About to cop a Mazda 3 1.6 (2006), 130k

About to cop a Mazda 3 1.6 (2006), 130k

Anything I should know / watch out for?

Yes. Watch out for the whole car. Pass it quickly and with a confident stride at the car lot. Don't make any sudden movements and don't make direct eye contact.

If all goes well for you, you'll be able to walk away from the car lot unscathed. If not, you may receive a nightmare of electrical problems and a feeling of regret within 3-6 months.

RUST

Is it really that bad?

Friend has one, it's the worst car I've ever driven. The interior also feels like it should have been in a Matchbox car.

It has a mess of problems. Door locks do not work anymore. Passenger window won't go up unless you put it up with the driver's switch. The driver's window will randomly go down. The rear shocks have been shot since he bought it. Tire pressure sensors keep failing every 3k miles. Timing chain hits the inside of the cover and is slowly eating through it when he starts it. It's starting to rust at the quarter panels.

He bought it with 93k miles, it's at about 110k now.

what a shame
such a good looking car

get a 2.3 faggot.

what is an anecdote
any poorly maintained car of that age and mileage will have issues

Your average honda or toyota shitbox of that era is usually far better off.

Mine has 70k on and the only thing I've got out of this list is the passenger window.

I quite like the way the car handles, but to be 100% honest with you OP after checking my cars maintenance history, I wouldn't have bought it a lot of shit seems to have gone wrong on it before I owned it I was just too eager to get a new car after my old shitbox blew up.

>1.6

Get the 2.3 or don't get anything at all. And get the sedan with a 5 speed, the hatch is too heavy.

If you do these things you will have a relatively quick little car, with average reliability.

Rust is an issue on these cars, though. If they use salt/brine where you live, probably best to avoid them.

your friend sounds like negligent white trash who doesn't maintain his vehicle

the interior on Mazda3s is top fucking notch you dimwit, especially when we're talking about an 11 year old car

Fucking hell man, that shit is unacceptable

It's like a 70s Jap car, (KE70 Corolla, 510 etc.) in that the interior is cheap black plastic but looks nice and will work forever, it will rust like hell but is pleasant to drive, runs like a sewing machine but the diesels are pretty hopeless

Buy if cheap due to safety and a pleasant drive in a practical body, avoid if he's trying to sell it at a premium or is dodgy

this car is amazing if it was well taken care of.. i own mine 2006 mazda 3 with 160k miles and this shit still runs good , of course tuning it up will make it last longer ,, which is what i did.

OC . Also my car does not have any rust what so ever..

if you live in rainy states then yes i guess rust is a problem.. but in california i will never get...

that is fucking hideous jesus christ

Bumping this thread, I've been wanting to buy a used Mazda 3 or the Speed3 for a while now and I'm currently saving up to get one, but I'm not sure how great they actually are and I'm curious to know what Veeky Forums's opinion is on them

It's based on the Ford Focus
It rusts like an old Opel

Hatches are for tweens

>cop
you must be 18 to post here

Nothing screams "I don't care about cars" any louder