and not have to worry about it.
You'll see what I mean about the 4 doors sooner or later (if you chose the Celica that is).

It's a tough choice, if the Celica is stick, that could be more fun to drive than an auto.
If both were manual, I would get the 3. If the Celica is Manual and the Mazda3 auto, I'd get the Celica.

toyota motors are really reliable..
id get the celica they last for a really long time..
though id deff take the alrac over the newer celica

i drive a toyota altezza atm yes with the beams 3s-ge
around 160,000 km right now.. abused on the weekends and still pulls hard..


but i guess if you needed the room the mazda 3

its arguable that some people would say having a 4 door to seat more people is convenient.....
but if you ask me, i often prefer driving a coupe because i dont have to be taxiboy.
however....id still take the mazda3 over the celica.

(i think the celica is hideous)

I would go with the GT-S for that mad tyte vtec known as vvtli.

However, if you're an aggressive driver like me, then shifting quickly into 2nd will be a problem since the gt-s and the xrs are known to have the problem with getting into 2nd gear under aggressive shifting.

XD just go for the GTS (:
i was lookin into the GTS also when i wanted one.

isn't there something about getting the GTS before what 04/05? some guy told me but i can't remember.

i would get the celica.
Toyota is very reliable ^^

the mazda 3 isn't bad car either and if you're lazy, an automatic is great :P,
but i'd prefer a manual.

lift engagement was different.

I think 3rd and 4th were the problem. My 3rd was prone to grinding when I was still learning to drive stick but it went away as I got better at shifting. 2003+ Celicas got revised 3rd and 4th gears, syncros, and sleeves (new part numbers compared to pre-2003). 2000-2001 Celicas had narrow shift gates which made it easy to mis-shift so Toyota widened them for 2002 and up.



2003-2005 had the revised front bumper and tail lights, instrument panel had a new font and color easier on the eyes, sexier black interior panels (used to be gray), and optional HID's. 2004-2005 had drive-by-wire technology and a new lip kit option (same one pictured in the OP) available exclusively in North America. It's somewhat rare and highly sought after in the Celica community for its perfect OEM fitment and cleaner/less aggressive styling compared to the previous factory kit.

2001-2003 kit


2004-2005 kit

didn't read through everyone's comments, but keep in mind that the insurance cost on a 2 door vehicle is more expensive than a 4 door.

if you dont really care about performance and care about passengers, then the 4dr mazda would be a better choice for you. I drive a GTS 6speed, and it's a great fun car to drive. Gas milege, i still get about 30mpg. The Celica is also louder inside. It comes with very little sound isulation to keep the vehicle weight down, so if a noisy ride bothers you the mazda be better. I've driven my friends mazda3 hatch, and it's a nice car to have. Interior is very clean, but the seats IMO are pretty hard..like it lacks cushion. Also if you want like MP3 compatible player, the mazda has it availible and the celica doesn't offer it as an option. I guess the main point is Comfort = mazda.
But you should drive both of them and decide from there.

Ahh and i did have issues with the 1st to 2nd gear shift while in LIFT, and landing in the powerband (6200-8400RPM) is difficult from 1-2 shifts, and probably nearly impossible for the 03' gts with the higher lift engagement.

I don't know which year I drove, but I just knew that it was impossible for me to shift into 2nd gear aggressively. Coming from a Honda (which had pretty good transmissions), the majority of the owners always mini cooper quickly into 2nd. I couldn't even do that with the gt-s.

which one would have the stronger engine?

^You could use google to find the answer to that but since I was curious...

Mazda3
The engine lineup for the MAZDA 3 continues to be the MZR 2.0-liter for i models and MZR 2.3-liter on s models, both P-ZEV compliant in California-emission states, Tier 2 Bin 5 in Federal states. All horsepower ratings are now compliant with new SAE measuring standards, with the 2.0-liter engine producing 148 hp (144 hp in P-ZEV trim) at 6,500 rpm* and maximum torque of 135 lb-ft (132lb-ft in PZEV trim) at 4,500 rpm*. The 2.3-liter engine now produces 156 hp (151hp in P-ZEV trim) of maximum power at 6,500 rpm* and maximum torque of 150 lb-ft at 4,000 rpm (149 lb-ft at 4,500 rpm in P-ZEV trim)*.
source: http://www.tuninglinx.com/html/2007-mazda-3-01.html

Celica GT-S
180 bhp (134 kW; 182 PS) at 7600 rpm and 133 lb·ft (180 N·m) torque at 6800 rpm
source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_Celica

Note the Mazda3 ratings are based on new SAE standards so it might not be valid to compare numbers directly against the Celica.

I also looked up the kelley blue book value for a 2005 Celica GT-S and it's about the same as a 2007 Mazda3. Toyota's tends to retain their value better than Mazda's.

i'd pick the mazda... just cause i don't like the celica... haha but thats my opinion... though i doo like the light bluee...
idk i think that the mazda would runn smoother...
haha i'm being bias just cause i hate the celica.
=D good luck though.

toyota celica!!! i love ur pick of color btw =)
& also, since my family own toyota & mazda... the toyota seems to be a better trusted brand.