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Comments
-juice
-juice
Mazda's plan as of November 2005 was to build 12,000 units total. 6,000 in 2006, 6,000 in 2007. At that time, we were also told that Mazda was building a Mazdaseed3. I can't see all that R&D going into a car for just one year. But, with the Mazdaspeed3 comming out soon, who whos. This may be the first time Mazda has produced 2 Mazdaspeed vehicles at once.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '08 Charger R/T Daytona; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '08 Maser QP; '11 Mini Cooper S
-juice
That's certainly interesting, but I bet will be much better by the end of the year.
Paying mark-up for ANY car is the dumbest thing anyone can do, considering that being the first on the block to have the latest and greatest isn't worth the extra $$$.
A hot car does not automatically mean resale is good. Miata resale is only so-so.
-juice
I don't see how dealer's are still charging over sticker, my advice, find ones that are not, and get your best deal.
Mazda will be concentrating on the MazdaSpeed 3 next year...
What is your source on this?
A member on another forum that I frequent. He's been right about 80% of the time, so take it as you will.
Apparently, sales of the MS6 have been less than expected, and with the anticipation and excitement of the MS3 shown at the Geneva Auto Show (rumored to have 267 HP, 280 lb-ft torque from the same turbo-4 as the MS6, apparently Mazda thinks they'll sell more of then than the MS6.
Again, he could be wrong, or not, so take it as you will...
Sales have been less then expected, I am guessing because of the lack of an automatic transmission. I say this because this vehicle is targeted towards men in their early 30's and higher, and competes with the Audi A4, BMW 325xi and Legacy GT. The problem is, the majority of men this age do not want a manual transmission. If you look, the majority of the competition sold, are sold as automatic transmissions. Just my thought.
A lot can happen in five months to make them change their minds.
Sales have been less then expected, I am guessing because of the lack of an automatic transmission. I say this because this vehicle is targeted towards men in their early 30's and higher, and competes with the Audi A4, BMW 325xi and Legacy GT. The problem is, the majority of men this age do not want a manual transmission. If you look, the majority of the competition sold, are sold as automatic transmissions.
Very sad, but very true. I guess I'm in the minority then (turning 30 in 6 days and REFUSING to buy a slushbox). I can't imagine driving the MS6 or any of the mentioned cars with an automatic. Especially the A4 and Leg GT. Turbos and automatics don't mix!
-juice
That's too bad, I haven't heard yet that the turbo power loss problem is resolved.
John
-juice
Seriously? I can't imagine Mazda limiting production like that for the sake of exclusivity. If I remember right, the Protege had incentives toward the end of production, and the Miata definitely had significant incentives, and that was produced for two years. So it seems to me it's simply a response to low demand.
Maybe they just introduced the Speed models too late in the model life - wasn't the SpeedPro made just the last year of the Protege? And the Miata was the last two years of the last model. So, maybe the interest in the "basis" for those Speed models had tapered off too much. Perhaps the same with the 6.
Now, I expect the Speed3 to do very well. If I'm not mistaken, the 3 is still doing very well with no incentives, right? And the market for such a vehicle seems to be real hot right now. Too bad they couldn't throw the AWD in there, but for the sake of cost, it's probably a good move.
BTW, another local dealer here in Denver that I drive by on the way to work everyday also has 7-8 MS6's, all lined up in front of the building. Kinda cool, except when they're like that day after day, it makes you wonder. This is the same one that I wrote about months ago that had $5,000 markups on the window. "This is not an MSRP car," the manager said.
2024 Audi Q8 e-tron - 2024 Corvette - 2024 BMW X5 - 2023 Tesla Model Y
Maybe by that, he meant that it would be selling for invoice... :P
According to my source, Mazda made the change due to the scheduled '07 makeover of the Mazda 6 pushed back to '08 due to "drivetrain issues."
Again, take it as you will...
-juice
Is it true that the Mazdaspeed 3 will not have AWD? That will be a deal killer for me. I live in the foothills outside Denver, and cannot own a 2WD car.
I saw an MS6 in front of a Sam's Club here and liked it, but not for $30K. For $25K, maybe, but it would have to beat out a Legacy GT Turbo, which are not selling all that well and can be had for that neighborhood, or a WRX, which can be had for low 20's.
If they really do have the MS6 for '07, I'm guessing I'll find an '06 for $25k at some point.
Yup, it's true. The MS3 was kept FWD for weight and cost savings.
If they really do have the MS6 for '07, I'm guessing I'll find an '06 for $25k at some point.
Maybe not $25K, but since the MS6 is not selling as well as Mazda hoped, I bet you could walk out with one for only $27-28K.
I bought my wife's Mercury Mariner in for a minor problem and saw the MS6 on showroom floor, drove it & bought it on a whim (was going to buy an '07 in Oct - Nov) on the spot.
As I am 61 and haven't owned a stick since 1981 (Datsun 200SX), I took a 24 month lease in case I didn't like it and to cover possible resale problem at the end. I really don't know if I got a great deal but here are the figures (and you can tell me if it's good or not):
24month lease with 19,500 miles per year, $3,000 down and $11,500 trade in on a 2004 Tribute ES (loaded) with 46k miles on it. My monthly payment is $449 (don't forget, 19,500 miles per year) with gap included and a buy out of around $14,500.
So far (2 months), I love driving the car - the turbo gives it a real throw you back into the seat kick at all gears - even 6th at 60mph & over. While not the fastest car on the road, it beats 99% of what it encounters, and gives the other 1% a run for the money. The car handles like a dream, corners better than anything else I have ever owned and is really good on gas!
I don't like the clutch workings very much - it's extremely touchy - and 1st gear readlines very very fast so if I'm pushing it hard, I have to shift 2 second very quick. One other bad thing about the car is the tires.
While they are very sticky (to the road), I picked up a nail in the sidewall and had to replace one at 1400 miles at a cost of $270. Could only use oem Bridgestone which had to be air shipped from CA to NJ as the only one of 2 tires my Firestone dealer was able to locate in the US.
Overall, I give the car 4.5 out of 5.
If you have any questions or tips about the car, ask me or let me know & I would be happy to reply.
Artour
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '08 Charger R/T Daytona; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '08 Maser QP; '11 Mini Cooper S
I paid 15,000 for it in Dec 2004 with around 21,000 miles on it. It was in excellent condition when I got it and I traded it in same way. It did have a brake problem that could not be solved - I had the brakes changed 3 times but they always sounded like metal to metal on hard stops. Dealer said "that's normal" but I couldn't live with it any longer, so I got the ms6 instead.
I'm not sure how you put down $3k + $11,500 trade and have to make payments on a lease.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '08 Charger R/T Daytona; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '08 Maser QP; '11 Mini Cooper S
I bought the Tribute ES for cash.
GT with cargo net and a few other accesories for $28,800.
The clutch is either on or off, no inbetween, other than that, what a fun ride.
In March, looked at the Jetta GLI, nice car got a price at invoice which was about $22800. Almost signed the deal, but something told me to just wait and maybe get a MS6 at the end of the year... No need to wait that long. Strolled into a small Mazda dealer just killing sometime and looking at the regular Mazda 6. On tax day, 4/15/06 was able to work a deal for a Sport MS6 with a price of $25800. That was close enough to my price range and I felt the Jetta GLI did not compare with the MS6 at this price.
Dealer had just sold a GT MS6 at full MSRP right after I got to the dealer. The Finance Director mentinoned that was the reason they were willing to work on the price. The deal did take about 4 hours to finalize...well worth it.
nonohonda--I am also near Philadelphia, and I hope to be getting a Speed 6 soon. If you don't mind telling, where did you get yours and how did the dealer treat you?
Thanks!
-juice
They really were a disasster.
Everyone there has been on the job for about 2 weeks.
I'm wondering if they just up and fired everyone one day and then replaced everyone.
I have to take the car back to get "re-detailed" because they really wanted me to take the car last friday afternoon. As you can imagine, nobody felt like taking the time to deatil the car properly.
My advice, go somewhere else.
I have had only one other problem with the car - not Mazda's fault - got a nail in the side wall of one of the tires - cost me $270 to replace the tire. VERY expensive for one tire, I think. And, I've been told that these are "high speed" tires which will last around 20,000 miles before needing replacement!
Other than the above stuff, I really love driving the car -it's a real sleeper on the road - no one knows what it is unless they're really into fast cars. There are lots of other fast cars on the road today, but not many like this one with awd, tuned suspension & great (25mph) gas milage.
I used to think of Mazdas as econoboxes, but boy has my opinion changed!
I've heard of complaints of heat soak, but if you've lost power even after the turbo cools down, something more serious is wrong. Oh well, it's under warranty.
-juice
There is a known problem with intermittent lack of power above 4000rpm. The problem is caused when engine knock is detected, the PCM goes to "fail-safe" mode, and limits maximum throttle to 33%. Killing then restarting the engine restores power. Many people have theorized that the powerloss problem is due to the top-mounted intercooler becoming heat-soaked, but the problem has been reproduced by some owners in very cold (< 35°F ) conditions. Mazda has determined that the knock-sensor programming is too sensitive, and a PCM reflash is now available to correct this problem.
BTW, my wife has a 06' Mazda 3 MT, and she has driven my Speed6. She had no problem adjusting to the clutch either.
Even if the dealer can't reproduce the problem, if you take note of the conditions each time the problem occurs, you may be able to get them to reflash the PCM anyway.
That was basically how I recognized the turbo problem - a lack of power at all speeds. I was aware that the turbo was pretty much working full time and knew immediately when it stopped working. I was going to beat up on a 350Z who thought he was king of the road when I first lost power (I felt cheated that I couldn't embarrass him ).
Oh well, other times and other cars to prey upon.
I looked up PCM reflash on Google & found all the info I will need to give to the service dept.
I guess you get what you pay for - can't turn a $30,000 Mazda into an 80,000 porsche, but it's still fun to drive and all the equipment in one package makes it a great all around car.