ttt

 

This thread needs to be revived! The amount of brake dust up front on my MS3 isn't as bad anymore, but I still have to frequently wipe off the tip of the tailpipe... otherwise it gets so black, it practically blends in with the bumper. Mileage is nearly 10K and I'm finally getting "fairly decent" gas mileage: the trip computer indicates 24.8 mi/gal, but my own calculation indicates just slightly over 22 mi/gal, on a mostly highway commute. In November '07, I complied to the OBD-II Compliance Voluntary Emission Recall Campaign (# 4907H), which fortunately did not have any noticeable negative effects to my car's performance, despite having read horror stories from other owners' posts. How's everyone else's MS3 doing?

 

I just got the girl two weeks ago and the same day I got a huge f'n chip on the hood. The manual says not to ride to close behind people to avoid it happening but the problem is that everybody else is SOOOO slow they're always in my way. I bought her with 15k miles and it looks like someone tapped the front bumper because it's offset from the quarter panel a bit. Upon closer inspection it seems the bumper came off the clip that holds it in place. Mazda said it would be $100 to fix it. Not bad... Other than that I just wish it would stop raining so I could drive her like she wants to be driven. I would like to get a lot of life out of the engine so I don't floor it all the time. The car is just as fun cruising along at non-speed3 speed. I wish it had a better sound system...that's my only complaint!

 

im sitting at work bored out of my *** and cant think of nething better than to be driving my car right now.....

 

I need to ask you all about how the speed3 handles? Is it stiff? I hope so. I went from an EvoVIII to the car I have now, dodge avenger 3.5 v6 AWD.
And I could not be more unhappy with its handling. I bought it really quick because the evo needed over 5k worth of work, at least. So, I got a great trade in value. But this car handles like a whale. You have to almost stop going around tight corners. Its getting annoying to say the least. I want to also ask a few questions to you guys. How does your speed3 do for handling tight corners? And do your tires loose traction when you gun it from a stop? Has anyone been in snow with it yet and how do you think it felt in the snow? How wide a tire do you think you can go with? And how is the shifting with it? So far, after reading everyones post about it, im more then interested in this car. And hello everyone!

 

ok i'll take one question at a time

1. the handling on the car is byfar the best i've experienced on stock suspension. tight corner handling and very responsive steering is both a major plus.
2. YES the tires spin when u gun it off the line. considering all the power it has, what else would it do? 263 hp with 280lb/ft torque. can get u newhere really fast .
3. i've been in the snow with mine, and jsut like any other car, you MUST be careful. with all the go-power the car, it also has major stop-power, but not in the snow.. if u live in a snowy area, i wouldnt suggested this car to u.. ur better off with the evo.. its the truth.
4. tires aren't my specialty so thats one i cant really answer for u. but there are nice folks in the forum that have an answer for u.
5. people say that the shifting on the car feels "vague". i dont know wat they mean by that, but i feel that the shifter is too loose.. it doesnt click the way other cars do.. but its a simple fix with upgraded bushings which u can get for 40 bucks.

and thats basically it. any other questions, dont hesitiate to ask.. but read thru the forum before u do cuz alot of the questions r already answered.

 

I came across this old article and wanted to post it for those who are on the fence about getting a 'Speed3. Although the 'Speed3 did not win (the Audi RS4, with a $68+K base price, was the winner), it's impressive that the 'Speed3, the least expensive in this lot, was a contender among such formidable and substantially more expensive performance cars!


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World Car of the Year Announces Top 10 Finalists

New York, NY – (January 30, 2007): From an initial entry list of twenty-eight (28) new vehicles from all over the world, a short list of ten finalists for the third annual World Car of the Year (WCOTY) awards were announced by the international accounting firm KPMG. The winners of the 2007 WCOTY will be unveiled during Press Preview at the upcoming New York International Auto Show (NYIAS) on Thursday, April 5, 2007.

Vehicles are selected and voted on by an international jury panel comprised of 45 top-level automotive journalists from around the world. To be eligible, the car must be in production, and sold in at least five countries on two continents.

World Car - Top Ten Finalists:
The following Top Ten World Car finalists are listed below in alphabetical order: [ul][*]Audi Q7 Audi TT[*]Citroen C4 Picasso[*]Citroen C6[*]Fiat Grande Punto[*]Jaguar XK[*]Lexus LS 460[*]Mercedes CL[*]MINI[*]Suzuki SX4 / Fiat Sedici[/ul]
World Performance Car - Top Ten Finalists
In addition, the following Top Ten World Performance Car finalists are: [ul][*]Audi RS4[*]Audi S6[*]BMW 335i[*]BMW M / Z4 M Coupe/Roadster[*]Ferrari 599 GTB[*]Jaguar XKR[*]Mazda 3 MPS / Mazdaspeed3[*]Porsche 911 GT3[*]Porsche 911 Turbo[*]Renault Clio Renault Sport[/ul]
The jurors' next steps are to re-evaluate the "Top Ten" cars in the above categories in preparation for a final round of voting on March 1st. Jury members will specifically rate each vehicle in terms of overall merit, value, safety, environmental responsibility, emotional appeal, and significance. KPMG will tabulate the vote results and the top three finalists will be announced no later than Thursday, March 8th, 2007.

There are no Top Ten finalists for World Green Car or for World Design of the Year. Instead, jurors will vote in those categories on March 1st. The Top Three finalists in all awards categories will then be announced on Thursday, March 8th.

The 2007 World Car of the Year, as well as the winners of the World Performance Car, World Green Car and World Car Design of the Year titles will all be declared on Thursday, April 5, 2007 during a press conference to be held at the New York International Auto Show.

"Announcing the annual World Car of the Year awards at the New York show is a fitting finale to the auto show season that begins each fall with either the Paris or Frankfurt motor shows," said Gerry Malloy, co-chair, WCOTY. "Next, it's on to Tokyo in alternating years. The Detroit show takes centre stage in January while Geneva claims the spotlight in March. Finally, in April, the season reaches its exciting climax at the New York International Auto Show."

About World Car of the Year
The World Car of the Year Awards program is initiated by, organized by, and conducted by, automotive journalists from around the globe. A non-profit association guided by a steering committee of journalists from Asia, Europe, and North America administers the awards program. WCOTY is intended to complement, not compete with, existing COTY awards by raising consumer awareness of regional Car of the Year award programs as well as the World Car of the Year.
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The only thing I didn't like about my speed was the suspension was so damn sloppy after about a month of breaking in. It had so much squat under excelleration that the tires would hop in 3rd gear... finally balled up and got Cobb's sport springs and the thing handles like a dream. I can completely pound the gears and get the power to the ground. Corning is something you'll need to see to beleive compared to stock. Top if off with Cobb's SR intake and you got a reasonable upgrade for dirt cheap price. Can't wait till their AccessPort comes out...say goodbye to the warranty!

 

Has anyonehad serious problems with oil comsumption?

I had my 2007 MazdaSpeed3 for only three weeks with about 1,200 miles on the odometer when the engine oil was 2 quarts down. After another week and another 300 miles the engine oil was another quart low. The dealer does not have a solution and Mazda North America has been less than helpful, telling me to go thorough the dealer exclusively. They will not connect me to someone from tech support.

I've seen reading threads about dark oil color, which I have been experiencing also, but have not seen any threads on excessive oil consumption.

 

Mazda USA finally updated the Mazdaspeed3 page on their website, which shows the new color lineup for the remainder of the model year. The 360-view even shows the updated interior appointments. I'm still not a fan of the changes, but it's a good attempt by Mazda to give the 'Speed3's interiora moredistinct look from the standard 3. The U.S. spec 'Speed3 now has the same interior as the European one... too bad we stilldon't get all the electronic options offered in the European market.