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Hey all,

I currently have an 04 Mazda3 - fully loaded, stick with the big engine - not the most efficient car out there, but fun to drive and well appointed.

Well, with te gas prices and my better half now driving to work, I have been muulling over a different car, and I discovered that by posted price, I could get into an 03 or 04 HCH for about $2k over the value of my current car ...

The cars have about 40-80k miles and some were certified

How well are the 03's and 04's holding up? I cannot imagine a manual Hybrid - is it a better option over the CVT, or not?

any other advice? Should I do it, or just stick with my current car?

Thanks for any feedback.

Igor

I think I'd wait a bit if I were you. The next gen hybrids are coming soon and they are supposed priced in the economy class below $20k. You'll have a ton of options in the next year or two if you can be patient and stick it out a little more. Your car is still fairly new and I don't think you want to shell out the money just yet (it's up to you of course).

I haven't heard of any major problems with the HCH I and there plenty of drivers here that could fill in on them if you're still interested (most do prefer manual for higher FE). If you feel it's a great deal, then by all means get it. Believe me, I want a hybrid/diesel so bad that it drives my girlfriend nuts every time I even mention it. But I'm going to hold out for the next few years to see what comes out.

Welcome to the site, Igor! :)

There are several Mz3's floating around on this site - I happen to be one of them. The 2.3L isn't the most efficient engine, but you can do great things with the stickshift. I must first say I strongly recommend holding on to your car.

psyshack is getting 44+ MPG in his 2007 Mz3 2.3L 5MT. I can get 39-40 MPG in my 2.0L 5MT with limited AC usage and 90-100% city driving. It's all a matter of employing the techniques we recommend here on CleanMPG to your driving. Here is a great link to learn the how's and why's of hypermiling. (http://www.cleanmpg.com/forums/articles/t-beating-the-epa-the-whys-and-how-to-hypermile-1510.html)

Good luck, and keep posting those questions! :D

My 03 is holding up fine. It has 57K miles on it with no major problems. I have a cvt. Manuals will get you better mileage, but depending on how you drive it you might need a battery replacement sooner than a cvt. So far there hasn't been a rush to replace batteries on any 1st gen HCHs so it might not really be a concern.

figure the percentage of EPA you are getting and then apply that to the estimated mileage of the HCH and you could get an idea of what to expect for your commute.