What have you done to your Mazda3 today?

Installed & took a cruise on these new KYB Gas a Shocks.....I previously had the Excel-G's those were good but got soft and wore out within a year and a half, when I took off the Excel-G shocks the rebound was bad on them, also i was rubbing bad in the rear over almost every bump & turn..I knew something was going on..After replacing them w/ these Gas a Shocks what an incredible handing & feel difference the rubbing over bumps practically disappeared...So far really like this choice!

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Bought 3M Brand Black Ebony Woodgrain vinyl overlay....It posed a challenge since the vinyl they gave me was cut the wrong way off the roll..the overlay was not long enough to cover my dash piece I got creative and put a few vertical accent on the dash piece...haha...I also Vinyl Overlayed the Steering Wheel pieces, and the Center Console & HVAC...

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New tires are on the way, Nokian Entyre 2.0. The OEM Turanzas still have 4/32nds on them but want the wifey to have better wet traction for the coming Summer. Plus I should get a $40 credit for them with the local shops trade in promo, better than paying them to recycle the tires. :)

Nokians were installed this morning. The OEM Bridgestone's had 31,734K miles on them and I could have probably squeezed this summer out of them but I'm happy getting five summers out of them.
 
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Yet again more 3M Black Satin vinyl...This time did the bottom of the doors...I think it creates a cool visual for the side profile now :)

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Finally painted my RX8 rims and got new tires - Continental PureContact 225/45-18. Got a set of LEDs for the interior, but haven't installed yet.
 
Ordered a Megan Racing Strut Tower Brace, Vibrant Header, Weapon-R Intake Manifold, Buddy Club Ground Condenser... LOL crap I forgot about the money to have this stuff installed! (cabpatch)
 
put a steering wheel cover on it, like the look it gives it, faux stitched leather, makes it look more upmarket. also makes it feel better in my hand (not all slick and smooth worn in after 7 years of hands all over it
 
Put the Frankenbumper together. After two arguments with fat raccoons and an incident with a tow dolly, the bumper cover and grille were in sad shape. Now they're "custom". :D

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Well I did a front brake job....

This time I went w/ Carquest Wearever Platinum Professional Ceramic front pads & Centric High Carbon Rotors..... Installed and a proper Bedding Process...So far pretty solid feel...NO Squeal either!....seriously hope it stays that way now...

Also adjust the Rear Passenger side SPC camber Arm...needed a slight Neg. Camber due to tire rubbing when making right turns....and just by moving a couple MM damn it worked!...NO more tire rub taking a right turn now!
 
Installed E-Focus Rear Motor Mount to replace the Mazda OEM one.....So far I have felt an improved start up and when accelerating much more solid feel not as jumpy etc....And for the price cant beat it!...

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Hey guys i have a 2008 mazda 3 axela.. 2.0l with 5speed paddle shift transmission.. left it stock before because that was my only vehicle other than me work vehicles, but i bought a 2016 cx5 so now i really want to do a project on it... my ideal will be the 2.3l turbo from the same year's speed 3 but im not sure about what will line up and if the same transmission will work and if not will the 4wd gear box be able to convert to fwd and if not is there a fwd gearbox i can use that will be able to handle the hp... i really love this project can any one help[ if they have done this project before
thank you
 
I actually had to search for this thread and see I'm bumping it as it's been over a year since someone posted? I thought this was stickied?

Just installed a pair of VLED Micro head lights in the lo-beams and took her for a drive around the block. Very happy with the results. While output wasn't necessarily increased, it wasn't diminished and I can now see what is lit! The halogen bulb light output has been one of my biggest gripes with the car since buying it. Our daughter is taking her off to college in the fall so I figured it was time to look for something to increase safety.

Added a pair of their VLR3 resistors and DuoTap harnesses to the order to pair with some JDM Astar LED turn signal bulbs for the front and rear, also ordered some JDM Astar reverse and brake light bulbs. I'll get all of this installed over the weekend.

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Sunday morning I swapped out all of the incandescent bulbs for LEDs, the only stock bulbs left on the car now are the hi-beams. The DuoTap harnesses from VLEDs are awesome and well worth the extra couple of bucks. Considering there isn't a lot of slack in the wires for the front turn signal bulbs they made it a breeze to splice into the factory wiring. In case anyone is wondering I connected them to the black (ground) and pink (turn signal) wires from the socket.

While in the trunk swapping out the rear bulbs, I noticed some water puddled up near the spare tire. The insulation under it was soaked! None of the carpet or the top of the trunk were wet so trying to figure out what happened. I'll have to ask my daughter if she knows of anything spilling back there.
 
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