Are there negatives to the MS3

[Antonio DiMarco]

I got the GT and couldn't be happier

Hell to all. I have been looking the past couple of months in purchasing a new vehichle. i currently own a 2001 toyota tundra. This past month I thought I had made a decision in purchasing a Mazdaspeed6, but I havew recently changed my mine. I have been reading multiple car magazine (especially car and driver) and they cannot get their hands off of the vehichle.
I decided today to go look at one and I am very impressed. The car was a blast to drive.

My main question is I know about many of the positives, but what are the negatives to the vehichle? Thanks to everyone in advance.

The only negative I have on this car is how easy it is to drive fast and how refined and composed it is. This is NOT a muscle-bound car. It feels and drives like a much mroe expensive car. Smooth. It's scary to look down at the speedometer and realize your going 100mph. The car doesn't feel particularly fast, but it sure gets up to speed in a hurry.

I really love the options on the GT. Makes the car feel cooler and I love the auto wipers and Xenons. Bose system is also very good. At first it sounded a bit bass heavy but seems to have loosened up a bit. Jazz and Classical music sound damned good through it.

We just had some major snow and I have had zero issues with handling on packed snow. I am running 18 inch pirelli P Zero Neros All Seasons.

Mazda Really hit the bullseye with this extremely well-rounded car.

Oh I have the windshield creak in cold weather, otehr than that the car is solid as a rock. My Mechanic owns a Speed3 and already fixed his windshield. said it drove him crazy. Mazda has a fix but it takes an hour and a half.

It's defintely a benefit when your mechanic owns the same car you do

 

[redspeed]

I dunno, I have about 3400 km's on mine and its still solid with zero squeaks or rattles..... I guess I"m lucky..

Yeah! Me too. Whats the deal with all these "squeaks & rattles" complains?

 

[ElBartoRex]

there are plenty of negatives if you are planning on modding the car--

1. Lack of aftermarket support-- yes there are parts out there but if the car is discontinued after 08, the parts are going to be discontinued along with it. Companies are GIVING away left over MSP parts because the market for them just isn't there. The MSP was expected to have an extensive aftermarket and tuner following and it never really lived up to that. Hopefully the MS3 does not follow that trend. Major performance parts brands haven't built MS3 parts and many don't plan on ever building them.

2. Its a limited production car, which means that finding replacement parts may become hard in the future. As opposed to if you have a 99 Civic you can go into any dealership and pick up a bumper clip or a headlight harness.

3. FWD eventually runs into its limitations as far as how much power it can handle. You get to a point where you can make a ton of power with the car but eventually drivability will suffer and you will just roast the tires. Any neon srt-4 owner knows exactly what I mean.

 

[happy and angry]

There are downsides to every car. This is a front wheel drive hot hatch, which means you can overpower the front of the car real quick because of some traction issues. The traction control and the torque limiting keep this in check, but at a price.

It's noisy and there are a lot of rattles.

Stick shift is notchy, although surprisingly good when you get used to it.

Clutch bites hard and bites early, which may be disconcerting at first.

Handling is sharp, nearing harsh (but not quite).

Steering is precise with good feel, but this leads to it being somewhat twitchy over bumps.

Seating position is good, and the seats are good, if you're not fat.

Fuel economy can be good unless you push it, then the turbo sucks down fuel like a wino in liquor store...

It's a sedate daily driver unless you stomp it, but some might find that boring.

Suspension noise is an issue, apparently some are having problems with the sway bars.

My point is that the good or bad sides of this car are fairly subjective. To each his own. The technical issues seem minor if you love the car, enormous if you've got other issues with it. I like mine, but then, everyone else here probably likes theirs too. It is a mazda board, after all.

 

[rc50cal]

The gas mileage is mediocre. I know most people here don't seem to care. I find it impossible to not mash the accelerator and my mileage suffers.

 

[Darksun280]

I tell you this much the Random squeaks and raddles i hear at 70mph cruise speeds drive me insane and and my car only has 600 miles on it. Also the fact that the side view mirrors aren't heated is irking me too cause even with regular rain i can't see through them clearly and slush or snow forget about it......

 

[Antonio DiMarco]

At first the Clutch was hard to get used to...

There are downsides to every car. This is a front wheel drive hot hatch, which means you can overpower the front of the car real quick because of some traction issues. The traction control and the torque limiting keep this in check, but at a price.

It's noisy and there are a lot of rattles.

Stick shift is notchy, although surprisingly good when you get used to it.

Clutch bites hard and bites early, which may be disconcerting at first.

Handling is sharp, nearing harsh (but not quite).

Steering is precise with good feel, but this leads to it being somewhat twitchy over bumps.

Seating position is good, and the seats are good, if you're not fat.

Fuel economy can be good unless you push it, then the turbo sucks down fuel like a wino in liquor store...

It's a sedate daily driver unless you stomp it, but some might find that boring.

Suspension noise is an issue, apparently some are having problems with the sway bars.

My point is that the good or bad sides of this car are fairly subjective. To each his own. The technical issues seem minor if you love the car, enormous if you've got other issues with it. I like mine, but then, everyone else here probably likes theirs too. It is a mazda board, after all.

But now I prefer it over the Mz3 and my wife's Mz5. Feels more consistent and solid, not mushy at all. Really good feedback.

 

[robin2660]

Well, like everyone else said, the recall issues and cowl creak seem to be my only real complaints. Everything else is a known before you buy it (FWD vs AWD, summer tires, lack of upgradability ....). I figure any knowns are not fair game for complaints.

One issue I haven't heard anyone else complain about is the rear window washer. Is it my car only or does anyone else have a useless washer that just sprays a stream down the middle of the glass?

I mentioned it to the dealer but he said it was normal. Of course, I don't trust that and need to see another in operation. My thought was that perhaps the nozzle is turned around 180 degrees and spraying straight into the spoiler.

Anyone else with this issue?

 

[jtom]

I wish they would have included an AWD version.

The MS3 can also get you into alot of trouble.........

 

[kenpo1441]

No sunroof

 

[AllLostThings]

The only REAL grip I'd say would be the tires. If you live where there is "weather", like snow, you'll need snow tires. With 18s stock you'll be better off to get 17s with snow tires. Other than that the cars a blast....get one...

 

[goose8651]

thanks again guys for all of the help. I really would like to purchase this car but the rattles really bugs me. I know that all cars get rattles (all of my previous ones had it), but many of you people are having rattles with very limited miles on it.
I already know what I want to do to the car, but just afraid of it due to the rattles. Everything else seems like I can manage and will love it.

 

[happy and angry]

The rattles all seem fixable. All the "cold weather" noise from the suspension is fairly normal and goes away after about 10 minutes driving. Any noise from your sway bar seems to need nothing more than a tightening. All other noise seems fairly minimal. If it's really going to bug you, either be committed to getting rid of them in the first few thousand miles, or if you're not like that, don't buy the car.

Personally, it's such a great vehicle (to me) that I'd rather just get the noises fixed, even if it takes a while.

 

[Sacrilicious]

ya, every rattle i've heard about has been fixed with a simple trip to the dealership. the important part is that you figure out exactly where it comes from before you go. there are a number of common places it comes from:

1. windshield cowl grille creaks as it rubs against the windshield (in cold weather below 50F)
2. windshield cowl panel (below the grille) rattles because its bolts are loose.
3. rear suspension/sway bushings loose or need grease.

stupidly enough, as much as it may sound like it's coming from the interior, almost all our rattles come from elsewhere. as long as you tell and show the dealership what it is, though, they will fix it free of charge for you as per the bumper-to-bumper warranty.

 

[ForceFed]

Payment.