Mazda 6? Legacy? Other?

[B_giB]

Hi team.

Its getting time to upgrade my wagon.

I am looking at either a first gen Mazda6/ Atenza or 4th gen Subaru Legacy (non turbo).

What are the pro's and con's of both?

I will have roughly $11,000 to spend.

Is there anything else worth looking at? Ideally want a 4 cylinder around 2.0, Unless there is a 6 cylinder that offers excellent fuel economy.

Cheers.

[DeeCee]

I bought a 2007 Subaru Legacy 3.0R wagon in October after going through similar questions myself. Chose the Subaru because:
- Reasonably modern and up to date. Mine is facelift with full leather interior and McIntosh 11 speaker premium system.
- 3.0 with timing chain. This version of the 3.0L boxer is apparently more refined than the gen4 rev1 version.
- Tiptronic with paddles
- Intelligent mode along with Sport and Sport Sharp / #. Most of driving is in Intelligent fuel saving mode
- Can tow more than 1800kg (car + car trailer)
- Comes with 18x8's and Bilsteins
- Has full size spare, no space saver
- Dash lights up light a space ship lol
- Dual climate control
- I had a 1998 Subaru Forester prior to purchasing the Legacy, so was already aligned with owning Subaru's. Knock on wood, but nothing dramatic has occurred to me in my 7 years of Subaru ownership.

Pro's:
- modern looks and interior. Facelift looks better than revision 1, decent boot space
- 3.0 has timing chain, very smooth engine, can rev out to 6500rpm no issues and goes pretty well when you put the foot down in Sport #
- my friend has a 2004 3.0R. Fits two baby seats in the back and all the baby stuff in the boot they cart around
- 5 star ANCAP safety rating. Lots of airbags in there as well
- entry in to boot is almost flat. Sometimes you have a slight raise or a lip to get things over. Boot has a very slight lip to get over
- seats fold down almost flat creating lots of cargo space

Cons:
- Drink's a decent amount of fuel. I average 10.6 - 10.8L per 100km when I go lightly: http://www.fuelly.com/car/subaru/legacy ... e23/389141 don't mind the fuel consumption as the car was drinking fuel heavily when I picked up a new project in Auckland and towed it back to Wellington (expensive fuel weekend...) around ~50L every fill
- body rolls a bit when throwing around a corner. Then again, not like I'm expecting a race car experience
- for some reason, while I have power mirrors, there is no mirror folding switch. Seems weird, but I've got the controller module from a rev 1 and will look to install and get my mirrors retracting
- has headlight washers which don't work. Again, an option which is not working for some reason
- couple of little clunks from the front suspension. I suspect A-arm bushings, which I'm sure will come out in the WoF soon.
- stereo fascia fitting kit is around $700... no cheap options as the HVAC system is attached to the stereo trim, and mine has the dual climate control which makes it more interesting trying to find one. Stereo shops will charge you $1250 or so. Sometime they come up on TM for a couple of hundred.
- rear seats have a belt that comes from the roof. I just noticed this the other day, but the width between the left and right hand side belts is maybe 350 - 400mm. That is a very thin person in the middle if you have three people in the back. It really seems like a 2+2.
- have scraped the tow bar a couple of times on driveways and near embankments when reversing. Standard 3.0R is not super low, but has a nice profile, at the risk of my tow bar in this case.
- sloped roof creates smaller boot opening. I came from the Forester which I could squeeze a bonnet in the back. Unfortunately I couldn't do the same with the Legacy, though it is a bigger car.
- apparently there is some issue with the auto gearbox solenoid/sensor. Happened to my friend and it cost him a pretty penny at the time.

Thoughts:
- I like this car and like driving it. Comfortable, smooth engine and power, can rev it out when I want to and play with the paddle shifters if there are a couple of twisties.
- Likes to drink fuel, wouldn't want the car if on a set budget.
- Tows like a dream, though it drinks like a merchant sailor doing it
- Stereo is a pain to sort out if you wanted to change it. That fascia kit is one of the more expensive ones in the aftermarket (have removed the 'premium' McIntosh system and replaced with all aftermarket gear
- I maybe should have gone for an outback instead as it is slightly higher. The 3.0R has that nice profile, though I drive with a little caution over judder bars and curbs due to ride height.

Overall, I'll be keeping my car for a while. I picked it up for $7500 with 228km on the clock. Rather a good price tbh for the car I have.

Hope this helps. Anything else you want to know?

Dave

[dirty1]

Toyota crown or mark x. Either way they are well refined. 2.5l v6 crown does 12km/L on open road.

[thornz]

If your interested in something cheaper, just about to sell my 04 Subaru 3.0R, 195kms on the clock, full leather, heated/electric seats, cruise control, tiptronic etc
Check photos below.

http://s650.photobucket.com/user/thorns ... gacy%2030R

[edwagon]

The BP legacy and outback are dreadful for getting kids in and out of - the wagon glass is long and projects into the rear door opening, making it hard to get kids into their seat

Other than that they're pretty good - they chop through their Front lower arm rear bushes, and all versions like a drink, but they're a good wagon otherwise

[RS13]

We bought one of these, outstanding cars. Ours is the 1.8, hauls the family and gear nicely while being very economical.. with the IRS and 17s, also handles a lot more like a car than a wagon.