Mrs Stevo has a 04 Mazda axela (3) and we are very happy with it. Its up around 65,000km now. Cheers Stevo
ralphdog1,
Feb 27, 11:04pm
We have 3's @ work, everyone who is tall finds the seats give back problems on long trips.
kyles1976,
Feb 27, 11:18pm
I have had two Mazda's, a 3 and now a Mazda 6.Am selling my 6 at the moment only because I want to go back to a hatchback, but I found them very reliable, had no problems with them whatsoever.They have all had good write ups to.
me67,
Feb 27, 11:30pm
thanks guys, very interesting stuff, keep it coming.I am tall so maybe a 6 might be better.Not to fussed if its not sporty, just like the look of them and want something with a wee bit of room but not a people mover as I have now.
kyles1976,
Feb 28, 12:28am
Check out my listing Listing #: 273003415 :) The Mazda 6's are very spacious I have found, but I am only zipping around the city as we use my husband's car during the weekends so dont really need the extra space.
curlcrown,
Feb 28, 1:45am
My god can you honestly say you would rather drive an old 92 bluebird or an 85 bluebird than a mazda 3 or 6!!
psylent_kate,
Feb 28, 1:49am
get an atenza. way nicer looking. i got one and very very happy with it and both me and my tall partner were extremely comfortable on long road trips. drives like a dream. 4wd.
i'm selling it if your keen heh. we have horses so we got a ute which is more practical for us.
charlie4561,
Feb 28, 1:52am
If the Bluebird is in good nick with all the bits on it working, I can't imagine there'd be a huge amount of difference really. Sure the Mazda will have a bit more power and zoom-zoominess, but it is not like he's driving an Austin 7 or something really stone-age and prefers that to the Mazda.
joker9377,
Feb 28, 1:54am
We have a 6 (140kms) and I am 6'3" and drive a truck for a living. I find the seat a bit uncomfortable on the longer trips but I guess its because I am used to the fancy truck one. Quite spacious but the only annoying thing I find is that it seems to have a powerband.like a flat spot when it does nothing then goes after maybe chopping a gear. We have one as a work car (200kms) and it does the same thing. Overall I guess they are ok. Not fancy but who cares really, as long as the radio and air work.
curlcrown,
Feb 28, 1:59am
A 92 blue bird is out of the stone age compared to a mazda 3 or 6. I've done a few km in all of those recently. At least an Austin 7 has some coolnes facter to it by being vintage, something a 92 bluebird completly lacks.
_peas,
Feb 28, 2:22am
Are those 2.3's equipped with variable valves!Might explain why you find they are a peaky engine!
foxdonut,
Feb 28, 4:01am
I drove a sport spec (but non SP series) Mazda 3 around for a half a day late last year in Australia. The six speed box and clutch arrangement is so effortless to use, even around town It really is brilliant. I've driven a dozen cars since the Mazda and none of them have been anywhere near as good. Not really much in the way of grunt but the extra gear gives it some flexibility. I thought the driving position was okay and visibility reasonable. The in dash GPS is a waste of space.
For the money its a pretty reasonable new car, I compared it to the Hyundai i30, 08 Holden Astra, 08 Corolla and 08 Nissan Tiida. It was the most expensive but easily the nicest to drive.
The person I was comparing for went with the i30. If you're looking at them as well, get the auto, the manual is awful but the car itself is a great little get around otherwise.
foxdonut,
Feb 28, 4:04am
Edit: it was the 2 litre. I didn't drive the diesel or the 1.6 but I imagine they'll have the same or similar gearbox.
me67,
Feb 28, 1:37pm
thanks all, great feedback, will still look at the 3 and 6, they are nice looking cars, and mr 15 thinks it will be awesome to learn to drive in one, boy do i have news for him ha!
sue62,
Nov 20, 3:27pm
Any other feedback re the Mazda 3! I am looking at this or a Ford Focus
thejazzpianoma,
Nov 20, 4:08pm
I would suggest taking a MK5 Golf out for a comparison. The Golf rules the roost in that segment in terms of drive-train/economy and value. Its a VERY hard car to beat on bang for buck.
The DSG gearbox used in the VW's is by far and away the best automatic style gearbox on the market giving better economy than a manual, faster changes than even a traditional auto and lower maintenance/better reliability.
The Golf is potentially a whole lot more for a whole lot less.
If you still prefer the Mazda after then you have made a good decision.
smac,
Nov 20, 4:17pm
You seem to be comparing the 3 with the 6.but they're very different, aimed at different markets. Figure out what it is you need, then compare like with like. eg compare the 3 with the golf, focus, corolla, i30 etc. Compare the 6 with camry, passat, S60, mondeo etc
In all cases the engine will make a huge difference. It's very common to see reviews say "great car, as long as you have the X engine." Get a 6 speed if you can - driven a few lately (various makes) and it really is like have a bunch more power - always in the right gear, even if a small engine - not possible in a 4 speed.
stimpy73,
Nov 20, 6:34pm
Have a 6 wagon as a company car. Magic road car, very impressed with it, awesome roadholding and good economy. Only thing i dont like about it is that if you attach anything at all to the towbar it turns into a gas guzzling gutless wonder. So if i had one as a personal car, no towbar would be the go. Family wagon for mum and the kids! perfect.
aragorn2003,
Nov 20, 6:59pm
we have an atenza wagon 4wd and its nice to drive has the 2.3 engine so is peppy when you need it , handles well and smooth on the roads , good for long trips (which we find it good on petrol on trips) .
the only thing we have found as a negative is the HID lights are very temperamental which seems to be quite common in the mazda range
bagal,
Nov 20, 7:43pm
Interesting comment. I do a 600 km round trip in my Mazda 3 resonably often. Usually do this on one tank (approx 50l), but recently the same trip towing a trailer used around 70l. This was a unladen 7x4 trailer.
I have had the 3 from new in '05 and it has now done nearly 150k. The only expense apart from servicing, tyres, and bulbs has been to replace the front suspension struts and a particularly annoying fault that resulted in the check engine light coming one. The only real criticism I have for the early 3's is the road noise but I understand that has been improved in the later ones.
thejazzpianoma,
Nov 20, 9:09pm
This demonstrates what I mean about the Golf being so economical by comparison. A typical open road 600km round trip in a 2.0 Golf would use around 30 litres as opposed to the 50 this poster is using in the Mazda. On a flat run like Katikati - Hamilton we have actually done even better.
The official figures won't necessarily show that good but we have repeated that over the course of several Golf/Audi A3's tested both against the computer and doing the math manually. BTW the Audi A3 is the same car as a Golf with a different body shell.
Its not the Mazda 3 is terrible on gas so much as with the new FSI engines and DSG gearbox which is light years ahead of what anyone else is offering the economy on the Golf is fantastic. Plus the same car still goes well on gas when loaded up and does 0-100 in 8 point something seconds so is no slouch either.
Definitely worth comparing the two.
craig04,
Nov 21, 12:32am
I have a brand new Mazda 3 as a company car. Nice car, 5spd auto, goes rather well for a 2 litre. However, if this represents improved road noise, I'd hate to hear how loud the previous model was.
I'm getting exactly 9lt/100kms around Auckland driving and 7 on open road.
bagal,
Nov 21, 12:34am
I haven't driven a new one, that was jsut based on what I had read. My '96 Magna is actually a lot quieter.
cuda.340,
Nov 21, 2:56am
i had a Ford Focus as a loan car, it was 18 months old & it creaked & buzzed a lot on the open road. it had 25k on the clock, was not impressed with this car at all. plastic everything. 2 of our staff have '06 Mazdas, they are far superior cars than the newer Focus.
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