Topic: Good choices for small vehicles with automatic transmission?

[mrthompson]

Got yourself a sugah momma, there Shnakky?

[sirAQUAMAN64]

Well Shnak, there's little doubt when you pay more for a car you should expect more.

I think it would be wise to determine what you WANT to spend and choose from those cars, rather than choosing the car first and trying to stretch yourself into something leaving little fundage left for other things, like takin' that little lady of yours out for a change.

What is it you want again?

[Black Hatch]

Thats almost a relief.
Don't want someone to have the same car as mine
Seems like if you want fast acceleration on the Mazda6 auto... you need to use the manual mode.
In auto mode it hesitates quite abit and really likes to upshift before it should. Heard something about the gearing being different for the 2005 models but I am not sure. 1st gear seems pretty long.
The revs are pretty high when cruising at highway speeds, but its not that much of a deal because its quiet. You don't hear anything from the engine bay when you are cruising at highway speed.
Yes you should get the Accord and be boring
(And no hatch either)

[Saint11]

yeh...the mazda6 4 cyl auto tranny is not smooth at all. But it has all the power I need and I enjoy listening to the snarl when you gas it. i've set cruise control on 160 for that car and I don't find it to be too loud. Just my opinion.  
The accord is nice too though

[ovr50]

Bhatch6 - the 6 went from a 5 speed manumatic in 2004 to a 6 speed manumatic in 2005. I would assume the gearing would be different. I've not driven the '04 car, but the '05 V6 moves smartly thru the gears in full auto mode.

[Shnak]

Ovr, Mazda only as a 4-speed automatic transmission available on the 4-cylinder models while the V6 models have a 6-speed automatic transmission available. I haven't tried the V6 at all, so I wouldn'T know how good its transmission is... all I know is that I really didn't like the I4 transmission...

[Meridian]

how about a hyundai elantra gt? i don't know a whole lot about them, but i've read lots of good reviews. probably get a good deal on one too.

[Black Hatch]

Ovr... talking about gearing the I4 engine
not the number of gears...  
i just read some rumour on the mazda6club that gearing was different but I was speed reading through the forum so I am not sure if it is or not.

[ovr50]

OK, gearing for the I4 engine for the 4 speed manumatic for '05 MY is: 2.816, 1.553, 1.000, 0.695 w final drive of 4.416. For the V6, 6 speed manumatic is 4.148, 2.370, 1.555, 1.154, .859 and .865 w final drive of 3.464. This is from the MY 05 brochure.

[Saint11]

contrary to popular belief, the v6 is actually a derivative from jaguar and not ford...just a little point.

[Shnak]

Everywhere I've read, it says the V6 is a modified version of Ford's Duratec. See on CD's test drive article... http://www.canadiandriver.com/testdrives/04mazda6_gtv6.htm

Yeah, the Elantra hatchback interests me but the problem with it is that only GT comes with ABS, and the GT comes with sunroof... and with the sunroof, I just don't fit in the Elantra. They simply don't offer an Elantra with ABS and without the sunroof... disapointing.

Oh and talking about Hyundai, how come a brand new model like the Tucson doesn't even come with telescopic steering wheel?! That's kind of stupid for a new model...

[Meridian]

yeah, i know what you mean about sunroofs. i'm 6'3" and have a hard time fitting comfortably in many cars..too many really. throw in a sunroof and the problem is even worse.  

i found both the accord and mazda 6 excellent for front seat leg and head room. both cars offer really comfy driving positions. i sat in an 05 camry the other day and found the legroom really lacking. i was pretty shocked actually - i think a car that size should have tons of room. oh well, saves me test driving them. i can elimnate many cars just by sitting in them  

[Saint11]

i asked a ford dealer. its used in the X-type and S-type but who knows he could be wrong. but he seemed pretty sure of it.

[Black Hatch]

So Ovr I am right
I have my 2004 mazda6 brochure here (also on mazda.ca site)
'04 MY is: 2.816, 1.497, 1.000, 0.725 w final drive of 4.147
'05 MY is: 2.816, 1.553, 1.000, 0.695 w final drive of 4.416

In regards to headroom... I could wear a helmut in my 6. I'm 5-8 and i have like about 5 inches to spare to the top of the ceiling.

And didnt ya know that the Durotech was derived from a Porshe.

[safristi]

..which swallowed an Aston..which swallowed a Ferrari..which...OK so it's a fab engine...

[sirAQUAMAN64]

Shnak, for '05 the Elantra 5-dr is also available as a base non-GT model - thus without the roof at around $16K. But you may still need to move up to a model with roof for the ABS, I'm not entirely sure.

And yes, Camry is shockingly tight and more than anything the dash is shaped oddly, prodruding out where your knees would be. The A-pillar really comes in at you too. I don't find it roomy at all. An Accord or Jetta is 10X better. Mazda6 cuts the difference.

[wing]

No telescopic?  OMG! hehehehe, guess some features are just lost on me.  My car doesn't even have TILT!

[ovr50]

Just a small point but originally the idea was a "small car with auto". I don't think the Camry, Accord and even Mazda6 are small cars - midsize maybe. A 6 sedan is about 186" long, a Camry about the same. That's midsize to me. Mazda3 is small, as are Civics, etc. Are we offbase here or is the original title wrong?

[mrthompson]

But Ovr, this is Shnak we're talking about.  He doesn't do 'small'.  

[Shnak]

I consider the Mazda6 a "small car" while the Accord and Camry are in my mind bigger cars. Not sure why, but that's how I see it. Anyways, the 6 is now out of the equation.

And the Accord is just too "old" for me right now...  It's just not a car for a 24 year old guy living in an apartment with his girlfriend... when we get older and start thinking about kids, sure... but not now. So that leaves out the Accord/Camry too.

I'm pretty sure I'll end up doing nothing because it's going to be too big a financial hit to trade-in my Golf right now... I think it's either my girlfriend learns manual or that we'll buy a 3-4 year old Echo like she's wanted from the start, or maybe lease an Accent or something similar. We'll see.

I still have the Suzuki Aerio SX on my radar though... if I like how it drives with an automatic, and I can get decent trade-in value, coupled with maybe 1.9 or 2.9% financing, that might be what I'll do.

Corolla and Matrix will be too expensive interests-wise... my only other option would be a Vibe since they probably offer 0% on those things... But I really don't see myself driving a Pontiac...

The Spectra5 interested me also, but just like the Elantra, to get ABS, I have to get the power sunroof!!! And besides, I've read recently that the Spectra5 rates just about the worst ever in crash tests... No thanks...

I'll go to the VW dealership and go on a test drive of my car, but with an automatic transmission... It could turn out okay with all the torque the TDI engine provides... still unsure about the reliability of their auto transmission though... Or I might wait until the new Jetta comes in... but like Siraqua said, I doubt I'd get good deals on them... plus I'd have like 5-7% interest rates... So I guess the new Jetta is out too.  

James, when you're tall, you definitely need a telescopic steering wheel... If you don't, chances are your arms have to be stretched out all the time, which gets really unconfortable quickly. I was really deceived when I noticed that the Tucson didn't have that feature that virtually every new car coming out recently seems to have.