MS3 or stay with a 2.3L Mazda3?

[stageup]

i would stick with what you have.
i'm 36 years old now and the ms3 is finally the first new car i've ever owned in my life. i've had all hand me downs and used cars while i was in college and working, then saving up for a house etc... now i finally have a little extra cash around and can afford a new car.

 

[nate0123]

or get a used V6 mazda6, it's plenty fast and runs on regular gas, cheaper too

 

[Shane5425]

thanks for all the response yea my 3 is $330 a month for insurance (that's more than my car payment!) and i'm 20...damn Massachusetts!

yeah, id say wait, you would pay about 450 for a MS3 in insurance..

 

[SpeedAdiction20]

yeah, id say wait, you would pay about 450 for a MS3 in insurance..

ya im 20 also and insuring a msp right now that i just got, i do have a couple minor infractions (usually that 1 guy the cop picks out of the whole crowd kind of bad luck you could say lol) but anyways in CT the CHEAPEST i can get is about $4k for a year all paid, most other insurances i was looking at were from $5-6k, so not too bad i guess(screwy)

 

[MS3077]

I'm actually feeling a lot better with paying 2k a yr

 

[SpeedAdiction20]

I'm actually feeling a lot better with paying 2k a yr

lol ya, even when i had a clean record when i was 17-18 or so, i was still paying between 1.2k for the year but that was because it was under my parents insurance who have 2 houses, all family cars, and all that good stuff under that insurance also, so huge discount lol, they really don't like young males driving cheaply

 

[VermZ06]

Another thing to remember is the SPEED3 requires premium gas, which is hovering dangerously close to $4/GAL. And it gets much lower mileage than the regular 2.3.

So, high insurance + more debt + bigger gas bill = only if you can comfortably afford it.

I paid $4.15 per gallon yesterday (boom07)

 

[SpeedAdiction20]

I paid $4.15 per gallon yesterday (boom07)

I hear ya.. CT is not too great with the gas, but i guess we could be in Cali. i hear theres are at like $6-7 or some crazy thing like that

 

[VermZ06]

I hear ya.. CT is not too great with the gas, but i guess we could be in Cali. i hear theres are at like $6-7 or some crazy thing like that

What part of CT are you from? I usually go to danbury because fuel is usually cheaper...yesterday I guess not though. I used to go to the Gulf over by McDonald's on Mill Plain road, but when I went by yesterday the entire place was torn down...really odd. So I decided to go to the shell down the road and got ram rodded by them.

CT is ridiculous with their gas prices $30"+ for half a tank of gas is starting to make me just laugh about this whole situation...there's really nothing else you can do I guess, but you're right about cali. I'd be riding my bike everywhere if I lived out there.

 

[kneedragger241]

Good god!
How do you young guys afford your car payment and insurance?!?! Are you all living at home or are they handing out $100K jobs to college students now?

I drove clunkers that didn't need full coverage while I put myself through school.
Rent and food are a little more essential than a cool car.

 

[VermZ06]

Agreed...wait till you have a decent paying job full time before making the switch. The MS3 isn't exactly an 'expensive' car by todays standard...in fact it's actually very affordable for what it is. When I think of an expensive car it's around the $35,000 mark+. Live the life of a poor college student while you can, then you'll be rewarded for your hard work when you get a good job and nice ride!

 

[SpeedAdiction20]

Haha, to VermZ06, i actually live in Brookfield, and use to go the that same gas station, sucks that it got closed down, i haven't been driving lately since i just got a msp after ruining my old car in sept. Right now im up at Eastern near UConn. and its something like 3.75 but for regular, and i think 4.05 for premium, but its almost summer so won't be able to get the discount from up here.
and to Kneedragger241, I'm lucky enough to have my parents pay for my college as long as i do well, paid for half of last semester due to a "grades deal" and I'm living in a dorm, and the fact that I can make a good amount of money for a summer job at least for my age. So I have about 2 more years before I'm on my own and really broke lol.

 

[jbiird317]

wow, i NEVER paid that much for insurance and i couldnt even afford that now that im out of school and working full time. I give you guys a ton of credit, you must reallllly love this car if youre willing to fork out that kinda cash

 

[SpeedAdiction20]

well I hate not driving, and if I have the choice of waiting a little while to get a car that has some speed and maybe have to conserve the cash for a while then thats fine, my first pick was wrx but couldn't find a manual that wasn't too beat up before summer, but the more i read about this car and after seeing it, it should be a blast.(the zoom boom thing is a little nerving but oh well) pay off for working nonstop the whole summer i guess

 

[VermZ06]

Haha, to VermZ06, i actually live in Brookfield, and use to go the that same gas station, sucks that it got closed down, i haven't been driving lately since i just got a msp after ruining my old car in sept. Right now im up at Eastern near UConn. and its something like 3.75 but for regular, and i think 4.05 for premium, but its almost summer so won't be able to get the discount from up here.
and to Kneedragger241, I'm lucky enough to have my parents pay for my college as long as i do well, paid for half of last semester due to a "grades deal" and I'm living in a dorm, and the fact that I can make a good amount of money for a summer job at least for my age. So I have about 2 more years before I'm on my own and really broke lol.

Ahhh...i remember the days when there were gas sales for 89cents a gallon...i think that was 1999/2000. I guess we need to learn not to be as wasteful as we once were.

The best way to get through college is to leave with as little debt as possible...have either someone else help you out with it or through college grants/scholarships/assistantships. The less debt you get out with after graduation the better off you'll be in the long run. Did you go to uconn for spring weekend? My buddy did and said it was a good time, no flipping over of cars like a few years back.

 

[SpeedAdiction20]

lol the cheapest i remember gas was something like $1.15 or breaking $1, when parents were talking how expensive gas had gotten lol,
Luckily my parents are paying for college so no debt there, I hope that I will be able to make some money to repay them eventually when they are old.
No i wasn't able to get to spring weekend, I WAS planning on picking up my car, but unfortunately i didn't realize that checks over $5k needed to be held for 5 days before I could get the money to pay for it, but oh well, I will be getting my car finally tomorrow or Wednesday! but I made my own "party" with a few friends to make up for it, I still have 2 more years to go, which i deff. will hit it up next time.

 

[erik84]

I graduated about a year and a half ago, and thankfully I got out with absolutely no debt. Being at my first "real" full-time job for over a year now, I still am unsure if the purchase of the MS3 is a good idea for myself. But I may just be the most indecisive person in the world. I will check with the Guinness Book of records to make sure.

All in all, it's better to really think about all the factors involved. As much as I dislike driving my 2001 Dark Green Protege, I have yet to make the decision. Good luck.

 

[tubebrner]

I graduated about a year and a half ago, and thankfully I got out with absolutely no debt. Being at my first "real" full-time job for over a year now, I still am unsure if the purchase of the MS3 is a good idea for myself. But I may just be the most indecisive person in the world. I will check with the Guinness Book of records to make sure.

All in all, it's better to really think about all the factors involved. As much as I dislike driving my 2001 Dark Green Protege, I have yet to make the decision. Good luck.

+1 I am in the same boat as you, except for a small loan which I've already taken care of. It probably would have been more fiscally repsonsible to keep my 100,000 mile 97 Chevy Lumina until the wheels fell off and then buy a decent 3-5 y/o used car. But, I decided I had worked hard and I was making decent money on my own for the first time. Sometimes I still question it though when I realize how hard it is to save money and the $500 per month that goes toward my car note and insurance. Then I stomp on it from a roll and remember exactly why I bought this car.