1st gen ms3

[AgentUnknown]

Anyone own a 1st gen mazdaspeed 3? Pros and cons? Can get them pretty cheap now and have room to take the kids out.

 

[punjabiplaya]

Have a 2nd gen with 61xxx miles, but I know plenty of 1st gens. As long as the mileage is low, should be ok. Watch out for mods and abuse (as with any car). Usually little stuff needs work, like the EGR valve can get clogged/stuck. Haven't really read a lot of people having problems with excessive carbon buildup from DI, but I stopped paying attention awhile ago.

 

[xSkyDrAx]

Yes do watch out for who the previous owner(s) were of the car. These things are more often modded than not but other than that they're solid little cars and a heck of a lot of fun. gl with your hunting.

Also the suspension is a bit on the stiff side in these things so it may be something to take into consideration if your family would care about something like that

 

[xSkyDrAx]

Have a 2nd gen with 61xxx miles, but I know plenty of 1st gens. As long as the mileage is low, should be ok. Watch out for mods and abuse (as with any car). Usually little stuff needs work, like the EGR valve can get clogged/stuck. Haven't really read a lot of people having problems with excessive carbon buildup from DI, but I stopped paying attention awhile ago.

Is that your computer case in the sig? That thing looks awesome.

 

[msmy300z]

I had and sold one. I LOVED it. It is wrong wheel drive so you can't just lay on the throttle from a stop unless you like buying tires. Some driver throttle modulation is required! Gen 1 shocks are prone to leaking but never had issue with mine. As punjabiplaya said the egr can get stuck. Original PCV valve was not awesome and could use a catch can. They are frequently modded because they respond very well. Look for a changed rear motor mount (this isn't a bad thing to have had done) and look for a broken front battery box mount as an indicator of mods and driving abuse.

I ultimately traded mine b/c I had a 1st newborn son and a rear facing car seat is not great in these. The only thing that I don't miss is the loud factory exhaust rumble (though I didn't realize this at the time)

 

[AgentUnknown]

So 100K MS3's for under 10K I should stay away from? What does the grand touring edition come with and is it a significant upgrade over sport?

 

[punjabiplaya]

Is that your computer case in the sig? That thing looks awesome.

Yep and thanks.

So 100K MS3's for under 10K I should stay away from? What does the grand touring edition come with and is it a significant upgrade over sport?

I wouldn't buy one with over 50k miles. Grand touring just has some comfort upgrades like GPS/satnav. No performance upgrades.

 

[nerp]

Get it on a lift and poke at it. Look for rust.

 

[msmy300z]

GT has HID lights, leather trim seats (cloth center 2007-2008.5 and alcantara 2008.5-2009) , led tails, auto climate and lights, and 6 disc BOSE over the sport. These are worthwhile upgrades but no performance as noted before
NAV was still an additional cost option above GT

 

[manimal]

I personally dont worry about high miles in these engines unless its modded to death or driven by high school kids.

100k really isnt high miles anymore. Let someone else pay the depreciation. You can pay for the parts as they wear.

 

[NutBucket]

Get it on a lift and poke at it. Look for rust.

OP is in socal so unless he's buying one from out of state its a non-issue.

 

[AgentUnknown]

Anyone wanna talk me out of one? 10k for a high mileage car sounds pretty cheap. Take the curves and pickup groceries all in one drive.

 

[nerp]

OP is in socal so unless he's buying one from out of state its a non-issue.

Not if it was parked outside next to the ocean.

 

[power_hour]

They suffered from smoking turbos and some motor mount issues with a dash of suspension issues. But otherwise they are decently fun hatches with really good handling for FWD.

High mileage means your probably looking at some turbo work, clutch replacement and front end work. Get the thing inspected because these cars were often abused and/or ruined by wannabe tuners who had no clue.