I've been pretty surprised that there's not more love for the first gen Speed3 in the enthusiast community. I've only seen a handful around in the bay area, but you see dozens of GTIs of that generation everywhere. I've also never seen another Speed3 at a car meet (although low sample size).
They've got a bit of a reputation problem from the community (and the gen2 looks are much worse imo), but mine has been really great so far. Iirc, they only made ~5k/year, but you can still get them cheap, and the issues are pretty well documented and fixable. Hoping the market realizes this in the next few years, or someone might get a really good deal on mine
There's not much love for the Speed 3 and you don't see them around much because the engines were junk. They also didn't respond to tuning nearly as well as the competition. Gen2 may have looked worse but addressed some of the reliability issues that plagued gen1. You can find them "qeirdly" cheap because they're often a ticking time bomb and on their 2nd or 3rd engine.
When my MS Protege got sent to scrap you basically could poke anywhere on the lower half of the car and put your finger through it like some shitty tissue paper. They just disintegrated in the Midwest winters. It was sad because my interior was MINT (god I miss the sweet cloth and sparco bits). Was cool to own a little neat limited run car, but it cost me the cars entire value basically every year to keep it on the road since I didn’t have a garage to do work or store it in.
Mine too. Predictable places like the rear wheel arches and hatch. And odd places, like the window frame adjacent to the B pillar rusting almost completely thru. I didn't have a garage for most of its life so it lived on the street in Chicago. All the 3s (hell, all the Mazdas) from that era are completely extinct up here.
These were extremely popular on internet communities back in the early 00s. Shit, when I was browsing /r/cars back in 2013-2014 on my OG reddit account, it was constantly recommended in “what should I buy” threads
They’re just getting trashed and scrapped as time goes on
The issue is what you will have with an enthusiast car that was expected to be a daily driver. If someone bought a fresh one in 2007 and drove it 12k a year, you’re at 200k+ miles.
Same reason why you tend not to see a lot of Neon SRT-4s. A ton were daily driven, so at some point they got worn out and sent to the great beyond.
I seem to remember SRT-4s having some serious torque steer issues too. My buddies would walk all over, he over corrected and smacked a curb once. Im sure a good number were sent to the junkyard in similar fashion
Yeah that’s why I’m keeping mine OEM+. It had one owner who was an older guy from Texas, so I’m hoping the well maintained survivors will start to be more appreciated
I loved my Speed6, but I had to get new tires for it every year. It was wild. And there was only one set of Goodyears that were good on it. Seriously, every year the outside edge of every tire was bald.
They felt expensive back then too. I remember being shocked at how expensive a fully loaded Celica GT-S was back in high school. Very comfortably middle class and no one in my family owned a car that cost that much.
I mean I fully think that would be doable, the base 2.5T AWD is $33k. It's not fully optioned but it isn't base spec either, assuming some tweaks to the power, suspension/tires and token cosmetic bits you would probably still be under $40k but go north of that with options.
The 2.5T also isn't very exciting. I'm not sure if they could retune it for more character or not. As it is, it has a diesel-like torque profile and you really get nothing out of chasing it's low redline.
A couple years earlier was the Focus SVT too. I had one and regret selling it to this day. My current car is a Taurus SHO, but I would go back to my Focus if I could. It was so satisfying to drive and had such a great manual transmission.
This shows how much the current WRX fails to deliver. A 2007 WRX ran the quarter mile in 14.1 seconds. A 2024 WRX Ts costs $43k and requires 14.4 seconds.
I did a quick search of all the production years for the cars in the article, most of them came out in 2007, the Si sedan came out a couple months after this article.
The Mini Cooper S is technically also a coupe and yet the Civic Si coupe is nowhere to be found.
The Mk5 GTI has been in production since the 2005 model year but no 2006/2007 Civic Si to be found.
Makes perfect sense, it very likely didn't have anything to do with the vehicles themselves, they probably just couldn't organise a press car in the timeframe of the shootout.
I remember growing up with these, I was a junior in high school in 07, I had an 05 STI, and picked up a 04 SpecV in auction as a beater, turned it into a track car during college.
I remember the Mazdaspeed 3 was blowing motors left and right.
The GTI was unreliable as hell back then, but I think this is when "das auto" was a thing?
The Si was such a joy to drive, and every Honda fan swore they could destroy any car with the right mods.
I honestly believe this is when cars hit the right balance of performance, efficiency, enjoyment, and repairability..
Those were good times. I had an 08 MS3 back in the day and it was a blast. Traded it for an 09 STI and I missed the Mazda ever since. There was something special about that car that while the STI had way more power it just didn't match the charm of the Mazda.
nowis3000@reddit
I've been pretty surprised that there's not more love for the first gen Speed3 in the enthusiast community. I've only seen a handful around in the bay area, but you see dozens of GTIs of that generation everywhere. I've also never seen another Speed3 at a car meet (although low sample size).
They've got a bit of a reputation problem from the community (and the gen2 looks are much worse imo), but mine has been really great so far. Iirc, they only made ~5k/year, but you can still get them cheap, and the issues are pretty well documented and fixable. Hoping the market realizes this in the next few years, or someone might get a really good deal on mine
rationis@reddit
There's not much love for the Speed 3 and you don't see them around much because the engines were junk. They also didn't respond to tuning nearly as well as the competition. Gen2 may have looked worse but addressed some of the reliability issues that plagued gen1. You can find them "qeirdly" cheap because they're often a ticking time bomb and on their 2nd or 3rd engine.
Sincerely,
Former Gen1 and Gen2 owner
admimistrator@reddit
As a former speed owner, this is unfortunately the truth. The motors are really finicky and even if you get a good example they still like to pop
apoctank@reddit
stop it, I haven't bought one yet. zoom zoom boom amirite?
Riverrattpei@reddit
One of the reason there's not many of the gen 1's around is they had all of the same rust issues as any other gen 1 Mazda3
It's what sent my Speed3 to the scrapyard
MFDAAB@reddit
When my MS Protege got sent to scrap you basically could poke anywhere on the lower half of the car and put your finger through it like some shitty tissue paper. They just disintegrated in the Midwest winters. It was sad because my interior was MINT (god I miss the sweet cloth and sparco bits). Was cool to own a little neat limited run car, but it cost me the cars entire value basically every year to keep it on the road since I didn’t have a garage to do work or store it in.
CamoAnimal@reddit
That’s what happened to my 2004 3 hatch. Rear fenders were completely rusted through by the time I ditched in, circa 2016.
benisnotapalindrome@reddit
Mine too. Predictable places like the rear wheel arches and hatch. And odd places, like the window frame adjacent to the B pillar rusting almost completely thru. I didn't have a garage for most of its life so it lived on the street in Chicago. All the 3s (hell, all the Mazdas) from that era are completely extinct up here.
BetweenFourAndTwenty@reddit
I had a stick shift Protege5 as my first car (the predecessor to the 3 hatch). Rust also claimed it, unfortunately. I miss that car so much.
nowis3000@reddit
True, I found mine in Texas. I’ve seen what rust does to that era of Mazda in Chicago (2005 Mazda MPV), and I wanted to avoid that completely
simeddit@reddit
These were extremely popular on internet communities back in the early 00s. Shit, when I was browsing /r/cars back in 2013-2014 on my OG reddit account, it was constantly recommended in “what should I buy” threads
They’re just getting trashed and scrapped as time goes on
BTTWchungus@reddit
Gen 1 Speed3s were a little more fragile than the GTI equivalents when it came to tuning
spike021@reddit
i live in the south bay and there are like 2-3 in my neighborhood — or at least i see them driving through fairly often.
which compared to all the teslas and typical SV crap isn’t a whole lot but not too bad.
Nerd-Vol@reddit
The issue is what you will have with an enthusiast car that was expected to be a daily driver. If someone bought a fresh one in 2007 and drove it 12k a year, you’re at 200k+ miles.
Same reason why you tend not to see a lot of Neon SRT-4s. A ton were daily driven, so at some point they got worn out and sent to the great beyond.
patlaska@reddit
I seem to remember SRT-4s having some serious torque steer issues too. My buddies would walk all over, he over corrected and smacked a curb once. Im sure a good number were sent to the junkyard in similar fashion
Riverrattpei@reddit
Don't worry, Speed3's also had massive torque steer
srsbsnssss@reddit
200k mile is nothing for a mazda outside rust belt
Thomas_633_Mk2@reddit
Very petty reasoning but they're uglier than the SP23 and didn't come in yellow or the nice dark teal the regular 3 and SP23 did
PoopMuffin@reddit
They had engine failure issues that would make an EJ25 blush
mandatoryclutchpedal@reddit
Speed 3s werjunkyard. Lusted over. Hooned. Loved. Respected.
Then they got Mazda'd or modded and now they sit in junkyards. Rust and design flaws are a bitch.
Wait till you here about speed 6s
nowis3000@reddit
Yeah that’s why I’m keeping mine OEM+. It had one owner who was an older guy from Texas, so I’m hoping the well maintained survivors will start to be more appreciated
Ernie_Capadino@reddit
I loved my Speed6, but I had to get new tires for it every year. It was wild. And there was only one set of Goodyears that were good on it. Seriously, every year the outside edge of every tire was bald.
Bootrear@reddit
This test does not include the Suzuki Swift Sport and is therefor invalid. Costs nothing. Weighs nothing. All of the fun! I still have mine.
Captain_Alaska@reddit
Some inflation adjusted prices for more context with our current market:
bestselfnice@reddit
Cars have never tracked to CPI, its a bad way to measure things in this specific case
Sixgunslime@reddit
It is genuinely crazy how well cars have kept up with inflation yet they still feel so damn expensive
IcameforthePie@reddit
They felt expensive back then too. I remember being shocked at how expensive a fully loaded Celica GT-S was back in high school. Very comfortably middle class and no one in my family owned a car that cost that much.
Nerd-Vol@reddit
If Mazda could find a way to make a well equipped speed 3 in 2025 for sub $40k. It would be a hot hot item.
Captain_Alaska@reddit
I mean I fully think that would be doable, the base 2.5T AWD is $33k. It's not fully optioned but it isn't base spec either, assuming some tweaks to the power, suspension/tires and token cosmetic bits you would probably still be under $40k but go north of that with options.
Nerd-Vol@reddit
That’s a really good point. The weak links on the car would be transmission and the non independent rear suspension.
If they could solve those two aspects they could really make a modern MS3.
sonrisa_medusa@reddit
The 2.5T also isn't very exciting. I'm not sure if they could retune it for more character or not. As it is, it has a diesel-like torque profile and you really get nothing out of chasing it's low redline.
Tuxedo_Muffin@reddit
No Civic Si, no Cobalt SS. Neon SRT-4 had just ended production in 2005, so that makes sense.
Will_work_for_lewds@reddit
A couple years earlier was the Focus SVT too. I had one and regret selling it to this day. My current car is a Taurus SHO, but I would go back to my Focus if I could. It was so satisfying to drive and had such a great manual transmission.
Sea_Perspective6891@reddit
We used to have an 07 Mini Cooper S in electric blue with the black top. Fun little car but the suspension was lousy on bad roads.
LegateDamar@reddit
This shows how much the current WRX fails to deliver. A 2007 WRX ran the quarter mile in 14.1 seconds. A 2024 WRX Ts costs $43k and requires 14.4 seconds.
Captain_Alaska@reddit
You’re comparing the most expensive current WRX to the base 2007 WRX.
LegateDamar@reddit
Yes, because the most expensive current WRX is slower than the base one from 2007.
Captain_Alaska@reddit
And the base current car runs a 13.9 with a manual and is also less expensive adjusted for inflation.
Rebellious_Rabbit@reddit
Oh thank god. Now I can spend more time organizing my top 8 on MySpace
lifegoeson2702@reddit (OP)
& watch some MTV after
OptionsSniper3000@reddit
Viva La Bam. Then Wild Boyz. Then Adventures in Hollywood. Finish it off with Pimp My Ride
lifegoeson2702@reddit (OP)
& To Catch A Predator 🫡
Rebellious_Rabbit@reddit
Will probably drive one of these to warped tour this summer tbh
no_flair@reddit
Was the Civic Si not a thing back then?
DodgerBlueRobert1@reddit
It was. The 8th gen Si debuted for MY2007.
no_flair@reddit
I did a quick search of all the production years for the cars in the article, most of them came out in 2007, the Si sedan came out a couple months after this article.
The Mini Cooper S is technically also a coupe and yet the Civic Si coupe is nowhere to be found.
The Mk5 GTI has been in production since the 2005 model year but no 2006/2007 Civic Si to be found.
Makes no sense...
Captain_Alaska@reddit
Makes perfect sense, it very likely didn't have anything to do with the vehicles themselves, they probably just couldn't organise a press car in the timeframe of the shootout.
C4L1@reddit
Coupe came out in 06. Sedan was the MY07.
poopyface92@reddit
Still driving my 07 Si, but rarely see the same model yr cars from this test, usually only the odd GTI
Fiasko21@reddit
I remember growing up with these, I was a junior in high school in 07, I had an 05 STI, and picked up a 04 SpecV in auction as a beater, turned it into a track car during college.
I remember the Mazdaspeed 3 was blowing motors left and right. The GTI was unreliable as hell back then, but I think this is when "das auto" was a thing? The Si was such a joy to drive, and every Honda fan swore they could destroy any car with the right mods.
I honestly believe this is when cars hit the right balance of performance, efficiency, enjoyment, and repairability..
Big-Eldorado@reddit
Mazdaspeed 3 suffered from poor tuners doing odd things in the beginning.
I had a 2007 and a 2013 speed3. Phenomenal cars when modded correctly. Both mine were super reliable
Fiasko21@reddit
I bet! I drove my friend's one back in college and had a blast.
I think it also suffered from the same uneducated owner fate as all these turbo affordable manual cars.. lugging!
directionzero@reddit
Those were good times. I had an 08 MS3 back in the day and it was a blast. Traded it for an 09 STI and I missed the Mazda ever since. There was something special about that car that while the STI had way more power it just didn't match the charm of the Mazda.
CASE-90@reddit
To me, the golden age of car enthusiasts
goaelephant@reddit
I completely forgot that Sentra SARS-V existed... it was like a Temu Civic Si back in the day
Nerd-Vol@reddit
I had a 2007 Mazdaspeed. That car was super raw. I put on a stiffer rear motor mount and an intake. That vehicle was a tremendous amount of fun.
I wish Mazda still had the budget to make cars like that.
WarCrimeGaming@reddit
They need to do something with that inline six yeah.
Captain_Alaska@reddit
Do a Volvo and stick it sideways into the 3 to make a hatchback with a lot of power, a lot of understeer, and the worst turn radius known to mankind.
CapsizeDnB@reddit
No Honda showing? Pff
deleted_by_reddit@reddit
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