Went to test drive a Speed 3 today...
- Thread starter yobrigidey
- Start date
I test drove two of them at different dealerships. I wanted my wife to test drive one as well before buying to make sure she liked it too. I then ordered a new one. I'm one of those people that dont like cars with mileage on them when I'm paying a premium. Car is great for the money.
Me too, although it was mostly because I didn't want white.
Vindikacione
Member
True Story: Bought my MS3 over the phone at a Honduh dealership of all places. I was in Germany at the time and getting a transfluid change for my Accord. (The Honduhs were nice, but too slow and dainty. Besides I couldn't bring a Euro-Spec version back home with me anyway. Sidenote: US-Spec Civic has nothing on the Euro-Spec version.)
Never even met my Mazda dealer in person. About 35 days later I got a GT for around $24K (long boat trip and I was in the field when it arrived). I didn't need a test drive. Almost any car that can generate 250+hp for less than $25K is a steal. Not to mention all the good press it was getting in the media. You'd be an idiot to settle for a lesser car for more money or to pass up the fact it was only going to be offered for 2 years.
Bottomline: Test Driving is truly unnecessary, unless you don't have the money to buy one. Then test drive all you want, because you'll never drive a better car for that price and for that year group. Period.
Of course I may be just a wee bit biased.
Never even met my Mazda dealer in person. About 35 days later I got a GT for around $24K (long boat trip and I was in the field when it arrived). I didn't need a test drive. Almost any car that can generate 250+hp for less than $25K is a steal. Not to mention all the good press it was getting in the media. You'd be an idiot to settle for a lesser car for more money or to pass up the fact it was only going to be offered for 2 years.
Bottomline: Test Driving is truly unnecessary, unless you don't have the money to buy one. Then test drive all you want, because you'll never drive a better car for that price and for that year group. Period.
Of course I may be just a wee bit biased.
FrequentFlyer
Member
- :
- 2008 CWP Mazdaspeed3
I'm sure dealers get kids in there just looking for a joyride, but the whole "people like to buy cars with no mileage" is BS. In the scheme of things, <100 miles on a brand new car is nothing. I picked mine up from the dealer with 94 miles on it. I drive 80 miles a day. When the car's got 75k+ miles on it, do you really think I'm going to look back and say, "I wish I had ordered the car so I can sit my ass in a seat that's only got 8 miles of farts in it instead of 50.". No. Honestly, I didn't care when I picked the car up a 6 weeks ago, never mind now with 2,800 miles on it. When I'm spending a substantial amount of cash on something, like a car, you better believe I want to test drive it. You don't buy a house without walking through it a half dozen times and most likely getting a home inspection done by a professional. I'm not laying down $20 grand without driving a car and not being able to get out of the deal if I don't want it. I was looking at buying a new VW GTI last year. I walked into the dealer very serious about buying because I really liked the way they looked, inside and out. Well I actually decided not to after test driving it. It wasn't fast enough, I didn't want the DSG tranny and the manual tranny/clutch felt like crap. So, there you go. No, I don't know what may have happened to my car in those 80 some odd miles I didn't drive it, but it's got a warranty.
I didn't even test drive mine. The dealership I went to had 3 MS3s. I sat in the one in the show room and it felt comfy. I went through the gears and started her up for a second. I was like "okay, what other colors do you have." Showed me a white one and I was like "where do I sign." Car only had 16 miles on it. I can see why they do it. The Speed3, while just a "souped up economy car" is a true enthusiast machine, and I know I like the idea that some punk kids looking just to drive one around didn't drive my car before me. It's something stupid, but I like being pretty much the only person to drive my car.
That's not necessarily true. My husband and I drove to the dealership where he bought his MSP brand new in '03 IN our MSP and the dumbass salesperson wouldn't let us test drive the MS3. He even looked at our car and asked us if we modded our Protege. We had to explain to him that it was a Mazdaspeed and we bought it that way. Once he asked us what an STi was, I walked away.
Went to another dealership about a month later in our dirty ass P5 and the guy walked out and handed us the keys to an MS3.
Dealers are liers. I never buy cars without test driving them. I personaly had to test drive 2 different Ms3's before making my final decision. They never gave me any issue about test driving. I am 32, if that means anything. If you want to test drive any thing go to carmax they are cool and dont work off commission. I test drove an 07 zo6 there that was kept inside the building (Amazing car by the way)good luck finding an Ms3 there though.
I showed up at the dealership dressed in khakis and a button up with my wife in a suit. I had a hard time getting a test drive out of them and I'd bought two cars from them previously.
They threw me the keys to an MS6 and said take it for as long as I want. heh. With the MS3, they wanted to go with me. I told them no. The sales lady insisted that she had to go. The sales manager came out immediately and told us it was no problem.
I looked at the Caliber SRT4 and the salesman was just short of begging me to take it out. Our local dodge dealer has had the same two SRT4s sitting out front since Jan/Feb
They threw me the keys to an MS6 and said take it for as long as I want. heh. With the MS3, they wanted to go with me. I told them no. The sales lady insisted that she had to go. The sales manager came out immediately and told us it was no problem.
I looked at the Caliber SRT4 and the salesman was just short of begging me to take it out. Our local dodge dealer has had the same two SRT4s sitting out front since Jan/Feb
FrequentFlyer
Member
- :
- 2008 CWP Mazdaspeed3
Ok, what's to say your car didn't have 16 miles of clutch dumps and WOT romps down the road without a proper warm up? You don't know and that's why it's not worth obscessing over <100 miles on a brand new car. Sometimes they drive them from dealer to dealer. The dealer franchise I bought my car from has two lots roughly 20 miles away from each other. Maybe they drove my car from one lot to the other to balance their inventory? Who knows? Lots of things can happen in 16 miles. I bet I could break something on this car in less than 1/4 mile. Just like buying a used car with 24k miles, you have no idea what may or may not have happened to that car without your rearend being in the seat, which is even more of a reason to take a test drive in the vehicle you are buying. Would you put it past a dealer to sell you a car that has something broken on it? I wouldn't. Then they'd turn around and void your warranty the next day and accuse you of abusing the car.
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I think I answered your question in the last part of my post. I like being pretty much the only person to drive my car. I know with 16 miles that isn't true, but are you telling me if you had to choose between two identical cars, one had 100 miles and one had 16 you wouldn't choose the car with 16 miles?
I started looking at the ms3 when I saw they had released the white ones. The first dealership had just the sport one and told me I was not allowed to drive unless money was down. So I told them f that.
That next day I went to a different dealer to ask if that was a rule that mazda had. He laughed at me and tossed me the keys to this black one outside and told me to have fun. Went back the next day and purchased a white one they had that was a gt. Since I was so pissed off at the other dealership I took that one by to show them that they missed out on my money. They weren't to happy. That dealership still has the same white one since the end of March. They even have it sitting in the show room on the top lift in the window that you can see from the highway.
by the way new member to forum not to the car though. just never signed up til now.
That next day I went to a different dealer to ask if that was a rule that mazda had. He laughed at me and tossed me the keys to this black one outside and told me to have fun. Went back the next day and purchased a white one they had that was a gt. Since I was so pissed off at the other dealership I took that one by to show them that they missed out on my money. They weren't to happy. That dealership still has the same white one since the end of March. They even have it sitting in the show room on the top lift in the window that you can see from the highway.
by the way new member to forum not to the car though. just never signed up til now.
Vindikacione
Member
No surprise there.
Welcome JW.
Fact of the matter, is that not all Car dealerships are the same. However, they are all capitalists trying to make a buck, so you can't slight them, especially the way gas prices are.
Yeah, I'd be pretty pissed if I decided on a GTI, SRT4, Caliber, or Cobalt, I'd lose sleep at night, which is the most precious commodity going these days.
Test drive them all, you'll still end up loving the MS3, but never forget that a good dealer can actually sway you to drive a sucker car, -any of those forementioned. The Zoom-Zoom can't be beat, yet. (usa)
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Interesting... I have never a problem getting a test drive on any car I purchased. I guess the Infiniti G35 coupe I got was the most expensive, but they encouraged me to take it right out. I was only 30 at the time.
On my MS3... the first one I purchased had 15 miles on it. Unfortunately, the second one --- to get what I wanted --- had over 600 miles on it. They cut $200 off the price. Best I could get them to do.
On my MS3... the first one I purchased had 15 miles on it. Unfortunately, the second one --- to get what I wanted --- had over 600 miles on it. They cut $200 off the price. Best I could get them to do.
Funny, when I was car shopping, one of the cars I was looking at was a used Evo8. Dealer let me test drive it no problem. I would have got it too, but the car was in not-so-good shape. And the salesman knew NOTHING about the Evo. He didn't even know it was turbo charged.
Silver Ecstasy
Member
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- 11 MS3 Sport
I did that to the Dodge dealer, only I didn't end up buying anything. I just called and told them why I wasn't buying at their dealer and why another dealer earned my business instead.
MikeHTally
Member
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- 2008.5 Speed3, 2006 Chrysler 300C, 2003 Ram 1500
I went by the local dealership last May, just to see what they had. Ragged t-shirt, mangy shorts and sneakers with no socks (I'd been working on my truck earlier and was on my way to get my fur trimmed). They insisted I drive the white one I was looking at and even pointed me toward a road nearby that has some cool off-camber turns. I didn't beat the car up 'cause it only had a few miles on it and wasn't fully warmed up. I went back that afternoon and bought the other white one which was a dealer trade with 325 miles on it. Decent deal considering they're the only Speed dealer in 200 miles.
