RC-Monster Forums - View Single Post - Starting to look at new car options (1:1)

BrianG · **Starting to look at new car options (1:1) -** 11.12.2009, 12:36 PM

My current '05 Mazda3 is getting high in the miles (75k) and so I'm starting to look around for new options. 75k is not really high, but I'm not exactly gentle on my cars; I tend to treat the gas pedal like an on/off switch rather than a variable control.

After looking at several vehicles, I'm kinda torn between a Camry XLE v6 and a MazdaSpeed 3. Both have similar HP and torque figures; the Camry has slightly higher HP (268 vs 263) but slightly lower torque (248 vs 280) than the 'Speed3. The Mazda is about $3k cheaper and looks tons better IMO. But, Toyota reliability is tough to beat. The Mazda has a turbo, which tends to need more maintenance than a normally aspirated engine. The Camry is still nice, and will probably attract the law a lot less. I'm not too concerned about resale value since I usually just keep the vehicle as a beater, or just a second car.

What would you do?

	(#1)
BrianG RC-Monster Admin Offline Posts: 14,609 Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Des Moines, IA	Starting to look at new car options (1:1) - 11.12.2009, 12:36 PM My current '05 Mazda3 is getting high in the miles (75k) and so I'm starting to look around for new options. 75k is not really high, but I'm not exactly gentle on my cars; I tend to treat the gas pedal like an on/off switch rather than a variable control. After looking at several vehicles, I'm kinda torn between a Camry XLE v6 and a MazdaSpeed 3. Both have similar HP and torque figures; the Camry has slightly higher HP (268 vs 263) but slightly lower torque (248 vs 280) than the 'Speed3. The Mazda is about $3k cheaper and looks tons better IMO. But, Toyota reliability is tough to beat. The Mazda has a turbo, which tends to need more maintenance than a normally aspirated engine. The Camry is still nice, and will probably attract the law a lot less. I'm not too concerned about resale value since I usually just keep the vehicle as a beater, or just a second car. What would you do?