Mazdaspeed 3, The road is my playground!

Well not just yet, sadly. After the test drive of a brand new 2008 Mazdaspeed 3 GT, I just couldn’t say no. Well I said no a few times to get the price to where I wanted it, but I am very happy with the end result. 24K + tax (my mom laughed at me cause she bought her first car for the amount of tax I paid). Now I just have to wait for the bank to come through with my loan and for Mazda to find the exact model with the features I requested. (they both said it should only take about a week.) Sigh.

Mazda has made the Mazdaspeed series for a few other of their cars and only makes a limited amount of the car for approximately 2 years. 07-08 was the Mazdaspeed 3 which is a hatchback. Not your typical sports car, but that’s what I love about it. You never see it coming!!

They also introduced 2 new colors for the 08 year; Metropolitan grey Mica and White Pearl Mica. I chose the grey cause it is beautiful. It is a dark grey and has a hint of blue that makes the color very appealing. Black and Red are still available, but they discontinued sunlight silver and cosmic blue mica. The silver will be missed, but I wasn’t a big fan of the blue.

The interior of the vehicle has also changed a bit from the 07 model. Everything that was once a dark gray trim is now replaced with piano black. The decoration panel also includes a MAZDASPEED logo. The seat fabric has also been changed from a rough weave type fabric on the main seat surface and leather bolsters to alcantara, a suede like material on the seat surface and leather bolsters. Check it out below.

The piano black does look pretty good in person and gives the car a more prestigious look IMO. Also with the new 08 comes a mp3 jack located in the arm rest in the middle of the car.

So the car looks nice and has some nice features, but why would you want to buy this hatchback from Mazda? One word… FUN!!! If you like to go from A to B with a smile on your face, then this car is for you. Amazing acceleration from the 263 HP and the car handles with a quick response. Not to mention the vehicle is VERY affordable for the performance.

If you are worried about gas prices, then this car may not be for you as it is estimated to get 22 mpg city and 28 highway. Not horrible, but not great either and that’s of course if you drive it very conservatively. If you are anything like me, you will be getting about 17 mpg city. I did read on Mazda forums that if you install a Cold Air Intake (CAI) which costs about 350 installed, that you will get a few more horses in your ride along with better gas millage. Not a bad upgrade.

Well that’s about it from here. Mazdaspeed 3 is here for now, but won’t be forever, so if you are looking for a fun and fast car to get tickets in, do it now before gas hits $8 a gallon and you can’t afford bail.

Here is a great video review from carReview.com

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