The 2017 Mazda3 has been handed the number one spot on Kelley Blue Book’s “10 Coolest Cars Under $18,000” list. This is not a repeat from last year. Or the year before that. Or the year before that.
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No, it seems that the editors at KBB simply think that the Mazda3 is the coolest sub-$18,000 car on the road for the fourth year in a row, made even better by the fact that the Mazda3 has been on that list since its beginning 14 years ago.
Specifically, KBB’s executive editorial director and executive market analyst Jack R. Nerad said, “The Mazda3 is widely regarded as the best-looking and most fun-to-drive vehicle in the segment, and we call it one of the coolest cars of all time.”
The fun-to-drive factor is one of the list’s main considerations, along with how fun the car is to own, measuring up to a more or less subjective “cool factor.”
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The Mazda3 starts at an MSRP of $17,845 and, for 2017, comes with Mazda’s specialized G-Vectoring Control, which was first shown off on the Mazda6 and which uses power distributions to give the driver greater control and a better driving feel through corners.
In addition, the Mazda3 checks several other cool boxes, including being an IIHS Top Safety Pick+, being offered as both a sedan and a hatchback, and offering a six-speed manual transmission as well as an automatic.
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