Discussion
Haven't even been driving a year yet and I'm already bored of my old car, so decided to get something a bit more fun.
After several weeks of trawling the internet I found a 2007 Mazda 3 Sport. It was pretty well specced with xenons, bose, cruise, iPod connector, bluetooth: all the gadgets I could possibly want. It was very cheap as well, but there was one downside: 155k miles.
The mileage was however backed up by FSH, and there were more receipts and bills than we could fit in the folder! After weighing up my options, I decided to go for it, and here it is!
Considering the mileage, the condition is pretty good, but there's quite a few scratches and stonechips. I'm considering getting it detailed for my 18th, but need to find out how much it'll cost - don't think my parents would be very happy if I presented them with a £500 bill!
Coming from my 88BHP 2005 Astra, it feels fantastic. I took it out for a late night drive last night (where I had my arse handed to me by a Peugeot driver with considerably bigger balls than me) and it's amazing how much better it is to drive. Even when cruising, it requires so much less effort than my old car, and it's nice to not have your foot glued to the floor just to get to 30MPH!
So, there it is: c&c welcome, any questions feel free to ask.
After several weeks of trawling the internet I found a 2007 Mazda 3 Sport. It was pretty well specced with xenons, bose, cruise, iPod connector, bluetooth: all the gadgets I could possibly want. It was very cheap as well, but there was one downside: 155k miles.
The mileage was however backed up by FSH, and there were more receipts and bills than we could fit in the folder! After weighing up my options, I decided to go for it, and here it is!
Considering the mileage, the condition is pretty good, but there's quite a few scratches and stonechips. I'm considering getting it detailed for my 18th, but need to find out how much it'll cost - don't think my parents would be very happy if I presented them with a £500 bill!
Coming from my 88BHP 2005 Astra, it feels fantastic. I took it out for a late night drive last night (where I had my arse handed to me by a Peugeot driver with considerably bigger balls than me) and it's amazing how much better it is to drive. Even when cruising, it requires so much less effort than my old car, and it's nice to not have your foot glued to the floor just to get to 30MPH!
So, there it is: c&c welcome, any questions feel free to ask.
Thought I'd post a quick update now I've managed to rack up some miles in it.
MPG has been about what I expected, averaging around 28 according to the OBC. The 6 speed gearbox takes quite a lot of getting used to, but I'm getting better at smooth changes, and have only stalled it once reversing into my drive! It's so much quieter than my old car, especially on the motorway, and it's easy to exceed the speed limit by quite a bit if you're not paying attention.
I've found myself using the cruise control a lot, something my old car didn't have: it's really good through average speed zones, and the ability to increase speed by a few MPH by pressing a button on the steering wheel is really useful for overtaking the people who insist on doing 45MPH all the way through....
Went for a proper "hoon" around Kent today, burnt through quite a lot of fuel but had a lot of fun! Quick phone picture from where I parked up turned out a bit better than expected.
MPG has been about what I expected, averaging around 28 according to the OBC. The 6 speed gearbox takes quite a lot of getting used to, but I'm getting better at smooth changes, and have only stalled it once reversing into my drive! It's so much quieter than my old car, especially on the motorway, and it's easy to exceed the speed limit by quite a bit if you're not paying attention.
I've found myself using the cruise control a lot, something my old car didn't have: it's really good through average speed zones, and the ability to increase speed by a few MPH by pressing a button on the steering wheel is really useful for overtaking the people who insist on doing 45MPH all the way through....
Went for a proper "hoon" around Kent today, burnt through quite a lot of fuel but had a lot of fun! Quick phone picture from where I parked up turned out a bit better than expected.
Max M4X WW said:
Sounds good, things like cruise and xenons I take for granted now but they are very welcome once you first get a car with them 
Exactly! Although the unfortunate side affect of that is that I'll want them on my next car, committing me to buying something expensiveMrMcMikey said:
Nice choice you dnt see many of these mazdas out on the road for some reason, prob cos everyone got a ford focus without knowing the Mazda exists. Whats the Bose sound system like? wish my car had it 
That and they were a bit more expensive than the Ford IIRC. The bose system is fantastic, produces really loud, clear sound, although the iPod integration is a bit old-fashioned: all I can do is skip tracks.Riknos said:
28 MPG sounds shockingly low from one of these! You must be thrashing it a lot 
A lot of car for the money and they are bullet proof. Shame you got it in such a boring colour, they look wonderful in the green!
It's low, but I don't know about shockingly low: all the reviews I saw slated the MPG, and my friend who drives very sensibly only gets around 33 from his. I do have a bit of a lead foot though, I must admit A lot of car for the money and they are bullet proof. Shame you got it in such a boring colour, they look wonderful in the green!
I never knew you could get them in green, I saw a lovely one in red with black leather seats but it sold for more than my budget.
very nice that, looks in good nick for 155K
Max M4X WW said:
Sounds good, things like cruise and xenons I take for granted now but they are very welcome once you first get a car with them
your right there, didn't realize how much i took them for granted until i had to use the wifes corsa during the gap between selling my passat and getting the new Audi S6. I almost swapped my Celica 190 for one of these in 2.0 petrol guise, but the fuel consumption was actually worse, the boot was smaller and the performance was tepid.
They're nice little cars all said and done though, just the fuel consumption doesn't match the performance. If it was a damn-site faster then it would make sense!
They're nice little cars all said and done though, just the fuel consumption doesn't match the performance. If it was a damn-site faster then it would make sense!
C.A.R. said:
I almost swapped my Celica 190 for one of these in 2.0 petrol guise, but the fuel consumption was actually worse, the boot was smaller and the performance was tepid.
They're nice little cars all said and done though, just the fuel consumption doesn't match the performance. If it was a damn-site faster then it would make sense!
I would have certainly taken a celica 190 over my Mazda if they'd let me insure one! To be honest, as pleased as I am with the car, I do agree with you. Unfortunately, there aren't any properly quick cars the companies will insure an 18 year old on, and this was the quickest car with a sub £2500 insurance quote (by quite a considerable margin). The fuel consumption isn't such an issue for me: I do quite a lot of miles but can afford the fuel costs, and I'd rather pay for petrol than expensive repairs!They're nice little cars all said and done though, just the fuel consumption doesn't match the performance. If it was a damn-site faster then it would make sense!
Gassing Station | Readers' Cars | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff