SA Footy

Got the missus a manual 2006 Mazda 3 Maxx. Been driving it since she lost her license and it runs like a dream. I echo dedja's sentiments about the narrow boot space opening on the sedan, but hard to find fault with anything else. Rate the 6-stack CD player (always owned poverty second hand cars).

I tried all of those cars recently and while some had good points as mentioned all had irritating points. I started looking at $10 - $13k for a small car with over 100k on the clock.
Note. I bought a AH Astra new in 2005 now it has 160k on the clock with no problems and cannot get the wife to give it up.
I was looking for a more reliable car for the Boy one he could drive to Melbourne in.
Look outside the box I bought a Peugeot 307 with 50k on the clock for under $8k had one small problem, which was cheap and easy to fix, but fantastic to drive, comfortable and economical. OK it has the indicators on the other side, but I have a Renault so that's fine with me!

Q. wrote:Got the missus a manual 2006 Mazda 3 Maxx. Been driving it since she lost her license and it runs like a dream. I echo dedja's sentiments about the narrow boot space opening on the sedan, but hard to find fault with anything else. Rate the 6-stack CD player (always owned poverty second hand cars).

The only other 'fault' I'd mention is that the road noise is a tad high, but it does't bother me ... allegedly this has been improved in later models

dedja wrote:

Q. wrote:Got the missus a manual 2006 Mazda 3 Maxx. Been driving it since she lost her license and it runs like a dream. I echo dedja's sentiments about the narrow boot space opening on the sedan, but hard to find fault with anything else. Rate the 6-stack CD player (always owned poverty second hand cars).

The only other 'fault' I'd mention is that the road noise is a tad high, but it does't bother me ... allegedly this has been improved in later models

Music too loud to notice!

I use the same fix ...

Cheers for the info guys, will have the money to buy something this week and its becoming more and more needed atm.

dedja wrote:

Q. wrote:Got the missus a manual 2006 Mazda 3 Maxx. Been driving it since she lost her license and it runs like a dream. I echo dedja's sentiments about the narrow boot space opening on the sedan, but hard to find fault with anything else. Rate the 6-stack CD player (always owned poverty second hand cars).

The only other 'fault' I'd mention is that the road noise is a tad high, but it doesn't bother me ... allegedly this has been improved in later models

I always thought choice of tyres was fairly relevant in controlling road noise, although obviously sound insulation and suspension structure may also play significant roles.
My old Musso improved dramatically in both noise and handling when I replaced its original Kumho "balloon" tyres with Pirelli Scorpions of the same rolling diameter but narrower design and higher profile.

Yes, tyres can make a huge difference.

My SP23 was fitted with Bridgestone RE040 from the factory and they were simply horrible and lasted on 20,00Km ... WTF?

Falken FK452s have made a huge difference.

The 07 Focus I got the other week has massive road noise. Its so loud Im gonna take it into Stillwell to get it checked out. It sounds more mechanical than rubber-on-road.

dedja wrote:Yes, tyres can make a huge difference.
My SP23 was fitted with Bridgestone RE040 from the factory and they were simply horrible and lasted on 20,00Km ... WTF?
Falken FK452s have made a huge difference.

Falken are not a bad tyre, unfortunately not well promoted.
I had them on a Porsche at one time in the late 1980s, and preferred them to the equivalent Pirelli it had come with.
I liked the Michelin tyres I used next better - but Michelin use is dependent on getting a good price.

HH3 wrote:The 07 Focus I got the other week has massive road noise. Its so loud Im gonna take it into Stillwell to get it checked out. It sounds more mechanical than rubber-on-road.

mum did the same thing on her ve due to the high tyre noise. funny thing is the mechanics just kept replacing parts under warranty. I eventualy went and got her a new set of tyres. at least she got a heap of parts replaced under warranty.

Ended up getting a Mazda 6 Classic with 40k on the clock, much more comfort and an absolute bargain the one I got.

Enjoying it but it feels a bit cheap like a commodore on the road.
The Falcon definately feels a lot better, more solid and more comfortable than either the Mazda 6 or Commodore.
Beggars can't be choosers though, I like the 6 stack mp3 player as well as other nice extras like climate control, cruise control, power windows, etc and it gets me from point a to b which is the main thing!