Will wrote: What about a WRX wagon? Fast and loads of room inside.
Forester XT time!
Will wrote: What about a WRX wagon? Fast and loads of room inside.
Forester XT time!
Audi A3 Avant.
CTS-V would definately be a kick-ass dad car.
One thing that I'm confused by, though is that you say the manual tranny is one of the main problems with the Ranger, but all of your potential replacements (except the Maserati, which seems to have been taken off the list anyway) are stick shifts.
(where is that head-scratch emoticon)
I went from a '99 540i6 to an '02 WRX wagon. They are in NO way comparable. The 540 beats the WRX in any category imaginable.
That_Renault_Guy wrote: One thing that I'm confused by, though is that you say the manual tranny is one of the main problems with the Ranger, but all of your potential replacements (except the Maserati, which seems to have been taken off the list anyway) are stick shifts. (where is that head-scratch emoticon)
The real problem with the Ranger is that it isn't super baby friendly (i.e. rear facing car seat in the front seat. It can be done by turning off the airbag, but that is certainly not an optimal solution). Therefore, if I were to need to play shuttle with the baby, while still owning the Ranger only, my wife and I would essentially need to swap vehicles and she detests driving manuals. If I buy anything with a real backseat, this problem goes away.
I certainly agree with racerdave600 in that I need to drive everything before making a decision. I just want to know what needs to be added to my list or, in the case of the Maserati, taken away.
Like I said before, I like the styling and performance of some of the Dodge/Chrysler cars, but extremely poor mileage and build quality really concern me with these.
Warning -- potential thread flounder ahead........
If you decide on the MSP3, I can help you get rid of all of the rattles/noises that you may have in the windshield cowl, the headliner, the glovebox, the dash, the center console...........definitely more noises coming out of this than the '02 Outback that got traded in on it.
I realize that I might just have gotten the bad apple of the bunch, but seriously, are all Mazdas like this? Or are Miatas just superbly built???
Just bought the 09 Mazda 3 on 12/20.....on 12/21 it was back at the dealer to start trying to get some of these noises addressed. I've given up on going back to them and am just taking care of the noises on my own. It took them 4.5 days to take care of the windshield cowl noise, and I had to step in and use teh powar of teh intarwebs to help fix things.
Other than the general creakiness of the car, I like it! Heated leather seats are a first for me and I like em, even if I'll just use them for a few months in Texas. Car is plenty spunky to drive and the automanual is nice.
At the present time the 3 is the wife's car (and the reason to make it creak-free!) If she gives up on it, I'll probably inherit it and get her something a little more upmarket and noise free.
-jeff d
I don't know about you but given the number of Caddy's I have driven by broken down by the road, I don't think I could ever trust a Caddy. I would have to say the Mazdaspeed 3 would be the best of the three you mentioned. I would also recommend a newer 4 door Civic Si. Those are pretty great cars.
My wife and I just bought an 03 SAAB 9-5 Aero and it is very nice. I can not find it right now, I am at work, but there is a video on YouTube of Clarkson driving one and having a good time with 3rd gear. Its big inside, we got about 35 mpg on the way home from picking it up running around 75 and they get very good safety marks.
The only real problem with them is oil sludge, but if you get an 04 or newer that is a non issue.
The CTS-V is a sweet car and would be at the top of my list but go and check out the SAAB, you might be suprised.
orphancars wrote: Warning -- potential thread flounder ahead........ If you decide on the MSP3, I can help you get rid of all of the rattles/noises that you may have in the windshield cowl, the headliner, the glovebox, the dash, the center console...........definitely more noises coming out of this than the '02 Outback that got traded in on it. I realize that I might just have gotten the bad apple of the bunch, but seriously, are all Mazdas like this? Or are Miatas just superbly built???
Maybe you can talk to my dealership about the engine mount i grenaded on a test drive of one....
Aside from the aforementioned rear end issues the CTS-V's are supposedly pretty bulletproof. Apparently the paint of the GPS radio flakes off and the dealership replaces the whole unit but I would count that as a minor issue.
Are the differential issues associated with high RPM clutch dumps/aggressive launches or just an average failure mode?
From my understanding it is a much more frequent occurrence with the drag guys and people who engage in much hoonage. I have heard that it is a problem with the bushings and there are some "fixes" for it that greatly reduce the chances of failure. There have however been failures in regular "gently" driven cars.
Greg Voth wrote: There have however been failures in regular "gently" driven cars.
Yes a buddy had one. MY2005 had 3 rear ends and 2 transmissions. No catastrophic failures just massive amounts of whining from all parts in the driveline. He sold it in 2008 and bought a honda civic(had a baby as well).
I've had no problems with the diff (other than the bushings) in my car even though I have drag raced it (on street tires). I doubt it will explode just driving around but I don't think it requires outright flagrant abuse to kill one.
93celicaGT2 wrote:orphancars wrote: Warning -- potential thread flounder ahead........ If you decide on the MSP3, I can help you get rid of all of the rattles/noises that you may have in the windshield cowl, the headliner, the glovebox, the dash, the center console...........definitely more noises coming out of this than the '02 Outback that got traded in on it. I realize that I might just have gotten the bad apple of the bunch, but seriously, are all Mazdas like this? Or are Miatas just superbly built???Maybe you can talk to my dealership about the engine mount i grenaded on a test drive of one....
$35 set of corksport mount inserts and an hour under the car will prevent that...
i also don't have any rattles, but i've developed the clunks in the front end as of recent
A quick internet search makes the rear diff issue sound quite prominent. Previously, I had though it was an issue primarily with the 2004MY, but now it appears that it extends all the way through 2006/2007. This would make an extended warranty a virtual necessity I think.
I still cant see buying a CTS-v with the amount of problems they have, especially when people sometimes have to replace the same parts several times.
Strizzo wrote:93celicaGT2 wrote:$35 set of corksport mount inserts and an hour under the car will prevent that... i also don't have any rattles, but i've developed the clunks in the front end as of recentorphancars wrote: Warning -- potential thread flounder ahead........ If you decide on the MSP3, I can help you get rid of all of the rattles/noises that you may have in the windshield cowl, the headliner, the glovebox, the dash, the center console...........definitely more noises coming out of this than the '02 Outback that got traded in on it. I realize that I might just have gotten the bad apple of the bunch, but seriously, are all Mazdas like this? Or are Miatas just superbly built???Maybe you can talk to my dealership about the engine mount i grenaded on a test drive of one....
I mean the mount... The mount itself broke, metal bracket snapped. Car had less than 200 miles on it.
It seems that most people recommend the extended warranty. Supposedly the redesigned diffs that are being put in under warranty are holding up better but I have no first hand experience. I would say you proceed at your own risk. If I were buying one you bet I would get the extended 100K mile warranty.
93celicaGT2 wrote:Strizzo wrote:I mean the mount... The mount itself broke, metal bracket snapped. Car had less than 200 miles on it.93celicaGT2 wrote:$35 set of corksport mount inserts and an hour under the car will prevent that... i also don't have any rattles, but i've developed the clunks in the front end as of recentorphancars wrote: Warning -- potential thread flounder ahead........ If you decide on the MSP3, I can help you get rid of all of the rattles/noises that you may have in the windshield cowl, the headliner, the glovebox, the dash, the center console...........definitely more noises coming out of this than the '02 Outback that got traded in on it. I realize that I might just have gotten the bad apple of the bunch, but seriously, are all Mazdas like this? Or are Miatas just superbly built???Maybe you can talk to my dealership about the engine mount i grenaded on a test drive of one....
oh, the side mount then? there was a recall for that, from what i hear they may need a recall on the recall, because some that have had the recall done have had failures due to incorrect tightening of the mount, but mazda has been decent about taking care of it when it happens.
Strizzo wrote:93celicaGT2 wrote:oh, the side mount then? there was a recall for that, from what i hear they may need a recall on the recall, because some that have had the recall done have had failures due to incorrect tightening of the mount, but mazda has been decent about taking care of it when it happens.Strizzo wrote:I mean the mount... The mount itself broke, metal bracket snapped. Car had less than 200 miles on it.93celicaGT2 wrote:$35 set of corksport mount inserts and an hour under the car will prevent that... i also don't have any rattles, but i've developed the clunks in the front end as of recentorphancars wrote: Warning -- potential thread flounder ahead........ If you decide on the MSP3, I can help you get rid of all of the rattles/noises that you may have in the windshield cowl, the headliner, the glovebox, the dash, the center console...........definitely more noises coming out of this than the '02 Outback that got traded in on it. I realize that I might just have gotten the bad apple of the bunch, but seriously, are all Mazdas like this? Or are Miatas just superbly built???Maybe you can talk to my dealership about the engine mount i grenaded on a test drive of one....
Yeah that one. There may have been something else i did, too... because the engine was hitting the firewall. 
I definitely trust mazda to take care of it... but that dealership isn't too fond of me at this point.
The solution for the 04-05 CTS-V diff is to put in an 06-07 part. It's not perfect but it's a lot better. If the car is still under warranty that's the dealer solution.
nope thats what they do when the side mount breaks, the engine drops and destroys the halfshaft, and winds up resting on the subframe/firewall once you come to a stop
One thing to note is that I have heard of quite a few folks that have issues with getting child seats to fit properly on the forester for some reason. Generally they have an easier time with a Legacy/outback wagon/sedan.
The legacy is a heck of a deal right now, and you get the GT with a turbo AWD wagon in the 05-06s. That is if you want a wagon. The sedans are nice too, but my main complaint is my 06 does not have fold down rear seats, just a pass through, they fixed that on the 07s.
Fun car, and the new wrx and stis turbos are a bolt on.
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