have you looked at the mazda6 wagon?
Subaru WRX Wagon vs Mazdaspeed 3 Wagon
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I guess that would be the logical conclusion! It doesn't actually seem junky to me, but I haven't driven many cars that are over CDN$30,000 new, so I can only provide a poor-man's perspective.
I just finished another round of test drives with a friend, involving the Honda Fit, Civic, Accord, and CR-V; the Toyota Matrix, Camry, Corolla and RAV4; the Mazda 3, 5, and 6; the Nissan Versa; and the Subaru Impreza and Forester; and I'd buy a Mazda3 again if I had to buy a new car tomorrow. We planned on looking for a compact hatchback, but ended up looking at a lot more types of vehicles than that! My friend prefers the Forester, and will likely buy one, but my favorite was still the 3. The Mazdaspeed3 is more power than I need though!
new Car and Driver compares the Mazdaspeed 3 with MiniCooper, VW GTI, Subaru WRX TR and Nissan SE-R Spec. V.
Mazda was the winner. A new Impreza is supposed to be in the works and probably based on the Legacy chassis. You ought to look at Legacy GT Wagon. Weighs a bit more than the Impreza, but has more power. No manual available anymore, though. Cheaper to insure.
Mazda was the winner. A new Impreza is supposed to be in the works and probably based on the Legacy chassis. You ought to look at Legacy GT Wagon. Weighs a bit more than the Impreza, but has more power. No manual available anymore, though. Cheaper to insure.
I currently have three Subaru's in my household and this makes five in total.
97 Outback Sport - leased
03 WRX wagon - stolen, recovered, sold
04 Forester XT (turbo)
99 Outback - wife's
00 Impreza RS - daughter's
The next car in our household will be an Outback XT. Not that I'm biased or anything, but I don't think I could ever own another car without AWD.
97 Outback Sport - leased
03 WRX wagon - stolen, recovered, sold
04 Forester XT (turbo)
99 Outback - wife's
00 Impreza RS - daughter's
The next car in our household will be an Outback XT. Not that I'm biased or anything, but I don't think I could ever own another car without AWD.
My sister has a 3 and I have not seen any of this cheap build quality you are talking about. Her car seems very well built. The materials have a nice feel, the interior is very quiet, the seams between panels are tight and even, and there is a good bit of attention to detail. Her car seems to have significantly better build quality than my dad's 2004 Civic which rattles and has some massive and uneven gaps on the inside.
I have a Mazdaspeed 3 with about 2600 miles on the clock. So far it has performed flawlessly. The 18 inch wheels are a bit overkill and add to the road noise, but the engine is simply amazing. The "low" crash rating that you see for the Mazda 3 are WITHOUT the optional side curtain air bags so it is safer that it appears. If you're after performance, a WRX Wagon is no match stock for the Speed. Awd is an advantage in many situations, I won't dispute that fact. I think for the money the Mazda 3, and Speed 3, are fantastic cars. So far my mpg has been between 21 and 26 with town and mountain highway driving with some spirited additions from time to time. I have not driven a Subaru so I can't say anything negative about them. A friend of mine didn't purchase a WRX a few years back because of the turbo lag and instead got an RSX Type S. When he drove my Speed 3 he said the turbo "lag" in the Mazda is less pronounced than the increase when his I-VTEC range kicks in. I have heard that the newer WRX has less lag. Both are great cars in my opinion.
Funny how the Mazda 3's cheap interior is highly praised by every car mag! I like them both. The Mazda would be more of a sleeper, regardless of its appearance. Not that many people know about it yet.
As for the CR-V...man, I love my 2002 but I would NOT buy an '07.
Estrogen just oozes outta that thing...
Maybe an FJ if I had to buy another SUV....
As for the CR-V...man, I love my 2002 but I would NOT buy an '07.
Estrogen just oozes outta that thing...
Maybe an FJ if I had to buy another SUV....
I note that the person calling the Mazda 3 a POS is driving an LS400.
Of course it's going to seem cheap and noisy to someone driving a big Lexus.
I also recently purchased a Mazdaspeed 3 after driving four different Miatas over the last ten years and, coming from the other end of the spectrum, I'm loving my MS3.
I really fell in love after my first long highway trip in it. I drove highways non-stop from Galveston to Austin and the low end power is so much better that I didn't have to take it out of 6th gear until I got of the highway back in Austin, and the ride and noise levels are so much nicer than I'm used to. I had two friends in the car and we were talking the whole time at normal volumes -- something I couldn't do in the Miata. It seems downright plush to me.
It's all perspective, but it's by no means a cheaply built car. As others have mentioned, it's been getting some great reviews as of late from numerous publications and there was a stock engined MS3 that recently placed 10th overall in a 2000 km rally in Australia. Betcha can't do that in your LS400!
There are several aftermarket manufacturers that have recently introduced stuff and/or are working on stuff for the MS3. If you want places to look, PM me and I'll pass along som URL's.
CAI's are adding about 25 HP and 25 Ft Lbs. and there's a piggyback ECU for a grand that adds around 60 HP and 70 ft lbs with the tuning that it allows. Easy 300 HP at the wheels without opening the engine or touching the turbo, intercooler or exhaust.
Of course it's going to seem cheap and noisy to someone driving a big Lexus.
I also recently purchased a Mazdaspeed 3 after driving four different Miatas over the last ten years and, coming from the other end of the spectrum, I'm loving my MS3.
I really fell in love after my first long highway trip in it. I drove highways non-stop from Galveston to Austin and the low end power is so much better that I didn't have to take it out of 6th gear until I got of the highway back in Austin, and the ride and noise levels are so much nicer than I'm used to. I had two friends in the car and we were talking the whole time at normal volumes -- something I couldn't do in the Miata. It seems downright plush to me.
It's all perspective, but it's by no means a cheaply built car. As others have mentioned, it's been getting some great reviews as of late from numerous publications and there was a stock engined MS3 that recently placed 10th overall in a 2000 km rally in Australia. Betcha can't do that in your LS400!
There are several aftermarket manufacturers that have recently introduced stuff and/or are working on stuff for the MS3. If you want places to look, PM me and I'll pass along som URL's.
CAI's are adding about 25 HP and 25 Ft Lbs. and there's a piggyback ECU for a grand that adds around 60 HP and 70 ft lbs with the tuning that it allows. Easy 300 HP at the wheels without opening the engine or touching the turbo, intercooler or exhaust.
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