Mazda 3 Vs Skoda Octavia

Zonda999

witless_steve wrote: »

I didn't know mazda made a 1.6 diesel. I've only seen petrol mazda 3's. Are the saloons the only diesels or are there hatch backs too?

Its a Ford/PSA engine really! Afaik, the only diesel engine mazda make themselves is the 2.0td found in the 6

Saloon and Hatch are both available in diesel. This being Ireland though, probably very few hatch diesels around the place

bazz26

vectra wrote: »

What??

Mazda 1.6 diesel is better than the VW 1.9 ??
In what respect??

The Mazda 3 1.6 diesel is the same engine found in the Ford Focus, Volvo S40, Citroen C3/C4/C5, Peugeot 207/308/407 and BMW MINI. It is a 16 valve unit using common rail technology. It is more refined, smoother, quieter and power delivery is more evenly ditributed than the 1.9 TDi unit. The 1.9 TDi was a good engine in it's day but it dates back to the early 1990s, technology along with the competition have moved on since.

OP the Mazda 3 diesel is pretty rare in Ireland, did you look at the Ford Focus diesel? A larger range of models to choose over the Mazda 3 and just as practical. Both the Focus and 3 are the same car underneath.

Subotai

I found myself in the same position last year. I was trying to decide between a Mazda 3 Touring 1.6 diesel or an Octavia 1.9 TDI. I test drove them both extensively, and in the end went with the 3. I found the Octavia to be a bit sluggish, the 3 is lighter, drives better, has much better acceleration, and has more umph! It also has the added benefit of doing about 1000 km on a tank.:)

Zonda999

Subotai wrote: »

It also has the added benefit of doing about 1000 km on a tank.:)

The Octavia will do as well, my uncle has a 1.9TDI DSG and is constantly raving about how he gets a 1000km per tank. I think the Octavia has a better interior as well too IMO

Audioslaven

Brought back a 2008 Mazda 3 1.6 Diesel saloon Ts2 21k miles on clock from uk 13400 cleared. Super car had a 323 before that. Averaging 58 miles to gallon and really nice to drive

deRanged

I've a diesel mazda3, delighted with it.
one thing to watch out for is that there's 2 versions - a 90ps and a 110 ps.
Get the 110, not the 90

witless_steve

Assuming i want to buy my car through some kind of recognised dealer to get some kind of warranty. Where should i be looking online to make sure i give myself the best chance of finding a good car? The idea me driving a diesel sounds interesting but mazda hatchbacks with diesel are rare are there other places i should be looking? I know that the mazda shares the same chassis as the ford focus. But is there much to chose between them? I seem to be posting a lot of questions today. I'm learning a lot from all the posts and i'm very grateful for all your advice.

Audioslaven

I got mine off a main mazda dealer in uk. I went on www.mazda.co.uk as there are used car locator on it. Autotrader as well

deRanged

witless_steve wrote: »

I know that the mazda shares the same chassis as the ford focus. But is there much to chose between them?

yes. sit into both. the cabin in the focus is much smaller - the mazda has way more room.
there's other differences too, but that one made me drop the focus as a consideration instantly.
that's a personal thing though, I've known people go the opposite way.

bazz26

This is a very good site for searching:

www.driving.ie

Biro

Zonda999 wrote: »

Its a Ford/PSA engine really! Afaik, the only diesel engine mazda make themselves is the 2.0td found in the 6

Saloon and Hatch are both available in diesel. This being Ireland though, probably very few hatch diesels around the place

They only make the new 2.2 now in 3 guises.
I'm amazed at how many people on here still think the 1.9 vag unit is the bees knees.

Zonda999

Biro wrote: »

They only make the new 2.2 now in 3 guises.
I'm amazed at how many people on here still think the 1.9 vag unit is the bees knees.

So the diesel in the new 6 is now the PSA engine too! Fair enough, the diesel in the old 6 was very unreliable!

There are still plenty of people who highly rate the VAG 1.9 alright. Probably because of the sheer number of them on the go. They are still at least competitive in the crucial area of fuel economy, if not refinement or power delivery. A bit off topic but i cant wait to see what the Octavia 1.6TDI 105bhp is like. A relative works in a Skoda garage so I'll be trying that one out as soon as its in!:)

bazz26

2.2 diesel in the Mazda 6 is an inhouse unit afaik, not PSA. Available in 125bhp, 163bhp and 185bhp.

witless_steve

To pay for the car change is it better to deal in cash only or will dealers still take a trade in? I've got a 99 1l micra as my current chariot. Would i be better off flogging it privately and buying my next car for cash or could i get a few hundred knocked off the next car with a trade in?

Biro

Zonda999 wrote: »

So the diesel in the new 6 is now the PSA engine too! Fair enough, the diesel in the old 6 was very unreliable!

There are still plenty of people who highly rate the VAG 1.9 alright. Probably because of the sheer number of them on the go. They are still at least competitive in the crucial area of fuel economy, if not refinement or power delivery. A bit off topic but i cant wait to see what the Octavia 1.6TDI 105bhp is like. A relative works in a Skoda garage so I'll be trying that one out as soon as its in!:)

No, it's Mazda's own, which is why I said "they only make the 2.2"!
An excellent engine by all accounts. The new 6 with the 185 diesel engine would be an excellent car. Pity Mazda made such a balls of the interior.
The new 1.6 diesel from VW should be a lot better than the 1.9. The difference between the VAG 2 litre 140 PD and 2 litre 140 CR is very noticable.

Biro

witless_steve wrote: »

To pay for the car change is it better to deal in cash only or will dealers still take a trade in? I've got a 99 1l micra as my current chariot. Would i be better off flogging it privately and buying my next car for cash or could i get a few hundred knocked off the next car with a trade in?

Ask the dealer what their best price is first, with no trade in. Then ask about trading in the Micra. You'll see exactly what they're giving you for it then. Some garages might like to have something sellable like a Micra in their yard. Others won't want it.

witless_steve

Cheers for the advice Biro. Great way to find out how much I'm really going to pay for the change.

I've done another bit of virtual tyre kicking and not all the tourings seems to have air con listed. Is there a particular year this started?

Handy to know so I can properly understand what I'm looking at.

I must say I was very nervous of asking for help from such knowledgable petrol heads but this thread has been packed full of great comments and I've learned a lot from reading the posts.

Are there any dealers in the Munster area that people might recommend as a good place to go looking in the flesh as it were?

I keep seeing Mike O'Dwyer in Limerick coming up on searches for Mazdas.
Anyone did any business with him? His prices seem high but maybe the warranty that comes with it is worth it. I don't know.

EPM

Since it's introduction the Touring had air con, multifunction leather steering wheel, nicer interior trim and rear electric windows on top of the base Comfort spec. For carrying stuff I'd aim for the saloon as the boot is bigger than the hatch's one

witless_steve

Thanks EPM, some dealers are a little short on detail when selling a car and assume you know what comes with that trim level.

deRanged

EPM wrote: »

For carrying stuff I'd aim for the saloon as the boot is bigger than the hatch's one

very true. I switched from a hatch to a saloon and I'm very pleased that I did.
granted stuff like washing machines would be a problem, but that's what vans are for.

O'Briens in Midleton is where I've bought a couple of Mazdas - I'd recommend calling in there. They're a decent bunch.

witless_steve

Thanks deranged, will look them up and see what they have.

witless_steve

subs change

witless_steve

I keep seeing Opel Astra being listed as a similar car to the Mazda 3. Are they in the same league or is some search engine trying to distract me? I do see a lot of them about though.

EPM

witless_steve wrote: »

I keep seeing Opel Astra being listed as a similar car to the Mazda 3. Are they in the same league or is some search engine trying to distract me? I do see a lot of them about though.

Meh, stay with a 3 or Octavia. Astra's really are ten a penny. Unless you can get a nice diesel SXi or Design 5 door at a bargain price...

Biro

witless_steve wrote: »

I keep seeing Opel Astra being listed as a similar car to the Mazda 3. Are they in the same league or is some search engine trying to distract me? I do see a lot of them about though.

Ya, Mazda 3, Golf, Focus, Octavia, Leon, Astra, Corolla, Civic, Almeara, 308, C4, Megane, Bravo... they're all in the same class. There's probably one or two that I'm forgetting.

witless_steve

I've read some of the threads about buying a second hand car and it seems that you have to be careful not to show all your cards when you ring the dealer or they won't budge price wise.

I don't want to let myself be skinned alive, I didn't find any detailed threads on the matter so thought I'd see if any of you have any advice on how to avoid giving away too much.

I had planned to do a little web shopping to see what models are available, call the dealers to see if the car is still there.
Ask them how much they'd sell the car for cash and then ask them what trade in they'd give me.
If the numbers made sense then go to each dealer and test drive the short listed cars.

Not entirely sure if that's the best course of action or that I'm not going to get the dealers back up by sounding like I expect a discount on the listed price.

I heard somewhere that the prices listed for cars on websites are more of a dream price the dealer would like to get rather then their final price.Is that true?

EPM

Yup, the prices are only asking prices and often are way off the mark. I doubt you'd get their final selling price over the phone mind, best to pick a few near to you and call out some saturday morning or something. And don't be afraid to walk away if you aren't happy with the deal. Other cars will come along

witless_steve

When doing the tour of dealers should you bring an expert with you or wait until you've decided to actually buy a specific motor?

Biro

witless_steve wrote: »

I've read some of the threads about buying a second hand car and it seems that you have to be careful not to show all your cards when you ring the dealer or they won't budge price wise.

I don't want to let myself be skinned alive, I didn't find any detailed threads on the matter so thought I'd see if any of you have any advice on how to avoid giving away too much.

I had planned to do a little web shopping to see what models are available, call the dealers to see if the car is still there.
Ask them how much they'd sell the car for cash and then ask them what trade in they'd give me.
If the numbers made sense then go to each dealer and test drive the short listed cars.

Not entirely sure if that's the best course of action or that I'm not going to get the dealers back up by sounding like I expect a discount on the listed price.

I heard somewhere that the prices listed for cars on websites are more of a dream price the dealer would like to get rather then their final price.Is that true?

Ya, always pretend you're not really interested in the car you're going to see, and pretend your budget is about €5k lower than it actually is. Let the sales guy do the selling of the car to you. If he thinks you're keen he'll give you his "lowest" and he'll let you walk away knowing that because you're keen you'll be back. If it's a car he'd like to get rid of, let him to the selling.

witless_steve

Thanks for the advice. When getting a used car is it worth getting an AA car check or a motor check report?