@wentworth–The Rambler was a real bargain. I bought the car for $1750. It had 7000 miles and I got the rest of the 24,000 mile warranty. It was the bottom of the line model called the Classic 550. I drove the car way past 100,000 miles–I got rid of it when the floorboard rusted through. It had no options–I finally added a windshield washer and backup lights.
I probably should have waited. My parents moved to another house because the owner of the house was moving to Florida. He offered me a 1963 Ford Fairlane–again bottom of the line that had 10,000 miles and I could have had that car for $1000. I would have saved $750 and back in 1965 $750 was a lot of money. I had signed a contract to teach at a university for $6000 for the year. At any rate, I kept that Rambler for 8 years–it got me through my second round of graduate work which I started 4 years later and a couple of years beyond that.
It sounds like the Rambler was a fine idea.
Now, my purchasing a new 1972 Vega…THAT may not have been such a fine idea! I liked that car, but compared to that car a '65 Rambler was a pillar of reliability!
I’m seriously considering the same car, several of my co-workers have the older Mazda3 as well as a couple of Mazda5’s. My mom’s 1990 Mazda Protoge was just as reliable as any Toyota or Honda she could have bought maybe even better. Mazda seems to have better reputation with the car enthusiasts than the general public. Take care of the car and it will take care of you. The only reason mom replaced the Protoge is she needed a better driving position and the Skyactiv Hatchback wasn’t on the market in 2009 when she needed to trade up, otherwise it would have been on the shopping list for sure.
Be confident in your choice and tell your friends to pound sand (joking). Mazda is a fine car. The Fit gets wind blown anytime a sparrow flies by and Toyotas have their issues.
I agree with everyone else. Enjoy the car.
If it makes you feel better, I cross shopped the Honda Pilot, Toyota Highlander with Mazda CX-9 and after a lot of research and test driving all of them, landed on the Mazda.
I have had Toyota’s, Honda’s, Chevy’s, Chrysler products along with VW and some other European brands. I feel reliability is more model dependent, some makes might be better than average. Having a reliable car that you don’t like makes life a bit too boring. So enjoy your ride and take good care of it. I think you have made a smart move.
I say the car will be fine and congrats on getting something more interesting than a Fit, which has all the soul of an electric juice maker and not much more horsepower or amenities.
Toyota’s Honda’s are the default choice for many people, they are great cars but for some folks another make is a better choice. I know an older woman who was pressured into switching from an older Mazda 3 to a new Chevy Cruze and she was much happier driving the Mazda with it’s Bose stereo than the Cruze which she wasn’t in love with at all
That’s a great car. When we were looking for a compact hatchback last year it was one of our finalists. It’s a reliable, efficient car and fun to drive. It’s also near the end of this body style’s run, so has been debugged. It’s also one of the rare compact hatchbacks available. Since the demise of the Matrix neither Honda nor Toyota sell a conventional (non-hybrid) hatchback in that size range. So your friends don’t have very useful advice. Not that a Honda or Toyota would necessarily be better. The Mazda3 is highly regarded by most.
Thanks everyone. I definitely feel better knowing that knowledgeable people agree that I didn’t really go wrong. =)
“Thanks everyone. I definitely feel better knowing that knowledgeable people agree that I didn’t really go wrong”.
@cilevans1989–We only agreed that you didn’t go wrong on your choice of cars. We must now begin analyzing your choice of graduate schools and your choice of majors.
Just kidding–best wishes.
“Thanks everyone. I definitely feel better knowing that knowledgeable people agree that I didn’t really go wrong picked the perfect car for me”.
There, I fixed it…
I work with a guy that drives a 03 Mazda protege with almost 300k miles on it. It has required little other than routine maintenance, Mazdas are wonderful vehicles. I had recently seen a Mazda MPV on a used car lot with 255k miles.
Lets not forget the Miata. Bulletproof.
They will go the long haul with no problem. You made a good decision as far as reliability goes. I think Mazda cars are much more fun to drive than a honda or toyota. Zoom Zoom!