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Mazda 3

john112deere

caffeine junkie
Staff member
10,807
405
central Vermont
I've been a fan of the 2014-2016 Mazda 3 hatches since they came out. Really nice looking cars, IMO, and designed in-line with my interests for a car...fun to drive, fuel-efficient, and reasonably practical- and available with a manual transmission.

But it was just idle interest...I wasn't in the market for a car, and didn't plan to be for another couple years.

Fate dropped one in my lap this weekend, though- nearly new, and at a price I couldn't turn down. Long story short, Mom bought it then decided she couldn't keep it.

2016 hatchback in that gorgeous dark metallic blue, six-speed stick and about 6,000 miles. Base model with alloys, but compared to my aging Ranger (which isn't going anywhere for a few years yet) it's still looks fully loaded to me.

Not mine (it's still in Mom's driveway, until I get around to fetching it), but looks like this:
$_20.JPG



Can anyone recommend a good Mazda forum? I see a couple pretty big ones but haven't poked around 'em yet.
 
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john112deere

caffeine junkie
Staff member
10,807
405
central Vermont
I like it, man. We could use another 4 door getter-rounder.

I can (and do) make do with a two-door, but I can't say I like it...adding a kid would make it a real pain, I'm sure.

Even the base options on the new stuff feel like "loaded" vehicle 20 years ago.

It will surprise exactly no one that I'm not really a fan of most of it. I will say that it took me all of about 30 seconds to pair it with my phone and get streaming Pandora, controlled through the car- which is nice.
 

O'Rattlecan

Redneck Prognosticator
26,687
797
Belton, MO
I can (and do) make do with a two-door, but I can't say I like it...adding a kid would make it a real pain, I'm sure.



It will surprise exactly no one that I'm not really a fan of most of it. I will say that it took me all of about 30 seconds to pair it with my phone and get streaming Pandora, controlled through the car- which is nice.

I dropped a $200 pioneer head unit into my 2002 mustang, and now it feels "modern."

Bluetooth is awesome, like it or not. :D

Ryan
 

john112deere

caffeine junkie
Staff member
10,807
405
central Vermont
I've been driving my sister's Focus over the winter while she's away at school.

Was going to go swap it for the Mazda on Friday, leave the Focus at Mom's so it'll be there when she gets home.

Didn't even make it outta my driveway. :rofl:

Battery light on, grabbed a multimeter, and see 11.7v on the battery with the engine running. Focus alternators are legendary for being difficult to change (they're on the back of the engine), so I wasn't very happy about this.

Watched a couple Youtube vids and read on some forums...the Focus forums seem to suggest you can drop out the bottom if you have a buddy to help shift the engine forward, or out the top if you take the EGR out and disconnect a fuel line.

I watched the videos, and decided I could do it out the bottom alone, and it really wasn't that bad. Much, much harder than it should be...but I've definitely done worse. It's mounted on studs, but they're too long to allow it to drop before it hits the firewall, so you have to loosen it, slide it back and disconnect everything, then push it back on and hold it while removing the studs. Then undo the torque strut on the bottom of the engine and roll the engine forward to allow it to drop out. (This is where the forums say you need a buddy with a bar. I had more trouble holding onto the alternator with one hand than rolling the engine out of the way with the other.)

Plus, of course...there are five alternators that fit '07 Foci- and mine is the most expensive. Took four parts stores to find one at any price, too.


So long story short, I still don't have this car in my possession.
 

john112deere

caffeine junkie
Staff member
10,807
405
central Vermont
Yeah! Blame the engineers! Those guys screw everything up!
 

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