Love my 2012 Speed 3, but......

[Atlanta]

Originally Posted by skawt01 So at around 17K miles, this car has actually turned out to be a piece of shit: It rattles worse than the 2 Toyota's I had prior, has alignment issues that wear out the tires prematurely (which cannot be fixed?), plenty of confidence-eroding noises, overly long awkward clutch, vague shifting, super flimsy rear hatch cargo area base, clackety-clack-drive you nuts rear hatch lock mechanism, and now a VVT/Timing Chain recall BS, and a few other nitpickies. I am selling it in Sept 2012 when the new WRX releases. I am 'this' close to hating this car. First and last Mazda for me, no doubt.

Let me guess, you had 2 camrys?

You are going to be disappointed with the wrx squeaks and rattles too I am afraid.

Great interior, high performance, low cost. Pick 2.

Sent from TapaDatAss

[SmoothVanilla]

^^^very well said. The wrx interior is much worse than ours. 0 soft touch materials. pretty cool seats in the sti i thought tho.

[skawt01]

Since we're going down the MS3 vs. WRX road, I'll note that while my buddy's WRX and my bro's Impreza both have cheaper feeling interiors, neither of them rattle/squeak like my MS3.

Perhaps noobs/brownies will be whistling a different tune as your mileage/mods add up.

[SmoothVanilla]

^^^I think you misunderstand what I am saying. My car is 4 months old and rattles like crazy, rattles more than my 3 did after 4 years. When it's cold with a rmm it is even worse. But if I have 2 cars that are both going to rattle, I am choosing the one with less plastics and more soft touch materials.

[MS309]

wow every other damn thread I read now has a speed vs wrx comparision lol. people are getting delusional man. take it from me, at 20K kms driving in harsh winter climate and crap shit roads I've got no rattles or issues.

long clutch and vague shifting ? you did go for a test drive didn't you ?

[skawt01]

Originally Posted by redride09 long clutch and vague shifting ? you did go for a test drive didn't you ?

yep. and yep. my gripes are subjective, yet factual, and not intended to wad up any panties. it's okay if you love your ms3. yippee. it's also okay if i don't.

smoovnilla, fair enough. soft touch or not, my car is rattling to the point of insanity. it's like a wind up skeleton head chattering its teeth back there. back to the dealer again on monday.

[MS309]

Originally Posted by skawt01 yep. and yep. my gripes are subjective, yet factual, and not intended to wad up any panties. it's okay if you love your ms3. yippee. it's also okay if i don't. smoovnilla, fair enough. soft touch or not, my car is rattling to the point of insanity. it's like a wind up skeleton head chattering its teeth back there. back to the dealer again on monday.

may I humbly suggest investing in the TWM full replacement short shifter kit ? Its quite an improvement over the stock shifter.

if the rattle coming from the rear ? could be the sway bar end links, they come loose.

[skawt01]

Thx for the suggestion, however, I'm ready to dump this car so add'l mods aren't on my radar. I admit it that I liked the MS3 a lot initially, but it eroded over time.

The chatter/rattle is a cheap plastic type sound, likely from the lock mechanism or the rear seat belt tensioner areas.

[SmoothVanilla]

I actually like the long clutch lol
when my car rattles I turn up the radio lol. one thing tho, if you go in the back and remove the plastic piece where the latch is, there are 2 bolts holding it in place, 11 or 12 mm iirc, anyway try moving the latch down towards the rear of the car a bit. I did this and for whatever reason my latch doesnt rattle any more. The spoiler rattle I cant help you with tho lol

[Tokay444]

As soon as I read "sunroof", I stopped reading, and scrolled all the way down to the quick reply box to right this, as you've lost all credibility as a performance enthusiast, and thusly, I cared no longer for your opinion.
The roof is the LAST place I'd want a big heavy hunk of glass.
They idea is to LOWER your centre of gravity.
Not raise it.
Sorry if you actually posted anything good. I didn't read it.

[skawt01]

Originally Posted by SmoothVanilla if you go in the back and remove the plastic piece where the latch is, there are 2 bolts holding it in place, 11 or 12 mm iirc, anyway try moving the latch down towards the rear of the car a bitl

I removed that already. Didn't see the nuts or bolts you speak of but I'll get the flashlight out. Can you explain how they 'move toward the rear of the car' more? I'll check this out in the a.m. I am fucking going nuts so anything is worth a try.

Thx for the tip man. I am tossing out an emphatic, albeit premature, FUCK YES!

[thousandfaces]

I really REALLY hate chrome trim.

Why do car companies think plasti-chrome BS trim (outside or in) make their cars look better?

Seriously, this ain't the 50's people.

[Atlanta]

Originally Posted by skawt01 Perhaps noobs/brownies will be whistling a different tune as your mileage/mods add up.

My car has 44k, and I also have an Infiniti QX56, wife drives a Mercedes E350 cabriolet, and I've owned bmw, 3 Infiniti's, Mercedes, and Lexus.

But what do I know.

Sent from TapaDatAss

[Tokay444]

You know how to buy a polished turd that's for sure.

[speeed]

Sunroof is totally gaysh....

[faeker]

NCE

OP is the Ghey

[dhsieh911018]

agree with 3 and 4, but as for 1 and 2..... all i can say is u've bought the wrong car....

i have a 2011 with tech package. i actually prefer the red/black dash instead of gray/silver. the red/black trim goes with the red/black on the doors and the seats. the grey/silver they put in the 2012s (same as the ones on normal mazda 3) just doesn't go along with the over all theme in my opinion. How can you not like the little blue lights? love those lol makes my car look futuristic

[SmoothVanilla]

Originally Posted by skawt01 I removed that already. Didn't see the nuts or bolts you speak of but I'll get the flashlight out. Can you explain how they 'move toward the rear of the car' more? I'll check this out in the a.m. I am fucking going nuts so anything is worth a try. Thx for the tip man. I am tossing out an emphatic, albeit premature, FUCK YES!

as long as you are looking at the latch on the car and not the hatch door, you shld see them lol. You might have to remove the black plastic in the hatch to pop the little latch cover. If this makes any sense lol

[fortressofcomfort]

Originally Posted by silvapain No car with one exhaust manifold should have 2 tailpipes. That shit is OEM rice. Goodbye OP. Tapadatass

Shit dude look at a late 80s Camaro/Firebird muffler. It has one pipe going all the way back from the engine to the muffler where it goes into the muffler as one one pipe and comes out as two. THAT is the king of rice. Rice-a-roni, the san francicso King.

[outshined]

Yeah, mine's a rattle-trap too, but I don't really give a shit.

If you want this much car under 25k, you have to make some sacrifices. Also keep in mind that cars in general have undergone a VERY significant "cheapening" in the last ten years, so be glad that Mazda put money into what counts instead of bullshit like a sunroof and chrome trim.

[BLK_MS3]

Originally Posted by fortressofcomfort Shit dude look at a late 80s Camaro/Firebird muffler. It has one pipe going all the way back from the engine to the muffler where it goes into the muffler as one one pipe and comes out as two. THAT is the king of rice. Rice-a-roni, the san francicso King.

FYI tons of cars are set-up like that. Sometimes so only one cat is needed, as in the Camaro/Firebird it is due to space. With a good set-up you can make tons of power like that as well.

My '00 Camaro has that set-up and I am making 481 RWHP with long tubes, Y-pipe with two cats, 3" piping and a bullet muffler.

Many LS1 guys (myself included) don't go true duals due to space and ground clearance issues, and still make tons of power with a set-up like that.

[Guerra88]

^^ BLK MS3 is right.
Also SmoothVanilla had a good point with tightening up the rear hatch to quiet down a bit.
Honestly WRX is also a compact car and will have similar noises/road noise as the MS3. Don't know what you hope to accomplish there. Unless you need AWD.
Regardless this shouldnt have turned into a speed3/wrx comparo. The sunroof thing has been beaten to death. My stupid 01 civic ex had a sunroof, car got the job done tho for economy. Speed3 doesnt have a sunroof because it would interfere with the roof brace Mazda put in for rigidity. (also agree with the weight/higher CG points) *facepalm* /thread

[Boatcop1]

I know I'ma noob but there is an ass load of stupid in here!

Sunroofs and single outlets oh my!

[dsmluck]

Originally Posted by Atlanta Let me guess, you had 2 camrys? You are going to be disappointed with the wrx squeaks and rattles too I am afraid. Great interior, high performance, low cost. Pick 2. Sent from TapaDatAss

Gonna have to disagree. My 2012 wrx hasnt made a single peep yet in nearly 10k miles. My 09 MS3 on the other hand had a windshield sqeek and ebrake rattle fixed under warranty in the first 10k.yes the WRX interior is pedestrian but it seems well constructed.

As for what I would change with the MS3... I would make the rear wheels provide propulsion along with the front and I would put the fucker on a diet. Its fucking heavy for what it is. Other than that the engine, clutch, and transmissionare fantastic. As for the looks i dont give a shit. I dont care if Mazda made the front look like a tranny giving a blow job. I would still drive it if it was fun.

[Dhump]

Originally Posted by SmoothVanilla I actually like the long clutch lol when my car rattles I turn up the radio lol. one thing tho, if you go in the back and remove the plastic piece where the latch is, there are 2 bolts holding it in place, 11 or 12 mm iirc, anyway try moving the latch down towards the rear of the car a bit. I did this and for whatever reason my latch doesnt rattle any more. The spoiler rattle I cant help you with tho lol

You helped me solve the only rattle my car has. I love you irl.

[Rich990]

move to south africa and buy a speed here for the equivalent of US $50k, then you'll get auto up-down on all windows and illumination on the window switches, my MPS has it.

[leon78]

Im 100% happy with my MS3....bitches love 4 door wagons with a turbo!