I test drove a 2008 Mazdaspeed3 and the car felt and looked great except:

1). Lack of a sunroof, why doesn't Mazda offer an optional sunroof? It just felt dark in the interior while a Cobalt SS turbocharged has a sunroof that yields lots of natural lighting.

2). Telescoping steering wheel, useless for tall people. When fully extended, it is the same setting as the fixed wheel in my 07 Mustang GT or 2000 Crown Vic, which is still too close to the dashboard.

3). Seats, why didn't Mazda include power adjustable seats? The bolstering is GREAT but the height adjustment sucks since it is more of a tilt than a height adjustment like on the Cobalt. The lumbar adjustment isn't very intuitive and the seat bottom is too short. It needs to be 2" longer to provide me with adequate thigh support.

4). The ignition key lockout button, WTF was Mazda smoking when they implemented this? I asked the saleslady if I had to do that all the time since I thought it was a valet feature. She gave me a surprised look and said that this was normal, all you had to do was push the button with your thumb and twist it out. I tried over a dozen times and it wasn't a natural feeling at all. Every American car I owned just let you pull the key out in the OFF position. What's so unsafe or hard about that? This 2-step process ignition key is a real deal breaker for me.

5). Homelink mirror, I couldn't find this on any Mazda within a 200 mile radius. The dealer said they could install it after I bought the car for about $500 which is about right: $300-$400 plus labor. It is the same Gentex mirror that everyone else uses, so why not just offer the Homelink as the only option since dealers order the most idiotic items for their lot cars?

Everything else about the car was kicka$$ and top notch. I would rate the interior quality, fit, and finish about on-par with that of sub-$40k Audi cars. Everything works great and I love the storage options. The hatch is pretty nifty except for the cheap shoe-string ties that lift the cardboard panel.

I definitely won't be buying a 08/09 MS3 because of the ignition key. I hear the 2010 MS3 may have a keyless ignition system, so that solves my problem but it doesn't look like a sunroof made its way into the design (again). In addition, the dealer informed me that the order date for 2009 MS3's has past, so we're stuck with the stuff on the lots until the 2010 arrives.

 

I also drove a MS3 and did not choose it over the sGT for some of those reasons (plus the decline in MPGs). My guess is that the lack of sunroof and powerseat are attempts to reduce weight and thus improve performance.

I didn't like the key lock out button either at first. After just a couple of days it became intuitive.

 

The Cobalt SS is able to run with a sunroof, but it also weighs 200 lb less than a MS3. I agree that the SGT is a better choice overall for features, although I am always badly tempted by engine output and handling!

 

1. If it's that big of a deal get an aftermarket installed.
2. I'm 6-1 and don't have a problem, do you drive with the wheel touching your chest?
3. Weight savings and again, no problem here.
4. You've got to be kidding. If this decides it for you, stick with minivans.
5. Buy the mirror for 200 and install it yourself in a half hour.

 

#1: The aftermarket units may not be as good as the OEM units, especially installation and workmanship.

#2: I'm 6'3" and 145 lb. If I adjust the seat for a proper steering wheel position (TEST: where you can bend your elbows if you rest your wrists on top of the wheel vs having them stretched out flat) my knees are jammed into the dashboard. If I adjust the seat for proper leg position (where I have a slight bend in my knees with the clutch, throttle, and/or brake pedals fully depressed vs. having the legs completely stretched), my arms are stretched out to reach the steering wheel. I thought the telescoping wheel would help but it doesn't. It's designed for short people who need the seat moved all the way forward. With the wheel completely extended, it's not different than my 07 Mustang GT.

#3: Weight savings my a$$. My Mustang GT has a 6-way power adjustable driver's seat with power lumbar and only weighs 300 lb more with a much bigger engine, much bigger gearbox, long honking steel driveshaft, heavy steel live axle rear assembly, much more sheet metal, etc... We're talking maybe 5-20 lb total for a power adjustable driver's seat. The manual height adjustment on the MS3 is a joke. It just tilts the back part of the seat up instead of raising/lifting the entire seat.

I described the Mazdaspeed3 to a Mazdaspeed6 owner and he told me that his car has everything, even the keyless ignition. His keyless fob looked like a credit card and had about the same thickness. Here I am looking at a MS3 that has none of the amenities my stripped down 07 GT has and still uses a key with a keychain fob.

#4: Why would a minivan be any better? None of my American cars ever had this dumb lockout button. I talked to some of our engineers and they remembered some beat up Chryslers had these buttons in the 1970s. My 07 Mustang GT doesn't have it, and it has a manual gearbox (Tremec TR-3650). The Cobalt SS doesn't use it (GM / Saab MU3/F35 gearbox) and neither does the Corvette (TR-6060), GT500 (TR-6060), and numerous other cars that have gobs of power and a manual gearbox.

#5: The problem is that if I bought it myself, I already paid $200 for the non-Homelink mirror that was equipped at Mazda. They can't remove it ala carte. So that's $400+ to get a garage door opener when the dealer could have just ordered their lot cars with the $275 Homelink option in the first place.

Again, I am not trying to be confrontational or argumentative on purpose. I like the MS3 but IMHO, as an outsider that came from a family owning nothing but Ford cars for over 30 years and working on nothing but American cars, there are a few things that Mazda really missed and would have made the product even better.

 

Here is a website explaining proper seating positions and posture:

http://www.turnfast.com/tech_driving/driving_seating

I can get everything adjusted properly on both the 07 Mustang GT and the 08 Mazdaspeed3 except for the steering wheel. It won't extend to yield a comfortable position.

 

1. why do you need so much lighting inside the car? you trying to read a book or something while driving?
the cobalt ss is a peice of crap and they just added the sunroof to help sell it.
4. how lazy are you that it is so hard just to push in one little button when you go to start the car? its a safety feature. some people dont like their car to be easily stolen.

 

If you have to ask about #1 (the moonroof) then you wouldn't understand. Lots of natural lighting creates a more pleasing atmosphere. We're stuck in cubicles or conference rooms or dark/dingy factory floors or in a computer room/lab most of the time. Studies have shown that plenty of natural lighting (from the sun) can benefit your health. I have several skylights at home and all of my windows allow a lot of light into the house. It saves on electricity bills but it also improves the ambiance. After renting a few cars on business trips that all had moonroofs, I was convinced that I should get a car that came with one. My 07 GT doesn't have this feature and neithers does the MS3. It was worse in the MS3 because the interior was black, so it was like sitting in a cave. At least I had a light gray interior in the GT which made it seem brighter. I notice that a lot of people couldn't care less about natural lighting. Most people's homes are extremely dark. They cover up their windows with drapes and rely on some incandescent bulbs for lighting. That is what it feels like in the MS3.

#4: How does it improve safety? How is it more easily stolen without the stupid lockout button? It makes no sense and apparently Chrysler didn't think so either after they stopped using that in the 80s. Mazda somehow decided it was a good idea, meanwhile the 06-07 Mazdaspeed6 did NOT have this button.

 

and give you skin cancer

 

That's a negative. Skin cancer is caused by exposure to UV radiation. Auto glass filters out most of the harmful UV radiation. The actual lighting is what I am interested in, not exposure to UV radiation.

In addition, studies show that exposure to sun for 15-30 minutes a day is required for production of vitamin E. Some people get tans in salons to reduce acne.

 

1. That was true 20 years ago, not anymore.
2. I'd need to see you in person, sorry but I'm calling BS. You'd blow away in a stiff breeze.
3. You're comparing a five door hatch that I can move recliners in to a coupe in weight, ok. Now FOB's also, I can see where this is going.
4. There were and are a lot more cars than that, I guess your "engineers" must have forgot about them.
5. Then I guess I should have expected them to exchange and refund money when I had the CAI installed, are you serious?
Lastly, you're a troll. Get something else, you'll only whine like a bitch.

 

#1: I still hear horror stories about modern moonroof installations which makes me apprehensive about doing an aftermarket install.

#2: Call BS all you want, that's how much I weigh.

#4: Please name some cars made after 2005 with a manual gearbox that used this lockout button. I'm interested in this because I can now avoid those manufacturers. All of the Fords and Chryslers we have owned in the early 80s did not have this button, so I'm probably too young to have seen them being used in the past.

#5: It's really simple to just order the better mirror for the lot cars. There's a $75 price difference but it's better than paying $300 for a Gentex on top of the $200 already on the car. Your CAI is an aftermarket add-on to replace the stock airbox that was already rolled into the cost of the vehicle. If the dealer opted NOT to buy a mirror at ALL, I wouldn't have a problem doing the install myself.

There is a $75 price difference between the mirrors. $200 for the non-homelink vs $275 for the homelink. This is ONLY at the ordering stage (e.g. the dealership orders a car for their lot)
After the car arrives, if the customer wants the homelink instead of the non-HL mirror, there's going to be another $300 cost to buy a new mirror, but they "paid" $200 for the existing mirror. Total cost: at least $500
I'd rather just pay the $275 initial cost and get it straight out of the factory the way I wanted. Push comes to shove, I'll just slip my Sears opener onto the visor.

 

Ignore Ryz, he prefers to call people names than to discuss an issue with intelligence. If you don't agree with him, then he decides that you are wrong and he starts the name calling.

 

I own an 07 MS3 and love it to bits.
I have read that the reason there isn't a sunroof option is due to stiffening members running through that area of the roof on the MS3.
Yeah, I agree the ignition key is a strange departure for Mazda, however after a few days my hand learned to release the key without even thinking about it.
The seat will raise and lower but its not obvious - the adjustment lever on the side of the seat acts like a pump and it will go up with repeated operations.
My only complaint is the fuel cap, there is nowhere to put it when you remove it to fill up. It seems to have to dangle against the side of the car.

The performance and handling makes up for everything. Lets hope the 2010 is 4WD.

 

The reason they didn't offer the moonroof on the MS3 was for concern over overall structural stability on a car that they were assuming would be pushed harder, and which they didn't want to make more top heavy. I'm not saying it's a great excuse, but that's what Mazda said when the MS3 first came out and people started getting annoyed about it. Mellman (a member of mazda3forums) had one installed on his '07 MS3 with no problems whatsoever. I'd show you some pictures but he doesn't have them hosted anymore. His aftermarket moon roof was larger than the OEM one and even had an auto-close button which the OEM lacks.

Exactly like you said a little higher. The telescoping column is designed not as a comfort aide, but rather as a safety device to move the airbag further away from people who need to sit closer to the dash to reach the pedals. I agree it would be nice for it to come out further for taller people..... then again I'm only 5'7" so not a real problem for me.

I know in the '08.5 refresh a power driver's seat was added to the Mz3 GT trim, but I can't remember if it was also added to the MS3... I'm going to go with no. Other than the weight reasoning (which like you said doesn't add up to much) they were also trying to keep the cost of the MS3 down to make it a stronger competetor. I'm sure you'd say that having the option would make it compete better, but I guess Mazda didn't agree. For height adjustment I have to ask if you were just pulling/pushing the adjustment lever once, or if you were doing a repeated pumping motion. If you just pull/push once it will move slightly, but if you repeat it definitely moves.

Honestly I don't know what to say. Many of the cars I've driven over the years have had some sort of key lock out. Some were a button on the opposite side of the column (possibly the most annoying design ever on my '88 Ford Ranger), some require you to push the key in slightly to rotate it all the way counter clockwise (ala my '02 Hyundai Elantra). Still I would hardly say this is a strange feature to have on a car. I would strongly disagree that using the lock out release is a "2-step process". All you need to do is push your thumb all the way to the end of the key "handle" and it will hit the button as you turn the key. One step, no problems.

Many dealers will add features like an auto-dim mirror to every car that comes in just for those people who perhaps wouldn't have gotten one in the first place, but if it's already there they'll go ahead and get it. This equals more money for the dealer. I agree with one of the previous posters that if you're going to get a homelink mirror to go ahead and just buy it and install it yourself as the install is very easy. To your point that you'd then be paying for both auto-dimming mirrors I repost with this. If the dealer added an accessory to your car which you did not want then you should be very firm with them and tell them you don't want it and that you're not going to pay for it. They can either remove it from the car, or give it to you at no charge otherwise you'll just go to another dealer. When they give you the line of "Well this is the only one that meets what you want" laugh at them and assure them that Mazda made more than one.

It's rumored that the 2010 Mz3/MS3 will have the keyless system. There's currently debate on whether or not that will make it to the US or not as all car makers have histories of keeping spiffy options on the other side of the pond to specifically compete with other cars with those same features. Since the feature/option lists haven't been released for the US I wouldn't hold your breath for the option.

I hope I've addressed some or all of your questions. You do have some valid complaints (hey if it's pertinent to you then it's valid) that could affect your happiness with a large investment.

You can hang the gas cap off of the fuel door and keep it from touching any painted surfaces. Basically the cap ends up with the threaded part facing the front of the car, and you jam one of the little metal "arms" that connect with the door release latch between the cap and the plastic "washer" attached to the tether. Here's a picture. I've only had this fall once when I was wearing gloves and didn't get it quite all the way in. Also that's not my car.