How reliable are the 2007 Mazda 3's?

[m1ndless]

I plan on purchasing a brand new Mazda 3, but I have heard from some people that mazdas are unreliable?

I need a car that will last 60-70k miles without shitting out on me completly, and no major repais (engine,tranny) will be needed by then, and will last 5-6 years.

Do you think a mazda 3 is capable of that? I am all about preventitive maintnence, and keeping my car running strong..

What do you guys think? Anyone own a 3 with more than 50k miles on it? How does it run?

I apprecieate input from everyone, thanks!

 

[Shift_Lost]

Do i think its capable? Hell yea. DO i know for sure? No

Cant ask how reliable a brand new car is.

We still in 06, the 07 just came out. But from past outlooks, they seem to be well built

 

[BKK Jack]

I can't comment on the 3, because I don't have mine yet, but I do have a 2000 Mazda MPV. I bought it new in late 1999 and brought it with me to Thailand in September 2000. It has been here since then and now has almost 80k miles on it.

Bangkok is very hard on cars due to the heat, humidity and pollution, but other than having to replace a cracked radiator, we have done nothing but change the oil and filters for the last 6 years.

Based on my experience with the MPV, I am looking forward to many happy years motoring in my new 3 with confidence.

 

[Raymo853]

No one can make any promise. You can buy the car with the best repair record ever and still get a bad example. If you can not afford any risk, then you can't not afford to get any car. Also I think the way a car is driver is a highly correlated variable in the reliability equation.

That being said, Mazdas in general are below (but not by much) the leaders in reliability, Toyota and Honda. They are way ahead of VW/Audi, GM, Ford and Daimler-Chrysler. My sample single point, a 2000 Protege, has needed one one repair in 7 years and 80,000 and that was at mile 2,750.

 

[tsunami]

i have an 04 3 with 35k on the odo and have had no issues...

 

[jtom]

Yea mazda makes very good cars. The only manufacturers I would be worried about are American manufacturers. They break down very easily.

 

[Chibana]

According to the good reliability surveys (which are NOT B.S., and are used by those of us in the automotive industry), Mazda's average reliability is among the worst of the auto manufacturers. This is why I was nervous about buying my 3. However, it's been by far the most reliable car I've ever owned, including a 2005 Honda Odyssey, which has had several MAJOR problems (including a destroyed engine resulting from a crank pulley bolt failure).

And, no, American cars haven't been crap when it comes to reliability for many years. Many American brands score very high in the reliability studies. It's just not that black and white. That's an uninformed, knee-jerk opinion that's not supported by the huge database of facts.

Another thing to keep in mind is that the average reliability of cars has been on a steady course of improvement for many years, so that even the manufacturers on the bottom of the list will likely be highly reliable. I also suspect that we'll see Mazda's reliabity improve as a result of their new automotive direction that started with of the work of Mark Fields from Ford.

 

[jtom]

While their reliability has gone up over the years, I dont think anyone will say an American car is better than a honda, nissan, mazda, toyota.


I think those ratings are biased; theres no way american cars are more reliable then imports.

 

[Antonio DiMarco]

It's all about experience/luck of the draw

While their reliability has gone up over the years, I dont think anyone will say an American car is better than a honda, nissan, mazda, toyota.


I think those ratings are biased; theres no way american cars are more reliable then imports.

I would have agreed with you in the 90's but American cars have steadily improved. One of the reasons Ford has built better cars is because of it's relationship with Mazda. I have owned Mazdas for many years and have never had any major failures. On the other hand our Honda Pilot did have a few issues that surprised me. I've also known people who have owned Chevy's with no major issues. Then again I wouldn't buy a chevy

You also can't underestimate the "ego" of car owners. Those surveys (comsumer reports etc) are only as accurate as the people who choose to fill them out. Some people would never admit that they bought a lemon, while others would pick on the littlest nits.

I can only say that my 2004 3S has been solid for two years and two winters. There have been small annoyances, but those have been fixed quickly by my superb dealership Sentry West.

You also can never underestimate the effect of a good service department- a good service deaprtment can make big problems seem like small ones.

Oh and one more thing. I really believe that fun, unique cars like those built by Mazda are held to an even hihger standard than many of the bread and butter brands. That means that ever problem is magnified becasue every moment we can't drive them seems like an eternity. It's all about the Love

 

[BKK Jack]

Oh and one more thing. I really believe that fun, unique cars like those built by Mazda are held to an even hihger standard than many of the bread and butter brands. That means that ever problem is magnified becasue every moment we can't drive them seems like an eternity. It's all about the Love

Great point. Even if I if I could buy a Toyota that I KNEW would be 100% reliable from now until the day I died, I still would opt for the car I really wanted to DRIVE and whatever annoying little problems that came with it.

(Note: I'm not picking on Toyota. I use them just as an example, because they tend to be near the top of the reliability heap, but also very boring IMO)

 

[Chibana]

While their reliability has gone up over the years, I dont think anyone will say an American car is better than a honda, nissan, mazda, toyota.


I think those ratings are biased; theres no way american cars are more reliable then imports.

Uh, right. And of course your "opinion" is totally unbiased. Good Lord.

 

[P5w3kids]

I've been collecting data for a year now, and in most cases domestics still trial the Asians.

Numbers I have so far, number of cars, number of months of data, trips/year:
2005 Mazda3: 20, 154, 0.5
2006 Mazda3: 22, 103, 0.2 (very low, likely to go up a bit with larger sample)
2006 Ford Fusion: 18, 57, 0.4 (unusually low for a domestic)
2005.5-2006 VW Jetta: 33, 217, 0.9
2006 large Chryslers: 46, 206, 1.3 (many aggressive drivers, forum members)
2007 Dodge Caliber: 28, 103, 1.4

I'm not yet collecting data on enough models for an average to make sense, but I think results for nearly new cars will end up ranging from 0.3 to 1.5 when I have a large sample, with the average around 0.9.

I'm collecting data on the 2005 and newer Mazda3. Still need five more 2004s to get started with that year, and can use more of just about any model/year. If you'd like to help out:

http://www.truedelta.com/reliability.php

To encourage participation, panel members will get free access to the results.

 

[wishingfora ms3]

just saying hi.
im new to this forum but have heard that there was a ship carrying a bunch of 3's and cx7's and the boat tipped. you don't think if i went out and bought a ms3 i would be getting one of the sunken cars do you?

 

[benzo]

Yes if you buy one of those cars that where on the boat. The dealership will have to disclose that information to you at the time of purchase. Plus I believe the cars where sold at a discount cause of the incident.

 

[wishingfora ms3]

i see thanks. ive been wanting a speed 3 for some time now. it looks like an awesome car. the power and looks, not to mention the interior. im all for fwd too having a non turbo 3000gt.
im just worried about how well it will hold up for me. my 3000gt is breakng every 2 weeks so anything better than that will be amazing to me. haha