New from NEPA

[Kaiser]

Hey all, I actually don't own a Mazda 2, or even a Mazda at all - yet. I started working at a Mazda dealership last year (Parts Department) and before that I never really noticed Mazdas on the road or thought much of them. Now it's months later and I've gotten to work on and drive so many of them, I am raring to get one. Everyone in the building likes to tease the little Mazda 2s but I've decided that within the next year or couple of years, I will definitely be buying one. Today a salesman told me our dealership is set to get the next-gen 2s, so I might hold out. For the time being, I'm here mostly to learn as much as I can about the 2s and common modifications to them.

As far as what I've actually got: my first car was a 1996 Toyota Celica ST hatchback that I loved as much as life itself. I later bought my 2000 Mitsu Eclipse GT as a project and am still in the process of getting it back together (it's close). I recently wrecked the Celica on the night of a particularly bad ice storm. I'm entering college later this year and because my expenses will be extremely low, I'm looking to buy another car and the Mazda 2 looks like a great option, being able to get a nice new car for a good price.

So I'll be hanging around trying to learn what I can and maybe offer what I can. Looking forward to it

 

[Traum]

Welcome to the forum~ I hope you'll enjoy yourself here and find the info that you are looking for!

Between the current 3rd gen DE, and the 4th gen DJ, there are certain aspects that I like better each car. Assuming that the DJ car will come to N.America (it is getting built in Mexico, and will already be sent to Canada, so I don't see why it wouldn't be sold in the US as well), overall and for my purposes, I think I'd still prefer the DE over the DJ. Tire choice and wheel selection, in particular, are likely a weak point for the DJ car. For my usage (DD + autox + track), wheel and tire selection probably ranks right up there as one of the most important criteria, so that is something I can't do without.

 

[Kaiser]

Thanks It did seem like there are a few trade-offs with the new gens, I think I'll wait to see what shows up on our lot.

I really like the happy-looking Mazda 2, I feel like the new gen is a little bit bland. It's nice, but it blends in too much with the rest of the lineup imo; plus now it's longer and taller, it's kind of becoming too different from the 2s that I grew to love. I think when I first started at the dealership, I thought the 2s were lame like everyone else, but they really grew on me. (They're too cute - tiny wheels, tiny engine, even the tiny batteries. Not to mention, finally a car with more adventurous colors.) My Celica got me used to driving subcompact cars, and I realized that the 2 was actually very similar.

There's one in the showroom right now, a 2011 or so with like 40k on the odometer. It's an automatic Touring, the only thing I'm not big on is that it's silver. All of my vehicles have been black (though really the Celica was black and red, and the Eclipse will be blue) and I really actually like the blue and green 2s. My sales pal essentially said I could get that 2 for around $9k but really I think I'll wait until I can test drive a new 2 and find an older one that I really like. All in good time, I guess.

 

[needmazda2]

Welcome from a fellow noobie!