Looked at cars at the State Fair...

[Radio-Active]

I did'nt particularly car for the base model Mazda 3 I drove. It felt like an economy car. Leaned badly in turns, slow on the pick up with the Auto. And felt like you were driving an SUV. I have heard the MS3 is a blast and all the short comings of the base 3 are eliminated.

Get the RX-8. You ought to be able to pick it up for less than $28K new.

[altiain]

If you can live with the fuel economy, I'd pick up an RX-8 over any of the econoboxes or hot hatches you've listed. It's a true rwd, four seat GT car, and it will hold a suprising amount of stuff.

If you need more space, I'd go for a Mazdaspeed3. How can you go wring with 250 hp and 280 lb-ft of torque in a lightweight car with plenty of storage space? You should be able to get into any new RX-8 or MS3 for $25k or less (substantially less, if you opt for a lightly optioned leftover '. You'll also qualify for S Plan prices on any Mazda.

Also, if you want a "sleeper" 4-door sedan with a lot of power and awd, why not look at a Subaru Legacy GT or a Mazdaspeed6? I drove a 'speed6 and liked it a lot, but apparently I'm in the minority, since they are selling slowly and Mazda is offering ridiculous discounts on it.

[CosmosMpower]

If you can live with the fuel economy, I'd pick up an RX-8 over any of the econoboxes or hot hatches you've listed. It's a true rwd, four seat GT car, and it will hold a suprising amount of stuff.

If you need more space, I'd go for a Mazdaspeed3. How can you go wring with 250 hp and 280 lb-ft of torque in a lightweight car with plenty of storage space? You should be able to get into any new RX-8 or MS3 for $25k or less (substantially less, if you opt for a lightly optioned leftover '. You'll also qualify for S Plan prices on any Mazda.

Also, if you want a "sleeper" 4-door sedan with a lot of power and awd, why not look at a Subaru Legacy GT or a Mazdaspeed6? I drove a 'speed6 and liked it a lot, but apparently I'm in the minority, since they are selling slowly and Mazda is offering ridiculous discounts on it.

I also liked the MS6 when I got one for a loaner as they were prepping my RX-8 for delivery. It had lots of power, decent turbo spool and really really roomy. I hated it at the Mazda zoom zoom event though, on an autocross course it felt like a heavy FWD Maxima/Accord etc.

But for a daily driver you can't go wrong with the MS3 or MS6, I'd maybe consider picking one up over the RX-8 if you plan on doing no track/autocross. I also agree on the LGT, I actually walked in to buy one early 06 but they didn't have any in stock so I kept looking and ended up in the RX-8.

[POS Racing]

I also liked the MS6 when I got one for a loaner as they were prepping my RX-8 for delivery. It had lots of power, decent turbo spool and really really roomy. I hated it at the Mazda zoom zoom event though, on an autocross course it felt like a heavy FWD Maxima/Accord etc.

Mazda already killed the Mazdaspeed6......

[Titus]

Mazda already killed the Mazdaspeed6......

I think that is more a function of the Mazdaspeed business model. They put a Mazdaspeed version out in the second half of a chassis's life cycle, and then kill it when they re-work the car.

[nealb]

I looked at the Civic and Madza3 both last summer

liked the Madza better for fun to drive (with 2.3 motor), but bought a 4 door Civic LX auto (wife main driver)

the Madza was $3 to $4k more money and 6mpg or so less gas mileage

paid $600 under MSRP, or about $18.1k drive out total everything

after 20k miles, the Civic has been bulletproof, averaged over 34mpg (about 2/3 highway) and I still like it

the 5 speed auto is the best I have ever driven; only way you know it downshifts is the tach moves

if you get the LX, look on Craigslist

I bought EX takeoff alloys and tires, less than 500 miles, perfect, for $400

now I have two sets of tires and the alloy wheels

[jrj512]

now I have two sets of tires and the alloy wheels

Thanks. It seems to me that you could almost open up a wheel museum.

[jrj512]

Well, I've done some test driving and it looks like I was wrong about the Mazda 3 -- and you all were right.

On Tuesday, I did a Saturn Astra test drive thing at TMS where they have a little coned course setup to show you how well their car handles compared to the Golf, Civic, and 3 (all on hand for comparison). I guess I was supposed to like the Saturn better, but I walked away with new respect for the 3. The Civic is better sitting still, but I really like how the 3 handled.

Today, we test drove a Volvo C30. It was very ho-hum. I was nice and all, but very disconnected from the road. Then I made the mistake of driving the MS3. Whoa, Nellie! I like it, and so does the . Still not sure if I want the higher payment (and lower mileage) compared to the normal 3, but we'll see. I still want to drive the Civic again, too.