Mazda 6 mps, is it a good car
Discussion
willmagrath said:
Im always looking at what car to get next like most of you and have come across these as a potential. Love the idea of it being awd and not an impreza. My other ideas have been anything from a saab 9-3 aero to a golf gti mk5. But what do people think of the mps??
I like the Mazda 6, but I think you've really got to want one over an Impreza though. The Subaru sounds better and IMO likely drives better too. And while an Impreza isn't a pretty car, the Mazda is rather "meh" in it's appearance.EDITED to add:
9-3 sounds like an old mans wafty car. And the Golf sounds boring.
Edited by 300bhp/ton on Wednesday 25th September 12:38
TwistingMyMelon said:
I had a standard 6, liked it,reliable car, but felt cheap and "french" inside, but everything worked it just felt flimsy
Look out for rust on arches and sills
Fairly heavy, as you'd expect, and not as sharp as an Impreza, but it's rear is a playful as my ex girlfriend's, which is fun, if a bit naughty.Look out for rust on arches and sills
I'd set aside £500 to sort the rear diff mount, if not done already.
Other thank that, it's been a perfect 'family' car.
300bhp/ton said:
I like the Mazda 6, but I think you've really got to want one over an Impreza though. The Subaru sounds better and IMO likely drives better too. And while an Impreza isn't a pretty car, the Mazda is rather "meh" in it's appearance.
Both very different cars, almost like comparing an Elise to an XK.I think I'm probably the only person around that actually thinks it looks nice....
Tribal Chestnut said:
Both very different cars, almost like comparing an Elise to an XK.
I think I'm probably the only person around that actually thinks it looks nice....
I agree they are different, although the op was the one comparing. Although on paper they both represent a 4 door, family sized, AWD turbocharged car.I think I'm probably the only person around that actually thinks it looks nice....
I don't dislike the MPS, but it is very understated. I think if I didn't want an Impreza I'd consider a 3.0 V6 X-Type for more elegance and a nicer interior. An Audi S4 B5 2.7TT for more grunt & tuning potential or an Evo for something even more focused and stand outish. The MPS would rank behind these for me.
Yes.
It's a bit lardy for my liking (about 1600kg) and the front brake calipers are annoyingly cheaply designed yet used only on the 6 MPS so spares are stupidly expensive[1].
Heard a few tales of gearbox failures, diff failures and a few engine blow ups but it's a Mazda so generally reliable. Main niggly annoyance and failing is there is a common air-con failure with a pipe rubbing.
You can run it on 95 but 98 is recommended.
Standard size tyres (215/45R18) are stupidly expensive and little choice, far better to go to 225/40R18, cheaper, more choice and actually improve the feel a bit. Win all round (as long as your ins co are happy[2])
It suffers from inlet manifold / inlet tracts clogging up (same as a number of Audi's etc) due to being GDI which reduces power over time, recommendation is to remove EGR and run crankcase vents to a catch tank instead of the IM.
It is more tail happy than you'd expect (enough for me to "run out of talent" once in the wet with the DSC off and end up backwards once into a bank). It's predominantly FWD with 'up to' 50% sent to the rear via an electric centre diff.
Engine is a peach, enough lag for you to know it's FI but not so much that you're forever waiting on boost, very happy to rev. Clutch is a bit annoying, even with the 'fix'.
Chassis is claimed 50% stiffer than the stock 6 and that itself is good, only down side of that is you can't (officially) fold the rear seats down due to the bracing, they do however still fold down (they are the same seats after all as the normal 6) but you need to take the liner out and/or fit the standard levers/knobs to allow them to recline and then you still have the bracing in the way.
Rare though[3] and they only made/sold them for two years.
In summation it's more involving and fun to drive than Audi's, less than an Evo or Scooby but doesn't have the same negative image (or insurance costs!) Only petrolheads and those in the know realise what it is (which can be a good or bad thing depending on if you want everyone to know how fast your car is).
Druid
[1] Brake pads slide on the carriers rather than on sacrificial plates so after a while they wear a groove. Fine when like on the standard 6 they are ~£17ea but at ~£150ea it stings a bit. All to save about 50p a side.
[2] Phoned ours up, the said as long as we weren't changing the wheels they didn't care
[3] Although there is another one parked in the (shared) car park at work and another somewhere nearby home as I see it round every now and then and parked at the local.
It's a bit lardy for my liking (about 1600kg) and the front brake calipers are annoyingly cheaply designed yet used only on the 6 MPS so spares are stupidly expensive[1].
Heard a few tales of gearbox failures, diff failures and a few engine blow ups but it's a Mazda so generally reliable. Main niggly annoyance and failing is there is a common air-con failure with a pipe rubbing.
You can run it on 95 but 98 is recommended.
Standard size tyres (215/45R18) are stupidly expensive and little choice, far better to go to 225/40R18, cheaper, more choice and actually improve the feel a bit. Win all round (as long as your ins co are happy[2])
It suffers from inlet manifold / inlet tracts clogging up (same as a number of Audi's etc) due to being GDI which reduces power over time, recommendation is to remove EGR and run crankcase vents to a catch tank instead of the IM.
It is more tail happy than you'd expect (enough for me to "run out of talent" once in the wet with the DSC off and end up backwards once into a bank). It's predominantly FWD with 'up to' 50% sent to the rear via an electric centre diff.
Engine is a peach, enough lag for you to know it's FI but not so much that you're forever waiting on boost, very happy to rev. Clutch is a bit annoying, even with the 'fix'.
Chassis is claimed 50% stiffer than the stock 6 and that itself is good, only down side of that is you can't (officially) fold the rear seats down due to the bracing, they do however still fold down (they are the same seats after all as the normal 6) but you need to take the liner out and/or fit the standard levers/knobs to allow them to recline and then you still have the bracing in the way.
Rare though[3] and they only made/sold them for two years.
In summation it's more involving and fun to drive than Audi's, less than an Evo or Scooby but doesn't have the same negative image (or insurance costs!) Only petrolheads and those in the know realise what it is (which can be a good or bad thing depending on if you want everyone to know how fast your car is).
Druid
[1] Brake pads slide on the carriers rather than on sacrificial plates so after a while they wear a groove. Fine when like on the standard 6 they are ~£17ea but at ~£150ea it stings a bit. All to save about 50p a side.
[2] Phoned ours up, the said as long as we weren't changing the wheels they didn't care
[3] Although there is another one parked in the (shared) car park at work and another somewhere nearby home as I see it round every now and then and parked at the local.
Tribal Chestnut said:
Other thank that, it's been a perfect 'family' car.
Yep, we got one to replace our RX-8 due to baby #2 being on the way. Disable Airbag switch for the front passenger as standard[1], room and isofix for two car seats in the back, plus leather for any sticky/messy incidents. Enough boot space to take two push chairs, fast enough to beat 99% of cars at the TL GP[1] and handling to match. What more do you need out of a family run round.
Druid
[1] Lots of cars only have this as an option and its very expensive to get retro-fitted.
aspirated said:
Leather seats are s
te, they're PVC I think..
What are you talking about? They're leather seats.te, they're PVC I think..aspirated said:
and the sat nav is rubbish
Didn't bother with trying to find one with, IMO while intergrated sat navs are nice they're outdated very quickly and the updates cost more than just getting a nice shiny new aftermarket one every couple of years.What annoys me most about the options (in the UK) though is the lack of heated seats yet we get a sunroof. Can't remember the last time I used a sunroof but heated seats are (or at least would be) used daily in winter.
aspirated said:
Leather seats are ste, they're PVC I think..and the sat nav is rubbish but it's bloody fast
and grips well that's all I can tell you after travelling in one.
The seats are very comfy - no sciatic problems anymore, but they give no lateral support - I find myself sliding all over the place which is pretty sh**e in a fairly swift car.te, they're PVC I think..and the sat nav is rubbish but it's bloody fastand grips well
that's all I can tell you after travelling in one.Crafty_ said:
Fastdruid said:
FWD only.
Yeah I know that, as I understand it the 3 & 6 shared engines, there isn't a great deal of information out there so wondered if anyone had any insight.Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff