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Sedans Honda Civic Honda Civic vs Toyota Corolla vs Mazda3
879 messages, Last post on Nov 25, 2008 at 2:57 PM
You are in the Honda Civic Forum. Your Hosts are pat & karens
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Replying to: d_hyper (Dec 12, 2006 2:29 pm) My folks just got a 2007 Civic EX (Atomic Blue) sedan. They love it. I personally like it a lot (a friend of mine has an electric blue Mazda 3 2.3 sedan) which I also like, but the tire noise in that car is just unreal! I was really surprised at how loud the tires were. The engine isn't so loud, and is a little quicker than the Civic's, but Mazda needs to take some of the road noise away, because it was quite draining to ride in it when we went to PCB Florida over the summer. To me, the Mazda and Civic are both great cars, both of which I'd choose LONG before getting a Corolla (which feels feeble in comparison - my GFs had LOADS of rattles by 27,000 miles too, not something I expected in a Toyota). |
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I just recently bought a 2007 Corolla LE (a week ago). I am having second thoughts and wish I would have found this message board prior to pulling the trigger. I use to drive a ’92 Honda Civic. I loved my car very much, but it was stolen. So I had to buy a new car fast (never thought to rent a car or anything). I live in Chicago and unfortunately cannot take public transportation to work, which I prefer. I’m not much of a car person and didn’t really want to buy one. A few things I look for in a car are reliability and fuel efficiency. All the used cars I looked at felt like a pretty shitty deal, considering I bought my ’92 Honda Civic with 72K miles for $1900. I decided to buy a Corolla and feel I got a very good deal on it. But now I am having regrets. I know there is nothing I can do because I own the car, but I was wondering if anyone out there might ease my mind and tell me I made a good decision or just tell me that I didn’t. The other two cars I had thought about were the Honda Civic and the Mazda 3 Hatchback. I scratched the Honda Civic due to cost without anything else that I liked or needed above the Corolla. I don’t really need any of the extra features that the Mazda 3 5-door offers. I just liked the fact that it was a hatchback. I scratched that car too – due to cost, fuel efficiency, and although has gotten great reviews, I wasn’t sure on the long term reliability. The Corolla has an outstanding track record However, now I find myself regretting my decision and almost thinking about trading it in for a new Mazda 3 hatchback. First, I have read that the Corolla doesn’t actually get as good of gas mileage as it claims to (EPA rating = 29/38). Anyone else? Second, I concur the steering wheel position to leg position is a bit off, but I have very long legs (now getting use to the steering wheel position – its not too bad). And its not as sporty as the Mazda 3, although I don’t need this and I really like the hatchback…but the cost was almost $5,000 more than the Corolla (not much – but still ¼ of the total cost). What I got – a ’07 Corolla LE – loaded, with heated leather seats, and alarm (remember my last car was stolen), remote starter, and extended 7 year warranty for $20,000. I would love to hear your thoughts on my purchase and either I may walk away feeling as though I made a good investment all things considered or feeling like an idiot and losing a few grand when I trade it in at the Mazda dealer. Any thoughts? Thanks -
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Replying to: jasmine5 (Dec 14, 2006 11:53 am) That being said, you might check out the Corolla Prices Paid & Buying Experience Forum and check out the deals other shoppers are getting. The EPA ratings on the car are pretty accurate. My ex-girlfriend drove like a bat-out-of-hell, and still averaged 31 MPG in her commute to school in rush hour. I drive much more calmly, and got 37 MPG on a day trip to Huntsville (110 miles each way from here in Bham - that included lots of driving around town too). That was with A/C, three people in the car, and me driving at 80 MPH, plus the 50 or 60 miles we spent on the side-streets. Many people in the Corolla MPG Forum have gotten well above EPA averages when they drive modestly. Her car has been very reliable, just has some rattles coming from the dome light. It rides the best out of the three in this forum. I wouldn't trade it in if the car is comfortable to you. If you like to drive cars into the ground, this one will take awhile, as they have a good reliability reputation, and will probably take you as far as your old Civic did. Quick question; is that $20,000 deal including everything (tax, title, license, add-ons, fees...)? If so, the deal doesn't seem as bad. Not sure you couldn't have done somewhat better, but the car shouldn't disappoint you for what it promises, especially if it has all the features you were looking for.
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Replying to: thegraduate (Dec 14, 2006 1:38 pm) so you like the Corolla, I was basically just looking for a good car to get me where ever i need to go that i can drive for the next 7 -10 years with minimal and i mean minimal problems..... the problem comes when all of a sudden i say well if I spent X why not spend $5,000 more and get X. I think I would buy my old car back from the person that stole my car $2,000. I'm not sure where people buy cars.... mid 17,000 for a Civic EX sedna loaded - maybe without all the other fees. what blue book tells you and a delaer i believe to be very different.
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Replying to: jasmine5 (Dec 14, 2006 2:01 pm) An no, $17,280 includes Tax, Title, License, Mudguards, and all dealer fees. $14,800 is aggressive, but it becomes less-so with all the add-ons. I wonder for how long/many miles is the warranty, and what was its price? The remote start/alarm price?
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Replying to: thegraduate (Dec 14, 2006 2:05 pm) 7 year 75,000 miles - Full coverage warranty ~ 1,300 - best part if you don't use it they give you your $$$ back!!!! heated leather seats = $1800 (My folks are a little on the goofy side - so they paid for the leather seats and alarm - you know i live in the big bad city!)taxes are...well taxed in Chi-town when it comes to buying a car - i wish i was a guy.. so what's you opinion on the Mazda 3- hatchback (reliability?)
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Replying to: jasmine5 (Dec 14, 2006 2:12 pm) I'm going to say that I don't have enough info to really comment, although they seem to be decent little cars. I have a friend with one and it is still solid after 48,000 miles (its a 2004). A recent long term test I read (either in Motor Trend or in Car and Driver, I subscribe to both and can't find the issue at the moment) really loved the car, but again, it cost $19,xxx before they added fees, tax, title, etc... Probably a few thousand more than your Corolla if you equipped them both with leather and heated seats.
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Replying to: thegraduate (Dec 14, 2006 2:16 pm) |
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Replying to: jasmine5 (Dec 14, 2006 11:53 am) It isn't the newest model or the sportiest looking but it serves it purpose. I long ago got over the phase in life when you feel that you have to have that just released model or the ultra sporty looking vehicle. You bought a quality vehicle that should give you many years of trouble free driving. |
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Replying to: jasmine5 (Dec 14, 2006 11:53 am) It's simply the most reliable, inexpensive to own & operate, car out there. My mom has an '05. I drove a '91 in college until 150k miles, then my sister drove it in college to 200k miles. Got rid of it because it had no airbags, but otherwise there was nothing wrong with it. The current model could use a telescoping steering wheel. But as you mentioned, people get used to the driving position. My current car is a 2002 Camry w/ 110k miles, 0 problems. There's a reason why Toyota has the highest perceived quality in the business... because they DO.
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