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Re: Mazda reliability and servicing, plus Skyactive X thoughts

Posted: Thu Jan 09, 2020 1:56 pm
by zoylander
I buy a new car for cash, having already lined up a private buyer for my existing car, and keep the new one for at least 7 or 8 years. No fees, no interest charges and no trade in profit for the dealer. I realise that not everyone can afford this approach, but it has the merit of simplicity.

I wonder why the original poster described the CX-3's excellent automatic gearbox as "elderly". It is the manual gearbox and friction clutch which is elderly, having been with us since the 1890's. Many drivers are obsessed with new technology, yet they still cling to the mechanical crudity of manual transmission. Surely it is time to consign it to motoring history, along with carburettors and drum brakes.

Re: Mazda reliability and servicing, plus Skyactive X thoughts

Posted: Thu Jan 09, 2020 3:41 pm
by st3v3cx-3
bouc71 wrote: Wed Jan 08, 2020 4:23 pm Sorry I mean't to say the Mazda 3 and had CX in my head..... Thanks for your opinions on the auto transmission but I tried it as it as the only demo car at the time and found it slow to react. I'm used to dual clutch or tiptronic transmissions....
I'm not along in disliking the auto transmission as all the online reviews and Youtube videos all say go for the manual transmission and it is an excellent manual transmission in the Mazda but if you must have an auto then go for it I'm not knocking anyone's decision.

So no points on reliability, servicing or indeed the Skyactive X engine then?
Have you tried the Mazda automatic transmission with the paddle shifters behind the steering wheel? Will do gear changes far quicker than you could with a manual transmission. Here's some Mazda info on the Skyactiv-drive automatic transmission

Skyactiv-drive.png

If you must have a manual transmission then I agree that the one on the Mazda does get excellent reviews for smooth action etc.

Re: Mazda reliability and servicing, plus Skyactive X thoughts

Posted: Thu Jan 09, 2020 4:09 pm
by steve67
HouseSpider wrote: Thu Jan 09, 2020 11:23 am I purchase via a personal loan & keep the car long term. Monthly payments similar to pcp, no restrictions on mileage, and at least an asset after the loan is repaid. Then all money set aside for a deposit on a new car when required. With a pcp, if you don't have an income to service it, you don't have a car.
.... pcp works for some not others, it took me awhile to adapt but once i did i haven't looked back,we always had 5-6 yrs old cars now for the past 8yrs we have had 4 new cars with only services to pay for,
the mileage is never an issue UNLESS YOU RETURN/HAND THE CAR BACK. most people swap sooner as theres always a deal.
remember a pcp is still a loan , rule of thumb is a 5yrs bank loan payments are the same as 3yrs pcp with a gfv if you swap cars around the 3 yrs mark why have money sat on the drive in the car...
if i take our cx3 if we paid the gfv at 3 yrs and paid it off with a 2yr loan it would still be the same as a 5 yr hp loan, may be cheaper as you get better discounts at point of purchase with pcp.
as i said before it works for some, not everyone.
my son is driving a new mazda 3 se lux in soul red for the same outlay as buying a 5 year old car on a hp loan. he's worked out that if he kept the car it and paid the gfv it would be his in 5.5 yrs (total) paying the same pm

Re: Mazda reliability and servicing, plus Skyactive X thoughts

Posted: Thu Jan 09, 2020 4:54 pm
by bainbridge
hi, dont bother with PCP, it is just a massive,very hard debt to get out of, personel loan. find the cheapest to suit, yrs etc, affordable

ps, anyone had problem with cx3 sport, 1.5, had car 3 months, covered 1.5k, knocking noise on the road,nearside, bristol street took it in,worked on it, sent to mazda, they told them to change front pads to mazda parts, im really pissed that no one seems to want to fix, it was reported back to bsm on day two of purchase.

Re: Mazda reliability and servicing, plus Skyactive X thoughts

Posted: Thu Jan 09, 2020 5:16 pm
by bouc71
Interesting thoughts on the different ways of buying/renting a car. Here in France there are taxes and charges associated with owning a car and if you change every 3 years then you lose that money and have to pay it again. I do see that the UK seems to be PCP nirvana with most people doing this. I feel my cars will give me 10 years of good service without issues - of course there may be new technology coming out by that time. I guess people do the sums and know what's best.

My comments on the automatic transmission just reflect the reviews made by experts who know their stuff - they drive hundreds of vehicles. Someone thought the manual transmission was old but I was comparing the Mazda auto (using as it does a torque convertor) with other more advanced auto boxes. Remember that good manual transmissions still last the longest and are 'relatively' easy to fix. Most automatic transmission problems usually lead to a full replacement rather than a repair. Many people are moving more and more over to auto transmissions and many people use PCPs so they don't care about how long the transmission lasts. I have paddle shifters on my Audi but never use them, I find the DCT changes well enough - I am an auto transmission fan but not sure (for us anyway) that the Mazda one is worth getting. My partner is off again (without me) to look on Saturday so if she wants the auto she can have it.

Re: Mazda reliability and servicing, plus Skyactive X thoughts

Posted: Thu Jan 09, 2020 6:11 pm
by zoylander
"More advanced" automatic gearboxes (or rather automated manuals) such as VAG's DSG and Ford's Powershift have proved troublesome, so much so that Ford has abandoned Powershift and returned to torque converters. VAG have modified their DSG's in response to numerous warranty claims which have been widely reported in the motoring press. I am not aware of a single failure of Mazda's 6-speed torque converter gearbox.

Re: Mazda reliability and servicing, plus Skyactive X thoughts

Posted: Thu Jan 09, 2020 6:58 pm
by Strangways
I have the best of both worlds. I have the manual (best gearbox in the world) in my MX-5 and an auto in the CX-3. I did have a 66 plate CX-3 with a manual box (the same box as the MX-5), but having reached 71 years old I thought I would try out this new technology. The auto box is almost perfect. The annoying things are: It has a too big a step between 4th and 5th ratios and it doesn't come with an ECO mode. The ECO mode is easily overcome by using the paddles, but I really don't understand why Mazda didn't include that. Anyway the real reason I upgraded was the heated steering wheel, what a dream, I will never buy another car without a heated steering wheel. :D
As far as Mazda are concerned, from now on, I will always look at them first. I have owned and driven numerous cars and bikes over the last 55 years (up to 40K miles a year on a regular basis) and I have to say that Mazda do make a drivers car. I love driving and Mazda make the best drivers car.

Re: Mazda reliability and servicing, plus Skyactive X thoughts

Posted: Fri Jan 10, 2020 5:29 pm
by steve67
bainbridge wrote: Thu Jan 09, 2020 4:54 pm hi, dont bother with PCP, it is just a massive,very hard debt to get out of, personel loan. find the cheapest to suit, yrs etc, affordable

ps, anyone had problem with cx3 sport, 1.5, had car 3 months, covered 1.5k, knocking noise on the road,nearside, bristol street took it in,worked on it, sent to mazda, they told them to change front pads to mazda parts, im really pissed that no one seems to want to fix, it was reported back to bsm on day two of purchase.
pcp is a loan... just a differnt way of buying a car, you can swap and change as and when...at the end the car has a gfv .. we pay what we can afford over the months we want the car, drive it care free as its new and in warranty etc.. i would never pay £28k for a cx30 or any car , but a pcp makes it affordable
pcp on a second hand car is another story, i wouldn't touch one.
a personal loan- the car is borrowed against yourself so if you can not pay they come after you , ypur house your wife and kids.... :lol: :lol: ,, a pcp is against the car, so you would just throw the keys at them.
but each to there own. 8-)