Hi guys, I'm torn between these 3 cars:

1. Mazda 3 2009
2. Honda City ivtec 2009
3. Proton Inspira 2011


Does anyone know the maintenance and ownership costs between them?

I have some rough idea about city and inspira's maintenance, but not so sure about mazda 3. (their fb group does seem to be accepting me in)

Which one will you go for? I'll be driving the car for 7 years if everything goes right

I think the City should have lowest maintenance cost, being a 1.5L car and popular model with tons of 3rd party accesories and half cut parts.

Rare model always cost a lot more, wanna find half cut parts also difficult. You sure want 2009 Mazda 3?? IMO, the car is too cramp inside...worst than B-segment...

This post has been edited by Matrix: Nov 17 2014, 06:54 AM

7 years?
The cars you listed above already clocked 5 years.
Most cars wouldn't last more than 10 years anyways.
Means you left approximately 5 years to use it.

Why don't settle for a new car instead.

city mia airbag kill people wor

I think that was 2003 or 2004 city lar. Anyway, got recall what.

Yup I'm ok with the mazda 3. I don't ferry a lot of passengers. Usually only me and my gf

Maintenance even better than the inspira u mean? Wouldn't a local car be cheaper to maintain?

Can you/ anyone give me some numbers on the maintenance though? It would be great. Ty so much

I could, but considering that I could be getting better cars for the similar price, it's a no brainer

That said, the maintenance and ownership costs play a role in my decision as well.

If a car is well maintained, then shouldn't matter even if over 10 yrs old.

Mazda is said to have them 'hard to resell', inspira is 'made by proton' and honda has a lot of parts. remember that all cars are made only to last 10 years before they 'are needed to be replaced' - no matter how good you maintain it..

Older cars are different. They are made for forever.. newer cars engineered and the companies have directions to 'force' people buy new models and ditch the old ones.. (so they'll be forever in business) Ha ha

so, mazda and city will last till 2019, inspira till 2021 (if the engineers calculation are correct).. hehehe

I have/have had all 3 in the garage coincidentally

I'd rank my preference as below, without knowing the prices that you have been offered for them

1. Mazda 3 2009 2.0
2. Proton Inspira 2011 2.0P
3. Honda City ivtec 2009 1.5E

All 3 cars maintenance is decent, no major problems with all 3. Inspira is most comfortable but service was the worst (Proton service centre). Mazda service is quite OK, Honda ok ok (my service centre usually washes the car for free)

Mazda 3 is best to drive, City is a whole different class from the other 2 (much less refinement, B-segment after all). Proton has a stigma attached to it, but if you can look beyond that, its decent

Well if u estimate the car to last for 5 years then it should be a good buy

By the time the car hits 100k km above, a lot of things need to be changed
And the car have to undergo major servicing

Wow what a coincidence bro! Which one is the easiest to maintain?

Any ideas about the the services and maintenance when the cars are not within the warranty period?

Btw, I'm considering mazda 3 1.6 and inspira 1.8AT. As the 2.0 versions are out of my budget

This post has been edited by drumstix: Nov 17 2014, 02:51 PM

No ideas on the M3 1.6 and Inspira 1.8. Similar body shell but totally different engines.

I think similar in terms of parts availability and service centre wait time. All 3 of mine haven't had major issues that required warranty, so can't tell you much.

As for service centres, from my experience there are good and bad ones for every brand. Mazda used to be poor but have recently bucked up, but I'm not sure how it will be since their sales figures rose considerably.

Ironically, I find Honda the worst, mainly due to the fact that it is the most crowded.

Haven't paid much attention to cost, which means that they didn't cost a bomb

Inspira>all

good secondhand price (meaning bad resale value for first owner)
high cc
spacious
cheap maintenance
lots of parts in market
no need to send back to proton. bawah pokok mechanics know the car.
mod potential for 1.8manual

mazda 3 and inspira is different segment compare to city but i heard many of user said that mazda 3 for that generation is not impressive,not sure what about the problem
while inspira will be suitable for sporty driver,handling sure will be better than city and u can transform it to lancer also
city fuel consumption i think will be better on highway,city drive the fc is just normal,not so save like vios,other than that city space is quite big,506litre boot also,suitable for small family

let me highlight some part price..

headlamp .. RM1700 each side.
aircon compressor .. RM3800
windscreen .. RM2500 ... (mitsubishi with rain sensor socket)
brake pads .. RM400 ++ .. front pair


cheap eh

let's see the POSSIBLE comments of ppl who will say about your car when yamcha.

Mazda: how much you bought? maintenance high or not? got resell value? next time i want to sit your car lehh...
City: not bad worrr... how much is your FC? why no buy the new one?
Inspira: walao, with that money Y U NO BUY XXXX??? (you name it)



afterall, Inspira is not a bad car to begin with.

msian mentality only can accept TOYOTA AND HONDA. other than that all is shit car

so CITY FTW . even after 10 years u wont lost $$$ so much .

This post has been edited by nagflar: Nov 17 2014, 05:03 PM

this.

Try not to get the 1.8AT for inspira. A lot of things missing compared to 2.0L version. No paddle shifter, no leather seats, no auto wiper, no auto headlamp, no auto cruise and quite a number of other stuffs. Brand new that time, price difference around 6k difference I remember compare to 2.0P .

I only know City will have cheaper maintenance than Inspira and Mazda 3. Not sure between Inspira and Mazda 3.

Examples? What are the things that may need changing ?

A car is not designed to be driven for 10 yrs without need to change anything.
Sure have to maintain = change parts which worn out.

https://forum.lowyat.net/topic/1572035/+2660
normal service + cabin filter and brake fluid.

p/s : at 100k service it cost 1,9XX

if i buying a 2nd hand car I'll do major service regardless of mileage

if cannot afford the service better dont buy

This post has been edited by edison1437: Nov 17 2014, 06:24 PM

Thanks for your output bro. But if the car isn't under warranty anymore, then I will service it elsewhere (not SC). Less hassle and most of the time cheaper iinm.

High cc isn't a plus point for me bro. As long as weight to power ratio and pickup are reasonable, I would prefer a car with smaller cc.

And I prefer a auto, 1.8at and 2.0 difference about 5-6k.

This post has been edited by drumstix: Nov 17 2014, 06:45 PM

Yea, I've heard and read a lot about the inspira and city ivtec, but no so much regarding the mazda 3 (non skyactiv) though

Any deas about its pick up and acceleration?

Haha, did your mod your inspira to a lancer?


Thanks for your output bro!

MODIFICATIONS TO PRIVATE VEHICLES

There are modifications that can be performed without prior JPJ approval. However, these must be made according to the specified guidelines. The types of modifications are:-

1. Spoiler, side skirt and aerofoil installation.
2. Door visor installation.
3. Front and rear bumpers; and kangaroo bar installation.
(Kangaroo Bar) pada bahagian hadapan kenderaan.
4. Installation of larger rims and tyres.
5. Sunroof/moon roof/canvas top installation.
6. Stepladder/boat/surfboard rack installation
7. Manual to automatic transmission change
8. 8Canopy/canvas installation
9. Winch, winch bar, side step, rear bar and snorkel installation
10. Roof rack/bike carrier installation
11. Spotlight installation

Prohibited modifications to vehicles include:-

1. Body part/body kit installation that changes the vehicle's identity.


So mod to lancer is consider illegal by JPJ

Source

This post has been edited by k!nex: Nov 17 2014, 06:51 PM

If mod to Lancer bumper but keep Protong badge leh?

Got ghost one leh

ROFL

This post has been edited by dares: Nov 17 2014, 07:18 PM

TS i dont want comment on ur financial status, but if u ngam2 can afford a c seg car (m3 and inspira).. U better think twice.. FC is no where near b seg. Not to mention all tear n wear are pricey.. A sets of good tire which can keep ur arse on the road will be 1500++ min.. Where else b segment rm1000 can settle with quite good tires d..

Juz my 2 cents.. Dun juz look at the affordable monthly installment..

U don't mislead people.. What Mitsubishi? People say is made by proton la Campro inside la. Sure cheap la.

maintenance wise, inspira is more towards expensive side..

ahh... Now I understand, no wonder it cost a bomb...

If sent back to authorized SC, they will charge labour for normal checks... i.e just checking the condition of the spark plugs or simple stuff also they charge labour. Check brake pads, charged, check fluid level, charged, check suspension, charged... etc

The moment my cars no longer under warranty, I'll sent to my regular mechanics for major stuff...... other things you can actually do yourself. Especially all the regular checks.

A case in point, just helped my friend to look over a 22 yrs old SEG 1.6 selling for ~10k... car was fine, some stuff are expected need to do... e.g... Engine mount cracked, slight oil leak from head gasket, exhaust leaking, aged coolant tubes...

Full overhaul, all new engine mounts, fluid changes, all the minor stuff.... all can be done for ~ RM 2 K or lower.

That's so much work for RM 100 more than the Mazda "normal service"

Not all driver understand what is within the car ..
some dont even know what is a spark plug .. and many outside mechanics like to cheat consumer. I myself also experience a few before ... (though i make funny faces )

base on your selection, i would say City is the best choice of the 3 imo.

1. Mazda3 2009, maintenance is definitely higher than City, 1.6 will be slightly underpower (for me)
2. City 2009, own a 2005 City for 8 years, running fine till i sold to change car, normal maintenance at honda SC bout 200-300, but do expect some parts need to be replace soon
3. Inspira , proton, no comment

Yup... agree

Most people don't know what's in the car... like most don't know what is inside their laptops/smartphones, etc
They just "pour petrol and go" type. Car maintenance leave to SC/ mechanics/ father/brother... etc

Talking about outside mechanics cheat customers... even some authorized SC also will do it. just less chances of it happening.

If SC cheat customer they banyak BIG wok geh..

my fren kena ..mitsubishi .. simply pour in addictive charge this and that .. says MUST add geh .. my fren pay first... tak apa ... then go back send email shoot to MMM ... end up MMM give him RM100 voucher + the cheating SC have to give him another RM50 voucher.. (the addictive i think RM30-40 only )

good that your friend realize and complained.

But sure a lot of customers don't know and pay only. They think whatever the SC say because it's so called authorized SC, that is the correct thing to do.

What about the regular service intervals for city 2009? Is it 5k or 10k?

5k/3mth for semi syn oil, 10k/6mth for fully syn oil... just go for 10k service interval, not much diff in whatever new car you know...

again, it's your choice... since it's 2nd hand i assume you'll not be servicing at SC... seek your trusted mechanic for advise...

I see. 10k/6mth sounds reasonable. Yup, won't be servicing at SC for whichever car I choose

this!
15 inch one of the best tyre ps3 240+- each


inspira 17 inches normal tyre 400+- each

recommended at 5k, but i only service at 8k, after the free service period, semi syn

I see. Is the cvt gearbox in the city something I should be wary about?

Or those problems only occur in vtec and idsi versions?

Btw, do you happen to own the honda city before? Which model?

i own the idsi version, i have no major gearbox problem (atleast not tht i notice), just rmb to change ur GB oil when time comes

2nd hand dealer says it was abit cranky, i guess for normal driving, it shouldn't be a problem (or he is trying to get a better deal)

i've sold the car to my uncle, 9years counting~

itu Siti lama la~ siti 09 onward tarak airbag killer yo
personally got punch in the face when accident, im not dead yo

If cost is something u prioritized, the Honda City wins. B-seg cars are cheap to run and maintain, and an ideal car for PPG (put petrol go) car with less fuss.

Should be good for seven years and definery u will pay lesser than the other two cars

normal jap car pricing for these few year models in the same segment.

biasala.

see you want use mitsu or potong or aftermarket lor