Official info on the XR5 Turbo and Mazda 3 MPS

[Ustasa]

1440kg for a car of that size is way too much. Throw in FWD and I can see how the late 90's wrx's and 200's will eat them up at the lights.

Plus tuning these things is going to seperate the men from the boys. Should be an interesting period in 3-4 years time when the warranties start falling over and the used car market gets a hold of them.

[wiggah]

Having owned a 1400kg MY05 WRX and the lighter MY99, the MY05 was a better car in every way - including straight-line performance regardless of the minor power difference between them. The MY06 weighs more again, but still gets along nicely.

If you want a light-weight racer for that price, you can buy a Clio. I think it suits the majority of the market a lot better by being loaded with features, rather than being stripped down.

[snavy]

1440kg for a car of that size is way too much. Throw in FWD and I can see how the late 90's wrx's and 200's will eat them up at the lights.

Plus tuning these things is going to seperate the men from the boys. Should be an interesting period in 3-4 years time when the warranties start falling over and the used car market gets a hold of them.

mate any modern platform these days weighs alot! The focus has the NHV levels it has because its solid and it heavy because this. The early WRX's are light and it really shows. Also the Focus is not considered a small car anyway! Get next to the new model ones and boy they are big!

[Captiva Fan]

Also the Focus is not considered a small car anyway! Get next to the new model ones and boy they are big!

Actually, it is considered a small car by most, 'cos it does fit in the Corolla market segment ... and Corollas used to be small (go sit in a KE10 if you don't remember when they were small ). Everything's expanded though, and there are two sizes of car for sale in Oz that fit under the Focus size-bracket (your Fiesta/Jazz, and then your micro 660cc/1000cc Daihatsukimahas). In fact, the Fiesta feels bigger'n a mid 80's Laser to me (well, the same size but more space-efficient or something). So in effect they're quite large, as you say, but most people (me included, until I think twice about it) consider them to be the same size-bracket as a Mark 1 Escort ...

[snavy]

I'd take the Ford over the Mazda at this stage. Would have to wait till some quality reviews are done on the Mazda but the Ford is ment to be a great hot hatch. The Mazda would have to pull off something pretty special.

The way Mazda are going they cant do anything but make special cars at the moment!

[Captiva Fan]

The way Mazda are going they cant do anything but make special cars at the moment!

Well ... I dunno.
To my eyes, Accord Euro > Mazda6. But Mazda6 is cheaper.
Liberty GT > Mazda6 MPS. But Mazda6 is cheaper.
350Z > RX8. But ... dunno about the comparison on price here, 350Z are allegedly pretty heavily discounted at the mo'. On list-price, Mazda is cheaper.
Focus > Mazda3. Mazda3 not cheaper though.
Fiesta > Mazda2 ... Mazda2 probably cheaper once you take into account how Ford's loading the options in the Fiesta.

They're still selling a few cars, but they need some new models to continue with the sparkle they had 2-3 years ago; not that they're getting old so much, more that other makers have overtaken them more recently.

[snavy]

Well ... I dunno.
To my eyes, Accord Euro > Mazda6. But Mazda6 is cheaper.
Liberty GT > Mazda6 MPS. But Mazda6 is cheaper.
350Z > RX8. But ... dunno about the comparison on price here, 350Z are allegedly pretty heavily discounted at the mo'. On list-price, Mazda is cheaper.
Focus > Mazda3. Mazda3 not cheaper though.
Fiesta > Mazda2 ... Mazda2 probably cheaper once you take into account how Ford's loading the options in the Fiesta.

They're still selling a few cars, but they need some new models to continue with the sparkle they had 2-3 years ago; not that they're getting old so much, more that other makers have overtaken them more recently.

Well
Mazda 6 WCOTY
RX8 WCOTY????
MX5 WCOTY

Focus > Mazda3 Same Car
Fiesta > Mazda2 Same Car

The Mazda lineup is pretty fresh isnt it???

Really they are the same company anyway so really it doesnt matter!

[Captiva Fan]

Well
Mazda 6 WCOTY
RX8 WCOTY????
MX5 WCOTY

MX5 is good, I grant you that.
The others won COTY a few years ago ... they're getting old.

Focus > Mazda3 Same Car
Fiesta > Mazda2 Same Car

Exactly, and yet Fiesta & Focus are better.
Again, they've been overtaken by another manufacturer using the same basics, but having obviously had more time to tweak those basics better.

Really they are the same company anyway so really it doesnt matter!

Oh, it matters; the way American run companies work, they'll chop an arm off if that arm isn't directly making money. It doesn't matter if that arm is coming up with all the ideas that all the other limbs are using to make their money; the way Americans run companies are all about 'today' and 'now'.

[Peter...]

Bah, too fuckin heavy, the lot of em. Clarkson said it best; "Weight just kills all the fun in modern motoring."

Gimme a 940kg MX-5 or somesuch any day. No hatchback should weigh as much as a Falcodore did not so long ago...

[RNS-11Z]

something interesting here - from my knowledge bigger capacity = more torque? The mazda with less capacity and cyclinder makes 380nm were as the ford makes 320... mazda = better engine for tuning capabilties?

[snavy]

MX5 is good, I grant you that.
The others won COTY a few years ago ... they're getting old.


Exactly, and yet Fiesta & Focus are better.
Again, they've been overtaken by another manufacturer using the same basics, but having obviously had more time to tweak those basics better.


Oh, it matters; the way American run companies work, they'll chop an arm off if that arm isn't directly making money. It doesn't matter if that arm is coming up with all the ideas that all the other limbs are using to make their money; the way Americans run companies are all about 'today' and 'now'.

Getting old??? These car of the years have come in the recent past! Look back a few years and Mazda have won more than its competitors.

[Shitbreak]

Gimme a 940kg MX-5 or somesuch any day. No hatchback should weigh as much as a Falcodore did not so long ago...

Agree'd! The new Clio Sport for example has gained more wehight over the older one. I guess with new crash/padestrian laws and better build quality over previous model making it hard to reduce weight of newer model cars meaning heavier cars, its abit of a shame.

[snavy]

something interesting here - from my knowledge bigger capacity = more torque? The mazda with less capacity and cyclinder makes 380nm were as the ford makes 320... mazda = better engine for tuning capabilties?

Turbo???

[Captiva Fan]

something interesting here - from my knowledge bigger capacity = more torque? The mazda with less capacity and cyclinder makes 380nm were as the ford makes 320... mazda = better engine for tuning capabilties?

Probably just more boost. AFAIK, the 166kW-ish engine for the S60 & the V70 are the "low blow" versions. The Mazda3's a little detuned c/f the Mazda6 version of the same engine too, innit?

[wiggah]

Not many people buy/bought Clios or Integra Type Rs. Ford is onto a good thing with this - the weight isn't going to worry the average punter especially given that all classes of cars are moving up reasonably evenly, instead of moving closer together (ie. the weight gap between a falcadore and a car like the XR5 is the same as the gap between a WRX and a falcadore of a few years ago). The trend towards higher capacity engines in these small cars is a good thing too.