Hello folks, I'm buying my first new car in the next week. The 3s is pretty much the front-runner right now (the others are the Sentra Spec V, Mini Cooper base, Lancer Ralliart, Tiburon I-4, and Mazda's own "2003.5" Mazdaspeed Protege). I've been pouring over old Road&Tracks and Car&Drivers and I'm impressed with the reputation the Protege/MP3/Mazdaspeed developed.

I've had two Mazdas in the past, a 323 (ultra-bulletproof and actually kinda fun) and an '86 RX-7 (somewhat modified, still the best "feel" of any car I've driven, an absolute blast to pilot), so I'm a bit brand-loyal.

I'm happy to find this forum. I haven't been to a dealer yet (long story, I just finished a degree and have been getting around by bicycle). I have a few questions for owners if you don't mind.

1. All of the "s" sedans with the manual in the area which have the Sport package also have the sunroof/cd changer package. What's the going opinion on sunroofs? I've had bad luck with them on my Stealth and RX-7 (leaking, motors wearing out), and they seem to provide a good way for a thief to enter the car. Do they hurt structural rigidity? Does the 3's roof allow you to block the sun if you want?

2. Does the CD changer replace the single-CD interface? I like being able to feed a CD in (carefully) while I'm driving (or sitting there waiting for traffic to move), but it seems if all you have is a changer, you'd need to stop by the side of the road to put a different disc in. How does that work? Is the stock 6-speaker audio at least decent? Also, from what I can tell, only the Mazdaspeed and MP3 had players which could read MP3 files, correct? (Even the Chevy Aveo reads MP3s, I would have thought Mazda, which had a car called the "MP3," would include this feature that even my mother's $18 DVD player has).

3. Car & Driver reports .87g on the skidpad, which seems excellent, considering the tuned MP3 scored a .86g and the Mazdaspeed was at .88g. This seems extraordinary considering the "all-season" tires and the fact that a Mazdaspeed 3 is just around the corner. Comments? If you've driven the 3 and one of the other two, how do they compare in the handling department?

4. How much will that Mazdaspeed 3 be? When? Do we know what it will have? Turbo? LSD? MP3 capability?

5. How are the 11.8/11.0 brakes without ABS? ABS is only available on ONE manual hatch in the whole DFW area according to Mazda's site.

6. Are the windows not tinted at all? And it's not available as an option?

7. There's one Mazdaspeed Protege in the area, it's a bit more -- would I be a fool not to jump on this car?

8. From pictures, the overhang level for the hatch looks like it would come to about my clavicle -- is this a problem for anyone?

9. I'm impressed with the equipment the Sentra has -- 215 sport tires, LSD, 175 HP, subwoofer, 6 speed -- why would someone buy the 3 over the Sentra (in other words, what does the 3 have over the Sentra besides a $545 lower price?)?

10. I've decided that one of the first things to look at in a car is the armrests. If my elbows don't fall naturally and comfortably to place so that my hands can both reach the wheel (the "7 - 5" position), it might not be comfortable down the road. I can't tell from the pics what the right armrest is like on the 3.

Thanks very much for any help and enlightenment you can provide regarding these points. I'm off to scour the archives, of course, but answers are much appreciated.

 

What the 3 has over the sentra is that its a MAZDA, hehe!! Seriously though, the Spec-V's power output was greatly overestimated, so dont expect it to be as fast as you think it is....honestly i give more to Mazda in the reliability department although the 2.0 and 2.3 is virtually untested compared to the awesome reputation of the Mazda's F and Z series engines they used in the protege....also Mazda's always seem to handle better than a Nissan counterpart, i dont expect the 3 to be any different

 

the car that are on your short list Sentra Spec V, Mini Cooper base, Lancer Ralliart, Tiburon I-4, Mazdaspeed Protege are all good cars, all but the Lancer. Have you gone for a test drive with these cars. I think that if you did this the list would get shorter like down to two car.

I'd go with the Mini. Oh wait I did get the Mini.

 

The 3s have a sunshade i think, its a piece of some mystery material that pulls out under the sunroof to block the sun, I think, My protege has it so i'm just guessing. The sunroof does tend to make a sqeauling sound at high speeds though.

The sound system in the car is fine for me, but depnding on how loud you like your music you might want to opt for an aftermarket system. The CD changer is an i dash CD changer so you just put the CDs in the slot one at a time and what not. I personally replaced my head unit with an aftermarket one. I'm not sure if the stock ones play MP3s though, the one I had didn't, thats why i changed it.

I've driven a mazda most my life, it handles well, my friends that have driven my car say they like the way it handles, much better than thier cars they all say. The protege (i'm not sure about the 3s) are some of the best handleing cars out there, Mazdaspeed Proteges i would have to say have some of the best out there, i've been told it can keep up with the likes of a corvette etc.. in handling

I'm not sure about the Mazdaspeed 3. I'm pretty sure it will have turbo, MP3 i'm aoubt 80% on and the rest is just a guess.

I'm not a big fan of abs, its no fun. My stock brakes worked just fine for me till i beat the **** out of them. I like to go fast and stop hard, what can I say?

Depending on where you are there are laws dictating on how much you can tint you windows, i guess mazda didn't want to hassle with that. Personally, tints look nice, but it takes away from the performance of my radar detector since it filters out light and consequentially radar and laser waves. Besides you want eveyone to know who the pimp is in his new Mazda.

MazdaSpeed, what can I say? how much more? personally I like the styling of the Protege over the 3s so I'd get the protege. But remeber, you also have to look at who drove the car, how many miles are on it, what kind of miles, how the car was taken care of etc... Buying a used car is a pain because of all the factors. If he says i have this much worth of mods in it, tel him to shove it cause those mods are used, and if he puts mods in it he probably raced it too. People are weird like that, they don't expect you to pay full price for the car, why would you pay full price for the mods. Key to negotiations with anyone, LOWBALL!!!

I'm not sure on the overhang question could you please clarify for me?

Why would anyone buy a sentra? A six speed for that car is overkill in my honest opinion, you want a six speed? get an s2000. Subwoofer, sport tires? Why not put those in yourself, this way you can choose what you want and personalize the car to you instead of driving a cookie cutter like everyone else. Horsepower is easily squeezed out of mazdas, and remember, horsepower helps, its the torque (gear ratios) that matter. Six speeds on a sentra to me mean slow acceleration.

I don't know how tall you are and what not, but since i'm short (5'7") my seat is closer to the steering wheel and hence can't put my arm on the armrest. If you are taller and your seat is further back I don't forsee any problems. Again, s2000 has a beutiful armrest right down the middle, no problems at all. again a s2000 cost 13k more. then agian the s2000 has 240bhp and flies down the road like no other, you should get one, i know i am.

hope this helps, keep in mind i drive a 2001 Protege and the fact that i just test drove a s2000 today as well so am a bit partial.

 

The Nissan Sentra now exhibits below average reliability-- A consideration that should strike down any thoughts of buying anything from that shameless company. Those traitorous oafs.

If possible, it might be in your best interest to wait a bit for Mazda3 reliability data to be compiled before buying one. They've demonstrated problems already, which is alarming-- Although the Mazda6 has faired very well in that regard. It's just too early to know how the 3 will turn out, however.

I wouldn't buy a Mini-- Personally, I don't consider European vehicles worth the premium you pay-- It's all a bunch of vogue hype. Japanese cars are often just as comfortable, cool looking, and powerful-- And their overall reliability is superior, to boot. And European cars are more expensive to repair and insure. Chaps can take their "Ohhh, look at your sweet-*** European car" and shove it up their shallow <beep!> <beep!>'s. Bloody saps!

So goes my opinion!

 

Personally, I dont have anything against nissan, I currently drive a '93 Nissan Altima...and the car has given me NO problems at all....(well, except for the fact its 11 years old)....and now i'm looking into a Mazda 3s myself

 

I too had a 1991 Nissan Sentra XE that provided 11 years of mostly trouble free service. Most of the problems (including failed alternator) were largely attributable to simple age.

That said, things have changed at Nissan, and I wouldn't trust their new cars as far as I could kick them. As indicated, the Sentra now presents worse than average reliability, and this is the first time it's ever dropped to that sorry level, ever. In the Sentra's entire 20+ year history.

Couple that with a quote from the president of Nissan who (paraphrasing) said, "We want quality but don't want to go too far", which is code for, "We want to build cars as shittily as we can and still get away with it". Statements like this, and the reality of physically building poor quality vehicles, is a vile, disgusting insult to the self respecting consumer, and I spit on Nissan for even suggesting that anyone should accept a company's philosophy of "not going too far" in quality/reliability. They deserve to fail as a business for what they've done. And good riddance, if so.

The Renault ownership of Nissan has destroyed this once honorable company, who used to build cars of exceptional value and reliability. Now they're nothing more than a Dodge or Chevrolet, all of which I despise with hellfire and verminous plague.

I SHALL NOT TOLERATE POOR RELIABILITY!! Especially from companies who used to deliver otherwise! It's unacceptable!

Ahhhh! Now THAT'S what I call a vent!

 

Thanks for all the responses! I've learned quite a bit more about the car in the last couple of days.

I might end up changing the audio system after a while, although it looks a little complicated given the shape of the stock system. So you just feed CDs in one at a time? The only car CD changer I've seen had a cartridge that you had to take out and load with CDs. It sounds a lot more convenient if it acts sort of like a regular single-disc player.

Yah, I've read really good things about the Protege, and actually, there are some 2003 ES manual models still for sale for very good prices here, so I might compare the 3 and the Protege when I go to test drive.

As for tint, I might get to the point where I'd want it if I'm out in the Texas sun a lot.

The dealer told me $17,000 for the Mazdaspeed. It's brand new with only a couple miles on the clock.

On overhang, what I mean is that the hatch looks low, like I'd have to bend way over underneath it just to put something in the back. This is based on a picture from Mazda's site showing a black 3s hatchback parked at the beach with the hatch open. I guess I'll find out.

I've read that the Sentra Spec V is not all that refined.

What problem areas have the 3s shown so far?

Mazda announced the semi-hatchback Mazda 6, which looks great, but I'm not sure the 6i is much better than the 3s sedan (same engine, very similar trim level).

One car I did cross off the list is the Hyundai Tiburon. The Car & Driver review was enough to turn me off to that car (though it does look great).

If all goes well I'll test drive on Friday and Saturday. Would be happy to end up with a 3s sedan.

 

You might be right on some of this but the insurance rates for my Mini is a hell of alot cheaper than my Protege
$620 a year for the Mini
$865 a year for the Protege
As for Quality had the Mini 10 month 10,000 miles not one fault. The Protege 3 years 54,000 miles only one fault needed a new transmission. as for price I think if Mazda made a car with the standard equipment the price would be the same.

 

Nepenthe - I'm starting to look at new cars. Just test drove the RalliArt the other day, pretty sweet vehicle IMO. Hopefully I'll get to test drive an M3 this week. How would you compare the two in all aspects? ie. driving performance, interior quality etc.
Which car do you think is more reliable? I'm also planning to check out the Impreza 2.5 TS (I think it's only in Canada) and (dare I say it) a Civic Si. Please don't flame me for it. My buddies know how much I've given them flak for buying a Honda, but they do make a good car, again IMO.

Thanks

 

Actually, I STILL haven't looked at the cars. I'm waiting on some circumstances to occur, but I think I'm going to wait until the Dallas Auto Show in five days so I can at least sit in some of the cars all at the same time and decide which ones I'm going to go out and test drive.

I've heard good things about the Ralliart though. A Car & Driver test was very complimentary toward it. I'll come back to this thread when I know more.

 

when i was shopping around for my car, i found the proteges to be the most comfortable with the best handling for my money. little things on the sentra annoyed me...why have the ventilation controls inset and so low? it's like they knew it was a piece of crap and didn't want you to be comfortable and play with it a little. another thing was the space, mainly the legroom, was a squeeze. i did test drive the spec v and i have to admit i liked the performance, but i didn't get a chance to take it on the highway or even over 50mph or so as i was restricted to a path dictated by the stupid salesperson. not sure about the reliability but i'd say it's a nice car if you're short and have short people getting in with you.