Mazda 323 LX SALOON (2000)

keitht

Hi every one i'm looking at buying a car, and i'm looking at a mazda 323 LX 1.4 Saloon. 2000. Can any one tell me what they tink of this car.

cheers.
keith.

Anan1

keitht wrote:

Hi every one i'm looking at buying a car, and i'm looking at a mazda 323 LX 1.4 Saloon. 2000. Can any one tell me what they tink of this car.

cheers.
keith.

Bit dull to drive, but very reliable.

colm_mcm

It's actually 1.3. aim for a 1.5 GLX, as this will have an electric sunroof, ABS with traction control, leccie windows all round, electric mirrors and is actually nice to drive.

They're extremely reliable, the most reliable car in this class for that age of car

bazz26

Yes, what Colm said try and get a 1.5 GLX model, the 1.3 LX is very basic. Late 2000 models got a minor facelift at the front and the 1.5 litre GLX was replaced with a 1.6 litre engine. Some had an electric sunroof while others had air conditioning.

All are ultra reliable and won't let you down. Quite roomy on the inside too and the boot is very useful. They are going quite cheap these days and you get alot of car for reasonable money.

colm_mcm

There are quite a lot of small nice touches, for instance if you lift the drivers door handle while the door is locked, the keyhole illuminates, granted remote locking would be better, but I like it!

andrew_ireland

I learned to drive in one of these, albeit was a mid 90's jap import 1.8 Diesel. I know it's not the exact same model but I enjoyed driving it. Hope that helps somewhat.

keitht

Hi all had a look at the car, it was very nice but its a 1.3L LX Dose not have E/W but it has Air con. its nct 02/08 and has 49.000 miles. price E4.200.
what do you all tink.

thanks
keith.

bazz26

keitht wrote:

Hi all had a look at the car, it was very nice but its a 1.3L LX Dose not have E/W but it has Air con. its nct 02/08 and has 49.000 miles. price E4.200.
what do you all tink.

thanks
keith.

That sounds like a reasonable price to me. Is it a private or dealer selling it?

colm_mcm

A lot of the 1.3 LX models got aircon, bizzare considering they didn't have electric windows etc. Mileage is good, and if you aren't fussed about equipment sounds really good.

However, I've just found a 1.5 GLX 323 saloon with 52 on it on Carzone from a dealer, asking €5,000, surely would accept €4,250 to €4,500, with a warranty. Would definately be worth a look.

http://www.carzone.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=427259

keitht

Hi all. Its a private Sale and its a friend of the family. and i know its been looked after. they had it since new. i just hope it works out beter then the car i have now its a peugeot 306, not very happy with that car. cost me alot of money.

Thanks.
Keith

colm_mcm

The Mazda is a sure thing, never heard of anyone that got a bad one.

keitht

Hi every one. just one more question about this car. the mileage is 49.000,but i noticed the timeing belt has not been done what mileage does this have to be done at. and how much would it cost.

thanks.
keith

Squirrel

My brother got a 01 323F 1.3 around Paddy's Day and it's going fantastic for him. They're surprisingly big (moving up from a 97 Micra)

bazz26

keitht wrote:

Hi every one. just one more question about this car. the mileage is 49.000,but i noticed the timeing belt has not been done what mileage does this have to be done at. and how much would it cost.

thanks.
keith

Presuming the Mazda is belt driven then it should be changed at between 50k and 60k miles or every 5 years, which ever comes first imo. Since it has never been changed on your 323 I would make a point of getting it changed just to be safe as if it snaps then it will cost a small fortune to repair the engine or worst case replace it.

A good independant mechanic will be alot cheaper than a main dealer. I would budget about €300 - €400 for the job. I would try and get the seller to knock a few quid off the selling price to offset this.