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CarsLore / Compare / Compact cars / Mazda3 vs tC

Mazda Mazda3 vs Scion tC

Two compact cars, compared on the same official records: MOT and inspection results, safety ratings, fuel use, recalls and owner complaints. 1 like-for-like measure: the Mazda Mazda3 leads on 1, the Scion tC on 0.

Where each one leads

Mazda Mazda3

  • On Canada's official test the most frugal 2026 Mazda Mazda3 uses 7.8 l/100 km, the 2016 Scion tC 9.0.

Scion tC

Ahead on none of the like-for-like measures.

Only measures that do not depend on how many cars were sold: pass and failure rates against cars of the same age, ratings, fuel use and CO₂. How we compare

At a glance

Mazda Mazda3Scion tC
Model years in the US safety record2004–20262005–2016
New cars registered in Europe427,669 (2010–2022)—
Licensed in the United Kingdom109,397—
On the road in the Netherlands22,191—
In traffic in Finland9,924—

EEA new-car registrations (CC BY 4.0) · DVLA licensed vehicles (OGL v3.0) · RDW (CC0) · Traficom (CC BY 4.0) · generations: Wikidata (CC0).

Reliability and problems

Mazda Mazda3Scion tC
UK MOT first-time pass rate68%—
… against cars of the same age−2%—
Illogical odometer records (NL)1.9%—
US owner complaints2,992693
Most complaints aboutSteeringVisibility
Model year with most complaints2010 (686)2006 (161)
US recall campaigns2910
Manufacturer service bulletins8,3691,072
NHTSA defect investigations74

Complaint, recall and bulletin counts grow with the number of cars sold and are not adjusted for it. UK MOT: DVSA anonymised MOT results (OGL v3.0); New York: DMV inspections; complaints, recalls, bulletins and investigations: NHTSA (public domain); odometer: RDW (CC0).

Safety

Mazda Mazda3Scion tC
NHTSA overall rating5★ (2024)—

NHTSA New Car Assessment Program, most recent rated model year (public domain).

Fuel, emissions and price

Mazda Mazda3Scion tC
Official combined fuel use, Canada7.8 l/100 km (2026)9.0 l/100 km (2016)
Real-world use in Europe, petrol hybrid7.0 l/100 km—
Real-world use in Europe, petrol6.9 l/100 km—
Official CO₂ of new cars in Europe129 g/km—
Average power of new cars in Europe112 kW (150 hp)—
Average mass in running order1,430 kg—
Dutch list price when new (median)€28,293—
Average odometer in Finland161,000 km—

Canada: NRCan Fuel Consumption Ratings, most frugal version of the latest year (OGL Canada). Europe: EEA monitoring of new-car CO₂ and on-board fuel meters (OBFCM), CC BY 4.0. Price: RDW catalogue price (CC0). Finland: Traficom (CC BY 4.0).