[V8] NAC Mazda reliaibility

[Mike Arman]

Dear Bride has had two Mazdas, a 1990 323 and now a 2002 626.

She bought the 90 new, drove the living you know what out of it. Needed a radiator because she went 
to the local Citgo station where they convinced her that the radiator needed to be reverse flushed, 
and the moron broke the plastic end cap on the radiator and never bothered to tell her - so why is 
my car overheating? I did front brakes (pads and discs) twice and rear brakes (shoes and drums) once 
in 120K miles, she also went through three or four half shafts and two timing belts and a muffler.

At 120K it was smoking and sounding a bit weary, so we found a junkyard engine with 45K on it and 
had it installed. A month later she got whacked head-on by some 16 year old brain-dead munchkin in a 
pickup truck who ran a light which totaled the Mazda and came damn close to killing her - this was 
in 2002, and she still suffers.

So - 90 323 Mazda, basically a cheap car, runs almost indefinitely with little to no maintenance, 
loud, rough ride, crude, but gets you there.

Replaced it with a 2002 Mazda 626, bought with 6K miles on it. Automatic, because her left leg 
wasn't working right yet (still isn't). Now shows just over 100K. Front brakes (pads and discs - 
they warp) twice, rear is coming soon - and the rear brakes are TINY, they look like something off a 
scooter. Two timing belt/water pump/roller/tensioner jobs, three or four half shafts, an alternator, 
full set of belts (serpentine, PS, etc.), again, nothing particularly unusual or disastrous.

The car is NOT particularly quiet or comfortable - she asked me why my 1986 5K Audi was 
significantly quieter and rode a lot better ("Dear, the Audi cost $33,000 in 1986, the Mazda cost 
$15,000 in 2002." She didn't like that.), the driver's sun visor retainer is broken, no one has the 
part or knows where it can be obtained, she's got it jammed in with cardboard or something. Seats 
LOOK plush, but give me a backache in 25 miles, the car isn't rattly, but does have quite a bit of 
engine and drive train noise (4 cyl), again, it mostly goes and goes and goes, totally uninspired 
and boring, and again, it gets you from A to B.

Admittedly, my "sample" is small, only two cars, but consistent. Mazda seems to provide cheap, 
durable transportation for people who basically dislike driving and cars in general.

(Good car for a parts runner for an Audi V8Q though!)

Best Regards,

Mike Arman