Buying A New Car

[M.F.D.K]

What's up lads! I've finally decided to buy a new car, had enough of old bangers, I was on a trip to PA about 3hrs drive wih my wife and our baby girl, and about 30 minutes before we reached our desired destionation the two flex pipes on my Audi A6 1999 quattro broke. The car sounded like a jet with an unberable noise especially for our young baby, luckly we weren't far away from our destination. The point is, this car has given me nothing but problems, so I can't risk buying another used banger. I've done my research and I have come up with this car;

I want you guys to give me an honest opinion, i have read a lot of good things about this car.

2012 Mazda3 SkyActiv

What you guys think

[sc302 Veteran]

Would not buy. Mainly because of looks. My brother had one, it was ok, had it for less than 10,000 mi and traded it in for a 135.

[M.F.D.K]

Looks it not much of an issue, just need something reliable, good in gas (not great but good) and have a bit of hp.

[Chicane-UK Veteran]

If it ticks all the boxes for you and the reviews are good then I say go for it :) There's a lot to be said for having something brand new and backed by the manufacturers warranty! And Japanese cars have great reliability records.

[sc302 Veteran]

If that is what you want go for it then. I would go out and drive other cars as well, maybe the toytoa corolla s, nissan sentra sr, honda civic si, the hyandai and kia versions whaterver they are, etc. Then make your decision on looks, handling, power, gas milege, reviews. It may look good on paper but you may not like the way it feels on the road compared to another car. but if you are going specifically by numbers, the mazda 3 is nice and I believe the quality has gone up from the early 00's and 90's.

[alpha2beta]

I would say to look at a new Hyundai Elantra. I have two friends, one with 2012 Elantra and one with a 2012 Mazda 3 both have driven each others cars and both liked the Elantra much better, the only thing I seen that was trully better was the steering in the Mazda 3 and the sound system in the Mazda 3. Otherwise the Elantra was much better with everything else, plus Hyundai has a better warranty.

[threetonesun]

the mazda 3 is nice and I believe the quality has gone up from the early 00's and 90's.

Were Mazda's bad back then? They've been making reliable cars (outside of the rotary engines) for a long time.

Nothing wrong with the Mazda 3. I'd check out the Ford Focus and the Subaru Impreza as well, they're all similar. They're a bit small though, if there's any plans for a second kid.

[zeta_immersion]

I have the corrola 2012 le ... spacious , outstanding on gas, airbags all over the place comfy and has just about all oyu need ...

if I had the money I would go for the VW Golf TDI .... hondas were great but lost interest with the 2010-2011 models have no idea about 2012

nissans don't like them that mush, hyundais look good, though again not my cup of tea

[sc302 Veteran]

Were Mazda's bad back then? They've been making reliable cars (outside of the rotary engines) for a long time.

Nothing wrong with the Mazda 3. I'd check out the Ford Focus and the Subaru Impreza as well, they're all similar. They're a bit small though, if there's any plans for a second kid.

this is from 2005....this is the mazda 6 though. There are more but this can get you started from people who actually own the cars.

http://forum.mazda6c...your-mazda.html

[zeta_immersion]

Looked at the car, it looks good man ... take a few cars for a test drive ... including bmw/merc, even if you don't buy them .... you can compare things better (even if you end up buying the mazda) ..... never the less, good choice if you decide to get it ...

also, food for thought ... oil change at 5000mi, another at 10000 and then another at 18000 (thereafter change as recommended)

this is for the breakin as first 5000mi baby the car no sudden stops/acceleration , no more than 100km./h no highway driving , also, don't keep speed constant

[threetonesun]

this is from 2005....this is the mazda 6 though. There are more but this can get you started from people who actually own the cars.

http://forum.mazda6c...your-mazda.html

People on the internet complain about everything. For it's price range, I doubt it gets any major complaints. I've never heard strong complaints in any of the car magazines, unlike some of the cheap-premium brands like Mini.

[sc302 Veteran]

Its not just the internet. People complain to complain. What rock have you been hiding under.

If you read through it is not just complaints.

[Rigby]

I bought a new car once, worst decision I ever made. Unless you enjoy being ripped off you should buy a used one a year or two old at least, it doesn't have to be an old banger. You spend tens of thousands of dollars on a new car, drive it off the lot it becomes a used car and suddenly half it's value is already gone. Seriously, new cars are for suckers. :)

[sc302 Veteran]

then you are doing it wrong.

I bought a new car in 2010, it was a 2010 nissan altima 3.5 sr loaded to the gils minus the nav (rear view cam, bose premium system, sat radio, heated leather, power everything, etc. Sticker was 30,300, my price was 27,300 (it was less than dealer invoice, and it was still less than sticker after tax and tags). 1yr to 2yr Used with same options was 22000-23,500 and that is with 30,000 miles. So I paid roughly 4000-5000 more than used and got it with 0 miles.

You don't know how to car shop.

[abysal]

I'd say go for it, 40 mpg highway is nice to have (manual transmission). If its anything like my 2008 Speed3, it should be fairly reliable. My Speed3 is on 108,000 miles and going strong, no major issues, however the following issues did come up:

- thermostat replacement @ 33k

- 1st rear shock replacement @ 45k (I killed it probably by hitting a curb)

- 2nd rear shock just went @ 108k

I've done all the regular maintenance recommend in the manual. Now my friend has a 2007 2.3 Mazda 3 automatic, and he is horrible at doing maintenance (10k to 12k on a single oil change for instance), and the only things he had go were his front shocks. I think he's on like 70k to 80k miles on it, he also beats the crap out of it!

My dad has a 2008 2.3, and his thermostat also went at around 20k miles. (Same issue as mine, it would not close all the way).

[threetonesun]

Its not just the internet. People complain to complain. What rock have you been hiding under.

If you read through it is not just complaints.

I read them, I didn't see anything on there that you wouldn't hear for any other car in that price range. And my point about complaints was, you'll see 10x as many complainers online as you will people praising a product. It's not a great way to do research, you really want to see what a long term test from a reputable reviewer has to say.

I bought a new car once, worst decision I ever made. Unless you enjoy being ripped off you should buy a used one a year or two old at least, it doesn't have to be an old banger. You spend tens of thousands of dollars on a new car, drive it off the lot it becomes a used car and suddenly half it's value is already gone. Seriously, new cars are for suckers. :)

You can get a better deal on a new car than a 1 or 2 year old car. If you're taking out a loan, new car loans are almost always better than used car loans (especially if you can find ones for 0%). Also, assuming you're not trading the car in every 3 years, by the time you go to sell, the difference between the cars would be negligible.

[zeta_immersion]

Actually, you need to know this on a second thought

Mazdas are prone to Oxygen (O2) sensor failure, also, the black plastic cover by the window is glued, and will peel .... (someone with a Mazda please confirm ... The mazda on my diveway has this ... including some A/C problems)

**** with a new car I got a fairly decent deal too ... from 24k (tax extra) got it at 22k (tax in) --- 0% financing alsmot fully loaded (no nav or audio -- though it has 6 speakers)

[abysal]

My interior is holding up fairly well, I have a slight rattle coming from the glove compartment, and my drivers seat creaks slightly :/

[M.F.D.K]

If it ticks all the boxes for you and the reviews are good then I say go for it :) There's a lot to be said for having something brand new and backed by the manufacturers warranty! And Japanese cars have great reliability records.

Its not only the online reviews that i have taken into account, but i know at least 3 people who have Mazda 3's, not the 2012 one but 2010/2011, and they are extremely happy.

[M.F.D.K]

If that is what you want go for it then. I would go out and drive other cars as well, maybe the toytoa corolla s, nissan sentra sr, honda civic si, the hyandai and kia versions whaterver they are, etc. Then make your decision on looks, handling, power, gas milege, reviews. It may look good on paper but you may not like the way it feels on the road compared to another car. but if you are going specifically by numbers, the mazda 3 is nice and I believe the quality has gone up from the early 00's and 90's.

I've test driven both Mazda 3 i Sport and Honda Civic si and to be frank with you the Honda Civic seems to have one big problem, and that is "Road Noise". If your doing 60mph or more the road noise does really bother you unless you put the radio on loud. Also on Honda the susspension seems to be extremely low.

From my testing experience Mazda handles things way better, but the cabin is quite tiny winy me.

[M.F.D.K]

I bought a new car once, worst decision I ever made. Unless you enjoy being ripped off you should buy a used one a year or two old at least, it doesn't have to be an old banger. You spend tens of thousands of dollars on a new car, drive it off the lot it becomes a used car and suddenly half it's value is already gone. Seriously, new cars are for suckers. :)

Well, its obvious that when you buy something, not just a car but anything your definitely on the loosing side, whether its a used car or new. If i wasn't going to use it on daily basis then i wouldn't probably go for brand new car, but I'm a family man and i had enough problems with old cars.

Looked at the car, it looks good man ... take a few cars for a test drive ... including bmw/merc, even if you don't buy them .... you can compare things better (even if you end up buying the mazda) ..... never the less, good choice if you decide to get it ...

also, food for thought ... oil change at 5000mi, another at 10000 and then another at 18000 (thereafter change as recommended)

this is for the breakin as first 5000mi baby the car no sudden stops/acceleration , no more than 100km./h no highway driving , also, don't keep speed constant

Thanks for the tip, I'm extremely organized with maintenance.

I would say to look at a new Hyundai Elantra. I have two friends, one with 2012 Elantra and one with a 2012 Mazda 3 both have driven each others cars and both liked the Elantra much better, the only thing I seen that was trully better was the steering in the Mazda 3 and the sound system in the Mazda 3. Otherwise the Elantra was much better with everything else, plus Hyundai has a better warranty.

That this another car i have in mind too, i haven't had the chance to test drive it but i did read quite a lot of it.

[Astra.Xtreme]

I've test driven both Mazda 3 i Sport and Honda Civic si and to be frank with you the Honda Civic seems to have one big problem, and that is "Road Noise". If your doing 60mph or more the road noise does really bother you unless you put the radio on loud. Also on Honda the susspension seems to be extremely low.

From my testing experience Mazda handles things way better, but the cabin is quite tiny winy me.

The road noise is probably due to cheapo tires. That could be remedied by getting better rated tires, but that's a pretty lame cost to have to incur to fix the problem. I test drove a Civic a few months back and wasn't impressed. It had a cheap plasticy interior on the same lines as a Hyundai. The model with GPS was better, but the one without had a million buttons starring you in the face, and the two tiers of display panels was odd.

The Mazda3 looks much better, imo. Just for comparison sake, you could test drive a Subaru Impreza, just for kicks.

I think the Impreza is a bit more expensive, so the Mazda3 looks to be a nice choice at that price point.

[M.F.D.K]

Actually, you need to know this on a second thought

Mazdas are prone to Oxygen (O2) sensor failure, also, the black plastic cover by the window is glued, and will peel .... (someone with a Mazda please confirm ... The mazda on my diveway has this ... including some A/C problems)

**** with a new car I got a fairly decent deal too ... from 24k (tax extra) got it at 22k (tax in) --- 0% financing alsmot fully loaded (no nav or audio -- though it has 6 speakers)

Those problems sound quite serious at that early age of the car, has it been known in masses?

My interior is holding up fairly well, I have a slight rattle coming from the glove compartment, and my drivers seat creaks slightly :/

Haven't you taken it to the mechanic and what year is your car?

[M.F.D.K]

The road noise is probably due to cheapo tires. That could be remedied by getting better rated tires, but that's a pretty lame cost to have to incur to fix the problem. I test drove a Civic a few months back and wasn't impressed. It had a cheap plasticy interior on the same lines as a Hyundai. The model with GPS was better, but the one without had a million buttons starring you in the face, and the two tiers of display panels was odd.

The Mazda3 looks much better, imo. Just for comparison sake, you could test drive a Subaru Impreza, just for kicks.

I think the Impreza is a bit more expensive, so the Mazda3 looks to be a nice choice at that price point.

It might be the cheap tires but i have heard quite a lot of people resulting in the same thing, and the problem is apparently the cheap body material used to manufacture, i hope im wrong its just what i heard. As for the buttons i agree, its just way too many things it would confuse anyone man.

My budget is 20k can't afford to go any higher

[Astra.Xtreme]

It might be the cheap tires but i have heard quite a lo fo people resulting in the same thing, and problem is apparently cheap body material used to manufacture, i hope im wrong its just what i heard. As for the buttons i agree, its just way too many things it would confuse anyone man.

My budget is 20k can't afford to go any higher

Yup, at $20k, the Mazda3 would be a good fit.

You could also look at the Camry SE. It has a nice sporty exterior and Camrys are usually a nice ride. I think MSRP is around $22-23k, so there should be some room to get under the $20k level. It's definitely a bigger car, but might be worth at least looking at.