Opine thee on my Mazda5 quandary.

2006 Mazda5, 60k miles. $10k. Manual trans, moonroof. Used car lot.

2006 Mazda5, 100k miles. $6k. Manual trans, fog lights. Private seller.

Choose for me.

Which one is in better condition?

Assume they are the same. I will know tonight for certain. The 100k mile one is a private owner, a used car lot owns the 60k mile one. The 100k mile (original) owner states it has a new "clutch plate," new brakes front and rear, and new tires.

Kinda depends on the use, I guess. If they're in similar condition and you might sit in there with a helmet on, you might want the one with the moonroof.

All in all, I tend to try to buy on condition so assuming that you would be comfortable spending the $10k, I'd pick the one that turns out to be in better condition. That might well be the private sale one, at least with that one you might get some service records.

I would almost always rather buy from an individual but in the end decide based on condition.

A moon roof will eventually leak. Fog lights never do.

Brett_Murphy wrote: A moon roof will eventually leak. Fog lights never do.

But a fog light will never let in moonlight!

Brett_Murphy wrote: A moon roof will eventually leak. Fog lights never do.

Although, in some cases, fog lights collect water.

Mine has the moonroof, it's a very very good OEM design. I've pressure-washed mine and still no leaks.

Mine does not have the foglights. The place for the switch is on the dash and the wiring is behind the fake light holes. I plan on buying a set from the JY and bolting them in. Can't do that with the moonroof.

Private sellers are always better than dealers.

The answer is pretty obvious here.

2006 Mazda5, 100k miles. $6k. Manual trans, fog lights

That'd be my choice.

Brett_Murphy wrote: A moon roof will eventually leak. Fog lights never do.

When is eventually? I know people with 20+ y.o. cars with moonroof/sunroofs that have never and still don't leak.

In reply to bastomatic:

I took a look at the 100K one and it sounds like a good one too.

The thing it comes down to is which do you want more? The fog lights or the moonroof. Like Javelin said, you can alway put in fog lights later, you can't with a moon roof.

Also the clutch and brakes were just replaced and has new tires.The 60k one has the original clutch (as far as we know), good brakes, and newer tires. That's something to take into consideration as well.

Funnily enough, mine was between these two. 69K miles, $9000, moonroof, dealer. I bought it while going out to look at an 80K mile, foglights, no roof, dealer car.

In reply to SyntheticBlinkerFluid:

Eventually depends on how much time it has sat outside baking in the sun, what kind of rubber the seals are made out of, what contaminants got on the seals, how strong the motor is, etc. Like I said, eventually, they will all leak.

Bus, as you said, some are better than others. I had a 27 year old RX-7 that didn't leak (granted, it didn't open, either). I had a Grand Prix that was 5 years old that leaked like it was a sieve.

Javelin raises a good point. It is easy to put in fog lights but a real pain to try and put in a moonroof.

Private seller any day of the week. Although working at a car dealer made me hate them, so I'm biased.

Since you're here in SE Michigan I would look at the undercarriage very closely and see if there is any discernible difference in corrosion levels.

I believe I've made a decision - if anyone wants a Mazda5 with 100k miles it's still available - near Ann Arbor. Lots of dents, dings, scratches. Front suspension was shot, but maybe that's a good reason to spring for some Speed3 bits or aftermarket stuff. Rust was starting its way up the rear wheel arches, but I didn't get a good look at the undercarriage.

I've found that intelligence is required when dealing with private sellers and dealers both. Though you are more likely to get a maintenance history from a private seller, there are also plenty of people who will try to hide things from you. I bought my Element at a used car lot, and I knew what I was getting, and have been happy with it.

In reply to bastomatic:

Well that's unfortunate. I'm surprised a it had that bad of rust already, but I hear a lot of bad things of Michigan cars.

I sent you another email to help you on your journey.