BillTheCat
Member
- :
- 2009 Mazdaspeed3 Sport
Greetings...
Last night, I traded in my nicely modded 2005 MINI Cooper S for an '09 Mazdaspeed3 Sport. Metropolitan Grey Mica, no other options. Quite a long & winding road of test drives & research, followed by a twist of fate led me to commit to the MS3.
Let me start by saying that I ADORE my MCS. It's modded for both increased power & improved handling. I carve up the Tail of the Dragon at Deal's Gap with the best of them. Sport bikes on the Dragon often pull over to let me by... hehheh. But MINIs tend to encounter reliability issues as you approach 100k. I had 75k on the odo & 2 years of payments left. SO I decided to trade in & get an extended warranty on the next ride.
When I first started searching, I was looking at the MS3, VW GTI, VW R32, WRX, WRX STi, Lancer Evo X... basically anything small & quick. Since I am also in the process of attempting to find & buy a half decent house, I quickly ruled out anything over $25-26k.
At first, I was not taken by the MS3's body lines. I was jealous of my friend's MS6, frankly. Not so much for AWD, but for the aesthetics.
After a lot of research & a few test drives, I decided to go CHEAP & compromise on performance. I settled on a new '09 Scion xB. In order to get one with a 5-speed, though, I had to ORDER it. So I ordered & waited. And waited. And waited. A week after my promised delivery date, the excuses were flowing liberally. After seriously considering taking an MS3 for a test drive for several days, I bit the bullet last night & went to my nearest Mazda dealer.
And fell in love. The MS3 may be a notch below a MINI for handling, but the power is instantly addicting. The only car I have owned that was this much fun off the line was a heavily modded MKIII Toyota Supra (450hp) that was NOT fun in the twisties. (Would've been great for drifting, though) The MS3 feels like I could go autocrossing or go up to Deal's Gap with the MINIs next May & hold my own.
The dealer only had 4 MS3's in stock. 2 GT's, 2 Sports. Since I DO need to be somewhat responsible with my $$$, I went for Sport & had a choice of the Metropolitan Grey Mica or the Crystal White Pearl Mica. Fortunately for me, the Grey was my first color choice anyhow.
I was wondering if I could work a deal that would make sense from a financial standpoint, but it all worked out & I drove the MS3 home. Less than 100 miles on the odo now, but I am thoroughly impressed so far.
The Scion salesman had been using mostly e-mail to communicate with me, I suspect as a way of avoiding the uncomfortable phone conversations involved with repeatedly letting me down. So I informed him of my purchase via e-mail as well. His entire response? "Mazda? Good choice."
Frankly, I haven't driven a naturally aspirated car in 12 years or so, and I am tickled pink to be back in a turbo. (MCS is supercharged) Anticipating a LOT of fun miles in my near future.
I'll be hanging out on these forums to read & learn, probably asking questions from time to time, especially when it comes time to research mods of all types.
Oh, and I work nights, sleep days... haven't had a chance to snap pics yet. Will try to do so this weekend when I spend the entire weekend at Disney with 200 MINI Coopers. Hope to post some pics by Monday.
-Bill
Last night, I traded in my nicely modded 2005 MINI Cooper S for an '09 Mazdaspeed3 Sport. Metropolitan Grey Mica, no other options. Quite a long & winding road of test drives & research, followed by a twist of fate led me to commit to the MS3.
Let me start by saying that I ADORE my MCS. It's modded for both increased power & improved handling. I carve up the Tail of the Dragon at Deal's Gap with the best of them. Sport bikes on the Dragon often pull over to let me by... hehheh. But MINIs tend to encounter reliability issues as you approach 100k. I had 75k on the odo & 2 years of payments left. SO I decided to trade in & get an extended warranty on the next ride.
When I first started searching, I was looking at the MS3, VW GTI, VW R32, WRX, WRX STi, Lancer Evo X... basically anything small & quick. Since I am also in the process of attempting to find & buy a half decent house, I quickly ruled out anything over $25-26k.
At first, I was not taken by the MS3's body lines. I was jealous of my friend's MS6, frankly. Not so much for AWD, but for the aesthetics.
After a lot of research & a few test drives, I decided to go CHEAP & compromise on performance. I settled on a new '09 Scion xB. In order to get one with a 5-speed, though, I had to ORDER it. So I ordered & waited. And waited. And waited. A week after my promised delivery date, the excuses were flowing liberally. After seriously considering taking an MS3 for a test drive for several days, I bit the bullet last night & went to my nearest Mazda dealer.
And fell in love. The MS3 may be a notch below a MINI for handling, but the power is instantly addicting. The only car I have owned that was this much fun off the line was a heavily modded MKIII Toyota Supra (450hp) that was NOT fun in the twisties. (Would've been great for drifting, though) The MS3 feels like I could go autocrossing or go up to Deal's Gap with the MINIs next May & hold my own.
The dealer only had 4 MS3's in stock. 2 GT's, 2 Sports. Since I DO need to be somewhat responsible with my $$$, I went for Sport & had a choice of the Metropolitan Grey Mica or the Crystal White Pearl Mica. Fortunately for me, the Grey was my first color choice anyhow.
I was wondering if I could work a deal that would make sense from a financial standpoint, but it all worked out & I drove the MS3 home. Less than 100 miles on the odo now, but I am thoroughly impressed so far.
The Scion salesman had been using mostly e-mail to communicate with me, I suspect as a way of avoiding the uncomfortable phone conversations involved with repeatedly letting me down. So I informed him of my purchase via e-mail as well. His entire response? "Mazda? Good choice."
Frankly, I haven't driven a naturally aspirated car in 12 years or so, and I am tickled pink to be back in a turbo. (MCS is supercharged) Anticipating a LOT of fun miles in my near future.
I'll be hanging out on these forums to read & learn, probably asking questions from time to time, especially when it comes time to research mods of all types.
Oh, and I work nights, sleep days... haven't had a chance to snap pics yet. Will try to do so this weekend when I spend the entire weekend at Disney with 200 MINI Coopers. Hope to post some pics by Monday.
-Bill