MAZDASPEED Mazda6

aviboy97 · April 2007

Nice post.

Many of my MS6 customers say exactly what you just said. Great bang for the buck. They are not as luxurious as the Infiniti or Acura, but, by no means is the MS6 low rent.

lilengineerboy · April 2007

So there are a couple of '06 MS6s in my area, but the asking prices are:
'06 MS6 GT Moon/no nav 12k miles $27k
'06 MS6 GT Moon/Nav 9k miles $25k

Given the rebates and give-aways towards the end of last summer, those seem very high to me. Any thoughts?

qbrozen · April 2007

like you said, they are high.

but this always seems to be the way. For quite some time, I saw first year GTOs with asking prices way over what they were selling for new. Same thing with the saabaru 92x. I'm sure there are many more examples.

lilengineerboy · April 2007

Yeah I was thinking the nav one might be in the low 20s and the non-nav maybe at 20, since it was between 24 and 25 or so new...

stefy · April 2007

i bought 06 gt with nav and roof last month, with 2300 for $24000 plus it was certified so got 100k warranty

waygrabow · April 2007

We had a surprise blizzard here in Colorado this week. I was released from work early but the commute home was extremely slow. When I got near home, the roads were unplowed and deep with heavy slushy snow. I got stuck; the snow was simply deeper than the ground clearance and had ice and slush under it. A van and a Ford Expedition behind me also got stuck. With shovels and pushing we got the other two out; we moved enough snow that I was able to park the Speed6 close to the curb. Then I walked 2 1/2 blocks home. The next day I went back, after a plow came through, to dig out the car and bring it home. I discovered that someone had sideswiped my Mazda and kept going. Scratches, a crease, and broken mirror to the tune of $2500. Damn, damn, damn.

stkntraffic · April 2007

You sound like you're in the business... maybe you know the answer to this: I've heard conflicting reports about cold air intakes voiding the warranty. If I bought the "official" Mazda CAI, would I run into any trouble, do you think?

BTW, while my MS6 was getting its first oil change at the dealer last week, they reflashed the computer to satisfy a recall. At first I didn't notice any difference, but then I realized the boost is staying on past 6K. Wheee! It used to kick off around 5200. Love it.

aviboy97 · May 2007

The Mazda CAI is warrantied. by Mazda. It will not void your warranty. Does not make sense to void the warranty if the manufacturer is selling it, now does it?

One thing about the CAI, you will hear your turbo spool up. It sounds great. My brother has done it to his, but, he has the CP-E CAI.

maltb · May 2007

The Mazda CAI is warrantied. by Mazda. It will not void your warranty. Does not make sense to void the warranty if the manufacturer is selling it, now does it?

Well seeing that some MAZDASPEED accessories are intended solely for off-highway purposes, that's a valid question. In this case, the warranty color is Green, meaning it is ok for street use and has a 12 month/12,000 mile warranty.

stkntraffic · May 2007

No offense taken, I know it sounded like a dumb question, but I had a reason for asking... read a post from a guy on another MS6 forum whose Speed6 sucked water into the engine via the CAI, and got stuck with an $8K bill for a new engine. The dealer told him the warranty was voided due to the CAI.

'Course, the story could just be BS, but I wondered...

joe131 · May 2007

Not the CAI's fault in that case. Driving through deep standing water might have been considered unusual abuse of a car so configured. The abuse may have voided the warranty.
What reason was given to deny the warranty claim?

aviboy97 · May 2007

The question was not stupid, it was a valid question.

That other person you are talking about, I have read his post. I think he is missing some important details on why he saw stuck with the bill, and Mazda did not pick it up.

stragf · May 2007

Sorry all for this question. My MS6 is going in tomorrow for the 10,000 Km. service. What is the CAI that is being referred to? Thanks

stkntraffic · May 2007

The CAI is an aftermarket part that is installed in place of the factory airbox and air filter. It's essentially a length of aluminum tubing with an exposed air filter attached to the end.

Because it's less restrictive than the stock setup, it's supposed to add a few more horsepower to your car.

Since the filter at the end of the CAI is pointing toward the ground, it has been reported to act like a "snorkle" when driving through standing water, sucking water into and ruining the engine.

Although it's not real clear if this actually happened or if the guy who reported it really told the whole story.

joe131 · May 2007

CAI means Cold Air Intake

iskch · May 2007

I just join and I'm an owner of a 06 MS6. I'm looking to upgrade a few things on my car like the CAI and Catback system. I know MAZDA runs some parts catalog for the MS6 w/warranty. Just to double check, is the CAi one of them and the catback system too? By the way I'm happy with the car w/ just 7 K miles.

joe131 · May 2007

Since you're happy with it you could continue enjoying it as it is. What do you expect to gain from the mods? And how much would they cost?
I think Mazda did it fine. Why change it?

m3nmsp6 · May 2007

I also have a 06 MSP6 and I love it! Whitewater pearl I think is the name of the color...well I haven't done any mods but I'm planning to in the future and I'm also looking at the same ones you are considering.
I have heard that the CAI allows you to hear the turbo spool up, but not much in power gain, about 2-5hp depending on the CAI brand/sytem.
Magnaflow I hear sounds nice but again not much in added performance, it's only 2 1/2 diameter. CP-E has one with 3inch diameter and the dyno numbers are better. Hope this helps and keep us updated with prices and performance...

scottmsimpson · May 2007

The MS6 is a great car off the lot. Spend your money on a drivers school or a track day instead of on things that don't make the car any faster. Learning to drive it better will improve the performance more than mods.

moonpie2 · May 2007

I very recently purchased the last 06 MS6 in the houston area. I have only put 600 miles on it at this point. I have only used 93 octane gas.

I'm not sure if I'm getting numb to the acceleration or if I'm experiencing a reduction in power. I've read a bit on various forums about a reflash of the PCM. Is it possible that I could already need to have this performed with only 600 miles on the car? Is this something that everyone who owns one of these cars has had to have done or only some people? For those of you that have experienced the problem, please describe exactly how your car acted when you noticed the problem.

When I first drove the car, the power was nearly overwhelming. Now it just feels like I'm driving a regular 150 hp 4 cylinder car. It barely feels like the turbo is kicking in at all. At first I was just wondering if I was not keeping the engine at the right RPM or something but it appears to be everywhere. There seems to be occasional bursts of power but then nothing again. Does this sound like what others have experienced?

joe131 · May 2007

Your car needs fixed.
What did the dealer say about it? If you haven't already taken it in, do it now.
It should feel fast everytime you put your foot into it.

stkntraffic · May 2007

It's actually a recall... intermittent lack of power. Whether you need it or not depends on the build date of your car, not how many miles it has on it.

I brought my 06 MS6 to the dealer for an oil change and they also did the reflash.

Before the reflash, the turbo kicked off at around 4600 rpm. After, it stays on well into the high 5s.

moonpie2 · May 2007

The dealer said they performed the reflash prior to my purchasing it. I asked if it was something that might need to be done periodically or repeated and the service guy said no. I'm cosidering taking it in next week for them to check things out. Perhaps it could be something else. Any thoughts?

joe131 · May 2007

Take it back to a dealer, maybe a different dealer. If they don't fix it right, raise some hell.

stkntraffic · May 2007

It very well could be any number of things. Get it checked out.

phloppity · June 2007

When I accelerate in the 2k-3k RPM range my car seems to shake a little...not as smooth as I would think it should be. It is especially noticeable when you are in a higher gear like 5th or 6th at highway speeds and push the gas down half way or more. It's almost as if the turbo is spooling up and it takes time to kick in. I thought that the turbo was always running to a certain extent and that it just spun faster at higher RPM? One test that I've done is 6th gear at about 2500 RPM no throttle. If I add gas relatively quickly the car seems to shudder before it smooths out.

Is this just turbo lag or is something wrong?

waygrabow · June 2007

Turbo lag is just that, a lag in response not a shudder. I assume that you are traveling at 62-65 mph on a level roadway (2500 rpm in 6th) when you floor the gas. You have enough miles that the engine is broken in? As long as you are not lugging the engine too much, it should not shudder. Show it to your dealer, and get their explanation.

phloppity · June 2007

Engine is definitely broken in - I have 20k miles on it

I never really noticed it until recently. I can feel the shudder...excess vibration and then it goes away. I'll show it to the dealer. Anyone else have this happen?

stkntraffic · June 2007

Could it be the rear diff? I've heard of problems there, but never experienced it myself (7K miles). The AWD kicks in under hard acceleration (not just during wheel slippage), so that's a possibility.

aviboy97 · June 2007

There is nothing wrong with the rear diff itself, but, rather how it is bolted to the chassis. The 2006's used 2 bolts, that is there the problem was. For 2007, they used 4 bolts.

waygrabow · June 2007

We went on a trip to western Colorado last week with our MS6. Took HWY 50 most of the distance, a two-lane state road winding through several mountain ranges and valleys. It was warm enough that the A/C was on much of the time, and the car was carrying about 500 pounds of passengers and luggage. I filled the tank twice, 24.5 gallons for 702 miles; that is about 28.5 mpg average. Really enjoyed its performance.

artour · June 2007

I have had my ms6 since 3/2006 and except for 2 breakdowns,
I really like the car. I leased it for 24 months with 20,000 miles a year = 40,000 miles total. After 16 months, I now have almost 22,000 miles. The car is now selling for around $24,000 (it's a gt) and my buyout is around $16,000 + $3,100 payments = $19,000 which means I own more of the car than it's payoff. I'm thinking about a Legacy spec B or maybe keeping the speed6. The only thing about keeping it is the 2 major breakdowns - fuel pump went after 13 months and computer module went in May.
Should I keep the Mazda (all staying equal and no more breakdowns) or should I pick up the Subaru in July/August with Subaru offering $3000 towards the lease buy out then?
The Subaru is faster, but the ride is nowhere as tight and fun as the Mazda - lighter suspension, easier clutch, missing some of the cool options like keyless, hids etc.

stkntraffic · June 2007

Why do you need to do anything right now? The breakdowns were covered under warranty. If the car continues to have problems, you can walk away when the lease is up.

I'm also a little wary of your numbers... go into a CarMax or better yet, go to a Mazda dealer and ask them what your car is worth.

The flexibility of a lease really only comes into play at the end... you can walk away, or if it's really worth more than the buyout, buy it yourself and then trade/sell it and get something else. I wouldn't get too worried about current Subaru offers... something is always on sale, and there may be even better deals next March.

whitfoc · July 2007

I have an 06 Speed6 with roof and navi 11K miles. The original tires lasted about 10K miles. I do not do my oil oil changes. I get about 24.5 mpg in the Speed if I keep my foot out of it. The ride is similar to the 05 TL we also own. I have test drove the TSX as a loaner when the TL was in for service. Nice car, a little short on punch. The TL is a nice car, much better navi than in the Speed. Materials quality is better in the Acura as well (hence it is a luxury nameplate). Things like the carpet and dash materials are superior in the Acura. The Acura has horrible torque steer and feels a little frumpy behind the wheel compared to the Mazda. If you are going for fun/performace factor go with the Speed. If you want luxury and better electronic toys (navi and bluetooth) go with the TL.

slingshot80 · July 2007

I have been driving a Millenia S for almost 5 years and it has been ultra reliable. 113,000 miles and going strong. I get 25 mpg with premium fuel. I happened to see on Auto Blog last week that they were discontinuing the Speed6 for 08. Had read some articles on it but I never focused too much on it because I am happy with my car.

After reading about 1,500 posts on this forum and some others, as well as about 10 professional reviews, I decided to test it. The main criticism has been the operation of the clutch. I was expecting to have major problems with it as I haven't driven a standard in almost 5 years. (I previously owned a 5 speed Contour for 5 years.) Yes, it took a little getting used to but I thought it was certainly acceptable. I think in a week I could master it 100%. So if you are a potential buyer, I would not let this issue dissuade you from test driving it.

The acceleration was sensational especially in 3rd gear as you would expect. As many others have pointed out, it was very quite which was surprising. I believe it was quieter than my car.

The big negative was the interior. The black plastic on the doors, etc. looked very thin and cheap like what you would see in a Dodge or Chevy pick-up truck. This was the Sport model but I was told the GT has the same plastic. Wasn't impressed with the console either. My car has much better appointments. Of course it cost more than this one 5 years ago. However for a $30,000 car it was a major disappointment. For a lower price, I could live with it. (I have just posted on the Prices Paid thread, what they offered to sell it to me for.)

I also discussed with them adding a cold intake unit and whether it would void the warranty per the Mazda Accessories Book as it has an orange coded warranty and it is not suppose to be used on the highway. They said they would honor it. Does anyone know more about this?

maltb · July 2007

The CAI is coded Green for warranty. Yo may be looking at an older MS Accessories book. The current one has a white cover.

aviboy97 · July 2007

However for a $30,000 car it was a major disappointment. For a lower price, I could live with it

Keep in mind, this is a performace sedan, not a luxury sedan like your Millenia. You are paying $30000 for the performance. Look at the STi's and EVO's, they demand well over $30K and they are basically stripped in the interior!

Show me a vehicle that gets the performance of a Mazdaspeed6, in it's class, and is as well appointed?

slingshot80 · July 2007

On another forum someone compared the Speed6 to the Subaru GT. Apparently much better interior, AWD system, crash worthiness and reliability For $25K the Speed 6 is probably a good deal but not sure if could with that plain interior.

aviboy97 · July 2007

The Speed6 and Leg GT are a direct comparo. The interior is not any better in the Leg GT then the MS6 GT(I'm in both every day). AWD system? Yes, Subaru has a more advanced AWD system, but does that translate into better handling? No. Numerous tests have shown that the Mazdaspeed6 is the better road handler.

I currently own a 2002 Impreza 2.5 RS that has had an abundance of issues, and only 64K on the clock.

lilengineerboy · July 2007

Subaru had some issues with the 2.5l Phase I engine. Since 2003, I haven't seen anything negative about the durability or reliability of the Subaru.
I have never seen anything negative about the manual transmission vehicles either.
I have heard the early (2006) MS6s had some software issues but nothing major there either.

aviboy97 · July 2007

Yes, that has been my understanding as well.

moparbad · July 2007

Speed6 appeals to enthusiasts as does Legacy GT and the Speed6 tends to have a younger, more "agressive" driving ownership demographic. Either vehicle will develop issues when abused. Speed6 gets more abuse.

aviboy97 · July 2007

interesting POV

slingshot80 · August 2007

A local dealer has about 5 GT's, very tempted to buy one if I can get some type of deal. I missed the boat by not knowing about this when they were discounting the 06s. Much better warranty and cheaper. Canadian Driver just had a review and listed the major reliability problems. Recommended the Subaru because of better reliability but I have never liked Subarus that much.

Also J.D. Powers only gave 2 stars out of 5 for the Mazda 6. I believe this was for the 2004 model year. The Buick Regal and Century were rated very high. (Who is the Bozo at GM who killed these cars?)Consumer Reports states that all Mazda 6 models are at least average. Its a crap shoot anyway, you could have no problems or many problems.

I would have to have a loaner arrangement as I heavily rely on my car and travel 20,000+ miles per year. Also the dealership is in the wrong direction from where I work. :confuse:

bigelm · August 2007

Keep in mind that the Mazda 6 (NA model) is different than the Speed 6 (which is made in Japan). Yes, they basically have the same shell but the engine, suspension and all mechanical components are different. I don't rely on JD Powers for any of my car research. And alot has changed from the 2004 to 2006 models anyway.

You want the best source for reliability issues, go to where customer talk about it, go to a forum like Mazda 6 Club dot com.

late8 · November 2007

I own a 2006 Mazdaspeed6 GT w/ sunroof (01/06 build) with 32,000 miles on the clock and as expected I 'm dealing with a few early production bugs which Mazda has covered repairs under my factory warranty.

1st issue was the clutch TSB (tech. service bulletin) for a "hard to engage" problem which Mazda replaced some springs and replaced the pressure plate related to the clutch and the outcome was great. It was like driving a new car again.

2nd issue was excessive smoke at idle. Mazda recognized this issue stemming from the turbo seals and replaced the turbocharger. My car pulls even harder now with no smoke and I didn't realize the lack of diminished power the old turbo presented.

3rd issue was a TSB concerning a shutter valve solenoid which was replaced and two emission related re-flashes to the ECU. The result of the two reflashes helped smooth out acceleration but my car continues to have a slight studder in 6th gear @ 2-3k rpms

4th issue was a leaky transfer case that had gear oil seeping down the front differential. Mazda recognized this problem as "poreous casting issues" and replaced the entire transfer case and the right front axle housing.

I hope for my sake the bugs are all worked out now. I still love this car and it is a blast to drive. The AWD is a saving grace during wet conditions which makes up for the lack luster interior.

beltranj · February 2008

I'm a proud owner of a ms6 just a little over 10,000 miles not a single problem with it, must of got a good one. Purchased in El Paso Tx. but moved to Iowa boy does it love this cold weather.

waygrabow · February 2008

Glad you enjoy the MS6 so much. AWD, anti-lock brakes, and stability control are nice to have in the snow (in addition to its inherently excellent handling). I went skiing here in Colorado this week, on the heels of a snow storm, to catch the fresh powder. I drove about 300 miles on snowy roads and witnessed three accidents due to the conditions but felt fairly confident and very comfortable in my MS6.

late8 · April 2008

New issues have surfaced with my '06 MS6 GT. My dealer is covering all of the new issues under warranty.

5th issue was a rattle upon cold start up. Fix: V V T TSB (retaining pin not engaging) Dealer replacing V V T and heat treated the pin retaining hole.

6th issue was low fuel pressure from the cam driven high pressure fuel pump causing lean conditions under load. Fix: Dealer replaced OEM HPFP with updated OEM pump and reflashed the PCM to improve the drive current from pump.

7th issue was a crank pulley bolt TSB. Fix: Dealer replaced crank bolt and re-timed the engine.

stkntraffic · April 2008

Sorry you've had so much trouble. My 06 MS6 Sport has been completely problem-free since I bough it new 18 months ago. But I think I mine may be the exception not the rule.

MAZDASPEED Mazda6

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