2008 Mazda 3 I Sedan 4-door 2.0l on 2040-cars

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Watch a high-speed chase from a motorcycle-mounted officer's point of view

Riding a motorcycle through high traffic can be a stressful experience. And we don't even want to imagine what it's like to have to actually pursue someone on a motorcycle. Fortunately, we don't have to. Officer Troy Gurley of the Florence, Alabama police force recently attempted to stop a vehicle for traffic violations. The driver, 24-year-old Justin Sanders, figured he could use his Mazda3 to outrun the bike cop. Turns out, not so much.
Gurley pursued Sanders for nearly five minutes as the Mazda driver ran stop signs, swerved through traffic and raced through residential neighborhoods, but the perpetrator couldn't shake the tenacious and experienced rider. Other units soon joined the pursuit, and Sanders thought it best to leave the protection of his car to attempt to flee on foot. From there, it didn't take officers long to apprehend him. You can watch the video below for yourself.

2014 Mazda3

The Cure For The Common Corolla
I hate the Toyota Corolla. I'm not talking about the new 2014 model; I can't yet judge a car I haven't driven. I'm referring to the current, old-as-dirt sedan. As an appliance, I get why people buy it, but it represents everything that I, as a car enthusiast, dislike. I don't like looking at it, I don't like sitting in it, and I really don't like driving it. There is absolutely no amount of emotion dialed into any part of the Corolla experience and every other vehicle in the segment is a far better choice. But still, somehow, Toyota sells 'em like hotcakes.
Thankfully, there are a lot of people who agree with me. And for folks like us, companies like Mazda exist. This small Japanese automaker places emotion and driver involvement as its top priorities when creating new products, and mostly - especially in recent years - the end results have been great. The new CX-5 crossover is a doll, to say nothing of the rakish and lovely new Mazda6 that launched earlier this year. And let's not forget the Miata...

Mazda CX-5 named Japan's Car of The Year, Subaru BR-Z wins "Special Award"

The Mazda CX-5 stamped its Kodo design and SkyActiv technology authority all over the Japan Car of the Year awards, taking the top prize ahead of the Subaru BRZ/Toyota GT 86. It is Mazda's second victory in the last ten years, the 2005 MX-5 claiming the same trophy, and the fourth time the Hiroshima company has won.
The award is decided by 60 local "automotive experts and journalists," and open to any passenger car released in Japan from November 1, 2011 to October 31, 2012 that has sold more than 500 units. Each judge gets 25 votes, his or her top vote getting 10 points, the rest of the points being spread among the judge's choice for the next best four cars.
The second-place getters were the Toyobaru twins with 318 votes, the surprise being they didn't beat or get any closer to the crossover. The Subaru BRZ did claw some mojo back, earning the Special Award given to cars that have made "an exceptional impact." The BMW 3 Series was third overall and won the Import Car of the Year award with plenty of room between it and the second place Range Rover Evoque.