I had VW GTI back in 1983 and that was a fun car to drive. I think the current models cost several thousands more then the Dart. The mazda3 has been out for about 7 years and fine tune each year. The Dart GT would be a fair comparison against those two. I like what I have read about the GT and wish Dodge would get it soon.
I just noticed you listed Mazdaspeed3. That engine has over 240 horsepower does it? That model should be compared to the SRT4 when it comes out.