2004 to 2020 Mazda 3 Forum and Mazdaspeed 3 Forums banner

Just pulled the trigger on 2011 Gunmetal Blue 3 Hatch

4K views 17 replies 7 participants last post by  kefkafloyd 
#1 ·
Hey guys,

just bought a Gunmetal Blue 2011 Mazda3 S Sport hatchback today at Wellesley Mazda. Love the color and the car, and I'll be getting the keys on Monday. I'm another F-body convert, my 97 Firebird served me well but it was getting electrical gremlins and thus it was time to go for a new car.

I'm happy to be here even though I'll miss the guys at the Camaro Z28 forums.
 
#2 ·
I wanna see some pictures when you get it.. and congrats, welcome to the mazda 3 club.
 
#7 · (Edited)
cwilliams,

your mileage may vary, of course, but there are several Mazda dealers around Route 128 here in Massachusetts. It can be competitive if you talk around. Plus, there is a $400 Mazda rebate on the 2011s at the moment, which helps. Without the rebate, you'd be looking more like 19,000-ish pre TTL. Honestly, I wouldn't quibble with them over $500, they were willing to get the deal done without being jerks and I appreciated that.

I got 1.9% APR via the dealer for 60 months (I qualified for the tier below .9% since this is my first brand new car). Plus, given that the TrueCar average sale price is right around 20,300 before TTL, I think you would be happy with out-the-door prices of 20-21K after all the taxes and fees and crap. Anything within that range is, IMO, a good deal. You can, of course, save more dough by buying a stick.

I'd suggest waiting until the end of February. They were willing to deal with me because it was the end of the month and I didn't BS with them about trying to extract every dollar. If you think the deal is fair, I'd take it!
 
#11 · (Edited)
Catchphrase:

Mostly Airplanes but I do other things too. My website is Daniel Vincent - Aviation Photography for photos.

I am looking at a completely base 2011 s hatch with the 6 speed, with nothing added on whatsoever (doesn't need anything). Still waiting on my loan approval through my credit union, so we'll see how long I can hold myself off from making a purchase if/when that all goes through. This will be my third vehicle, and my first actual new car.

I too have used TrueCar to check prices and I do not think $20k or better out the door is unreasonable since I will be giving a down payment of at least $2500, and I'm hoping they'll take a trade-in off my hands which is worth hardly a thing. I'm out in southern California and we have several good high volume Mazda dealerships around that I think can get the job done.
SoCal, eh? I know you're gonna get whacked on the sales tax. I think it's 10% there for cars? Here in Massachusetts, the tax is 6.25%. I also don't know what your guys' fees/other stuff look like, but given the higher tax burden I'd think 19.5-20K out the door for a six-speed hatch would be a reasonable goal.

Don't overlook your local small Mazda dealers, though. Wellesley was smaller than Mazda Gallery or Ira, but they're a family owned dealer and the sales environment on a Saturday morning was very friendly. They were also willing to get me the color I wanted without messing around, which was nice.
 
#9 · (Edited)
I appreciate the detailed response!

I am looking at a completely base 2011 s hatch with the 6 speed, with nothing added on whatsoever (doesn't need anything). Still waiting on my loan approval through my credit union, so we'll see how long I can hold myself off from making a purchase if/when that all goes through. This will be my third vehicle, and my first actual new car.

I too have used TrueCar to check prices and I do not think $20k or better out the door is unreasonable since I will be giving a down payment of at least $2500, and I'm hoping they'll take a trade-in off my hands which is worth hardly a thing. I'm out in southern California and we have several good high volume Mazda dealerships around that I think can get the job done.
 
#10 ·
Catchphrase -

I know that question was for the OP, but my first (and only) job is in photography. Sports to be specific, with some concerts on the side. I was just out in Irwindale the last couple of days covering Travis Pastrana making his NASCAR K&N Series debut. He ended up 6th out of 40, not bad!
 
#12 ·
Nice, post 'em when you can! Probably should get a thread going in Off Topic for this. I don't know what to say about a rally driver doing left turns but I imagine it's more intense actually being in the cockpit, despite what we get to see.

SoCal, eh? I know you're gonna get whacked on the sales tax. I think it's 10% there for cars? Here in Massachusetts, the tax is 6.25%. I also don't know what your guys' fees/other stuff look like, but given the higher tax burden I'd think 19.5-20K out the door for a six-speed hatch would be a reasonable goal.
Where I live, it's 9.75%, and unfortunately the dealer charges tax based on where you live rather than where you buy from. I'd say Huntington and Tustin are the easiest to deal with dealers in SoCal, but then there's also forum connections at Riverside and Glendale. Granted, you have to build those connections first. It's all a time/money investment.

They raised title/license fees up the ass around here too. I paid $350 for DMV fees.

Nice airplane pictures-



This one reminds me of some funky pictures I saw of an airport right next to a beach, where some of the pictures looked like you could get in arms reach of the airplane while it was landing. Here's that shot:



Maho Beach on St. Maarten
 
#18 ·
Good luck, Man. I think you'll be able to get it done no problem. President's Day is coming...

hey i myself up untill 7 months ago owned a 97 z28.. she was my DD.. and i do miss her, but these cars just have something refreshing and fun about them rite? to me there like over sized go carts haha.. anyways as soon as i graduate in 1 yr lol hopefully ill get a great deal on a used 11 speed3 and be able to fully join the group.
Having a Z28 as a daily driver can be tough at times - a labor of love. The insurance, premium gas, and all of the flaws of the F-body means you have to put up with a lot to get that smile when you put the foot to the floor - but it's very easy to fall in love with those cars. It was a lot easier when the cars were newer, that much is for sure. An MS3 would be a perfect replacement for an aging LT1 Z28 if you can't afford/aren't compatible with a new Camaro.

Welcome to the forum! Love the aviation photos!
Happy to be here! :) I've been looking at the posts to get a feel for what I should start modifying first. CorkSport SRI seems number one on my list.

Oh, I know I promised a pic. Well, the weather here has been garbage, so I did the best I could one morning. Still waiting for a nice day...

 
#16 ·
hey i myself up untill 7 months ago owned a 97 z28.. she was my DD.. and i do miss her, but these cars just have something refreshing and fun about them rite? to me there like over sized go carts haha.. anyways as soon as i graduate in 1 yr :( lol hopefully ill get a great deal on a used 11 speed3 and be able to fully join the group.

but congrats, after all my research this far... you cant go wrong with this car
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top