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Last post on Jan 21, 2013 at 9:58 PM
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Mazda3 Forum.
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Mazda MAZDA3, Hatchback, Sedan
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May 14, 2006 (6:30 pm)
I think the CEL & tranny problems have all been solved - for 2006 (even for 2005) -
As far as the AC is concerned - I would just test drive the car you plan to buy on a hot day - if the AC works you should not have any problem -
If the AC is weak then test drive a different Mazda3 until you find one that has a good AC. DON'T ACCEPT A CAR WITH A WEAK AC - Mazda will not fix the cars with defective AC systems -
May 14, 2006 (11:06 pm)
After driving for awhile, once I stop and am idle, there is a low key buzz. I think I read that this may be the power steering. Can anyone explain?
My 3i Touring has never had any problems in the snow or rain as of yet. Only got in 2 months of driving in the snow now that its warmer out. I'm most impressed with driving at night. The red lighting lets me drive in stealth mode and concentrate on the road rather than a bright colored dash. The projector beams and the Hi beams are also pretty decent.
My A/C is plenty powerful enough for Pittsburgh weather.
#3274 of 4991 Re: To buy or not to buy a 2006 Mazda 3 s Touring? [noelle023]
by nifty56
May 15, 2006 (5:49 am)
Put winter tires on if you are planning on driving in the snow especially if you have the coated rims they will rust besides the tires appear to be summer performance verity, not good in snow.
As for the A/C check it in stop and go traffic on a very hot sunny day as it appears to be its weak spot. Let the car sit in the sun, windows up and than turn the A/C on before driving it. Drive the car into the sun so the sun hits the dash. If it is weak do not let the salesman tell you it will be better if the windows are tinted, thats not the solution. I am not impressed with the high speed braking ability for the 4 dic brakes the car has.
Google "Mazda 3 forums" for more info before buying...
#3275 of 4991 Re: Le Buzz [madvey333]
by nifty56
May 15, 2006 (6:35 am)
What year is your car? Had you tried your A/C on a very hot sunny day in stop and go traffic?
The projector beams on a very dark country road is not good, no depth-distance as the light drops off sharply. At 50 miles an hour, with low beams I don't feel safe. My hradlights are stock, no upgrades. The 06 might have
HD lights?
May 16, 2006 (9:37 am)
I test drove an '06 Mazda3 GT on a sunny day w/ temps in the high 60s. Since it was not that warm the car was not warm but even w/ climate control set to 60, the A/C did not blow out that cold and I had to raise teh fan speed to get it comfortable. The A/C in my '96 Altima was colder (I had to lower it within a block of turning it on) and I test drove a Corrola and the A/C was much colder.
I otherwise loved the car but I question how the A/C will do on a hot day. When the car was not moving the A/C was not blowing that cold? For the people that have good A/C does it blow out cold within a couple of minutes even if the car is slow?
I am really leery of buying this car b/c of the A/C. Is there some way to test the particular car I would buy to see if it has weak A/C?
#3278 of 4991 2006 POOR A/C? by smallcar1
by z71bill
May 16, 2006 (2:06 pm)
I would strongly recommend that you DO NOT BUYING THAT CAR. If the dealer does not have another Mazda3 - find another dealership. Even my weak AC will cool the car on a 60 degree day (actually mine works pretty good up to about 80)
I would find one where the AC works better - Mazda has not (so to me that means Mazda will not) fix any cars with weak AC systems.
The thing that leaves me puzzled - why hasn't Mazda found a way to solve this defect - this is the 3rd year of the Mazda3 and all the problems (major ones anyway) should be solved.
It sure looks like all the talk about auto climate control was a waste - just as I though - it make no difference - because auto control adds no capacity to the system.
#3279 of 4991 Headlights and Le Buzz
by madvey333
May 16, 2006 (11:27 pm)
2006 Mazda 3i Touring
I work nights so a major portion of my driving is done at night. Compared to most other cars in the 3's class that I've been in lately (04 civic, 03 neon, 97 cavalier, I know all alil older cars) my lights are much better. Most of my driving is done on back roads around 40-50 mph and I feel very comfortable with my lighting, mostly use hi beams which are better than the cars mentioned. I don't know of a car that you can travel comfortably going over 50 mph on dark back-roads only using low beams for prolong periods. Anything over that speed on back roads is just not a good idea considering it is after all dark, weather is typically worse at night and most animals are nocturnal.
We don't really get extremely hot weather in Pittsburgh. So having a powerful A/C was not a hugh factor in buying a car.
Looking for an answer on my low key buzz I hear while sitting in idle, typically heard after driving. Any ideas would be appreciated.
#3280 of 4991 Re: 2006 POOR A/C? by smallcar1 [z71bill]
by ex_tdier
May 18, 2006 (10:36 pm)
I dunno if I mentioned this in the other thread or not. But Mazda North America screwed up big time when they decided not to include auto climate control in the Mazda3's here like they did when the model first was produced back in 2003/2004 for zones outside of North America.
I was also told that to do a refit, they would have to install a completely new wire harness system. This itself would require the car to be prettymuch fully taken apart.
Hence, no fix cuz of the huge cost involved. Mazda doesn't care about customer or brand loyality.
#3281 of 4991 Re: 2006 POOR A/C? by smallcar1 [ex_tdier]
by nifty56
May 19, 2006 (5:13 am)
Waiting for the 2007 in Canada to arrive. When they do I will wait for a very hot sunny humid day and do a test drive. For 2007, here in Canada, the cars will be equipped with auto climate control, 2004-2006 did not.