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• Toyota RAV 4 (2000 - 2006) - Deal or no deal? 20 Nov 2008 (Forum)
  My finances allow me to puchase it without borrowing, something I would never do anyway!. My own dearly loved immaculate Mazda 626 I could probably sell privately, and running costs should be comparable. I have 24 hours to decide before she p/exs it at the LR dealer, and before anyone suggests it, she will not be swayed from a Defender!
• BMW 5-Series E39 (1996 - 2003) - 5 Series E39 manual vs auto 17 Jul 2008 (Forum)
  I am coming to the end of a bangernomics phase (18 months ago I gave up full time work in order to build an extension on my house which is almost finished, so I should be earning again soon) and fancy a change (I think) from my customary Legacy estates. Last year I bought an immaculate Mazda 626 2.0 petrol with FSH and all the toys from someone on the BR but now I wish to take advantage of the falling market, and MichaelR's constant praise of his 530 has got me thinking... My annual mileage is quite low, circa 5/7k,and I wondered what the advantage of a manual box over an auto was....apart from extra mpg.
• Omega Write-off Value 3 Jul 2007 (Forum)
  Hi All Some woman in a Mazda 6 rear ended my miggy this morning on the way to work. She hit me good and hard - her airbags went off and it took two tow trucks to winch the cars apart. My car is 8 years old, so given that and the damage my insurers have decided it's a write-off.
• What should I replace the Forester with? 18 Aug 2006 (Forum)
  I also though about getting a car for my wife to take over in a couple of years (e.g. Toyota Corolla Verso or Mazda 5). I refuse to consider anything French and the Touran is ugly. Any other ideas?
• Downsizing from company Mondeo 22 Dec 2005 (Forum)
  So far the ideas have been: New Model Focus TDCi (either 1.6 110bhp or 2.0 136bhp) Skoda Octavia TDi 140bhp Mazda 3 Diesel (engine variant?) Thanks in advance for your opinions
• Petrol Stains and Stone Chips 15 Mar 2004 (Forum)
  Hi Firstly a confession: I haven't washed my car for 3 months so I admit most of what follows falls largely into the 'self inflicted' category of problems. 1. The paintwork on my, metallic silver, Mazda has a kind of brown stain below the petrol cap - presumably this is from spilt petrol. Can any backroomers recommend any products that will clear this off? Washing with Auto Glym car shampoo hasn't worked. 2.
• Car rebuilds 24 Apr 2003 (Forum)
  After that, the whole car just didn't feel right, I lost confidence in it and sold it. I am now looking for something else, and have decided upon a mazda 626 (unless people here have horror stories about these). I decided to budgetize and get one for around 2.5k (and keep the rest of my fortune safely locked up in dan air shares - I just know they will rebound soon).
• Is Duratec HE engine reliable? 10 Apr 2003 (Forum)
  It was in the same week that I drove a new BMW320 and a new Mercedes C200 and I have to say the Mondeo is a match for either. The Ford engine (designed by Mazda, I gather!) is actually a lot better than the Mercedes engine - I say this as a 15+ year owner of Mercedes cars. In the light of this experience I am now considering buying a 6-month old Mondeo 1.8 or 2.0 - they can be had for £9000 with 12k miles on the clock, which seems quite a bargain when you think that a C-class would cost a least twice that.
• citroen zx clutch 11 Sep 2002 (Forum)
  It has only done 62K but feels like more, but I am 3rd owner so have inherited everyone else's problems no doubt! Thinking of chopping it in for Mazda 323f as I love these (thanks to those who already replied on that one!) or Nissan Primera, or Audi 80 - whatever I will not be buying another Citroen. Limited budget so what do you reckon - keep the ZX going or go for German/Japanese?
• Excessive tyre wear - Alfa 166 12 Dec 2001 (Forum)
  Alfa have intimated that it is driver habits rather than the car or the tyres. I, of course disagree. The 166 I drive is the V6 2.5 model. I previously drove a Mazda 626 2.5 V6 and achieved on average 22k miles per set of tyres. Currently achieving 12k miles on the Alfa and I am not alone yet ALfa continue to "refute my allegations". I know that HJ states that this model is renowned for excessive tyre wear and indeed printed a letter in the Telegraph some weeks back (copy has been lost unfortunately).
• Buying a new car 22 Dec 2013 (Forum)
  Unfortunately the engine just didn’t excite me in any way, quite slow acceleration and no real get up and go, a shame really because the car is very well built and very practical. A bit pricey though. Mazda 2 – The dealer was very good and took me on a very good route for the test drive. The Mazda 2 was really nice to drive with the handling being excellent. The gearbox was in a great position for driving and was nice and positive.
• Which Compact Family Estate? 23 Jun 2023 (Forum)
  My only worry is that it has a Ford Powershift Transmission, and I have learned through the online forums that the MAZDA engine is reliable; however, Powershift is very unreliable. I know a used vehicle might throw some unexpected bills; however, I don't want to spend much money repairing the transmission or engine.
• Mondeo - £1K family cars 13 Jan 2013 (Forum)
  Basically I'm looking for ideas on what to consider, in case I've missed anything. My current short list is: Ford Mondeo Vauxhall Vectra Mazda 626/6 Nissan Primera Toyota Avensis Honda Accord VW Passat Skoda Octavia BMW? Merc? Volvo? Now some rationale for them.
• which drivers' car for commute? 25 Aug 2010 (Forum)
  Current gen civic 1.8 petrol - not sure if in budget without mega miles? Accord 2.0 petrol, Mazda 6 1.8 or 2.0 petrol, Mondeo 1.8 or 2.0 petrol - fuel economy? Any opinions or thoughts on my conundrum?
• HGV over 3.5 tonnes and busses/coaches - Tyres age on certain commercial vhicles 1 Sep 2024 (Forum)
  or are they mandated some legal servicing outside of the MOT legislation I am not aware of? Reminds me looking at a Mazda 2 we parked next to few weeks ago, the 2013 Avon tyres sidewalls on the the front axles were so badly perished it made me take a look a second time, and yes the thread looks like at least 4mm on these!
• Land Rover Range Rover - Proper Reliability Test by Brand.. (Guess who is b 12 Jul 2020 (Forum)
  v=sUIK7K_q8eY&t=510s">8:30 12: Nissan 8:58 11: Mazda 9:30 10: Renault 9:56 9: Ford Toyota Yarisl - Something a bit bigger and faster 15 Jan 2020 (Forum)
    I narrowed down the choices to these but find it hard to choose. 1. Honda Civic upward of 2013 in 1.8 petrol manual 2. Mazda 3 Skyactive G 2.0 petrol manual from 2013 upward 4 or 5 doors.. 3. Toyota Auris 1.6 Petrol vmatic manual  from 2011 upward. 4. Lexus IS250 auto upward of 2009   The Yaris can be a bit boomy on the M roads at 3000rpm so wanting something as quiet as our Avensis petrol (but maybe not as big).
• The sensible option 1 Sep 2019 (Forum)
  Tasked with finding a good used car for brother in law for up to £7,000 I started looking at my usual default choices, Mazda 3, Honda Civic, Toyota Auris and Ford Focus 1.6 petrol. It never ceases to impress me how many excellent cars you can buy for so little money. There really is no need to buy an overpriced new car at all.
• Nissan Micra K12 2005 - Air pressure under oil cap 16 Apr 2019 (Forum)
    My initial thought it was the water pump on its way out as it sounded just like a similar noise I had on a Mazda many years ago. Took it to my local garage and they said all the pumps and belt pulleys where fine but that both belts where very worn and shiny so both were replaced.  At first all was well until the engine got hot and the noise started again, unfortunately I was on a long drive so had to carry on.
• First timer - nissan 25 Apr 2017 (Forum)
  After looking at the usual suspects like civics , mazda3s, and then the step ups of the mazda6 and avensis, Nissan have got my interest, the Almera and the primera seem to be offering a lot more car for the money, around £1k less than the other Japanese brands for an equivalent age/mileage which seems a lot at this price point. For example there's 2005 1.8 petrol sub 50k Almera's for circa £1.5k, whereas a Mazda 3 equivalent seems to be £2.5k plus. Similar type of differences are seen on primera versus avensis/mazda6 too. Looking for something automatic and  petrol between 1.6 and 2.0litre that'll be half decent for city driving, plus useful on all the nsl's and DC's near Brighton, whilst also being suitable for drives to the likes of Windsor / Kent and occasional drives to Dorset and Manchester without being too painful when filling up.