How you like your mazda3?

[Mr. 4500 RPM]

Well I will be graduating from college in a year and am debating what to do with the p5. I am not sure if I have brought this up before but the 3 is on the list of cars to consider. And want to know what your thoughts on it are besides "its good". Has anyone on the boards made the transition from a p5 or protege to a 3? Cause their comparison/review would be much obliged.


On a side note, the plans are to either:

1. dump money into the p5
2. pick up a miata as a project car
3. trade er in for a mazda3
4. wishing i could trade her in for a bmw m3

If i get a 3 i will most likely boost it seeing the good numbers and how reliable it has been SO FAR, but you never know. I know an option is waiting for the mazdaspeed 3 but seeing as how its slow in development we wiill never know. But that is also option 5 if it ever comes out.

An begin discussion/advice!

*edit* I am thinking of getting the 5 door but after seeing all the beautiful pictures of the mazda3 sedan in the pic thread i am open to either or. So if anyone has driven both please put your input here as well thanks!*

 

[Mr. 4500 RPM]

no one cares

 

[illusis]

i love my 06 3HB GT. it handels vey nice, takes the turns great, its not FAST but its got enough speed to keep me happy and out of trouble. i payed 20k for it fully loaded. minus sun room b/c i dont like them. i eather want a roof or no roof. the car has great response to my daily driving great gas milage. comfortable and roomy for me to get back and forth to school. the only thing is that the back seat is a little small for anyone bigger then 5'7 or so. but i like that in a way b/c then i dont have to drive all the time. my car has so many luxuary options. its a great entry level car for the money that i paid. headlight(HID), windshield wipers, air/heat all auto. fogs, heated seats, leather, extra space in trunk inbetween and spare which is plastic so thats great to put things that are dirty in so they dont mess up the trunk carpet. you obvously dont need the space of a HB seeing that you are graduation but i like the look. i hope this helps you somewhat. im not great with cars so i cant tell you all the mech info im sure someone else can but i hope my general info on comfort and everyday use of the car. good luck with your decision

 

[Mr. 4500 RPM]

thansk its great kinda what i wanted to hear!

 

[Mr. 4500 RPM]

bump for more opinions!

 

[illusis]

i got my ca on a rainy day...perfect day to go there were like 2 other people in the dealership and i got the car 2k off sticker...bgood luck man hope you love your choice like i do =]

 

[Mr. 4500 RPM]

thanks...if i do end up getting a mazda3 ill have two things in my favor...college graduate and "loyal mazda owner" discounts. but its still a year off so who knows.

 

[BlueMonsta]

things I love about:
1. the power (I came from a 1991 Protege LX). For regular driving its enough, highway passing included, I don't even have to rev it, keep it in 5th and I still have ample power.
2. The cornering ability definently suprasses my old car (it was stock). it can handle 20-30km/h more per turn on average.
3. Stock highlights are bright and I can actually see my headlights, I don't see the need for HIDs.
4. cargo room, the glove box is HUGE. The right handle rest has 2 compartments. Trunk space is decent. I'm getting 500km per $40 of gas (81 cents / L).
Car is still brand new, as in 4 days old.

Cons.
1. knee rest SUCKS ass. (my mz3 is left hand drive) so I rest my left knee on the door. It starts to hurt after a while. And if I'm on twisties, it starts to get annoying.
2. Steering wheel doesn't provide me with enough information about road conditions (my protege really excel in this area).
3. Brakes were really senstive. I made one emergency stop and the sensitive was less, but I also felt a loss in braking power.
4. stock goodyear RS-As are horrible in snow. (my car saw snow already =( ).
5. sedan wise, its somewhat diffcult to back in, can't really see the trunk is too high. Wish I got the hatch.
6. and as the other fellow forum member noted, the backseat is area is rather small.
7. Rather heavy, at 1,318KG (2006 mazda 6 GT sedan AT) for a compact car.

unknowns.
1. I have yet to tryout the fog lights in fog.
2. I dunno how long till the moonroof leaks water.
3. I dunno if fuel consumption will get worse or better after break in.

As my first brand new car, I'm satisfied but nothing beyond. Maybe I'll grow to love it as much as my protege since the car is only 4 days old.

whats your budget anyway?

 

[Mr. 4500 RPM]

i dont really know at this point since i have atleast 1 year of schooling left...but i mean if i get a mazda3 ill get it for the purpose of turboing it...it seems a little more reliable engine wise then the fs-de

 

[blueM3hatch]

get a mazda3. Protege is discontinued by Mazda.

 

[Mr. 4500 RPM]

well the thinng that i like about it is the price per what you get i mean...if i get a good trade in for the p5 then i get like high 100 to high 200 as monthly payments so who knows.

its still up in the air...

 

[blueM3hatch]

The 3 has such a unique look/

 

[Mr. 4500 RPM]

see im kinda bumped cause i was calculating one online before and well i cant get the good stuff like hid's and navigation without getting the s touring...its like wtf man i cant get like the s hatch with navi and hids?

but yeah im digging it in white and in black....i have a black p5 now and know its a pita to keep clean but there is something sexy about the white...

 

[blueM3hatch]

but there is something sexy about the white...

wrong again. Theres something pedestrian and "Avis Car Rental" about the white.

 

[BlueMonsta]

well the thinng that i like about it is the price per what you get i mean...if i get a good trade in for the p5 then i get like high 100 to high 200 as monthly payments so who knows.
its still up in the air...

don't mean to change the focus of the tread.
But do you already have a house? retirement plans? investment plans?

if you do have money to spare, you might want to look at finacing a left over Mazdaspeed 6.
price wise: Mazda 3 + turbo = a regular base mazda 6 v6. (guessing).
but insurance won't cover you if anything happens.
have you considered the mazdaspeed 6?

 

[Mr. 4500 RPM]

Im a junior at pace uni and live with my folks for now...when i grad im hopin to get a job somewhere and maybe go to fl who knows...i have fl on my mind for some reason but most likely ill be livin at home for the next 2 years i think until i have money to move out. cost of living is mighty expensive where i live LMAO so there is no way id afford a place on my own. We shall see what the money situation is but i am wanting a project car...i might just keep the p5 for years to come because of money situations, but im just weighing out my options. I have plans but not too deep into the future since im just 21 and you just never know where life leads you.

oh and about the ms6...idk im not a fan about large sedans i cant see myself driving one i mean i think the 6 is sexy and i love the 6 wagon but i dont know...i guess a test drive in a year would be in order...but for some reason im not a fan of large luxo sedans.

don't mean to change the focus of the tread.
But do you already have a house? retirement plans? investment plans?

if you do have money to spare, you might want to look at finacing a left over Mazdaspeed 6.
price wise: Mazda 3 + turbo = a regular base mazda 6 v6. (guessing).
but insurance won't cover you if anything happens.
have you considered the mazdaspeed 6?

 

[illusis]

my 3 is a white hb and i love it, everyone now gets colors, expecialy mazda blue. white is different and getting more popular

 

[bbrich57]

wrong again. Theres something pedestrian and "Avis Car Rental" about the white.

Eh-heh! I beg your pardon, but there is something very COMMON about "winning blue."
Like every ad shot Mazda put out is in WB. Like every other 3 I see is either WB, or titanium gray (sorry TG guys 'n' gals.) I get tired of seeing them all in the same two or three colors.
"White" gives you a good base to do other appearance mods to. I'd like to do some bold contrasting stripes (6-8") on mine.
Personally, I wish they still had the yellow, but the P5 yellow. It was bolder than what the '04-3's came in.

 

[blueM3hatch]

Theres a reason they choose winning blue for the 1st ad campaign. It's the flagship color of the Mazda3 line, and it is unique.


If im not mistaken. White is the color most oftenly used for Car Rental companies such as Avis, Thrifty, Enterprise. Don't forget the lines and styling cues are more apparent in colored cars. IMO

 

[bbrich57]

Theres a reason they choose winning blue for the 1st ad campaign. It's the flagship color of the Mazda3 line, and it is unique.

About twenty-five years ago when used 55-57 chevys were still pretty common, everybody and his brother had theirs repainted metallic blue. Winning blue reminds me very much of that same color. There were hundreds of 'em everywhere it seemed. You may like it and that's fine, but don't preach to me about how "unique" it is and how "boring" white is until you've experienced life for a while.