Got a new ride....zoom zoom

[Vipergrün]

I really loved my 2007 Tundra, but between payment and gas each month it was breaking me.

Found an 05 Mazda3 hatchback with 47K miles, one owner, super clean. This is great little car. Great gas mileage and fun to drive, and I get to keep my man card! :^)

Ok, yes, I got in at the local Lexus dealer, but think I did good. 12.5K out the door. Just need some racks for the boards.

Zoom Zoom

[JTO]

I just got a 2011 3 sport wagon. Way better than I expected! Really peppy and a great handling car. I got rid of my 2008 FJ Cruiser. No regrets
Congrats!
Troy

[stomachmonkey]

Have the 3 coupe but love the hatch. Would have gone for a Speed but it was bought as a commuter car.

Fun little cars.

Do the $2 five minute ground cable upgrade.

Get a battery ground cable fromntour local auto parts place, hook one end to a bolt on you MAF and the other to negative battery post.

Smooths out the idle and generally improves drivability.

[Vipergrün]

Originally Posted by stomachmonkey

Have the 3 coupe but love the hatch. Would have gone for a Speed but it was bought as a commuter car.

Fun little cars.

Do the $2 five minute ground cable upgrade.

Get a battery ground cable fromntour local auto parts place, hook one end to a bolt on you MAF and the other to negative battery post.

Smooths out the idle and generally improves drivability.

Interesting. Thanks for the heads up! I'll check it out.

[Oh Haha]

Way cool!!

I really dig my Protege 5 although it is suffering fromthe typical rust issues that plague these cars.


A Mazda 3 hatch is most definately a car I will checkout in the future.

[BeyGon]

Glad you guys like them but when my wife wanted a new little car we looked at and drove them all, I still think the top of the line 2010 Golf for 19k was the best deal, well built and 170hp. Next up was a GTI but she didn't need that.

[Pazuzu]

I've done three major things to our Mazda3 now, two are known parts failures and one is a (in my mind) valuable upgrade.

1) Convert to a spin on oil filter
How to : Install Spin on oil filter conversion kit
Finish Line / Rosenthal Mazda Parts & Accessories*::*Mazda3*::*Maintenance*::*Oil Filter Conversion

The stock filter on the 2.3l is a drop in filter with a PLASTIC COVER. There are cases where the plastic starts to crack or shear from heavy handed oil changes, and leaks. The conversion makes for a strong spin on filter setup that is easier and cleaner, and safer.

2) Replace passenger side motor mount
Finish Line / Rosenthal Mazda Parts & Accessories*::*Mazda3*::*Engine*::*Engine Mount Passenger Side
Mazda3 >side engine mount< sucks - thanks FORD! Pure crap with photos --------->

This mount gets abused, is a FoMoCo part, and tends to last anywhere from 5 miles to 20K miles before it explodes and creates lots of vibrations. Takes about an hour to swap out.

3) Replace front struts (and rear if you want)
The passenger side front strut seems to blow out after 30k miles for some reason. I replaced all four corners with KYB GR-2 (sourced from amazon, but available literally anywhere), dirt cheap and about 10% stiffer than stock.


And here's a topic on grounding the MAF and throttle body:
Grounding your Throttle Body? . .

[azasadny]

I sold my 2007 MazdaSpeed3 to buy this 2010 MazdaSpeed3. I love this car!

[azasadny]

BTW, use AMSOIL or some other good quality synthetic oil (5w20) and you'll get excellent mileage. When my wife's Mazda 5 lease is up, we'll probably get her a Mazda3 hatchback, they're very practical! I do not like the Mazda5 at all, but it's been a good car for us, it just can't compare to the 3.

[BRPORSCHE]

I am liking my 2005 Mazda 6 a lot. Just sporty enough to make me not be depressed about driving.

Zoom Zoom.

[Oh Haha]

I saw a sweet 2011 steel gray 3 at a dealer yesterday but I can't get over the "cartoonish" look of the front end.

I prefer the older style much better.

I had a rear caliper sticking on the ol' P5 yesterday so I pulled the calipers off, cleaned and lubed the slider pins, adjusted the brake pad piston and it's as good as new.

[scottmandue]

I test drove a bunch of cars and I liked the Mazda3 best.

Didn't drive a Golf... did drive a new beetle and a Matrix among others.

I think you got a good deal IIRC the car (dealer) I looked at wanted $15K for 80K miles and it was only in fair condition (yours looks A LOT better).

[ZOO]

Originally Posted by Oh Haha

I saw a sweet 2011 steel gray 3 at a dealer yesterday but I can't get over the "cartoonish" look of the front end.

I prefer the older style much better.

I had a rear caliper sticking on the ol' P5 yesterday so I pulled the calipers off, cleaned and lubed the slider pins, adjusted the brake pad piston and it's as good as new.

This seems to be a constant, and re-occurring problem with our P5 -- the only real gremlin in an otherwise fine car.

[deathpunk dan]

Nice!

I drive an 08 mazda3 hatch, aad my girlfriend has a rare mazda6 v6 wagon 5 sod. My 3 just hit 60k...hoping to get to 200k.

Only six payments left on my 3...then I can start modding it

[Oh Haha]

Originally Posted by ZOOMiata

This seems to be a constant, and re-occurring problem with our P5 -- the only real gremlin in an otherwise fine car.

I really dig mine. Dare I say it? I have about as much fun in the P5 as I do in the 911 although the flat six does sound better. and nobody even notices you.

[azasadny]

Wayne,
When you're driving the car, enjoying the 263hp, you can't see the front end of the car! I put a bra on it during the summer, but I can live with it, it's THAT much better than the 2007, and the 2007 was great!

[onewhippedpuppy]

Very nice cars, I'm consistently impressed by the base model 3 that my teenage sister in law owns. Despite teenage girl neglect it's been flawless, and still looks like new over 70k later.

[azasadny]

I have Blizzaks on my Speed3 and I drive it through the winter with no problems. I swap tires and wheels in the spring and I'll get a new set of Kumhos for the car before the wife and I drive to the Tail of the Dragon in N Carolina for a Easter drive! The Speed3 tends to go through tires quickly, I can't figure out why!!

[Palum6o]

I read somewhere that the Volvo S40/V50 share the Mazda 3 chassis. We picked up a V50 with the T5 motor last year and it's surprisingly fun to drive, its the way the car rides and handles that makes it a lot of fun.

[Pazuzu]

Originally Posted by Palum6o

I read somewhere that the Volvo S40/V50 share the Mazda 3 chassis. We picked up a V50 with the T5 motor last year and it's surprisingly fun to drive, its the way the car rides and handles that makes it a lot of fun.

The Mazda3 was a "pieces parts" kinda car. It does share the same suspension at least with the Volvo. Various individual parts are shared between the Mazda3, Volvos, Fords, and the RX-8.

I think that's what makes it so liked by people, it's a heck of a lot of car for not much cash, because all of the engineering costs were already passed along from other product lines.