Am looking at 03 1.5 hatch versions of each.
My main concern is reliability - everything else secondary. Both are well known to be reliable cars and although neither is inspiring to drive, my guess is that the Almera will be slightly better in this respect. Not of huge importance to me but the Mazda is better looking I think... but due to a flooded market, I'll probably get a better cash price for the Almera.
In a very general sense, my feeling is that the Mazda is "better made" e.g. superior build quality, less 'cheap' bits.
Resale not that important to me - will be keeping as long as I can.
What do you all think is the better buy?
My main concern is reliability - everything else secondary. Both are well known to be reliable cars and although neither is inspiring to drive, my guess is that the Almera will be slightly better in this respect. Not of huge importance to me but the Mazda is better looking I think... but due to a flooded market, I'll probably get a better cash price for the Almera.
In a very general sense, my feeling is that the Mazda is "better made" e.g. superior build quality, less 'cheap' bits.
Resale not that important to me - will be keeping as long as I can.
What do you all think is the better buy?