Buying a 2010 Speed3 from Downsview Auto

[Dallas87]

Well sad to say I bought a 2008 speed3 last summer, and its already blowing smoke. My fault entirely, I got a really good deal so I rushed into it, without doing a compression/leakdown test. Now im facing issues that far exceed the cars value. Its a shame too, otherwise the car is in good shape, no rust, still feels tight... I spent a while debating on whether or not I would just pony up and get it fixed.

So, now I'm debating getting a new speed3 all together.

First off I am in love with the speed3, there is no compromise for me, you get a ton of performance at such a great price. It would be my fourth Mazda 3, Ive been loving/driving them since 2004.
After shopping around, I really dont see myself in any other car at this point.

So I found a 2010 White Speed 3 (Stock) at Downsview Auto. 96,000km @ 13,990. Leather/Tech Package. They allow for you to take the vehicle to a shop of your choice (I will be taking it to Dave's Garage) to inspect the vehicle.

Anyone have any experience with Downsview Auto? So far they seem pretty good.

My options are - rebuild/motor swap the 2008 speed3 or buy the 2010. Opinions?

Is 13,9990 seem like a fair price? (Any input would help, this is the best price I could get for a stock 2010 in good shape.)

Thanks for any help!

[Dave_The_BMXER]

Personally I'd avoid downsview like a plague based on earlier reviews and planted reviewers on this site.

[Flagrum_3]

Personally I'd avoid downsview like a plague based on earlier reviews and planted reviewers on this site.

Most definitely agree with this statement.

@Dallas87 -If it were me, I'd rebuild the engine. You will get near zero dollars for your Speed if you trade or sell it, and your looking at near 15k to replace it with no guarantee the replacement will not fail either. If your present Speed has no rust and is still tight, its worth fixing in my humble opinion.

Good luck whatever you decide, but keep away from Downsview Auto.


_3

[JonsMazda]

DON'T DO IT! YOU'VE BEEN WARNED!

[Dallas87]

Thanks guys, was able to find a few threads on downsview and although some people have had good experiences, some people posted some absolute nightmares. Looks like if it is option B, it will be from somewhere else.

I Ran my own carproof against theirs and found discrepancies... Red flag one.
Asked about test driving once I put my deposit down...They wont let you test drive. Red flag two.
They bring in cars from quebec which have a different collision reporting system than us. Most of their inventory is from quebec. Red flag three.

At least they let you bring it to a Mazda dealership or mechanic of your choice...but from what I see I get the feeling id just be throwing away my deposit to get a lemon inspected.

They say buying cars used is a gamble...thats probably why its such a rush.

[JonsMazda]

Go to reputable dealers with good reviews.

Thanks guys, was able to find a few threads on downsview and although some people have had good experiences, some people posted some absolute nightmares. Looks like if it is option B, it will be from somewhere else.

I Ran my own carproof against theirs and found discrepancies... Red flag one.
Asked about test driving once I put my deposit down...They wont let you test drive. Red flag two.
They bring in cars from quebec which have a different collision reporting system than us. Most of their inventory is from quebec. Red flag three.

At least they let you bring it to a Mazda dealership or mechanic of your choice...but from what I see I get the feeling id just be throwing away my deposit to get a lemon inspected.

They say buying cars used is a gamble...thats probably why its such a rush.

[Mazdy]

Zoom zoom Boom

[kaleshnikov]

My family purchased our first Mazda3 from Downsview Auto. Nothing majorly went bad with the car, and the experience was fine. We lucked out.

I was shopping for a Mazda a few weeks ago, and I went to Downsview Auto to check out their inventory. The sales guy I was working with gave me quite an intimate tour of their facilities. The reason why they have so many of these cars, and at aggressive prices, is because they get these cars from Quebec for cheap and perform extensive rehabilitation on them. If you go to their dealership, go to the east end of that same plaza (effectively, the "back" of the plaza) and you'll see a ton of their cars that are pre-sale condition, that have not yet gone through their rehab process.

Each car goes through body work, mechanical work, detailing, before it's ready to be sold. A lot of the Gen1's will have Bondo work done to cover up the rust.

This in itself is not exactly bad, but you're gambling on their rehabilitation work to be quality (due to the tight margins in the used car market, it won't be), their mechanical rehabilitation work to be quality (again, same consideration), and the car's unique history that you won't exactly know because they sell you the car "patched up".

The lack of test drive is a risk to take, as a mechanical inspection can only reveal so much .

If you have time before purchasing a MS3, try to buy one privately and try to buy it as close to possible as trade-in value. Try to buy a car that is honest, that hasn't had anything done to it to try and conceal its history. All used cars have faults, and a history, and the more you know about it the better you're able to make your decision as to what risks you're willing to take, and what you're not.

[Dallas87]

My family purchased our first Mazda3 from Downsview Auto. Nothing majorly went bad with the car, and the experience was fine. We lucked out.

I was shopping for a Mazda a few weeks ago, and I went to Downsview Auto to check out their inventory. The sales guy I was working with gave me quite an intimate tour of their facilities. The reason why they have so many of these cars, and at aggressive prices, is because they get these cars from Quebec for cheap and perform extensive rehabilitation on them. If you go to their dealership, go to the east end of that same plaza (effectively, the "back" of the plaza) and you'll see a ton of their cars that are pre-sale condition, that have not yet gone through their rehab process.

Each car goes through body work, mechanical work, detailing, before it's ready to be sold. A lot of the Gen1's will have Bondo work done to cover up the rust.

This in itself is not exactly bad, but you're gambling on their rehabilitation work to be quality (due to the tight margins in the used car market, it won't be), their mechanical rehabilitation work to be quality (again, same consideration), and the car's unique history that you won't exactly know because they sell you the car "patched up".

The lack of test drive is a risk to take, as a mechanical inspection can only reveal so much .

If you have time before purchasing a MS3, try to buy one privately and try to buy it as close to possible as trade-in value. Try to buy a car that is honest, that hasn't had anything done to it to try and conceal its history. All used cars have faults, and a history, and the more you know about it the better you're able to make your decision as to what risks you're willing to take, and what you're not.

After shopping around, the best price and value still came from Downsview. I decided to take a chance, from my own inspection the car looked to be in great condition.

I only had one issue, which in the end I am happy to say was dealt with. After about a week of having the car, I started to get a Cylinder 3 misfire. After taking back to downsview twice, (their techs tried the simple fixes to no avail), I decided to bring the car to a good shop I knew of: Daves Garage.

After a long diag, (testing everything leaving the wiring for last) we found the issue to be a faulty fuel injector. When taking the bill back to Downsview, I was surprised to hear that they would cover the cost of the Diag and repair. I was told this isn't something they usually do as all warranty covered repair has to be done through their shop. I would avoid their shop Autotov, as they really had no idea what they were doing when it came to a speed3.

After a bit of work, I am now a happy owner of a Gen2 Mazdaspeed 3. Though my experience with Downsview in the end was good, I wouldnt recommend getting a Speed3 from them, as they are a little inexperienced when it comes to that car.

If you are looking for a good cheap beater, and are willing to fight for a good price, downsview can actually provide a decent service.

The plus: You can get really good deals. Way below market value.
The minus: Gambling with polished turds, not the best place for an inexperienced buyer.

[morganc]

Did not like my time shopping around there at all. Skettttchyyyy