1993 Mazda MX3 review from North America
"Good looking car, but not suitable for racing"
What things have gone wrong with the car?
Auto Transmission needs to be replaced after 97,000 miles.
Front Axel broke down
Gas-line clogged
Small back seats (hey, it's a sports car)
Driver-train breaks down a lot
Car bounces a lot off of bumps.
General comments?
-Performance 8/10
MX3s control great and everything except for the fact that 135hp and 130ft Torque isn't good enough for racing a V6 these days, but the good thing about the MX3 engines is that they are one of the lightest V6 engines out there (1.8L) compared to other V6 engines that weigh around 3.0L to 4.6L.
The bad thing about MX3s (1991 to 1997) is that they have no aftermarket support at all. That's right, no turbos, no headers, no heads, no pistons, no nothing except for a 75 shot of NOS and a small 7hp Intake. I did hear of some custom MX3 Turbos, but there not worth it because they don't add much horsepower like there suppose to and they are expensive.
So pretty much, if you want to race a MX3, you better swap the engine for a better engine like a MX6 engine which I think has aftermarket support or a J-Spec 2.5L KLZE (or something like that) engine (see the www.mx-3.com forums for more details).
-Reliability 7/10
Do not buy a MX3 with automatic transmission! The reason why is because when Mazda was making the automatic transmission for the MX3s, they didn't make them right because most people have had their transmissions brake down at around 100k miles including me (after 97,860 miles)
Sense the 1993 MX3s are 11 year old cars they will mess up a lot...
-Comfort 9/10
The front seats keep you comfortable and keep you in place, but the back seats are small so don't plan on using the MX3 with cruising with friends or for a road trip of 4 unless you plan to switch seats every hour...
-Dealer Service 3/10
Pricey parts and it looks to me that Mazda dosent care for their MX3s.
-Running Costs 6/10
Some small repairs and some big repairs like a new front axel and a new transmission. Hey, what do you expect from a 11 year old car?
-Looks 8/10
The back lights look great
Car's body looks great
Inside looks great
And there are bodykits out there for it at www.mx-3.com look around in the forums and find appearence. You can't miss it...
Spoiler at the back of the car look crappy for this MX3 year make.
By the way,
I got my MX3 at a auction for $2,500 American with about 65,000miles!
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| 1993 - MX3 GS 1.8L 24v DOHC V6 The most fun, most reliable used car I have had for less than $3000 |
| Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? | Yes |
| Year of manufacture | 1993 |
| First year of ownership | 2000 |
| Most recent year of ownership | 2004 |
| Engine and transmission | 1.8L V6 Automatic |
| Performance marks | 8 / 10 |
| Reliability marks | 7 / 10 |
| Comfort marks | 9 / 10 |
| Dealer Service marks | 3 / 10 |
| Running Costs (higher is cheaper) | 6 / 10 |
| Overall marks (average of all marks) | |
| Distance when acquired | 79000 miles |
| Most recent distance | 97000 miles |
| Previous car | Mazda MX3 |
| Date of Entry | 2nd May, 2004 |