How common are Mazdas?

[mpkav]

To elaborate, how common are Mazdas in your personal world? I was thinking about this earlier, I have, I believe, an unusually high number of Mazda owners in my life:

- I am on my second Mazda, first being a 2012 Mazda 3 GS-SKY​

- My sister bought her CX-5 last year​

- My brother in law is on his second Mazda 3​

- My father in law has a Mazda 3, identical to my old 3 except in colour​

- I have one coworker with a CX-5, half a dozen with Mazda 3s, and two with Speed3s​

- Two or three close friends have Mazdas​

I consider myself to come from a Honda family, my formative driving years were in a 1997 Civic, and my parents had a 2002 Accord, 2009 Civic, and currently a 2012 CRV. I never owned one myself, the above Mazda 3 was my first car.

I think Mazda is generally more popular in Canada than in the USA (I could be wrong), I'm just curious what everyone else's experience is. I see quite a few Miatas and RX-8s around here too. Not too many CX-3s but there are loads of CX-5s and CX-9s around.

 

[Unobtanium]

I am the only mazda owner I know. A teacher in highschool had a mazda, ford era, and a friend I went to church with had a mazda b2200. Also Kindof a Ford, really. And that's about it.

 

[RG_Flyer]

A co-worker bought a Mazda 3 for a commuter to keep miles off his primary vehicle. Most I know consider Mazda an economical alternative or early career choice.

 

[DustyFizz]

This is my third Mazda, the first two were years ago.
I never really noticed Mazdas on the road till I bought this one, now I see them everywhere.
I had never noticed how many SUVs are on the road either, seems to be the vehicle of choice.

 

[Unobtanium]

A co-worker bought a Mazda 3 for a commuter to keep miles off his primary vehicle. Most I know consider Mazda an economical alternative or early career choice.

Most people I know who are over 25 consider them cheap junk because of the damage Ford did to the brand. I think that is slowly changing as mazda proves time and again to have very well engineered and reliable drivelines now that ford is out of the picture.

 

[123373]

My son has a 2015 Mazda3 and my brother has a 2015 CX5. The only issue I see with Mazda is they need to keep up with added tech. All the other Japanese / Korean makes offer more amenities for the same price. I do think that Mazda will catch up as we should see some additional features in the upcoming CX9.

 

[Kedis82ZE8]

My first exposure was when one of my dad's friends picked up a new '79 RX-7. That was the first time I was ever at 100MPH. Later in the 80's my parents picked up a new '87 626 LX sedan. They only got rid of that car in 2010.. other than a first year transmission failure the car was bulletproof throughout it's 23 year life. The post 4th Gen 626 that came out in '93 didn't seem like a very good car to me. I think production of this model transitioned to US around '89 or so (or when Ford Probe first came out). My wife's first new car was a '96 Protege... never visited the dealer in 11 years of ownership. Her grandmother bought new and still has her 2005 Mazda 6 wagon. I don't really have an overall opinion of the 2000-2010 models as I didn't really follow Mazda much during those years. My parents replaced the old 626 with a new '10 Mazda 3 5-door. No issues with that car.

 

[JSB33]

You can see the sales numbers here
http://www.goodcarbadcar.net/2011/01/mazda-cx-5-sales-figures.html

 

[wlong01]

To elaborate, how common are Mazdas in your personal world? I was thinking about this earlier, I have, I believe, an unusually high number of Mazda owners in my life:

- I am on my second Mazda, first being a 2012 Mazda 3 GS-SKY​

- My sister bought her CX-5 last year​

- My brother in law is on his second Mazda 3​

- My father in law has a Mazda 3, identical to my old 3 except in colour​

- I have one coworker with a CX-5, half a dozen with Mazda 3s, and two with Speed3s​

- Two or three close friends have Mazdas​

I consider myself to come from a Honda family, my formative driving years were in a 1997 Civic, and my parents had a 2002 Accord, 2009 Civic, and currently a 2012 CRV. I never owned one myself, the above Mazda 3 was my first car.

I think Mazda is generally more popular in Canada than in the USA (I could be wrong), I'm just curious what everyone else's experience is. I see quite a few Miatas and RX-8s around here too. Not too many CX-3s but there are loads of CX-5s and CX-9s around.

This is my third Mazda, prior RX-7 and 626. Sister-in-law has a CX-9. Mazda seemed to have reached a low-point in the US when they were associated with Ford. Now that the relationship has been severed I have been seeing a lot more Mazda's on the road. Plus the CX-5 is going head-to-head with the CR-V and Rav4.

 

[fdew]

This is my third Mazda, prior RX-7 and 626. Sister-in-law has a CX-9. Mazda seemed to have reached a low-point in the US when they were associated with Ford. Now that the relationship has been severed I have been seeing a lot more Mazda's on the road. Plus the CX-5 is going head-to-head with the CR-V and Rav4.

I learned about Mazda from my kids. My son had a couple of RX-7s back when you could get a used one for $350 He and I both like them. I helped my daughter find a car a few years ago and we were both impressed with the handling of the Mazdas she looked at. She bought a 6. When I went looking for my first SUV because of the seating position and my health I drove the CX-5 first, then drove most of the others all except the GM brands. CX-5 was the only one I was willing to own. I was so impressed that out of 30 cars I have owned, it is the only one I bought new.

 

[yrwei52]

You can see the sales numbers here
http://www.goodcarbadcar.net/2011/01/mazda-cx-5-sales-figures.html

From the sales figure so far this year, CX-5 seems getting not much improved comparing to the same January to April period last year.

I noticed the Mazda since its original production rotary engines. Never bought one as I always love German made cars. We bought the first Japanese Honda CR-V and its reliability is really impressed me. We bought our first Mazda, a CX-5 due to its design ideas. Since them I've persuaded several friends and families bought CX-5's and Mazda6's. A good friend of mine used to be only getting Mazda's, is now questioning why I'm recommending Mazda's as he got burned on several quality issues from his previous Mazda MPV, 626, and RX-7.

No, not many people I know have Mazdas, and the reasons why they don't want a Mazda mainly is the concerns on quality and reliability.

 

[mpkav]

Great insights, thanks everyone for the responses.

I don't recall much of Mazda before I bought mine, other than the annoying Zoom-Zoom commercials. Mazda seems to have dialed back their marketing kitsch a bit, maybe because of the end of the Ford partnership?

I remember thinking that Protgs were something you got if you couldn't afford a Civic (Honda was very popular and well respected when I was growing up). Very few people had Mazdas, at least as I can recall.

For me, I was looking into getting a hatchback and after trying a bunch on the market, I was down to the 3 and a Golf. I didn't want a diesel, and as exciting as the GTI sounded, I was trying to be a bit more practical. The Skyactiv engine impressed me more than the tractor engine in the gas Golf and the rest is history.

Most of the people I talk to who have negative connotations with Mazda because of Ford don't even realize the partnership is over.

 

[ALafya]

I have no real brand loyalty. I simply get the best product available (first)
In pervious years, before SkyActiv, Mazda always failed on fuel-economy. Reliability was also a concern as well as lack of low-emissions until recently.
I avoid pricey vehicles, because it is a waste of money for things I don't really appreciate. I do appreciate smart engineering, fun to drive factor, fuel-economy and reliability.

In this area I can definitely see other Mazdas. 3, 6, CX-5, CX-7 even few CX-3s. No one in my immediate family owned a Mazda before. I recommended a Mazda 6 to my sister, but where she lives there is just one dealership and she did not want to rely on it for service. Also, the black interior did not work for her. Otherwise, she thought the car was great. My brother does what his wife tells him to, so there was no point at discussing that with him

However, Mazda must keep working hard to earn my business. I might be tempted to buy something else in a few years, especially if I'd consider it better.

 

[Dee0121]

No one in my family owns a Mazda. I don't even know anyone personally who owns one. I rarely see one on the road down here in southern Maryland. Could be because there are no dealerships around - the closest one I believe is an hour away. I bought mine in Lutherville, north of Baltimore which for me is a ~2 hour drive.

 

[RG_Flyer]

Most people I know who are over 25 consider them cheap junk because of the damage Ford did to the brand. I think that is slowly changing as mazda proves time and again to have very well engineered and reliable drivelines now that ford is out of the picture.

It is pretty well established in the industry and auto media that Mazda owes its very existence to Ford. Mazda went through multiple financial crises that would have likely put them under and most certainly out of the U.S. market had they not been bankrolled by Ford. It takes more than passion to keep an auto company afloat during hard times.

 

[timberstx]

Nobody in my family has one. My mom used to have a 89 323 hatchback that she really liked. But she no longer drives. The first experience in a Mazda was a 1973 RX2. It was my brothers future wife car. It was metallic blue 4 door with white interior. I was only about 11 or 12, and he used to scare me in that car. He was really trashing it and going too fast.

 

[fdew]

It is pretty well established in the industry and auto media that Mazda owes its very existence to Ford. Mazda went through multiple financial crises that would have likely put them under and most certainly out of the U.S. market had they not been bankrolled by Ford. It takes more than passion to keep an auto company afloat during hard times.

And Saab owes its very existence to GM. The trick is to get out in time. Mazda did.

 

[m8te]

In Australia, Mazdas are the 2nd most popular Car manufacturer sales wise behind Toyota. Pretty good considering there are a tiny company compared to Toyota. The Mazda CX-5 is the TOP selling mid-sized SUV since its launch back in 2012-13 and is still is today. Most automotive reviews regard the CX-5 as the benchmark SUV in its class. They are everywhere here in the land downunder!

 

[vroom]

Here in Qubec (Canada) they are everywhere and have been for over a decade. I see several CX-5s during my short commute every day, and even more 3s. There are 4 large dealerships 20 minutes from where I live. Definitely a love affair going on between Quebec and Mazda.

My last car was a yellow Prorog5. Loved it. Sad it turned into a pile of rust after 10 years or I might still have it. Hopefully rust issues have been taken care of so I can keep my CX-5 even longer!

 

[Dr. Awkward]

Trying to spin Mazda's sales numbers for the CX (and the whole Mazda lineup) as somehow being underwhelming and a disappointment for the brand is pretty lame and just not true as are many other opinions this same member expresses.
Like the CX is a cheap car.
Some trims are relatively inexpensive but trying to pin the cheapo tag on them is BS that I am sure many who visit here already recognize and which I am happy to disprove.

Mazda North American Operations reported December 2015 U.S. sales of 29,294 vehicles, an increase of 18.1 percent versus December 2014 and the best December since 1994. The company also reported calendar year (CY) 2015 total (combined fleet and retail) sales in the U.S. of 319,184, up 4.4 percent over 2014 and the best result since 1994 (20 years).
Note that this includes lower numbers for the CX 9 which will be re-booted this summer.

http://insidemazda.mazdausa.com/pre...increase-december-best-annual-sales-20-years/

And the Ford connection is ancient history.