Awesome! I was toying with buying either a Lexus IS350 or a BMW 335....until I drove the MS3......LOVE IT! Have a great time flitting around in it. I am an avid outdoor person and am interested in purchasing a Kayak/bike rack. Any suggestions would be fabulous!

 

sorry for the late welcome, my friend has a speed3 and while he's not an avid biker, can probably give you suggestions about a good rack. i'll let you know if he comes up with anything.

 

no suggestions. he never rides his bike. he bought a rack for his old car, but sold it when he got the mazdaspeed3. still has the bike though, just never rides it. hope you find what you are looking for.

 

What year is your MS3? I looked at the specs of the 2010 and they're the exact same. I figured they might bolt a turbo to the 2.5 but oh well.

 

Also I think you made a great choice on your car. More for your money and its a hatch since you're an avid outdoors gal (although the IS and 3 series do both come in estate versions also, and option of AWD, but whatever). My previous car was an 01 S4 quattro, and all the AWD torsen system did was suck up more gas due to more friction to both front and rear diffs. It's not like you're going to go land rover style off roading right??? hehe

 

they did not use the 2.5L engine because of all the R&D already put into the 2.3, they would not reap any real-world benefits dumping money into a new tuned system when the old still plays with the new boys. consider this: rumor in mazda some of the delay of the mazdaspeed mx-5 is because of the difficulties installing the 2.3L and all its turbo components into the mx-5. the 2.3 DISI still has a lot of usable life.

also, spec-wise the cars are almost identical, but you do get a few minor changes and tweaks over the previous gen. this inclues springs with slightly higher damper rates, revised mounting position of the anti-sway bars, and a very small increase in rigidity. there are also slightly wider tires on RX-8 wheels that add to the overall grippyness.

in the power area there are revised gear ratios to get more efficient use of the torque, minor changes to the engine calibration and torque management (that annoying thing that limits torque in the 1st-3rd gears). i'm sure you've noticed the wannabe-subaru hood scoop. i've checked it out on my friend's 2010 and it would apear to be wider and able to channel more air into the intercooler than my other friend's 2009. yes...i have 2 friends who own 2 generations of the speed3. as some previous 2.3 DISI owners will tell you, heatsoak can be an annoying issue with their cars.

all this adds up to a marginally better car, but all in all, its still very much the same car. the real changes are the interior and the exterior. the smiley face is functioal and serves to draw air where it needs it the most. how many camaros and celicas can say that with "looks only" scoops and slots? the build quality and material quality of the interior components are also a welcome improvement. not quite a BMW, but quality still.

 

I cant attest to the ms3 handling new or old, but on my mz3 hatch with the 205/50/17s, handling was twitchy as heck! Prior that this car I had an Audi S4 so I guess thats a big difference because of active steering et al (The S4 was stolen). But I upgraded to new RX8 wheels with 235/40/18 and that helped a decent amount. 7" wide 17" wheels are at least to me, just too narrow although it can help with road noise, ride and even fuel efficiency, but 7" is just a tad bit too narrow.

 

well you're talking to a guy who has 16x6" wheels on their protege. when i upgraded to 17x7.5" it was a world of difference. now those wheels are dented and i'm trying to save up for the repair job. 2 wheels are gonna cost more to repair than i actually paid for them! don't forget the S4 also benefitted from years of experience developing rally AWD, marketed to us as quattro.