Faults:

Spring on driver side keylock cover broke.

General Comments:

Great to drive.

Very neutral handling for a front wheel drive, possible due to its low center of gravity.

For a great handling car, it soaks up major bumps/holes in the road brilliantly, due to having MacPherson struts all round, not just at the front.

Smooth, powerful and flexible engine. Driven carefully, returns the fuel economy of a much smaller car, due to its aerodynamic shape and flexible engine.

For a 9 year old car, everything works perfectly, with no creaks or rattles.

Carries a large amount in the boot, even if it is a bit on the shallow side.

Faults:

Just little things, like belts, and

CV joins make noise, when it is cold the engine has a rattling noise, but after it's warm this baby screams for power!

General Comments:

I love this car, even though it is an automatic I love it! lots of power! and very fast for a high schoolers car! I'm wanting an exhaust, but don't know what kind I want!

Faults:

I need to qualify this by saying these are all normal high-mileage things (although they happened all within my 4 months of first owning the car, and I'm in about $2700 CDN now).

- VCG gaskets replaced ($$$ because of the awkward location).

- Plugs, wires, distributor.

- TPS replaced, throttle body cleaned.

- Today, water pump replaced (again, $$$ due to awkward location).

- Wipers are sensitive to resistance - be sure there is absolutely no snow on the windshield before turning the wipers on, or the wiper mechanism will dislocate. Figure about 2 hours of your time if you're not a mechanic like me.

General Comments:

Pluses: When it's running, I love it. Nimble and quick, decent mileage, good safety ratings and 2 airbags, and I like the way it looks. I'm fine with the stock stereo. mx6.com is an awesome support site.

Minuses: I'm conditioned now to fear driving it (but, as I said, it's normal for stuff to happen at this 'age'). In retrospect, I would have gotten an older and cheaper one that had already passed through the 'multi-repair' stage, and saved some cash/aggravation (but damaged my pride).

Other stuff: Only 1 cup holder (on driver's side vent), which keeps your hot drinks cold in the summer, and warm drinks cool in the winter :(, The trunk struts lose support after 7 years or so; trunk is roomy, but awkward to access; auto antenna sticks; teeny glove compartment.

I'd strongly recommend finding a mechanic familiar with this model, so your estimates don't surprise you.

Faults:

I have a 1996 Mazda MX-6. The only problem I have with the car is the transmission. The O/D is a constant problem, and the car jerks and it used to stop while driving on the highway. In order to get the car to work, I have to first drive it in Reverse, then put the gear back in drive, but before I press the gas, I have to click the overdrive button to turn it off, it gives a little jerk, then it drives, but I can feel a drag while I'm driving. The transmission is an automatic.

There is a class action lawsuit being pursued against Mazda. I encourage everyone who's had a problem with their transmission to join in the suit.

Faults:

Engine light comes on about once a month. It stays on for a day or two, then turns off on its own.

Weird screeching noise occurs from the front right wheel when rolling in reverse. Tried to get it fixed, but the noise still persists.

Other than that, nothing has gone wrong with this car, but then again, I haven't had it long enough to really experience anything major going wrong with it.

General Comments:

I love the styling of this car! It is so damn sexy from the right angles! The ladies definitely love the look, and I never get tired of turning heads.

I just graduated from high school, and I love peoples' disbelief when I tell them that I bought this car with my money, and not my dad.

The V6 engine creates some wonderful power, and even though I have no previous car to compare it too, it definitely manages to throw passengers back in their seats when I gun it.

With the car being so low to the ground, it handles very well. Taking corners at 70 km/h are a breeze.

The black leather interior is very classy and comfortable, and matches well with the black dash and tinting.

The temperature controls are excellent, with the air conditioning being ice cold, and the heat taking only a few minutes to warm up the inside.

The stock stereo is surprisingly good, although I'm saving up my money to put in a deck, amp and subs anyway.

The stock muffler is also fairly loud on its own too.

There are many areas for customizable improvement., such as the huge muffler slot that begs to be fitted with a monster custom exhaust.

The stock wheels are much too small as fifteens. Luckily, there is plenty of space in the wheel wells to allow up to 20s to be fitted.

This is my first car, and absolutely love it! I treat it like my baby, and I am a very proud father of having it. My neighbours must think I'm crazy, because I'm always washing, cleaning and polishing my car. Although it has severely hampered my spending budget, it is definitely worth it.