Buying a Mazda 3

Yorky

Can anyone offer any advice on buying a Mazda 3 diesel saloon?

I'm unsure whether to go for a 2008 onwards model to avail of the emmissions-based motor tax regime or get an older one which might balance out the extra motor tax due to the lower purchase price.

Also where to buy it from: main dealer, Autotrader, Ebay, Northern Ireland, auction etc.etc.

I'm normally averse to new cars due to depreciation but have a car which would qualify for scrappage scheme so perhaps that's an option.

Thanks in advance for any advice.

fonecrusher1

Why not go for the hatchback? Its so much more practical.:)

pburns

fonecrusher1 wrote: »

Why not go for the hatchback? Its so much more practical.:)

Urbanites have a bias against saloons and culchies have a bias against hatchbacks. I'm guessing your the former:D...

In fairness in this particular model the saloon is much better looking.

PSA diesel engine + Mazda-everything-else makes the 3 diesel a canny buy IMO. Nicer to drive than practically anything comparable also. One of my favorite brands TBH... Have a petrol 3 in the family and while the steering is a bit lifeless the handling and ride overall are quite brilliant. Plus, it's been bullit-proof reliability-wise, as was my old 6...

fonecrusher1

pburns wrote: »

Urbanites have a bias against saloons and culchies have a bias against hatchbacks. I'm guessing your the former:D...

In fairness in this particular model the saloon is much better looking.

PSA diesel engine + Mazda-everything-else makes the 3 diesel a canny buy IMO. Nicer to drive than practically anything comparable also. One of my favorite brands TBH... Have a petrol 3 in the family and while the steering is a bit lifeless the handling and ride overall are quite brilliant. Plus, it's been bullit-proof reliability-wise, as was my old 6...

:Dhaha fair point. I am a bit of hatchback fan & some cars are better looking in saloon form but i think its very close for the 3.
The parents own a 2009 mazda 3 & i think its a lovely little car. Its the slightly weak 1.4 but its a nicely balanced car.
Before the mazda they had a late nineties corolla saloon that didn't even have spit-fold rear seats & was possibly the most impractical car ever. Which probably explains my slight bias.
Also the corolla was like a bouncy castle on wheels on bad roads.

colm_mcm

I don't like the look of the 3 hatch at all, the saloon looks more expensive. hatch is clumsy at the back.

Midnight_EG

You wanna talk to our own StealthySpeeder about this, he had a Mazda 3 (MPS Though).

fonecrusher1

colm_mcm wrote: »

I don't like the look of the 3 hatch at all, the saloon looks more expensive. hatch is clumsy at the back.

Culchie!!!:D

bazz26

If it is the new model then I think the hatchback looks nicer than the saloon, both need to be the Sport model with the 17" alloys though. Standard 15"/16" look lost under those arches.





If it is the old model then I would agree that the saloon is nicer looking.

cabrwab

I would've agreed with the posters saying that the saloon was a nicer looking car until i went looking at them!

I don't know why i just preferred the look and feel of the hatch when in it, maybe because as a saloon it felt too much like the corrolla saloon i was trading up from. And i found alot more feedback in the steering then in some of the "yolks" id driven before.

The hatchback is very practical and actually a comfortable drive. Its a bit heavy for the 1.4 i have but skip the 1.6 go right to the 2ltr if you were going for petrol. Diesel i avoided because i heard bad things about the 6 and mpv diesel.

But i wasn't in the market for a diesel at the time.

It comes standard with a pretty good stereo and if your tall-ish it has a nice comfortable driving poistion.
Get the touring model or sport if you can, sport can be rare over here. I think the takura model only came out in the 1.6 petrol.

With you looking at the 08 onwards you'll get a decent spec model anyway.

bazz26

cabrwab wrote: »

I would've agreed with the posters saying that the saloon was a nicer looking car until i went looking at them!

I don't know why i just preferred the look and feel of the hatch when in it, maybe because as a saloon it felt too much like the corrolla saloon i was trading up from. And i found alot more feedback in the steering then in some of the "yolks" id driven before.

The hatchback is very practical and actually a comfortable drive. Its a bit heavy for the 1.4 i have but skip the 1.6 go right to the 2ltr if you were going for petrol. Diesel i avoided because i heard bad things about the 6 and mpv diesel.

But i wasn't in the market for a diesel at the time.

It comes standard with a pretty good stereo and if your tall-ish it has a nice comfortable driving poistion.
Get the touring model or sport if you can, sport can be rare over here. I think the takura model only came out in the 1.6 petrol.

With you looking at the 08 onwards you'll get a decent spec model anyway.

The 1.6 litre diesel engine in the 3 is made by Peugeot/Citroen and also found in numerous Peugeot/Citroen/Ford/Volvo/BMW Mini models. The 2.0 litre diesel in the 6 and MPV were Mazda units and are no longer produced. This was replaced by a brand new 2.2 litre last year which can now be ordered in the new 3 also.

cabrwab

Thanks Bazz,
Yeah learned that after i did a bit of research into it, but i wasn't in the market for it anyway

Funny thought i typed that in there first post.

Still after buying it i have become a big fan of the 3.

Yorky

The local dealer price is €19950 for a new one under the scrappage scheme. Is this a good deal?

I would prefer to buy a 1-2 year old one and have looked at the Mazda UK website. How would the warranty work? Would it be applicable at the local dealership?

bazz26

Yorky wrote: »

The local dealer price is €19950 for a new one under the scrappage scheme. Is this a good deal?

I would prefer to buy a 1-2 year old one and have looked at the Mazda UK website. How would the warranty work? Would it be applicable at the local dealership?

Depends on how that deal breaks down, is it Mazda that are giving that discount or is the dealer discount included. If it is a Mazda only then I would be pushing for a further discount from the dealer.

Just remember if you go for a 1 or 2 year old one you will be buying the old model. Might not bother you if the price is right but just something to be aware of.

Honda08

Yorky wrote: »

Can anyone offer any advice on buying a Mazda 3 diesel saloon?

I'm unsure whether to go for a 2008 onwards model to avail of the emmissions-based motor tax regime or get an older one which might balance out the extra motor tax due to the lower purchase price.

Also where to buy it from: main dealer, Autotrader, Ebay, Northern Ireland, auction etc.etc.

I'm normally averse to new cars due to depreciation but have a car which would qualify for scrappage scheme so perhaps that's an option.

Thanks in advance for any advice.

have you thought about a golf new model 1.6 TDI? worth a look €104 road tax.

Leonard Hofstadter

The 1.6 diesel is not the best for reliability, those used for mostly short trips can give fierce trouble(the DPF in particular gives a lot of hassle on cars used for short journeys).

It's still much better than Mazda's in house 2.0 diesel though, how the hell Mazda managed to make such a bad engine is anyone's guess. The "new" 2.2 is based on the 2.0 so I would definitely be waiting a while before suggesting anyone to buy a Mazda with this engine.

bazz26

captainspeed wrote: »

The 1.6 diesel is not the best for reliability, those used for mostly short trips can give fierce trouble(the DPF in particular gives a lot of hassle on cars used for short journeys).

It's still much better than Mazda's in house 2.0 diesel though, how the hell Mazda managed to make such a bad engine is anyone's guess. The "new" 2.2 is based on the 2.0 so I would definitely be waiting a while before suggesting anyone to buy a Mazda with this engine.

That goes for most diesel engines, a diesel engine takes alot longer to warm up than a petrol engins so short journeys can do more harm than good as the oil is not at optimal temperature.

I'm on my second car with the HDi engine and both have been nothing but reliable to date. But I do very few short journeys.

Yorky

Update:

Considering importing one from N.Ireland - no finance packages available to ROI residents so would have to source it here. The HSSCU (health service sraff credit union) seems to offer the best rate at 6.99% - does anyone know if there'd be a problem having the loan amount converted in to sterling?

Yorky

The keenest price so far is £12,500 ex.VAT from a N.Ireland dealer. What's the best way of comparing this price - just ring round a few UK dealers? Would it be cheaper to buy elsewhere in the EU? With the currency conversion, 21% ROI VAT & VRT it amounts to €19671 and still with the potential value of a car to sell.

From reading the Revenue website the scrappage scheme can be dealt with directly with an approved scrapyard. There appears to be no distinction for cars imported - is that the case? If so that would be €1500 off the purchase price : total cost €18171 in N.Ireland against €19950 in ROI.

The car is a 2000 Opel Astra with 167k miles, F.O.S.H, 2 owners from new,2 years NCT, new battery & tyres - would it be worth more than €1500 to sell privately? The OMSP on the Revenue website is €2000.

Update:

If buying from a dealer outside the area, how would the main dealer servicing to comply with the warranty work? It wouldn't be feasible to go back to the selling dealer each time.

riccardo

My boss has just bought Mazda 3 dieisl 5dr sport for €20995 0 kms pe registered from Joe Duffy in Rochestown Avenue.

Apparantly he checked NI pricing and it worked out pretty much the same.

Car looks bloody good though for a mazda.

tinofapples

Sorry to jump into the thread but am thinking about buying an 04/05 1.4/1.6 petrol for my wife.

Anything to look out for ? Are they are pretty reliable car ? They certainly look a nice car.

bazz26

tinofapples wrote: »

Sorry to jump into the thread but am thinking about buying an 04/05 1.4/1.6 petrol for my wife.

Anything to look out for ? Are they are pretty reliable car ? They certainly look a nice car.

Try and find the Touring model as it had more generous equipment like a/c over the basic Comfort model. Most people tend to agree that the saloon of the first generation 3 was the better looking but the saloon didn't come in 1.4 litre, it was 1.6 litre only.

The 3 always does well in reliability surveys and there are no nightmare stories out there about them. Mazda parts are pretty expensive but given the fact that they don't give much trouble the cost of ownership evens out over time.