So I am about to pull the trigger on one of three cars tomorrow(2 private, 1 dealer)
Background: I am 25 and just finally got my license in July. I spent 10 years taking the train because I got used to it. Now with a 3 hr commute each way I'd like to finally grow up and get a life. I have always adored the Red Mazda 3 and I always wished I had the car when I was in college instead of taking NJ transit. At this point I have more than enough saved up to buy a mazda 3 brand new off MSRP but my driving skills are still weak and I wanted to get a beater car to become a better driver in. Why not the 1st gen Mazda 3 that I always adored.
After more than a week of almost being scammed multiple times and getting much better at what to look for, I have narrowed my choice down to three cars and I was wondering if you guys could give me an honest opinion on the three and your opinion on which one I should choose.
**Car 1: IT'S GOT THE LOOKS JOHNNY!!!**
Dealer owned 2005 Velocity Red (Trim unknown ATM) 86,000 miles
Asking Price $7500 Taxes titles fees included.
Like I said I have always liked Red and this car seems to look good. The car has a clean carfax EXCEPT:
I noticed that between owner 1 and owner 2 there is a 1 year gap.
Owner 1 last entry is on **8/15/08** and Owner 2 starts at **9/14/09** Also alarm bells starting ringing that Owner 2 failed emissions inspection but passed it at the same time??? See carfax
I got suspicious so I ran the vin on Autocheck. It reported that there was an accident on 5/14/09 which just happens to be between the gap year.....very suspicious!
The thing is though, I have caught Autocheck giving completely false reports. This morning I saw a 2010 mazda 3 grand touring sport 40,000 miles advertised for 9K. That is an extremely odd price for that year and mileage. Autocheck said everything was perfect. Carfax reported that it was a Total Loss vehicle with a rear end plus front end collision!
The autocheck report See Here states that the accident happened on front.
The model includes the following features:
Front Wheel Drive, Tires - Front All-Season, Tires - Rear All-Season, Temporary Spare Tire, Wheel Covers, Steel Wheels, Power Steering, 4-Wheel Disc Brakes, Intermittent Wipers, Cloth Seats, Bucket Seats, Pass-Through Rear Seat, Rear Bench Seat, Floor Mats, Adjustable Steering Wheel, Steering Wheel Audio Controls, Engine Immobilizer, Remote Trunk Release, Rear Defrost, AM/FM Stereo, CD Player, Power Outlet, Driver Vanity Mirror, Passenger Vanity Mirror, Front Reading Lamps, Driver Air Bag, Passenger Air Bag, Passenger Air Bag Sensor, Child Safety Locks, Emergency Trunk Release
Basically, it does not have anything. It is a base model.
With a 2.0L I4 16V MPFI DOHC engine, I can deduce it is probably the i base model. Not even touring (can anyone confirm?)
But is is Red! and not 100+K miles like every other red car is!!!
**Car 2: LOOK AT ALL THEM FEATURES!**
Private Owned White 2008 i Touring(or maybe sport touring he is not clear) with 82,100 miles. asking $7650 all inclusive.
This guy has been super nice and quick to respond. This car seems to have a super clean autocheck and carfax with regular maintenance records. Three owners and he swears no accident and I believe him because he owned the car for most of its life as a college student in South Carolina. Has many features as well. Even has a spoiler. I really like Red but this car being 2008 may be more reliable. That is a BIG thing for me. Because this is my first car, I am really scared if I get a dud, so far these two cars could both be duds but the features and no questions about it clean carfax seem to indicate this is a better deal.
The only thing is that it is white...
The list of features:
4-Cyl, 2.0 Liter, Automatic,
4-Spd w/Overdrive,
ABS (4-Wheel),
Air Conditioning,
Power Door Locks (w/ Remote Key Control),
Cruise Control, CD (6 Disc),
Premium Sound,
Dual Air Bags,
Sun Roof,
Alloy Wheels.
Aux option for iPhone or any other device
Looks like it is base model but with additional features.
**I am concerned with the photos though** Can anyone check the following photos to see if the bumper has been replaced or any damage to the front has occurred, are those panel gaps supposed to be so big? Maybe its just because the car is white?
Please See Here
**Car 3: HUMBLE AND KIND WINS THE RACE?**
This car is a 2006 Black ( base model need to ask for more info) car with *69,000* miles. She is asking $6300 This car also has a super clean carfax and autocheck and seems to be moderately equipped. It is colored black which is my least favorite color of the three. It already has two people looking at it and it may disappear before I can nab it but it may be the most reliable....or is it?
This leads me into my first question.
**Model Year and reliability.**
I have a 2005, 2006 and 2008.
Would the 2008 even though it has 10,000 ish miles be more reliable than the others? 2008 is basically near the end of that generation so Mazda would have ironed out as many bugs as they could. But does it really make THAT much of a difference, as far as I could tell the ride and interior seem the same across the tears so it is a question of additional features and reliability.
Now on to the second and more important question:
**What would you choose?**
To be fair there are only two cars I have ever truly loved. The FJ Cruiser and the Mazda 3. I cannot afford an FJ cruiser and I am not experienced enough to handle it anyway but the Mazda 3 makes a great alternative car. I guess I could live without the red color but what would you choose : color vs perceived reliability vs features.
(as I write this the red is becoming less and less attractive but....that color!)
**Thank you so much for reading and taking part in the discussion.**
Background: I am 25 and just finally got my license in July. I spent 10 years taking the train because I got used to it. Now with a 3 hr commute each way I'd like to finally grow up and get a life. I have always adored the Red Mazda 3 and I always wished I had the car when I was in college instead of taking NJ transit. At this point I have more than enough saved up to buy a mazda 3 brand new off MSRP but my driving skills are still weak and I wanted to get a beater car to become a better driver in. Why not the 1st gen Mazda 3 that I always adored.
After more than a week of almost being scammed multiple times and getting much better at what to look for, I have narrowed my choice down to three cars and I was wondering if you guys could give me an honest opinion on the three and your opinion on which one I should choose.
**Car 1: IT'S GOT THE LOOKS JOHNNY!!!**
Dealer owned 2005 Velocity Red (Trim unknown ATM) 86,000 miles
Asking Price $7500 Taxes titles fees included.
Like I said I have always liked Red and this car seems to look good. The car has a clean carfax EXCEPT:
I noticed that between owner 1 and owner 2 there is a 1 year gap.
Owner 1 last entry is on **8/15/08** and Owner 2 starts at **9/14/09** Also alarm bells starting ringing that Owner 2 failed emissions inspection but passed it at the same time??? See carfax
I got suspicious so I ran the vin on Autocheck. It reported that there was an accident on 5/14/09 which just happens to be between the gap year.....very suspicious!
The thing is though, I have caught Autocheck giving completely false reports. This morning I saw a 2010 mazda 3 grand touring sport 40,000 miles advertised for 9K. That is an extremely odd price for that year and mileage. Autocheck said everything was perfect. Carfax reported that it was a Total Loss vehicle with a rear end plus front end collision!
The autocheck report See Here states that the accident happened on front.
The model includes the following features:
Front Wheel Drive, Tires - Front All-Season, Tires - Rear All-Season, Temporary Spare Tire, Wheel Covers, Steel Wheels, Power Steering, 4-Wheel Disc Brakes, Intermittent Wipers, Cloth Seats, Bucket Seats, Pass-Through Rear Seat, Rear Bench Seat, Floor Mats, Adjustable Steering Wheel, Steering Wheel Audio Controls, Engine Immobilizer, Remote Trunk Release, Rear Defrost, AM/FM Stereo, CD Player, Power Outlet, Driver Vanity Mirror, Passenger Vanity Mirror, Front Reading Lamps, Driver Air Bag, Passenger Air Bag, Passenger Air Bag Sensor, Child Safety Locks, Emergency Trunk Release
Basically, it does not have anything. It is a base model.
With a 2.0L I4 16V MPFI DOHC engine, I can deduce it is probably the i base model. Not even touring (can anyone confirm?)
But is is Red! and not 100+K miles like every other red car is!!!
**Car 2: LOOK AT ALL THEM FEATURES!**
Private Owned White 2008 i Touring(or maybe sport touring he is not clear) with 82,100 miles. asking $7650 all inclusive.
This guy has been super nice and quick to respond. This car seems to have a super clean autocheck and carfax with regular maintenance records. Three owners and he swears no accident and I believe him because he owned the car for most of its life as a college student in South Carolina. Has many features as well. Even has a spoiler. I really like Red but this car being 2008 may be more reliable. That is a BIG thing for me. Because this is my first car, I am really scared if I get a dud, so far these two cars could both be duds but the features and no questions about it clean carfax seem to indicate this is a better deal.
The only thing is that it is white...
The list of features:
4-Cyl, 2.0 Liter, Automatic,
4-Spd w/Overdrive,
ABS (4-Wheel),
Air Conditioning,
Power Door Locks (w/ Remote Key Control),
Cruise Control, CD (6 Disc),
Premium Sound,
Dual Air Bags,
Sun Roof,
Alloy Wheels.
Aux option for iPhone or any other device
Looks like it is base model but with additional features.
**I am concerned with the photos though** Can anyone check the following photos to see if the bumper has been replaced or any damage to the front has occurred, are those panel gaps supposed to be so big? Maybe its just because the car is white?
Please See Here
**Car 3: HUMBLE AND KIND WINS THE RACE?**
This car is a 2006 Black ( base model need to ask for more info) car with *69,000* miles. She is asking $6300 This car also has a super clean carfax and autocheck and seems to be moderately equipped. It is colored black which is my least favorite color of the three. It already has two people looking at it and it may disappear before I can nab it but it may be the most reliable....or is it?
This leads me into my first question.
**Model Year and reliability.**
I have a 2005, 2006 and 2008.
Would the 2008 even though it has 10,000 ish miles be more reliable than the others? 2008 is basically near the end of that generation so Mazda would have ironed out as many bugs as they could. But does it really make THAT much of a difference, as far as I could tell the ride and interior seem the same across the tears so it is a question of additional features and reliability.
Now on to the second and more important question:
**What would you choose?**
To be fair there are only two cars I have ever truly loved. The FJ Cruiser and the Mazda 3. I cannot afford an FJ cruiser and I am not experienced enough to handle it anyway but the Mazda 3 makes a great alternative car. I guess I could live without the red color but what would you choose : color vs perceived reliability vs features.
(as I write this the red is becoming less and less attractive but....that color!)
**Thank you so much for reading and taking part in the discussion.**
