Man this car is fun!

[Djbradle]

Having put about over 500 miles now I must say this car is an absolute joy to drive. When mention was made about the auto tranny being the best in the segment I was curious then but I now concur that it really does respond like a manual. The shifts are so quick especially in manual mode. For a 4 cylinder the exhaust note and engine really do sound very pleasing with each blip of throttle (when warmed up of course). Dropping in 4th gear on the highway and kicking down to 6k brings a smile to my face It's even more fun than my bimmer. The suspension is quite agile and plants well around on/off ramps. Very little body roll, only a tad more than my e46. Now I know why BMW drivers talk highly of Mazdas' drive-ability. Glad I didn't go with the Honda again (attention)

 

[Blackzilla]

enjoy it man love everything in this car but the head unit. since you have a BMW you'll probably be like me and be astounded by how great the gas mileage is in this car (i came from a G35)

 

[Djbradle]

Yup. Was seeing about an average of 23 mpg's on premium versus 32 mpg's now on regular. I'm sure once broken in that value should rise some more.

 

[mazdadude]

Thanks! Great to hear some real world feedback from others who have had "drivers cars"...

 

[Djbradle]

The Dunlop's definitely have some tire wall stretch as they are fairly "thin" for the size of the rim. Different rim/tires would make a world of difference! I wonder whether Dan with the Quebecois lowered/wheel spaced 6 has better cornering. I suspect so.