Mazda Dealers are all talk

[Ilivfor6]

Have been looking at buying the wife a new car. Have considered a second Sportivo but she really likes the Mazda SP23 sedan. I can't argue too much considering the Mods she has let me do without many complaints!

So I thought I should check the Mazda out before deciding to take the wife to see it

Well I have just come back from a Mazda dealer checking this car out. It goes something like this:

A youngish salesman comes over to me and asks if he could be of help. I tell him the wife is looking for a new car and have been considering a Corolla Sportivo.

"In my opinion" he goe's "having driven both the Sportivo and SP23 the corolla is no competition, the SP23 will easily accelerate away because of its bigger engine and leave the corolla well behind. I found the corolla lacking and so have all the motor reviews in the papers, and after numerous track days with Mazda I have to say the SP23 is a great performance car for the money" These are almost his exact words.

His corolla bashing went on for a few more minutes and then continued on the spirited test drive of a sp23 (demo with 10,000km on the clock) with him telling me to open it up and feel the acceleration. As we pull back into the yard he says "You won't get that performance in a corolla" mind you the breaks had turned very spongy & soft.

Really I said pointing out into the street "see that sportivo sitting way over there... that's mine and it ain't lacking in anything. I've had a couple SP23's go me at lights and let just say they were reading my rear plate from a distance"

"Not if they were serious" his reply. I was growing tired of all his talking so decided to see if he would walk the way he talked and back himself up so made him the following offer.

"Ok then what say you back what your preaching. Lets line the cars up out in the sidestreet (the street was pretty empty) and give them a run, no need to tell anyone. If you can beat me I will come in and sign a contract, no questions asked no haggling. Sh#t if it wins I'll give my wife the Spotivo and keep the Mazda myself."

"Serious if you can prove it is the quicker car I will buy it"

The offer was declined while still protesting he was right. What a *****

Oh and by the way they were asking $33800 driveaway for a manual with no extra's.

Yeah the car was nice, but there was no smile generated on my face as I played with it well into the redline.

[black455]

Well done mate! You should at least have taken that guy for a ride in your stivo to wake him up from his day dream

[Sport1vo]

get the red sportivo from josh sady - essendon (the last one they have for sale), i think they have gone down to $27ish drive away

also why don't we all rock up with our stivo's in front of this mazda dealership for the next meet?

[Ilivfor6]

Yeah already spoke to mike (the general Manager at Josh Sady) and they have sold that last red one, besides he said he would not want to sell it to me as 1 sportivo in the family is enough.

He is a really close family friend, always trying to look out for me, and felt that I should consider something a lot cheaper and more family friendly like a sedan. I think he has hopes my wife and I will start a family soon - Cold shivers just raced down my spine :o

But the wife, who is forever saying she has never had a new car, would luv something a little more sporty. I think she's a closet car chick just waiting to burst out :D :D

[stauff]

Haha, nice work. Funny stuff!

I haven't met any sp23s on the road yet, but now I think I'll look forward to it.

- Matthew

[peekay]

By the way car is definitly sold. I told some about it and it was sold straight away. Interesting Stew didn't tell me about that one on the phone today... :P :P

[DANZZT231]

I think value wise, sp23 is the better option. its got very nice features as std. But for performance wise, the sportivo is a better one.

[Sp33dY]

Have driven a Sp23 for 2 days straight, and having a 300m fang up the road in PeeKays car ..... there is no comparison, the Toyota would win hands down as far as acceleration goes. The Sp23 is very comfy and a lot more modern looking, but a the end of the day u cant beat toyota for resale value and reliability. The base model Sp23 is also a bit skimp on features i thought, and the bright red/blue dash/console at night is a bit harsh on the eyes.

Put it this way,

You can try and compare a SP23 to a Corolla Sportivo

You can also try and compare the Corolla Sportivo to a Integra Type R (VTEC vs LIFT)

You could NEVER compare a SP23 to a TypeR

If u want a comfy cruiser that will get a lot of looks, grab a SP23.

If u want a comfy cruiser that u might take to the track or hills, grab a Corolla!

Eitherway, i didnt feel the SP23 was as good as it was hyped up to be!

[lucio_libre]

Ay Stewie!!!!! you didnt actually think the dealer was gona drag you now did you???

[Ilivfor6]

Ay Stewie!!!!! you didnt actually think the dealer was gona drag you now did you???

No that is why I made the offer. But you can live in hope!

If he had of said yes I would have become a little nervous, but in the end I had just driven the SP23 so new it was a safe bet. It just does not have the punch.

Have spoken with the misses about me following in my car while she is on the test drive and will run each other if the oppurtunity arrises. And believe me we will make the oppurtunity arrise!

I would love to see the guys face as he sits next to her and watches me pull away. I will have to get a bigger mirror

This guy has just got my back up a little so now I feel I need to prove a point. It must be my scottish blood

[Northy]

i would pay money to see the look on his face haha. There is nothing sweeter then being able to show a car sales man/women how there car is not as hot as they think it is

[MR22ZZ]

I personally think the SP23 isn't as bad as you may think.... It may suck stock, but is more easilly tunable then the stivo. The 2.3 engine has a much lower compression ratio than the stivo and old SP20 2L engine so I feel would respond quite well to turboing... with a little work I'd be a damn quick car... so just a work of caution before you get a rush of blood at the lights, know your competition.... give them a little respect...

[Ilivfor6]

I personally think the SP23 isn't as bad as you may think.... It may suck stock, but is more easilly tunable then the stivo. The 2.3 engine has a much lower compression ratio than the stivo and old SP20 2L engine so I feel would respond quite well to turboing... with a little work I'd be a damn quick car... so just a work of caution before you get a rush of blood at the lights, know your competition.... give them a little respect...

I agree. It is a nice car, it's just not the stock performance car the salesman was trying to make it out to be.

If I was looking at a small car to do forced induction to the SP23 would definately be it. It would be easy to get that thing hammering and an increadible drive with a hairdryer bolted on.

Maybe there's an idea for Mazda to do a real performance model. I'd buy that!

[DANZZT231]

The SP23 is supposed to be a damn good handling car. I like the sedan :P

[MR22ZZ]

It took them years to get a turbo MX5 again after the original so dunno how long it will take them to make a turbo 3, if at all....

[unfamilia]

having just done the same comparisson, i have just bought a silver 2004 model sportivo (there about 30 australia wide left for sale once the "service bulliton" has been acted upon and the are up for sale again).

Sp23 is good but not for 32000, thats the best deal i could get, better than the 34000 tfrom the fish smeeling guy in essondon mazda. (manual drive away).

Bought the corrolla as it drives and the gear shift is infinatley better than the sp.

The sp has teflon coated gears that feel like your mixing glue in a tin of crap.

Thabnks for the tip on the phone the other day stewie, love the site.

[MR22ZZ]

welcome aboard unfamilia

[ZEEROLLA]

SP23 does have a better suspension design than the Stivo but engine technology wise i still feel the 2ZZGE is way more advanced. SP23 has 500cc more capacity so produces much more torque hence more driveable but look at the power:weight ratio and the Stivo is much better. Power:Weight ratio is crucial. Lotus Exige 111R does 0-100 in 5.2!

I also looked at the SP23 before buying the Stivo but did not like the colourful interior, too contrasting for my liking. I liked the 17inch whels and flared guards but that was about it. I purchased my Stivo for a bit more than most other people here but i got over $1500 worth of freebies from Toyota and i am happy, plus Mazda wanted $33500 for a SP23. I am not going to pay that much for a Mazda. It was more a juggle between Honda and Toyota for me.

[shaohaok]

i test drove an SP23 as well. nearly bought one coz i got fed up waiting for my sportivo. i think they are in a different sort of category. its more a sportier cruiser and more refinement. its a nice drive tho. but i wouldn't say its as big a rush to drive than the sportivo. dun really need to go too fast to have fun. it's more warm than hot, in my opinion.

[CAP]

Doesn't the SP23 share it's chassis with the new Volvo S40?

[E-Gene]

My first choice for a new car was actually the Mazda3, really wanted the SP23 sedan in titanium grey. But it was really the price that made me change my mind. I drove the SP23 Auto but wasn't really impressed, in fact, at that point I felt that my Vectra felt gutsier than the SP23. But then again I never got the chance to drive the manual. Manual Mazda3 was average.

But you've got to love the look of the car. The front looks like the Mazda6, back and the interior looks like the RX8. In terms of styling, SP23 has me. But in terms of raw engine prowess, woohoo, the Stivo definitely takes the cake! :D Can someone say "zoom zoom" to that!

[Ilivfor6]

having just done the same comparisson, i have just bought a silver 2004 model sportivo (there about 30 australia wide left for sale once the "service bulliton" has been acted upon and the are up for sale again).

Sp23 is good but not for 32000, thats the best deal i could get, better than the 34000 tfrom the fish smeeling guy in essondon mazda. (manual drive away).

Bought the corrolla as it drives and the gear shift is infinatley better than the sp.

The sp has teflon coated gears that feel like your mixing glue in a tin of crap.

Thabnks for the tip on the phone the other day stewie, love the site.

Hi mate,

Nice to see you made it to the site. I just hope it does not get to too eager while waiting for your car.

Look forward to seeing you at the next meet

Cheers

[Sport1vo]

having just done the same comparisson, i have just bought a silver 2004 model sportivo (there about 30 australia wide left for sale once the "service bulliton" has been acted upon and the are up for sale again).

Sp23 is good but not for 32000, thats the best deal i could get, better than the 34000 tfrom the fish smeeling guy in essondon mazda. (manual drive away).

Bought the corrolla as it drives and the gear shift is infinatley better than the sp.

The sp has teflon coated gears that feel like your mixing glue in a tin of crap.

Thabnks for the tip on the phone the other day stewie, love the site.

Hi mate,

Nice to see you made it to the site. I just hope it does not get to too eager while waiting for your car.

Look forward to seeing you at the next meet

Cheers

So Ilivfor6

Which cars are you looking at apart from the Mazda3?

C'Mon, get another Stivo. With your and Peekays mods, its bound to be another nice ride. B)

[Ilivfor6]

I am actually in the middle of convincing my wife to go a new corolla sedan sport and have the suspension done similiar to mine, larger alloy wheels, exhaust (have to speak to Danz about that), CAI and unichip.

That would be a sweet ride for her (heck for just about anyone) and I think a lot more fun to drive than the SP23. And I will still have 6-7 grand left in my pocket for my car :D

If she goes the sp23 I told her at its cost it would need to stay stock, and she does not like the sound of that!

I have slowly turned her from "It's only a bl@@dy car why do you need to do that to it" (and very loud mind you) to wanting to be one of the girls out Fast & the Furious. She has even started a gym program to try and get herself into similiar shape as them. Big smiles from me, I just keep on winning out of that :D :D :D

[peekay]

Knowing both of you as I do yeah I am really convinced ..... :P :P :P :P