One Week in my 2007 Touring 3

[Raymo853]

You new wagon is so the car I want. Too bad my 2000 ES is just going and going. Pearl White, sTouring, five speed manual, sunroof and 6 CD is my dream car. What happened to the old days of dreaming about Ferrari's and Rang Rovers. Oh yea, I became an adult.

 

[Touring Roger]

Hey look at it this way. Ferraris are 250k and insurance is hell. Talk to anyone who owns one and they are like horses, always at the vet.

This little car does fast, turns, stops with the best. 30 MPG and comfy in the winter.

My 04 had 70k and the only thing I replaced were tires and rear brakes. I got 43k out of the RSA's and then made the mistake of going to Kuhmos and they took a set and were so noisey, plus two bubbles from pot hole hits, that I bought the Exaltos when there was probably 15 to 20k of rubber left. The three weeks I had on the Exaltos were great. The rear brakes went at 68k (4 weeks before the accident) and the fronts would have gone to 110k.

I am looking for many trouble free miles from this car and when my Dodge Caravan goes, it will be replaced by a Mazda 5..

By then I hope Mazda has a MazdaSpeed 5.

I have attached a picture of my other fun car. Faster in the straight line, but the 3 would clean its clock in corners.


Roger
White Hall, MD

,

 

[tsunami]

nice fiero man... a coworker of mine is in love with those things, he dropped a 350 into one and drove it for a year or two then sold it, bought another one and was going to do the sc v6 swap but part way through the swap some kid sold him one already swapped for less then he spent on the swap... fast sob!! and that V8 sounded nasty right behind you...

nice pedals, you did get the a/m ones i was looking at thought you ordered the mazda a/m ones... 90* drill ftw!!

 

[Touring Roger]

The Fiero is an 86 with a 3800 SC out of a 91 Bonneville. 5 sp with KYB shocks and Eibachs. Kick to drive. About 230 HP and 240 ft/lbs. More reliable than the V-8 Fieros, because the Getrag tranny won't take the abuse. This is the smaller 3800. Later ones were 240 hp + small pulley + intercooler = 330 hp.

The Delorean in the rear on the lift is powered by a 300 hp Northstar. My brother did both conversions. The D was a hoot to hear. Not like the little Renault V-6.

I got the pedals from the Xenon guy. Very nicely done.

The 90 deg drill was because you can't depress the brake far enough to align a drill. Runs into the dash. So much fun lying on the floor trying to drill holes. Only for my Mazda!!!

Roger

 

[BKK Jack]

As far as removing the badges, man it is piece of cake. Theya re just glued on and you can use file it down with some dental floss and little elbow grease. Other people have painted them a diff color; i have them in a nice carbon black, and some others have it in white or red. It is just another option.
I painted mines; removed the door protection; and repositioned my 2.3 badge a little lower on the door. It looks better IMO.

Whats the best way to remove any adhesive residue? A long time ago, when I was much younger, I pealed the stupid taped-on pinstrips from my 85 GTI and went at the residue with some solvent in my father's garage. I got the residue off, but it left a haze that looked really bad.

I have been bumping around the forum collecting ideas. I really like Beansoldiers Stage 1, 2, 3 posts, and am going to start with a voltage stabilizer/grounding kit. Depending on the cash flow, I will move to a short-shifter (because it's more important to feel fast than actually go fast!), a CAI and AEM Air-bypass valve, and probably Racing Beat springs and bars. That should keep me busy and broke for a good long while, especially when you consider I am probably going to have to buy a new bike to replace the one I can't bring back. Damn you EPA!

 

[Touring Roger]

Have you tried that Goof Off stuff. Sort of removes all kinds of residue, without fogging the paint.

What is the BeanSoldiers 1,2,3???

New to the forum and have been just nosing around.

Rog

 

[tsunami]

goo gone is some good s*** as well....

they are stickies at the top of the engine/perf forum regarding N/A tuning... lots of good info and lots of proven dynos...

jack careful of the bypass valve heard it can disintegrate and enter your engine... get a sri if you are worried about hydro lock?

 

[BKK Jack]

goo gone is some good s*** as well....

they are stickies at the top of the engine/perf forum regarding N/A tuning... lots of good info and lots of proven dynos...

jack careful of the bypass valve heard it can disintegrate and enter your engine... get a sri if you are worried about hydro lock?

That is a consideration. The CAI/SRI is probably lowest on my list. I probably won't do it until/if I can afford to open up the exhaust, too. I haven't heard that about the bypass valve. That wouldn't be a desirable situation. I have checked out the Simota SRI's, but I can't figure out which one is the best, or which one everyone on this forum seems to like. The way I am, I will probably end up liking the most expensive one.

Thanks for the input.

 

[ZoomVT]

yeah i used goo gone to get rid of all the sticky residue.
piece of cake to remove the badges.

 

[BKK Jack]

TR (I hope you don't mind if I call you that),

I have two questions:

1. How well does the vent fan flow air? I ask that because I drive two cars over here. One is my work car, a Toyota Land Bruiser, and it's vent fan flows air like you wouldn't believe. Even on the hottest Bangkok days, I usually only have to leave it on its lowest setting after the interior cools sufficiently. The other, is my personal car, a 2000 Mazda MPV that we brought with us from the U.S. It's fan is pathetic. At its highest setting you get more noise than air. Sometimes, I even have to blast the rear a/c, just to get the darn thing tolerably cool.

2. You didn't mention getting the navigation option, so I assume you didn't. Without a nav, what do they do with the area in which it goes. Is it a storage area with a functioning lid, or is it open space covered by a fixed blank panel? If it is the former, it would be really easy to install an aftermarket nav in there, or there are a multitude of little LCD monitors over here. I am sure I could find one that would fit. I could then wire one of the equally numerous little DVD players into the glove compartment, and have mobile theatre for about $200.

 

[Chuckles]

I have not tried the mp3 cds, but will have my grandson make up one and give it a try.

Please don't forget to post after you've had a chance to do this. If it works, it's a lot nicer than a Sansa, no wires and you can use the steering wheel controls and you can see the titles on the stereo's display.

 

[BKK Jack]

One more question: In the photo on the Mazda website that shows the Aux input in the center console, there is a hinged plug-type cover just to the left of the Aux input. Is that a 12v power outlet?

 

[Touring Roger]

I don't mind being called TR.

The fan puts out plenty of air, just that the air is kinda warmer than outside. Very noticable on warm days, where the AC is optional. I find cracking the rar windows and the rear of the sun roof works very well to clear the car or before the ac kicks in.

The AC is a 6 to 7 and works kinda hard on hot, humid days. Tinting is in the near future for security, heat and possibly looks. I was going to do the 2004 this fall, but the cruch ended that.

Second is the panel on the dash. That is fixed and I don't know how removeable it is. Check with your dealer.

Still loving the car. New chassis is a winner over the 2004....


Rog the Tourer. Actually touring is the wrong name for this car. It is a four door, fws sports car.

Rog

 

[Touring Roger]

I will answer the last two...

The MP3 CD did not work. CD player looked at it and spit it out. So much for that. Wish they had made it compatible. Between XM and the Sansa, I think I have enough music for and hour of so...


The jack you see next to the aux input is a second charging jack. Then there is a hole under the upper tray to route cabling through. Also there is an indent in the front of the bins so you can route out cabling and still close the lids. Very nice.

Will take a closeup later and post...

Got to go wipe the dew off of the car. I am readying a garage for it, so no more outdoor nights and dirty clean cars in the AM or winter frost or snow.

Rog

 

[myles]

I picked up my 2007 Mazda3 GT with the luxury package on Wednesday.
It comes with the 6 disk cd changer, but if you look in the manual, you'll see there are three different versions of the stereo. The one that plays MP3's has a little 'MP3' insignia on the left side right above where it has the graphics for the 6 disk ability. If there is no MP3 visible on the fascia, then it won't play MP3s.

That discovery was my little disappointment for yesterday because like yours, mine wont play MP3s either.

Time to buy an iPod...

I will answer the last two...

The MP3 CD did not work. CD player looked at it and spit it out. So much for that. Wish they had made it compatible. Between XM and the Sansa, I think I have enough music for and hour of so...


The jack you see next to the aux input is a second charging jack. Then there is a hole under the upper tray to route cabling through. Also there is an indent in the front of the bins so you can route out cabling and still close the lids. Very nice.

Will take a closeup later and post...

Got to go wipe the dew off of the car. I am readying a garage for it, so no more outdoor nights and dirty clean cars in the AM or winter frost or snow.

Rog

 

[ZoomVT]

any information on who (or what market) receives the mp3 player in their stereo? is it only on the 1 cd or the 6 cd changer could possibly also have mp3 capabilities?

 

[BKK Jack]

TR: Thanks for the info. That whole MP3 thing is a little kick in the nuts. It would've been nice, and not too hard for them to have included that with the moonroof/CD package. Oh well, still counting the days (82). I already ordered a Buddy Club Condenser Ground System for it, and will probably order the TWM Short Shifter this month. I won't have the car for almost three months, and am already ordering crap to put on it. Am I insane, or is this considered normal behaviour?

 

[Touring Roger]

I am sure the electronic difference between a MP3 and the standard CD player is $.05. Probably the programing in the chip, there fore $ .03. Find these things anoying about a great car for the $.

Will have to wait for my 3 rd Mazda 3 or when I get a 5 in a couple of years. MAybe by then they will have the diesel available in the good olde US of A.

Tomorrow I get my Compass Mirror and rear bumper protectors. Nice to sit on when I am putting on my hiking gear. Also have a trailer hitch for it so I can carry the bikes on the back and not screw up the roof line.

Getting my first oil change tomorrow at 2900 miles in just over 3 weeks. Born to be driven.(first)



Rog

 

[myles]

I am sure the electronic difference between a MP3 and the standard CD player is $.05. Probably the programing in the chip, there fore $ .03. Find these things anoying about a great car for the $.

Will have to wait for my 3 rd Mazda 3 or when I get a 5 in a couple of years. MAybe by then they will have the diesel available in the good olde US of A.

Tomorrow I get my Compass Mirror and rear bumper protectors. Nice to sit on when I am putting on my hiking gear. Also have a trailer hitch for it so I can carry the bikes on the back and not screw up the roof line.

Getting my first oil change tomorrow at 2900 miles in just over 3 weeks. Born to be driven.(first)



Rog

You're right about the physical cost, but I think there's licensing issues with decoding MP3's. The people who developed the encoding software and the file format want their piece of the action so you can't just include that feature without paying for it. That being said, my DVD player cost all of 100 bucks and it plays MP3 files. Go figure.

 

[scuzzy19]

The Delorean in the rear on the lift is powered by a 300 hp Northstar. My brother did both conversions. The D was a hoot to hear. Not like the little Renault V-6.Roger

Dude that is a sweet Delorean(omg)