Who likes this car?

Hey, I own a '17. Has been a good car so far, and I will not say it's been unreliable. Note that I don't have cylinder de-activation. I would never have bought it had it had that. I do keep up with the Mazda6 and Mazda3 forums, and CD continues to be rough for a number of owners... not all. It's moot though because we're discussing a turbo Mazda6 which does not have CD.

My sense is that the Mazda engineers are a talented bunch and the cars are reliable if not durable. They are built to a budget. Most cars are, but Mazda's are "light" with sheet metal gauge, light with galvanizing, light with paint thickness, light with carpet quality. Mazda's WILL go the distance... but it's my sense that to not look ratty soon they need a bit more care.

Believe it or not, what are more "rough and tumble", are my '99Camry and my '99 Corolla... I know, I know... from a different era...
 
PimTac said:
Enormous??

I have a neighbor with a newer CX5. They love it. No mention of “enormous” drivetrain vibrations.

It has start/stop too. Oh the horror!!!
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You know, I did put some caveats on my statement. Also, it's so true that if an individual has not experienced an issue themselves they seem to not believe that there actually is an issue. Have you heard of Chevy-Shake? Affects a sizeable % of '14-'18 (?) Silverado's, Suburbans, GMC equivalents etc... and those who don't experience it, i.e. the majority of owners of that model year range, seem to discount it. The issue is real.

Mazda CD issues continue. The fixes (2 TSB's) seem to shift the issue a bit, to different operating points... Not fixed. The fix is to lose CD, even if it requires a CD cancel command at ea. startup.

Who in their right mind would ever think that CD is a good idea in a four cyl...???
 
Cdn17Sport6MT said:
You know, I did put some caveats on my statement. Also, it's so true that if an individual has not experienced an issue themselves they seem to not believe that there actually is an issue. Have you heard of Chevy-Shake? Affects a sizeable % of '14-'18 (?) Silverado's, Suburbans, GMC equivalents etc... and those who don't experience it, i.e. the majority of owners of that model year range, seem to discount it. The issue is real.

Mazda CD issues continue. The fixes (2 TSB's) seem to shift the issue a bit, to different operating points... Not fixed. The fix is to lose CD, even if it requires a CD cancel command at ea. startup.

Who in their right mind would ever think that CD is a good idea in a four cyl...???
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I agree with you concerning cylinder deactivation. Honda tried it and had problems. If Honda couldn't make CD work (and they're a great engine company) who can?

A lot of the recent innovations are problematic or to me at least undesirable. I'm thinking of cylinder deactivation, run flat tires, CVT and dual clutch transmissions, elimination of spare tires, deletion of oil dipsticks, and probably a few others.

A lot of quite good cars have gone or are going out of production entirely - Ford Fusion, Lincoln MKZ, VW Golf, Chevrolet Impala, Mazda6, Acura TL, Acura TSX. And many are no longer available with a manual transmission - eg Honda Accord, Subaru Outback and Legacy, Nissan Maxima, Corvette.
 
Not a fan of that exterior color and can't stand red or leather, so the interior definitely wouldn't cut it. I do like the overall design as well as the wheels/low profile tires for more aggressive handling, but can be costly for tire replacement as well as more prone to wheel damage being so close to the road. 51 yrs old and a die hard fan of sport compacts...
 
PimTac said:
When was that?
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I had one Mazda 626 in the Ford era, built at the Flat Rock plant. Think it was early to mid 1990's

Terrible quality car: poor Paint, transmission, engine, thin sheetmetal. **

The General Ride, handing and design were good. Don Aurey of the Boston Bruins sold me the car. He was working Near Concord NH at a Mazda dealership.

When we were looking at a new car for my wife I said we should shop mazda cX5 and CX30 at a nearby dealership.
She remembered that 626 and said " NO! aren't Mazda junk?!" I also had a Miata later that was no prize.

I'm sure that are MUCH better now without Ford meddling. Or that Terrible Flat Rock plant turning out junk..
 
Spyderman24_7 said:
... 51 yrs old and a die hard fan of sport compacts...
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I'll bet you miss "Sports Compact Car" magazine. I do...

Dave Coleman of Mazda was author of the "Ask The Wrench" column in said magazine...

Incidentally, Mike Kojima was at the time, and still is, pretty closely associated with Dave Coleman. Mike has a decent on-line continuation of "SCC" magazine: Motoiq.com
 

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I like the car and think you will too, despite the wheels being a little too faddish. You could always get a second set of rims with winter tires and not have to look at them half the year.
 
Oro_O said:
I helped my ex pick out a new car on very, very similar criteria this past winter. I steered her towards, and she got and loves, a 4th-generation Lexus GS350 awd.

It meets all these criteria except mt, but it's honestly good enough with the 6-speed auto I would not miss it too much. The awd has a 6spd most of the generation, 2wd and l think later awd got an 8spd. It's also very suitable for your climate where I am imagining your "long" drives may cross the coastal mountains and into interior BC in winter possibly. No unusual technology, just standard technology done very, very well.

You would likely have to get used (we/she did) to get it lower than the 6. But what she got for the relative small amount of money was a phenomenal car and these Lexus don't require absurd maintenance like the BMW as the miles accrue.
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Had a 2018 Lexus GS 350 F Sport AWD for a test drive this morning. They no longer sell them in Canada. Has a bit of a heavy cruiser vibe, quite luxurious and yet a bit sporty.

They are generous in their use of fuel (premium naturally) and kind of complicated with a heads up display and adaptive suspension, but all in all a very nice car. You're never left wondering if it's nice enough. And hopefully they have Toyota/Lexus reliability.

Speaking of complicated, I still hope to test drive a Tesla Model 3.
 
I think you do in fact owe yourself a test drive of the Tesla. You have got to hand it to them re the development of recharging infrastructure along with their cars.

Suggest you search for the Engineering Explained treatise on travelling overland with the Tesla, both in summer and in winter (there are two YouTube videos). Note what Jason Fenske thinks/has experienced re low profile tires...
 
Very nice car, although I wish they still offered the wagon and a manual transmission.

As others have said, I don't like the black wheels or the low-profile tires.

2^6 years old ... from the era when 70-series tires were sporty. 😁
 
ecotourist said:
Had a 2018 Lexus GS 350 F Sport AWD for a test drive this morning. They no longer sell them in Canada. Has a bit of a heavy cruiser vibe, quite luxurious and yet a bit sporty.
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I haven't driven one that new or an F-sport. Non-f or a slightly older model year may not have that if it's undesirable to you (probably would be to me).

Whatever you get, I'll be curious about what you get and why. You seem like a curious, discriminating driver and consumer who is open minded about new/used, Euro/US/Japanese. Considered a Cadillac CTS from the last couple years? I have both worked on and driven an ATS and it has impressed me in handling, build quality, etc. The CTS would be a contender in this category IMO. Maintenance a bit bitter than BMW long term, less than Lexus.
 
Oro_O said:
I haven't driven one that new or an F-sport. Non-f or a slightly older model year may not have that if it's undesirable to you (probably would be to me).

Whatever you get, I'll be curious about what you get and why. You seem like a curious, discriminating driver and consumer who is open minded about new/used, Euro/US/Japanese. Considered a Cadillac CTS from the last couple years? I have both worked on and driven an ATS and it has impressed me in handling, build quality, etc. The CTS would be a contender in this category IMO. Maintenance a bit bitter than BMW long term, less than Lexus.
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Thank you for your comments.

Here's are a couple of videos that reflects why I'd like to get away from BMW (mine has been quite good, though I have concerns about keeping it for the very long term) and why I'm not too keen on Cadillac.





I would like to be able to buy a nice looking, good performing and reliable Cadillac, Lincoln or Imperial. Cadillacs are nice looking and perform quite well but I don't think they're that reliable any more. I think they got complicated before the engineering went in. Ford seems to be getting out of the car business altogether. And I've rented Chrysler products and liked them, but they just don't make anything I'd care to buy and keep for the next 10 - 15 years.

I'm trying to arrange a test drive of a Tesla Model 3 but not having much luck. I've been referred to the local Tesla owner's club but there is no contact information, just a form to fill out. Seems a bit strange.
 
Oro_O said:
I will ask her if she's monitored it. She used to do that consistently when I maintained her older ES (phenomenally reliable car- now has 326k on it and drives great - it took it out on a nice spring day last week instead of one of my cars and went up and down the Hood Canal - great drive). She probably has been tracking mpg.

My experiences driving it would not be indicative. I have only driven it a few times and each saw excursions to 100, 120mph so the mileage would be misleading. ;) They are phenomenal cars. I have been a long time BMW 3,5,6 fan, had several, Audi V8 awd's. I looked last year for a cherry E39 or E60 5 for myself so I am well aware of what mileage/maintenance they run into over 100k. And that if you love those, this could be a possible replacement. I'll ask her this afternoon if she's tracked mileage.

EDIT: no, she has not tracked it. Here's some data at fuelly in us miles/gallons:

Lexus GS350 Base MPG - Actual MPG from 145 Lexus GS350 Base owners

The most accurate Lexus GS350 Base MPG estimates based on real world results of 3.8 million miles driven in 145 Lexus GS350 Bases
www.fuelly.com

My instinct is that it's gong to deliver (us) low 20s around town/mixed use, near 30 conservative higway. That's what her older ES does and I've followed Toyota/lexus V6 engines that less several generations. Since around 2000, they haven't made any real changes in efficiency in that engine niche, but have made HUGE gains in power both HP and also broad, flat-ish torque curves.
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@Oro_O
@ecotourist

i have a 2014 GS350. It’s a thirsty little pig but it’s an extremely well-sorted car. The balance is wonderful, the shift programming is excellent, and the paddle shifters are actually useful, if you care to paddle through 8 gears. I find them mostly useful on the interstate to just lock it in 6, 7, or 8 while flowing with traffic.

as for mpg, it’s worse than my f150 eco in town. If I drive with an egg under my foot and refuse any idling with the air on at all, it might get 22 mpg. If I use it without caring, 20.

on the interstate, it’s a solid 28mpg at 75 and closer to 40 if you stay around 50-55.

they made a turbo 4 in this car, and had I known that I’d have been all over it instead of the 6. The six is fun, but I don’t need it. It requires me to practice more restraint. The 4 achieves mid 20s around town and 29-30 on the hwy.

being a Lexus, it is reasonably quiet inside and has a marvelous radio.

edit: this v6 is known for knocking sounds, either the injector pump or piston slap. Mine came used with some amount of noise but I started putting mmo in the fuel and a splash of seafoam in the oil and it has quieted down a good bit.
 
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meep said:
i have a 2014 GS350. It’s a thirsty little pig but it’s an extremely well-sorted car. The balance is wonderful, the shift programming is excellent, and the paddle shifters are actually useful, if you care to paddle through 8 gears. I find them mostly useful on the interstate to just lock it in 6, 7, or 8 while flowing with traffic.

as for mpg, it’s worse than my f150 eco in town. If I drive with an egg under my foot and refuse any idling with the air on at all, it might get 22 mpg. If I use it without caring, 20.

on the interstate, it’s a solid 28mpg at 75 and closer to 40 if you stay around 50-55.
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The numbers I've seen are similar. Thirsty and with premium fuel at that.

For Imperial gallons: EPA 23.8/32.5 mpg and trip 26.5 - 28.75 mpg
For US gallons: EPA 19.9/27.1 mpg and trip 22.1 - 23.9 mpg

Your numbers seem quite similar. Those numbers aren't great but they're not all that different from my BMW and Honda.

In spite of the fuel consumption I expect they're very good cars.

Meanwhile I'm still on the trail of a test drive of a Tesla Model 3. Got to try it!
 
There may be something wrong with me, and some observers have argued that for nearly 35 years, but to me those mileage figures are totally liveable, and especially OK given the excellent characteristics of that engine. I have always been a displacement guy, and have a thirsty older German V8 hanging around still myself. I also have some smaller newer turbos which I enjoy the power and fuel efficiency. But that engine has no turbo downsides, and just great characteristics. Over 225 ft/lbs of torque (~280 max) on tap anywhere over 2k rpm and the hp is incredibly linear all the way to redline with no flat spot.


Here's a chart of a 2000 BMW 528i in comparison:


I'm not trying to change your mind, but - oh wait. You live in Canada. Are your gas prices that much higher than ours? Ours are expensive for the US (western WA), but are yours that much more?
 
Oro_O said:
There may be something wrong with me, and some observers have argued that for nearly 35 years, but to me those mileage figures are totally liveable, and especially OK given the excellent characteristics of that engine. I have always been a displacement guy, and have a thirsty older German V8 hanging around still myself. I also have some smaller newer turbos which I enjoy the power and fuel efficiency. But that engine has no turbo downsides, and just great characteristics. Over 225 ft/lbs of torque (~280 max) on tap anywhere over 2k rpm and the hp is incredibly linear all the way to redline with no flat spot.


Here's a chart of a 2000 BMW 528i in comparison:


I'm not trying to change your mind, but - oh wait. You live in Canada. Are your gas prices that much higher than ours? Ours are expensive for the US (western WA), but are yours that much more?
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Our gasoline price for regular is $1.519 Cdn/liter. Which converts to $4.73 US/US gallon. Premium is considerably more. I think that gasoline is expensive here compared to the US (though cheap compared to Europe).

The mileage for our current 2 cars on extended trips, mostly highway miles but some city miles as well, is as follows:

Honda V6 sedan (regular grade) actual trip mileage 34.3 - 38.1 Miles/Imperial gallon which is 28.6 - 31.7 Miles/US gallon.
BMW 528i (premium grade) actual trip mileage 32.4 - 35.7 Miles/Imperial gallon which is 27.0 - 29.7 Miles/US gallon.

The Lexus GS 350 predicted trip mileage (premium grade) is 26.5 - 28.8 Miles/Imperial gallon which is 22.1 - 23.9 Miles/US gallon.

The expected mileage of the GS 350 is quite a bit worse, using about 30% more fuel.
 
Our fuel costs here on the west coast of Canada are pretty darned high. They are high due to supply/demand, due to limited product pipeline capacities, and due to federal and provincial taxation. 🙁 .
 
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