2004 Mazda 2.3s sedan
I bought her from private in March 2007 at 36,000 miles. Now - August 2008 she has 53,000 miles. Average 24.31 MPG - 60% city/ 40% highway (I have heavy foot). 32 MPG highway at A/C and 70-85 MPH speed. 250 miles at the city per full tank. One of the best purchases what I did. Fun to drive, good acceleration, excellent handle, short turning circle, very good brakes, finish internal very well and nice outline too - that's what I like. ** CEL appeared after I filled premium fuel, so I use regular. 100% satisfied and highly recommended.
Love my car but BEWARE
My car is the plain Jane type but it was still love at first sight. I bought it used and had trouble with the second day I had it. It's automatic and it would stall at every light or stop sign I hit. Mechanics suggested it was a faulty computer. Mazda told me unless I could prove it, it wouldn't be covered. Reset the computer and it seemed to be fine until I hit 133k kms. Then the transmisson blew. So now I'm stuck with a $2500 bill, AGAIN. I guess I got a lemon but most resellers don't even want to consider selling these transmissions anymore because they continue to come back on a regular basis. Also, the CD plyr is faulty and hates most CDS, old or new.
- s SedanMSRP: $4,999256 mi away
- s 4dr HatchbackMSRP: $6,9951,954 mi away
- s SedanMSRP: $7,9992,005 mi away
Fun ride, but beware of problems.
Bought my car 3.5 years ago at 47,000 miles and now have 95,000 and am looking for a new car. This was a fun car, but had issues throughout the 3 years of ownership. Check engine lights galore, door locks not unlocking with remote/interior unlock button (had to manually unlock each door, got annoying after 1.5 years of them not working and incompetent dealer service department not fixing), 4 headlights replaced, fuel pump broke pouring gas I just bought all over the ground, and most recently my drivers window will not work. Auto trans shifts rough into 2nd. Its a shame because the car is fun to drive on the highway/down country roads, the car is nice and tight, drives like its on rails.
2 year long term test.. 60000 km! 5 speed
After having this car for over 2 years and driving it quite a bit (60000km, about 32,000 miles) I have the dirt on this econo-machine: 1) I have had no mechanical problems. 2) The steering and suspension are as tight and as precise as the day I bought it. You almost take it for granted until you drive a different vehicle. Then you realize: Wow this Mazda 3 really handles! 0.87g's on the skidpad. R U kidding? At this price? 3) I have the 2.0 engine, MT, It has more power then anyone really needs. I drive 140kmh (85mph) every day on the 401 highway and no complaints. Fuel economy is average. 520km per tank. I drive it hard which doesn't help the numbers. 4) So far so good!
Not as girlie girl as I'd like.....
Don't get me wrong, I LOVE my Mazda3. The only thing(s) I don't like is the visors are really "cheap." They have no light either for night time touch-ups. We chose the leather interior because it is SO much more comfortable than their cloth option. I have to say that the only problem I've had is recently I couldn't open my driver's side door. My husband was able to fix it easily without having to bring it in, but other than that it's the best buy/best car I've ever owned. The only reason I need to upgrade is we are going to have another kid. Back seat is not big enough for 2 car seats. We are so happy with Mazda that we might go with the new CX-7. I always get Q's, and highly recommend!
Still brand new after 5 yrs
I love this car. I bought it new 5 years ago and I still get a thrill driving it. The car hugs the road, has lots of power, and is a super easy stick shift to drive. My wife hated sticks until this car. It gets me to work without costing too much, it gets the entire family around comfortably, and I can load it up with junk from Home Depot. The versatility combined with a car that's a joy to drive makes it a no-brainer car to buy. I average 27 mpg in traffic, and 30-31 mpg highway.
GREAT CAR
The Mazda 3i is a great car. We test drove the Civic, the Focus, and the Sentra ... the 3 was by far the better of these choices. It drove better, rode better, had better pick up, and better features ... all for less money than the others comparably equiped. The 5 speed is a must ... this makes the car the ultimate in zoom-zoom!
Highly recommended
A fun car to drive with the optional 2.3 liter engine. I prefer manual transmission, but the automatic was good because of the manual shift feature. Fit and finish were very good. Good room (we had the hatchback), handing and steering tight and nimble. Only problem was with one window that quit working, but our local dealer fixed under warrantee with no issues. Local dealer experience very good. They offered free tires and battery for the life of the car if regular scheduled maintenance done. Good fuel economy, we actually got better than what's posted on the window sticker. A good car for the money, don't even bother with any comparable American-made compacts.
Better than Corolla
Just bought it after comparing with Corolla and Civic ... hands down winner! Corolla has the infamous Toyota reliability but it felt cheap compared to the 3. It's stick felt weak as well as the handling. Jump into the 3 and you have tight suspension, great stick, and overall a much more robust feel. Nice looks all around. I was a previous Civic owner and loved the car, but again the 3 blows the doors off it as well. With dealer incentive, I actually bought it for almost $200 below invoice.
Very good car
This is one GREAT car. Very stable cutting corners. Here are only few "negative" observations; everything else is GREAT. Headrest is a bit awkward as it pushes your head towards the front (I was told this is good in the case of a crash?). Snow handling is very poor. My old Protege w/Michellin X1s could go up a steep hill covered with 7 inches of snow without a problem. My new M3 has a very hard time handing smallest amount of snow. OK it has sportier tires but I wish I did not have to get winter tires. Air bag light (red one in front of the driver) just started coming on (will have to investigate if this is a known problem).