Topic: Mrs Gurgie's (aka Bella) new to her ride

[Gurgie]

As some of you have read over the past few days, Bella sold her 323i this past weekend & purchased a new to her car on Tuesday, with delivery today.

It's a 2018 Mazda 3 Sport GT, with the premium package & the 6spd manual. Car has just over 54k kms on it. This met all her requirements, newer than 2017, hatchback, smallish, sunroof, backup camera, heated seats & wheel if possible. Plus, it has a few things that she wasn't expecting like the heads up display, lane keep, blind spot, radar cruise, smart brake support & front obstruction warning. Also has a few other niceties like the leather seats, auto climate control, Bose stereo, auto high beams & auto dimming rear view mirror. Her budget was $22k before taxes, and this came in just under that after some negotiations. Manged to get the dealer to come down $1200 off their price, and then we got them to add Android auto to the infotainment system for free as it wasn't on there. Basically, it's a software update, plus some new hardware (USB ports) and then installation. The cost for this if we wanted to get it done was just over $500 with taxes. Plus new rotors & pads on all 4 corners, fresh oil & filter, air filter, cabin filter & new wipers all around. Oh & just discovered that the winter tires it came with (not mounted on wheels) are Michelin X-ice snow that look brand new! Only crappy part is they're 18" ers.

It's got Mazda's good old 2.5 in the Sky active formulation, which has proven to be a fairly reliable engine, so it should be trouble-free for years to come.

And for the correct guesses, Blueprint was the first to say Mazda 3, but then 1FGC went a step further & said black, manual, etc... I think one or both of them might have found the dealer ad

Here's a few pics.


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[valuator]

Sweet purchase!  I think the 3 has that certain something....zoom zoom or whatever....that really elevates over the rest of the compact class.  I also lived with an E90 328 that was absolutely base for many years and that 3 looks to be miles ahead in terms of creature comforts.  Great car, great deal, what's not to love.  Congrats to her!!!

[Hannibalsmith]

Nice!

Was it less expensive than new? Serious question.

[sailor723]

Nice!   Mazda, Japan's BMW. 

[JohnnyMac]

Very nice and she definitely looks like a happy wife.  The old BMW was the 323 right, so this Mazda 3 likely feels about as peppy as the BMW, just with a much worse soundtrack from the engine bay.  It should be a great little hatch back for you to own and enjoy for many years.  Just make sure you get it under coated so rust doesn't become an issue down the line.

[ktm525]

Nice little in-town scoot which should put a smile on your face. Loud and buzzy for  extended highway work but I don't think that is the plan. Well done. 

[Gurgie]

Nice!

Was it less expensive than new? Serious question.

Yes, new this was $29,695 including destination & the AC tax in Ontario. So $8k less than new, which is nuts!

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[Great_Big_Abyss]

Wow, Congrats to her - these are brilliant cars, especially in GT form with the bigger engine.

Mine was a GS with the 2.0, but the same transmission.  Still a lot of fun to drive, but probably better with the 2.5.

The rear windows need tint on them...

[Gurgie]

It's surprisingly decent on the hwy actually, suspension is nice & tight while soaking up imperfections. And in 6th gear it settles just above 2k rpms.

We will definitely be getting it rust proofed before the fall & then every 2yrs going forward.

Displacement is the same as the 323i was, just don't have the smooth inline 6. Gearing is different, so the 3 pulls more aggressively from a stop. Power wise it's down about only 16hp & 4 ft.lbs torque, but weighs 300lbs less. The shifter action is nicer than the 323 was though, Miata DNA.

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[evil_twin]

Nice - looks clean, Rob.

I probably missed it, but I assume she had those BELLLLLA plates on the BMW?   

Needs plate frames! 

[Great_Big_Abyss]

If there was ANY drawback to that car, now that I've owned one, I would say it's a little loud on the inside - a fair bit of wind/road noise.  I believe it's something they fixed in the newer generation.

That being said, as a result of the lack of sound insulation, the 3 is a very light car, and that's part of what makes it so much fun to drive.

[Gurgie]

Nice - looks clean, Rob.

I probably missed it, but I assume she had those BELLLLLA plates on the BMW?   

Needs plate frames! 

Thanks buddy!

Yeah, those plates were on the BMW as well. Annnnndddd we do have protective covers for both, just didn't bother to bring them to the dealer, I'll install them later... after my round of golf this afternoon. Teeing off in 14mins

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[ktm525]

If there was ANY drawback to that car, now that I've owned one, I would say it's a little loud on the inside - a fair bit of wind/road noise.  I believe it's something they fixed in the newer generation.

That being said, as a result of the lack of sound insulation, the 3 is a very light car, and that's part of what makes it so much fun to drive.

Yeah that was my experience albeit with a previous gen. The light feeling that made it so good in town was a detriment on a wind swept prairie two lane highway with transports going the other way. Car was loud and got unsettled in dirty air with passing semis going the other way. That would be Cadillac DTS territory lol.  That isn't what this little Mazda was designed for though so no issue as a runabout in a less busy area. I am sure Mazda added more sound deadening and better glass since then.

[PJungnitsch]

Beauty of a car, inside and out. And some premium options for that money, looks like a real score. Bella looks very pleased

[marcus_go]

Great choice!

[OliverD]

Congrats! We test drove that exact model back in 2017 except it had the white leather interior. At the time we ended up going with a Mini as it was about the same price and my wife didn't really love the 3. It's a great car though.

[Jaeger]

Excellent choice - very sharp looking car! 

[TheHire]

Great little cars! Congrats to her, and you!

[Blueprint]

Excellent choice, and the car is nice too!

Gurgie, you let it slip in one post that you visited a Mazda dealership  - and besides a Mazda3 seemed a perfect fit 

[Firm]

Congrats, looking good! Definitely a solid choice, I like the styling and interior on these, and they're still fun to toss around. Like others have mentioned, little noisy on the highway, but I think that's just part of the trade off with a compact hatchback.