I might have found my new mx3!! some advice for me though??

[orty]

i used to own a 93 GS. Laguna blue. Now after putting a new tranny in it (automatic) i decided to sell it to get a truck. Well 4 years later im getting a new one hopefully. I found one in Illinois, a 1994 Gs Black 5spd. 86k miles Asking $4495. sound fair? Im thinking if they contact me back and i do go down ill try and haggle down to 4 out the door...but we'll see. As well i sold my last mx3 at around 80k is this new one at 86k going to treat me well for a while? (if not there is a red one in PA for $4995 with only 50k on it, automatic though)

thanks a ton
chad

[hgallegos915]

ouch almost 5000 dllrs :S

[Hoodzy]

automatics=shat

[projectmx]

that is pretty high.... check on ebay or auto trader there are several on there usually for great prices... i bought my first for 1800 and just needed some minor cosmetic work

[projectmx]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/93-MX-3- ... dZViewItem

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Mazda-MX ... dZViewItem

here are two from ebay first you can buy now for 4 grand with the klze swap already done to it even with lots of other little goodies installed

[orty]

thanks for the help but im looking for something with lower miles. regardless of engine. If needed ill do the KLZE swap myself at some point. As well i bought my first one with 66k miles for 3700 but it was auto...but also MINT condition and never saw winter. So if i can find one with low miles like the one i found i prefer that. on another note, when doing the engine swap is the mx3 tranny match right to the 2.5l ?
and how long (under normal driving!) do the clutches last in the manuals? and how hard are they to replace?

thanks again!

[projectmx]

not sure how much luck you'll have finding a low milage one... i bought my new one for $350 and then rebuilt a bp and dropped it in... all total if that was all i was doing the car would have cost 2 grand or less... but well lets just say i'm aiming higher .. where abouts are you from? autotrader.com would be a great place to look also

[orty]

someone still please answer my engine/clutch questions...but in answer to projectmx. I did find the lower mileage ones, one in Minnesota and one in Chicago area (just outside) And i have used autotrader and others to find some. Autotrader gives most results. That's how i found the one in Chi. area with 86k miles. Black 94 gs.

[mxmaz]

With a car that old maintainence performed on it should be more of a priority then mileage.

[orty]

yes i understand the maintenence but you can never be really sure. I would just really like my answers for the clutch life and dificulty most of all. And average life of most of these engines with good maintenence.

[mxmaz]

These engines are notorious for burning oil prematurely. Definitely check for that. Have it compression and leakdown tested. Clutch life depends on how it was driven. My mx3 had 185k(kilometers) on it and the clutch still held perfect. Its around a days labor to replace.

And dont even think of buy an automatic.

[PATDIESEL]

Agreed with MXMAZ. Get a manual only, you know the autos are crap. The K8 manual will bolt straight onto a ZE. The clutch if driven properly will last a long time. I had 130,000 miles on mine and three poeple that I know learned to drive a stick on it. I also wasnot very forgiving on the clutch. It is easy enough to replace as far a FWD cars go. It would take probably two days for a first timer. You also have to resurface the flywheel when you change a clutch and any shop that can do that usually takes 24 hours to get it done anyway. (so drop it off one day and pick it up the next)

I wouldn't trust milage too much. 86,000 miles equates to 7500 +- miles per year which seems SUPER low fo pretty much anyone. You can stop a car from clocking milage by taking the speedo apart. Then when you want to sell the car it is a 5 minute job to reconnect the speedo. You can also roll a MX-3 milage clock back-ward by hand if you have enough time to do so. Get one with alot of maitenance info and you'll be fine if it was kept up with.

4-5000 is very high for a early to mid ninties car that only sold for 15,000 brand new. I'd expect to pay no more than 3,000 for a good MX-3. Check Kelley Blue Book for confirmation on selling price if you need a bargaining tool. Even my car wouldn't sell for much more and I have a TON of mods.

[neumann]

I would seriously consider buying the car from a member of an enthusiast board like mx-3.com. People here are more likely to have taken proper care of their cars (or at least be honest about the flaws). They also have a history of posting and a reputation that may give confidence.

To echo other posters, I would not depend on mileage as a primary basis. It can be faked, and its also not a reliabel indicator even if real.

I have owned 5 used cars, acquired at various states. I will list them in order best to worst of actual condition and with mileage at the time i bought em:

1. 144,000 miles (pristine and still is)
2. 79,000 miles (whoah nelly she was a beauty)
3. 174,000 miles (some engine and electrical issues but otherwise cherry)
4. 143,000 miles (my current mx-3, it needed about $700 work but I paid practically nothing for it)
5. 24,000 miles (unsafe, a total piece of junk that chewed through oil and died in two years)

While obviously this is not a controlled sample, I think it is actually indicative of reality. You generally will not find a reliable trend based on mileage.

If someone has a reputation, a history, some service records and a good price, I would take that over an expensive, allegedly low mileage car anyday.

[orty]

ok the carfax checks out on the car....lots of service entries (oil changes) and all the mileages add up. So it actually was driven very little. And thus far i havent found a decent mx3 that is clean and running perf for a good price yet. I mean i understand only paying $2-3k but i dont want to have to fix the body and put much or any work into the motor/ drivetrain right off the bat, id rather buy a decent one (i won't pay 4500 for this one either..ill bargain down) that doesnt need work. lastly i blue booked this one and it BB's at 4830, so 4500 is a high value yes... but i think i can get them to bite on 3800 or 4000 no prob if i pay up front.

anyway thus far thanks for the answers.

[fowljesse]

It would be great if you find out what the car was used for. Often, low milage cars were used for jobs where the person sat with the A/C on, which is far worse for it than driving it. Check the seat firmness, but it's very hard to tell if the afore said is the case. Also, look close @ the odometer, to see if the numbers line up perfectly. If it really has that low of miles, and good service records, and you can talk them down, I think it's a good deal. My clutch has lasted 140,000 miles, and is still very strong. Good luck!