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Hatchbacks Mazda3 Mazdaspeed3 vs. VW V GTI vs. Civic Si
1379 messages, Last post on Oct 01, 2009 at 10:54 AM
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Replying to: thegraduate (Aug 16, 2007 10:25 pm) The cars in this segment, try to find them mentioning negatives of the Civic, GTI and MS3. They don't. 99% of car reviews now are fluff designed to hit the highpoints of vehicles and avoid saying anything too negative as it might have an LA-Times-effect (GM pulled advertising because the reviewer eviscerated GM). Even Edmunds delivers total fluff pieces now (and more often than not reviews silly vehicles like Lambos and Ferraris). Furthermore, what's a negative for some, is a positive for others. Read a CR review of a 3 series and they call the car rough riding with a sport package...strange, I'd call it sponge-cake soft. The only way to know if a car is right for you - drive it. The rest of it you can learn on your own without a bought and sold auto "journalist" whitewashing glaring deficiencies.
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They really criticized the right things VERY OFTEN? So do many British magazines. I was a sucker when I bought the Twin Cam '90 Protege, b/c Road&Track said it's so quiet on the fwy you better watch out for speeding tickets. Since when have heard of a quiet Protege? It was after I bought the car did C$D finally had a complete road test & pointed out the car fishtails on the fwy ramp & gave'em a "heart-in-the-mouth moment"! Of course, I already discovered this characteristic myself. |
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Replying to: blueguydotcom (Aug 16, 2007 10:46 pm) the mazdaspeed3 has been called out on its less than perfect shifter and occasinal cheesines (not in build quality but in appearance) of its interior. the gti has been called out on its excess body roll and its not so great manual, and much higher than the competition price. the si has been called out on its lack of torque, its dash design, and sometimes its dbw lag. these are all things i've read in various magazines, not just limited to one. you don't like the boy racer thing...well aside from the exhaust note (which may not be to your taste and thats ok), the si does not look tremendously different than a regular civic, especially when clad in a color available on other trim levls of civic. Honda's interiors have always been praised for their build quality, and nice materials (even if its not as nice as the gti's), so this is just a personal vendetta you have against the si that few have a problem with. you seem to think that the ms3 is riddled with the same 'image' of boy racer, and you obviously didn't like the gti enough to buy it over your mini. what exactly do you want!? 
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Replying to: eldaino (Aug 17, 2007 7:13 am) To each his own. You guys can trust people with an agenda - an agenda to avoid expressing an honest opinion. Did you ever read my review of the Mini I bought ( http://bimmerfest.com/forums/showthread.php?t=216664 )? I tore it apart for its myriad of failings; seriously ripped it down for many of the car's poor interior design elements, it's wrong wheel drive layout and its soft suspension. Car criticism does not equal 90% effusive, prostrated praise with 10% equating to "I wish this were somewhat, sorta different." No car is that perfect. And a car review shouldn't sell a car, it should expose the cars warts, just a restaurant review or a movie review should shine a light on what doesn't work. BTW, I passed on the GTI for many reasons: 1. The car wasn't as much fun as a Cooper S 2. I figured whatever I got I'd replace in 09/10 when my fiancee has a kid. 3. *My fiancee has an A3 and thus we already have a Mrk V VW in our garage. I'm not going to own two of the same car. Variety is the spice of life. 4. I'd rather buy a used 4 door GTI and let some other poor sucker suffer the 25-30% first year depreciation hit (unlike the cooper which probably won't see that hit for 3 years). 5. Fuel economy - compared to the Cooper S, the GTI's mileage isn't that great. 6. Size and weight - I wanted something small and fun for once, not another huge car. *Our ownership of an A3 is the most important part of my decision to bypass the GTI. It's because of that car I'll look at a 335i sedan, a 328i wagon, 135i (if a sedan/hatch ever shows up), WRX wagon, Mazda6. The GTI is rumored to be getting some bumps for 08 (more power, other changes). We'll see by 2010 how things are shaping up with the Mrk VI GTI.
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Replying to: blueguydotcom (Aug 17, 2007 8:39 am) I know understand your reasons for bypassing the gti, i had forgotten your finace had an a3. i do expect the gti mkVi to be out sooner than 2010 though, at least by a year, i think 08 is the last year for all mkV's. i'd bypass a 135i though, ther is no backseat room, literally. at least not for anyone bigger than 5 feet. and for the price it will probably be, i'd rather have an r32, which seats people comfortably. now the 3 series wagon would be FANTASTIC. |
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Replying to: eldaino (Aug 17, 2007 11:50 am) I will probably buy a 135i if it comes as a sedan or hatch by 09/10. I don't care about the space, so much as the ability to get into the back. As long as it's as big in the back as a BMW e30/Mazda Protege, it's big enough for my needs. The reality though - BMW probably won't release a 135i sedan or hatch here. Bummer. That cuts the field to the 335i sedan (alas no wagon), the underpowered 328 wagon and the WRX. Let's hope the Mrk VI gets to US shores soon. I don't expect it though as the Mrk V took forever to get here and it's only been on sale for a couple model years. I expect 2011 it will be replaced at the earliest. Sorry about the Civic interior but I've driven one frequently for 12-14 months - mother-in-law had an 06 Civic Hybrid (she lemoned it). I found the interior to feel exceedingly cheap and all around to be poorly designed and assembled. The side door panels feel like felt-lined cardboard. The controls all feel flimsy. The lighting's bad. And that two-tier design leaves me feeling like someone made a mistake and added the top pod later to make up for missing the speedo originally. It's not at the level of the Mazda or VW, in my experience.
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Replying to: blueguydotcom (Aug 17, 2007 12:08 pm) maybe in 2011 when the new r36 comes out, maybe they'll make a 4 door version. |
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Replying to: blueguydotcom (Aug 17, 2007 12:08 pm) If you want 6-cyl AWD, then place the engine mostly behind the front axle & start out w/ a RWD platform such as the G35 or the BMW 3-series. But factory sport package might not be available. If you like the heavy-weight new BMW 3-series, then be my guess & take the R32, which has a more substantial deliberate stable but less lively feeling than the FWD 4-cyl GTI & thus is even more distant to the light-weight Mini Cooper. The expensive R32 is really just a car w/ an invincible fool-proof handling good enough for unskillful drivers living in the snow belt, but not much fun. To me, the Mazdaspeed3 is already too hard edged, let alone the lunatic-handling Mini Cooper. I'd rather drive a softer-edge (but still light weight) car w/ 16" rims & do drifts more often.
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Replying to: blueguydotcom (Aug 16, 2007 10:46 pm) 
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Replying to: creakid1 (Aug 17, 2007 9:07 pm) Really, what it comes down to for me - VW is screwing over buyers by only offering AWD with the V6. I'd obviously prefer RWD and a chipped 2.0T but alas that's not even made. The GTI is fun, but the FWD angle will probably keep me from buying. I love my Cooper S but every day at least a few times per drive I'm reminded why I loathe FWD. |
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