savage value? Maybe you mean salvage value? Chop-chop na ba yun?

The resale value of the Mazda3 2.0R is about the same as the Civic 2.0. The Mazda3 1.6, I'm not sure, but it's better than Nissan's or Mitsubishi's at the moment, if not quite Honda-level.

And, if you will check over at Protegetech or TeamRage, there are lots of dressed-up Mazda3s out there, right now. Very good looking ones, too.

Let's be realistic here... the Civic has many advantages over the Mazda3, but in a beauty pageant, it's still a draw.

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RE: seats: Civic's rear seats are roomier, but I still find the front seats of the Civic very painful on long trips. This was also the observation of my cousin who drives both his Mazda3 and his girlfriend's Civic.