What is Australia’s best-selling car? That depends on how you qualify it.

In terms of overall sales, the reigning champion is the Toyota Corolla, which stole the crown from the previous-generation Mazda3 that topped the tables in both 2011 and 2012.

But what makes the Mazda different from the Toyota Corolla – and other recent big sellers such as the HiLux and Holden Commodore – is an almost complete lack of discounted, mass-volume fleet and business sales to inflate those figures.

Mazda really only sells its passenger cars to private buyers, not fleets, so the brand gives a better gauge of how mums and dads, not corporates and government, feel about the world of new cars.

Now there’s a new 3 in town, promising major strides over the previous – but still respectable – version, and Mazda wants its crown back. Here we drive the $25k Maxx auto.

Click here for the full review...