Mazdaspeed 3

[ZoomVT]

dude you read my mind. thats exactly where i am. I dont have to get rid of my 3 yet but they are selling so well that i have been thinking about it.
If i sell now i could recover my down payment, pay what i owe on it and still make 2-3k if i sell now; even with the extra miles i put on it. (2004 titanium gray 3s, 27000 miles. 6 disc changer, MT)

Anyway, i have been thinking on what i would get and i really wanted a mazdaspeed 3, but when i learnt it was going to be a hatch now im lost.
I have been thinking about getting a bmw 3 series, i could afford a better down payment and so payments wouldnt be too bad (although they couldnt compare to my mazda payments- 250/mo)
The other option is to save 5k and turbo this baby....

 

[eting_pro5]

wow did you misread or did i miss something? What i said was that whenever a model is going for redesign/production end... a Mazdaspeed version comes out. Its always been that way if you think about it. Which most likely means bye bye for the MZ6 after the MS6 is done. Thus when the lower level mazda 3 becomes turbo'd/MS edition it does not effect the pecking order. What i think you will see is the reuse of that motor and AWD improvments. If you think about Evo and Sti's those parts are a long time in the making and well proven.

This makes a lot of sense. Mazda has said the redesigned 6 will be bigger for American tastes. MS6 for one year, BIG MOTHER F'IN 6 the next year.

 

[RHAGEL]

dude you read my mind. thats exactly where i am. I dont have to get rid of my 3 yet but they are selling so well that i have been thinking about it.
If i sell now i could recover my down payment, pay what i owe on it and still make 2-3k if i sell now; even with the extra miles i put on it. (2004 titanium gray 3s, 27000 miles. 6 disc changer, MT)

Anyway, i have been thinking on what i would get and i really wanted a mazdaspeed 3, but when i learnt it was going to be a hatch now im lost.
I have been thinking about getting a bmw 3 series, i could afford a better down payment and so payments wouldnt be too bad (although they couldnt compare to my mazda payments- 250/mo)
The other option is to save 5k and turbo this baby....

I agree with both of you, I know I don't have to make any decisions now but I am not sure what to get. At this point my options are:

- Mazda 3
- Mazdaspeed 3
- Mazda 6
- Mazdaspeed 6
- Subaru Legacy GT
- Subaru WRX
- Honda Civic SI (if they make a sedan)
- Volkswagen GLI
- Volkswagen GTI
- Audi A3 ( '06 comes standard w/17's & sport package along with a 48k warranty AND scheduled maintenance. Right now they have a $1k rebate, pretty good deal IMO. Not to mention an awesome 2.0L turbo)

Its all going to depend on rebates and if I decide to go cheaper with aftermarket stuff or buy a more expensive car and leave it stock. Mazda is always going to be my first choice, but I guess we will see when the time comes.

 

[Mr. Win]

Damn, i must be the only one that thinks the sedan is ugly and the hatch is sexy.

 

[Mr. 4500 RPM]

Damn, i must be the only one that thinks the sedan is ugly and the hatch is sexy.

i think you and me and the rest of the world?

 

[vindication]

I love hatches dont get me wrong. I also like the 3 hatch but for some reason to me it isn't as sexy as the sedan. Mazda should make both. The only thing that will change between them would be a rear suspension difference due to the weight difference. It really shouldn't cost mazda anything.

 

[goldwing2000]

At this point my options are:

- Volkswagen GLI
- Volkswagen GTI

I'd stay away from VW. The maintenance will kill you.

 

[AlaskaP5]

i will gladley trade in my p5 for one if A) its awd B) its a hatch and C) its 240 hp or more....

i wish this could come true and for it to come out in one year from today, if not a year and a 1/2. but yeah this is just hoping, we need more info though ill try and harras my dealer on tuesday when i go for some work...

What he said... Or maybe I will keep the 5 for a daily driver.

 

[vindication]

yeah of the cars in that list I'd choose either the MS3, MS6 or A3. Leaning towards the A3 cause modding the MS6 from what I hear is going to be a b**** and a half.

 

[goldwing2000]

The only reason I didn't include the Audi in the warning is because maintenence is included.

I'll never buy another german vehicle again. Over-engineered crap.

 

[Newf]

I love hatches dont get me wrong. I also like the 3 hatch but for some reason to me it isn't as sexy as the sedan. Mazda should make both. The only thing that will change between them would be a rear suspension difference due to the weight difference. It really shouldn't cost mazda anything.

You would think it would be that easy wouldn't you.

Then again, they never made a MSP5 did they.

 

[vindication]

But thats because they weren't sure how it would due. The p5 really isn't a hatch anyway, it's a station wagon. sedan protege waaaay sexier than wagon protege

 

[tsunami]

i like the hatch....

 

[tsunami]

this is the 3 hatch from the sema show with the mazda speed accessories... front clip, grill, skirts, mazda speed springs, wheels.... i don't think it looks to bad and is probably close to what the ms3 will look like...

 

[Mr. Win]

that old man is so checking out that laides ass. lol

 

[nealric]

Another vote for the hatch.

Maybe this is just because I drive one, but I think mazda got things exactly right styling wise with the p5- 3hatch looks ok, but it just dosent quite come together.

I think hatches just make sense. You get a huge utillity increase with only a very slight weight penality- p5 vs sedan is less than 100lbs I think. As much as I would love a 2 seat convertible, if I can only have one car (which I can only have), a hatch is a perfect compromize.

 

[Newf]

as much as I might like that hatch in that pic, it's nothing compared to what a sedan would look like

Personally, I think Mazda Missed the hot hatch phase. It was years ago. Hey, Honda was smart enough to get away from it....then Mazda goes and ***** it up. Even i had a Honda Hatch back in 2000.

The sales of the original MSP doesn't help the situation either. I'd say some idiot in charge of all this thought the original MSP didn't sell well because it wasn't a hatch. When it fact it was complete lack of Marketing. Pretty bad when even your mechanics and sales people don't even know what a MSP is.

"Cute Hatches" also attract a certain buyer....dare I say, female. This might account for some of the sales success of the car. Problem with that is that there is a big difference in buying a 20k "Cute Hatch" that has "nice ride" and "handles nice" vs a 24k 250hp with 18" wheels, lowered, ground effects, and "rides rough".

two different Buyers, and i would think that the average true auto enthusiast would rather not be driving a "wagon"

 

[Newf]

perhaps it's time to revive this thread....
http://www.msprotege.com/forum/showthread.php?t=58000&page=1


back to the FWD vs AWD thing:

After driving around tonight, I was reminded of how fun it is to drive on snowy roads with a 170hp FWD car. Now, I've always driven FWD cars in the winter. Mostly preludes ~200hp, and an accord with the same. But with the torgue and turbo in the MSP, it ain't hard at all to get those wheels spinning on snow. MAtter of fact I have to anticipate it every time I go up my hill, ease off of the gas at around 3k rpm so I don't start spinning the studs off of my tires.

I'd much rather have AWD, and with 250hp, even 230hp, heck even 200hp....I'd really want AWD in snow

 

[ChopstickHero]

saw this Mazda3 at SeveStock back in Oct.... this was parked at the Mazda Headoffice in Irvine, CA. it has dealership tags on it. I think this was their test car or something.

 

[Mr. 4500 RPM]

saw this Mazda3 at SeveStock back in Oct.... this was parked at the Mazda Headoffice in Irvine, CA. it has dealership tags on it. I think this was their test car or something.

and youve been holding out because?