Official Info!

finally!
today mazda sent out press releases to its US dealerships at least and conference calls were held etc...etc... so i just went in and put down my deposit and i have some "official" info

production #s:
black 1150
orange 600

all the specs look exactly the same as the predicted ones. it still says "estimated" next to HP and whatnot on the press release from this morning

MAzdaspeed will be a franchise thing like SVT is with ford. Not all ford dealerships can sell SVT etc....my dealer has told me that dealerships looking to become mazdaspeed franchises must not only meet certain requirments such as customer satisfaction ratings and sales figures, but they must also plan on losing 10,000 this year to establish themselves as a franchise. This is because of all the things they need to do to become one. So, the strict requirements to become a franchise along with the $$ loss this year means the dealership you were planning on buyign your MS from might not be able to sell you one. Next MS vehicle is expected to be the miata, eventually the 6. The 6 version is gonna be like a evo/sti competitor priced 30-35 with AWD and im imagining lots of juice. my dealer says eh still believes they are planning a second run of MS proteges next spring (aprilish) possibly in a different color. price tag is still not determined but will be 21,500-25,000 USD. Sunroof is probably going to be an option, and if it is will most likely be the only option. Sound system you all know about some details i was not aware of are that it will be the excelon head unit, and it will be "7 speakers" 4 mids 2 tweets and the sub

another interestnig piece of info which i cant beleive is that to preserve the integrity of mazdaspeed, additional mazdaspeed performance parts will only be available for mazdaspeed vehicles. Things like a BOV/new exhaust system if they come out may be able to be bought by anyone but will not eba ble to be installed on the vehicle without voiding the warranty. Things like the turbo that come on the MS protege he said will ONLY BE AVAILABLE for mazdaspeed vehicles. My dealer said a VIN # and mazdaspeed vehicle will be required to order the turbo.

so there you have it. I have ordered an orange one, my dealer expects 2, maaaybe 3 orange and probably a few black. As of tonight i was the only one that was reserved, and they are charging 1000 over invoice on them so the price isnt as inflated as it could be.

Morande Mazda in Manchester CT is where i got mine in case you are in new england and unable to find a knowledgable dealership that will be able to sell them. (let him know i sent you, maybe i can get a discount )

cant think of any more info, but just thought id share with you the latest and greatest

Hey slug420..
Congradulations on your choice!
What cars were you thinking of other than the MS-P? I had a hard time putting a deposit down for other cars that i wanted, since i had second thoughts.

production #s:
black 1150
orange 600

What about Canadian production #'s? Should we be getting less Orange ones as well?

Who told you the information that Mazda will go for a 2nd run at the MS-P in April '03? I really hope they don't continue making them like this. i'm sure that a few Mp3 owners out there are not happy with the idea that MS-P will be 'better' than their Mp3. And this might be the same case for us MS-P soon to be owners. If they keep making them better and better, we might as well consider this car a non-limited production car.

Let's just hope that a 'better' MS-P will not be coming...
:mad:

when did they say you were suppose to take delivery?

-Limited Edition

Finally! SOMEONE IN THE US OF A has officially reserved a MS! Great news/info slug420...21,500-25,000 USD doesn't surprise me as thats what I've been saying...although more than 22 g's is not cool.

How does the reserve thing work...what are the details...did you put down a deposit...is it refundable?...what is the best way to get one before they try to add dealer crap and increase the price...order one before they arrive?...Can you actually get a better deal by ordering one before they arrive?

Thanks in advance...as I'm sure many USA members are also interested in this info.

correction

slug420..

i forgot that we 'only' get Spicy Orange. How could i have forgot?

"What cars were you thinking of other than the MS-P?"

I want an rx-7 or some other sports car, but living in new england this cannot be my only car, so I need something that will be a winter car/daily driver and when i pay it off, then ill get my sports car. That being said, I need something preferably with relatively low insurance, power isnt an issue because i will eventually get a sports car and this is just something for day to day driving, so i find myself in the sport compact market. I want to go brand new so it will in theory be reliable for an extended period of time so used cars werent considered, and I wasnt in the mood to spend 30ish on somethin other than a sports car. bottom line, i looked at the wrx and se-r spec v seriously. Se-r spec v is an awesome ride, AWESOME......18,000 sticker price USD, more juice than ms-p, 6 sp tranny, racing seats, RF stereo, 17"s, good suspension, BUT, im 6'5" and it was tight quarters (protege isnt exactly roomy but i do fit, and i tihnk ill just move the seat back an inch) and im not crazy about the back end. WRX has lots of juice, is awd, subaru reliability yadda yadda. But get one full of the options I want in my new baby and im approaching high high 20s in a hurry. That combined with the fact in order for me to luv my wrx like i want to luv a car i just dropped a lot of coin on, i would need to drop it, get a body kit, and rims, then u are talkin well over 30, so no WRX. MS-P IMO is a excellent performing vehicle, a little expensive for the amount of car, but it does come with a body kit, suspension, turbo, rims, stereo, cool paint job, so im not too sad to be paying 25 for it. AND its unique! I love the idea of rollin around town in a car and not seeing another one like mine. When i told my friend the msrp range, taking worst case scenario he said i could just as well get a new maxima for that much, but not only would it not be loaded, it would be about as common as if i got a ford taurus. hoorah!

as far as canadian production #s i dont know if that only orange for canada is very true. My dealer said that the production numbers mentioned above were for the world. And since my dealer knows he is getting at least one maybe 2 orange ones, that would be like 200 minimum oranges for the US.....which leaves a total of 400 cars for all of canada? i dunno.....

my dealer told me the info about the second run of MS-Ps
whether you believe him or not is up to you. when i refer to "my dealer" I refer to the sales manager, which is my salesperson there. While a second run in 6 months doesnt seem normal for a ltd car, i cant imagine he just fabricated that line for no apparent reason.

the press release he got today, that he gave me a copy of said "When it hits the streets in mid september" but he told me to expect it in october. When i asked him about this discrepancy he said that mazda was really hustling to put these together and get the goin and that production was planned for early september, then a few weeks for shipping and final details on US Soil, for arrival at dealership in october. I cringe my teeth at how late that is, but who knows......

"although more than 22 g's is not cool."
It certainly isnt cool, but I think they are tight lookin cars, and they come pretty decked out, not to mention limited edition, so although I think the value of them is around 21-22, I'll shell out a little more. Bare in mind, the range is 21,500-25,000 so while 22 is unlikely, its not out of the question

"How does the reserve thing work...what are the details...did you put down a deposit...is it refundable?"
I put down a 500 dollar refundable deposit. It basically saves one for me and will eventually roll over into the down payment. This is my first new car so maybe im falling for the car salesman bit but I really think my dealer is a nice guy so I might be gettin a better deal than the rest of the world neccesarily will. I can certainly imagine a dealer taking 1000 deposits, and making them non-refundable, just like I can imagine dealers inflating the price more than 1000. Not only the limited quantity of these, but also the 10,000 defecit being a mazdaspeed franchise is leaving them in this year

...what is the best way to get one before they try to add dealer crap and increase the price...order one before they arrive?...Can you actually get a better deal by ordering one before they arrive?

I have no idea. Like I said, this is my first car, so im playin it by ear as i go along. Right now is a good time to get one before they add dealer crap i guess, but then again, when a firm msrp comes out, and you go in to discuss financing, you could get slapped with all sorts of little crap like "rustproof, paint protection, fabric care, and vin etch" which I see checkboxes for here on my purchase order. I dont think what kind of a deal you get is determined as much by when you order it as where you order it from. If your dealer tells you he is charging 2000 over msrp then look around. and on the flip side, if your dealer is only charging you two hundred over, lemme know

slug420 said:

<snip>

price tag is still not determined but will be 21,500-25,000 USD.

<snip>

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I can't wait to see how this will work out in the U.S. market. While I love my 2002.5 Pro, I have read the posts on the Mazdaspeed Pro with much facination thinking to place an order myself. The prices scare me. I also have a 2002 WRX that is only slightly modified and it does 4.5 sec 0-60 (I love to surprise M3 drivers), 13.3 1/4 mile times, develops 275HP (224HP at rear wheels on the dyno w/ 222 ft-lbs torque) and my total investment in that vehicle excluding taxes and license is $23,595 (I have yet to do the suspension mods) and I have all-wheel drive. I will be the first to admit that the Pro has much better styling and overall, it is better built but I question whether Mazda will be able to command this kind of price on the Mazdaspeed Pro (I don't care how limited production it is) and, at the same time, absorb the inevitable dealer mark-up. I don't think so...at least not in the California market IMO.

Agreed. But there are always people out there that will buy it. Just not good shoppers.

big_ben said:

Agreed. But there are always people out there that will buy it. Just not good shoppers.

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How true, how true. Good point.

slug420 said:

as far as canadian production #s i dont know if that only orange for canada is very true. My dealer said that the production numbers mentioned above were for the world. And since my dealer knows he is getting at least one maybe 2 orange ones, that would be like 200 minimum oranges for the US.....which leaves a total of 400 cars for all of canada? i dunno.....

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Weren't there only 250 MP3's for Canada? If so, 400 seems about right, although maybe a bit on the high side.

I am very disappointed that they may release more. It really loses appeal when i hear that. Until now, I had fully planned on getting one. Reserved one but didn't do a deposit because they cant determine what trade in value will be in advance. Now this makes me have second thoughts.

kat

everyone should check around, ask mazda NA if thats possible.....and definitely dealers. Although I can imagine dealers not mentioniing or admitting to the fact that there will be a second batch of MS because they think (and righfully so) that such information could make ppl not want the MS protege.....i am skeptikal as to whether or not this is true. IMO.........mazda will/should come out with MS protege, next fall/winter at earliest they come out with MS miata, then after that 6 months down the road MS 6, so compete with STI and EVO that will be arriving next springish.........and then MA RX-8..........While they could run a second batch of proteges or of any of those cars for that matter, it seems like such a move would only pull attention away from the next MS vehicle they will be pushing.........who knows, but everyone on this board should ask around and see if anyone else hears this too..........

IF this information is totally true, I am even more pissed off at Mazda now. If I, having a "limited edition" (look at those quotes) MP3 cannot order a Mazdaspeed turbo, then I think it is pretty damn lame. Oh hey, lets make the Mazdaspeed cars this exclusive club where only they can order the parts for them. Its like waiting in a line at some exclusive f'ing dance club and not being able to get in because you're not special enough. Well, you can count me out. Good thing the Mazdaspeed turbo is still going to be 170hp... WEAK!

Corky? Are you done yet!?

Chris

about dealerships requiring spending 10,000 to become a mazdaspeed franchise... does it apply to canada?
that would really suck if it did. chances of my dealer getting one would be slim, but then why would they get the info sheets from mazda canada?

slug420 said:

another interestnig piece of info which i cant beleive is that to preserve the integrity of mazdaspeed, additional mazdaspeed performance parts will only be available for mazdaspeed vehicles. Things like a BOV/new exhaust system if they come out may be able to be bought by anyone but will not eba ble to be installed on the vehicle without voiding the warranty. Things like the turbo that come on the MS protege he said will ONLY BE AVAILABLE for mazdaspeed vehicles. My dealer said a VIN # and mazdaspeed vehicle will be required to order the turbo.

Click to expand...

According to this Mazda Q&A (http://www.mazdausa.com/mazdaspeed/press_releases/q_a.pdf), they have yet to decide whether or not the parts will be available to other models (i.e. MP5). Also, they specifically state that the MazdaSpeed "street parts" will be covered under they existing Mazda warranty, however... competition and off road parts will not.

I guess we'll see in time which way it goes... but why would anyone buy any MazdaSpeed performace upgrade parts for a vehicle that already comes equiped with them? It seems to me that if the parts are going to be sold as "add-ons" that the intent is for people to purchase them for their other Mazda vehicles.

slug420 said:

finally!
but they must also plan on losing 10,000 this year to establish themselves as a franchise. This is because of all the things they need to do to become one. So, the strict requirements to become a franchise along with the $$ loss this year means the dealership you were planning on buyign your MS from might not be able to sell you one

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THat's total BS (on dealer's part, not yours), they get them based on sales performance, over-invoice percentage, etc.
Lose money....oh geez. They're sponsored by mazda, at least the Mazda franchised dealers are. I dunno about "Joe Bob's Mazda Dealership and Taxidermy Shop" though. Smaller dealers might actually lose something.

Re: Re: Official Info!

eeveyl said:

I guess we'll see in time which way it goes... but why would anyone buy any MazdaSpeed performace upgrade parts for a vehicle that already comes equiped with them? It seems to me that if the parts are going to be sold as "add-ons" that the intent is for people to purchase them for their other Mazda vehicles.

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repairs?

sleeper_ said:

about dealerships requiring spending 10,000 to become a mazdaspeed franchise... does it apply to canada?
that would really suck if it did. chances of my dealer getting one would be slim, but then why would they get the info sheets from mazda canada?

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Per Mazda Canada Cust. Serv. and the Erin Mills dealer, there will be at least 1/dealer. They are not going the SVT route in Canada.