Super TestCar reviews - Mazda - 323 - 4-dr sedanMazda modelsOverview18 Nov 1989 LONG-LIVED but not long in the tooth, the quality BG 323 sedan from 1989 to 1996 lasted a couple of years beyond the more faddish Astina hatchback models as Mazda's entry-level small car against the increasingly popular Hyundai Lantra and Nissan Pulsar sedans. A thoroughly conventional but well-executed front-wheel drive three-box four-door design, the BG 323 1.6 sedan offered no-nonsense econony car motoring from its well-proven 64kW 1.6-litre single-cam 16-valve four-cylinder engine tied to a three-speed automatic or five-speed manual gearbox. The more-luxurious 323 1.8 sedan, meanwhile, was replaced in 1994 by the next-generation BA 323 Protege 1.6 (fitted with a 80kW 1.6 twin-cam engine) and 1.8. This meant that Mazda - by now drowning in a sea of debt-laden red ink as a result of over-extending its model range portfolio - was offering three differently shaped 323 sedans at once - BG 1.6, BA Protege 1.6 and 1.8, and BA Astina Hardtop 1.8 - the latter being a swoopy four-door coupe-like sedan offered with a 2.0-litre V6 engine. Confused? The public sure were... Model release date: 1 October 1989 to 1 May 1996 All car reviewsAlfa Romeo Abarth Alpine Alpina Audi Aston Martin BMW Bentley Chevrolet Chery Citroen Chrysler Dodge Cupra Ferrari DS Ford Fiat FPV Foton GWM Great Wall Holden Haval HSV Honda Hyundai Hummer Isuzu Infiniti Jeep Jaguar Lamborghini Kia LDV Land Rover Lotus Lexus Maserati Mahindra McLaren Mazda Mercedes-Benz Mercedes-AMG Mini MG Nissan Mitsubishi Peugeot Opel Proton Porsche Renault Ram Rover Rolls-Royce Skoda Saab SsangYong Smart Suzuki Subaru Toyota Tesla Volvo Volkswagen |
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