I get you. Is that the same a dark quiet car parks?
Printable View
Well, I sadly have to report that I wrote my lovely Mazda 3 off on Thursday - through some extenuating circumstances that I won't bore anyone with I hit a Discovery side-on... think I wrote that one off too.
I'm waiting for my insurers to advise me of their market valuation - expected tomorrow - but I checked what WBAC would offer and it was close to what I paid a couple of years ago (so I'm not too concerned about undervaluing). I need a car badly to get around/to the office so thought I'd have a look at what was out there, without expecting to find what I was actually after (that is, the mini-SUV version of the same car, in the same colour and with similar cream/black leather interior.
Well strike me down with a feather, but I managed to locate exactly what I was looking for - a Mazda CX-3 2.0 Sport Nav AWD, with the right paintwork/leather interior and low mileage - at Car Giant in Harlesden. This is the better of the two 2.0 SKYACTIV engines found in the CX-3, with a power output of 148bhp, a creditable 0-60 in 8.4 seconds, and a top speed of 124 mph. Anyway, I picked it up yesterday, and I'm happy as Larry with it (although it has to be said that I'm pretty low maintenance when it comes to cars, and don't yearn for all the bells and whistles). This cost £2.5k more than I paid for the Mazda 3, but then again the WBAC valuation for it is £2.5k higher as well, and within spitting distance of what I paid for it.
https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-...-qDQkSW6-L.jpg
https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-...-JQdbQhg-L.jpg
https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-...-sbjZsfV-L.jpg
https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-...-T2m5z6V-L.jpg
https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-...-j3gmD6f-L.jpg
Very, very good cars Mazdas. Well built and extremely reliable. A few in my extended family have had them over the years and swear by them (although the RX8 was a bit juicy!)
Sorry to hear that Tony, the CX are great , my sister has one, I had one on my shortlist and went with Corolla Hybrid instead , close call
Sent from my XQ-CQ54 using Tapatalk
They are, Alex, and this is my third in a row.
Cheers Dave. They're apparently one of the sportiest drives in the mini-SUV sector, with the only downside being rear space for families and cargo. However, given that there'll only ever be two at most in the car and the back seats fold flat, that's not an issue for me.
Glad you are safe, Tony.
My missus has the Sport Nav Cx-5 and loves it.
For me it doesn’t have enough poke. In other countries there is also a 2.5, which would be preferable, but a great car nonetheless.
The engine in mine produces 148bhp, will do 0-60 in 8.4 seconds, and has a top speed is 124 mph. I don't think that's lacking in poke for a car of this size/type and it's more than enough for me.
Worth noting that some have a different version of the 2.0 engine with an output of 114bhp. The performance on those is inferior, obviously.
Swapped to a Lexus GS250 last year - excellent quailty and performance but took me 3 months to get used to the drivers seat which is hard in comparison to the armchair comfort of the big volvos.
Vw Passat coupe and a Chevrolet Camaro Bumble bee ss edition.
I don't believe in the electric car propaganda, until there is better infrastructure and range, though the wife has a model 3. I will get a hybrid next. Was looking at the Toyota Corolla, but really like the new Honda Civic. The Yaris, Jazz or the Clio hybrids may be an option also.
That’s what I mean I had a 2001 2.0 Toyota avensis that had 114 bhp and did 0-60 in 10.5 sec that’s from a 22 year old car Volvo seem to be able to get 250 hp out of my xc60s 2.0 petrol engine I did have a sit in the new Mazda cx60 hybrid which was very nice though
Yeah, it's a much better engine than the older 1.8.
We don't care about the smaller boot on the 2.ltr and the interior is nicer in the Excel than the GR imo.
Infotainment not as good as German equivalent but it does a job, I think late 2020 got a revision which has android auto and better graphics. I still have android auto but only via usb ( never use it anyway )
All in all it's just a lovely car for just 2 of us. I travelled 600 miles round trip to get the Manhattan grey https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...229d2e5498.jpg
Sent from my XQ-CQ54 using Tapatalk
Thanks again. I actually prefer the looks of the Corolla, but the Honda has a very clever hybrid system, and more space, as well as being better to drive, according to motoring journalists.
They rarely seem to these days unless you drive silly miles a year. I remember back in the day when they were a proper perk for my father if you drove high miles.
I’ve opted out for the last decade plus, and upgrade with the residual value in the car plus cash each time. Couple of very generous opt out schemes in my past though. Grateful for that certainly!
Enjoy the new wheels & sorry to hear of the accident. This morning I was struggling to see how you hit the middle of the Disco. I then visited the West Country and someone tried to turn right at a roundabout from the left hand lane without any warning. Was an arse clinching moment, not even enough time to use the horn or swear at the carrot cruncher!
I grew up that way, so can call them that! [emoji23]
Yeah I've opted out for last 20 years , mainly so I could choose my own car but finances better anyway
Sent from my XQ-CQ54 using Tapatalk
Much more fun choices. Even if they require 4 seats I never have, but have always confirmed 4 seat car is always available if required.
In theory it was, but never needed it. I remember a 5 series co-car I had where in my 2 year ownership the rear seat had never been sat in. Joke to lug all that weight around for no reason. Comfy tho.
180 mile round trip to visit MIL today in torrential rain, have to say the Cayman was exceptionally well behaved and comfortable despite other road users. Looking forward to some slightly less damp drives on the horizon.
I occasionally drive a 2.0l Mazda CX30. The engine is tuned for torque at low revs. It's a joy to drive in everyday situations, and you can pretty much laze around in third gear. It's also perfectly competent on the motorway.
It doesn't go any faster if you rev it, and it sounds horrible if you do.
The power outputs of normally aspirated petrol engines hasn't changed an awful lot, unlike turbo charged engines, especially diesels.
Your XC60 (I assume T5 because it has circa 250bhp) is turbo charged. Your very very unlikely to get >100bhp per litre from a NA production petrol engine .
I recall from the 90s the (na) Honda CRX 1.6 vtec used to produce 160bhp - which was bang on 100bhp per litre and that was unusual at the time.
I took delivery of my dream car just before Christmas 19 months after ordering it. Due to various cockups by Nissan, it turned out to be the last GTR registered in the UK. I have only had one short drive in it as it hasn't stopped raining since delivery day, but first impressions are that it's raw and visceral. It will be epic on a sunny day once it is run in.
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...e8f9f938_c.jpg4a113a3c-b295-40f6-8dbe-a55624322e73 by Simon Gee, on Flickr
Fantastic car and colour - I have been on trips with friends who had one and it was a brutal thing to follow!
I also picked up my new GT3Touring before Christmas but with Cup2 tyres have not been further than Topaz for ppf.
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...5d104a33_c.jpg
That Corolla is a lot nicer than I was expecting, especially the colour. Mental last two cars too.
A couple of northern monkeys ran a GTR for a while for what seemed like shits and giggles and documented it on YouTube under EVIL GT.
Maybe worth a look if you are interested and since you have just bought one.
Sent from my SM-X200 using Tapatalk
Okay, so…
I was exiting a car park, intending to turn right. To the right of the car park, about five cars were parked on the pavement. In addition, there was one car effectively “double parked“ but actually on the road, and a car behind that one edging out in order to overtake. I realised that I had time to exit onto the road, so scanned left and then pulled out relatively quickly to ensure that no one did anything stupid. Unfortunately, I was the one who did something stupid; I was so distracted by the nonsense that was going on to the right that when I scanned to the left I failed to see the Discovery, which was almost level with the car park exit.
The rest, as they say, it’s history!
Everyone makes mistakes but often we're fortunate enough to get away with an accident so it's good to be reminded to rush less and take more care, I like to think of incidents like this that some would think of as 'unlucky' as actually 'lucky' because no one was injured; it could have been a lot worse if you were seriously 'unlucky' so some minor inconvenience is a small price to pay.
Keep safe out there people.
Glad nobody was injured. And that neither of you was on a bike.
I know how incensed I was when I stopped millimetres away from a car who did the same thing and told me he hadn’t seen me. The adrenaline was so high that I didn’t even want to hear him, let alone believe it. You have reminded me of the incident and showed that it is in fact perfectly possible even for a careful driver (if it is possible to not see a LR a bike has no chance).
It's very possible Marc, especially with extenuating circumstances, e.g.
- I was very distracted by the pandemonium on my right.
- Consequently I took less time than I might have done scanning the road to my left.
- The Disco was already past my field of vision, exacerbated by no. 2 above.
- It was a dull grey day, and a dull grey car.
These are reasons rather than excuses, and it was still clearly my own fault. However, it demonstrates how circumstances can serve to create risk, and that's when we need to be particularly vigilant.
Thanks, btw.