My most recent (but most likely far from my last) 626: Two-hundred eighty-seven thousand miles. That’s all that you should need to know about Mazda durability. It made horrible belt noise, suffered a blown head gasket, and had no exhaust after the cat and a flashing “Check Engine” light, but it STILL. Would. Not. Freaking. Die. I sold it after its problems became too many. Like my last 1994 626, its chassis still felt remarkably stiff and tight. I hold strongly to the fact that the 626 was, and is, a very underestimated car. So keep your Camcords =] (Although I wouldn’t mind owning certain generations of those either).
Have you ever thought of a career as a Mazda salesman? I think every dealer needs a salesman who is REALLY passionate about sedans. Selling SUVs and CUVs is easy, somebody needs to carry a torch for vehicles that are practical and actually have a low center of gravity.
And I thought I’ve owned a lot of Mazdas! (five)
I love these COAL capsules. They’re like a Soap Opera, or Televised Daytime Drama, if you prefer. “Will B3Quattro ever find true love with the car of his dreams? Tune in tomorrow for the next installment of…. Cars Of A Lifetime.” I’m at the other end of the spectrum. I’m 52 going on 53, and I have owned exactly six cars.
It’s in the home stretch. And I don’t think I’m giving too much away to say that it appears to have a happy ending.
My COAL would be awfully short–and repetitive: three cars so far, all the same make.
I am 58 and have owned two. my current car turns 12 in February and still runs like new.
That’s pretty impressive! I bet nobody here can top that.
I just did the math and realized that I have owned 10(!) Mazdas. (4) RX2s, (2) RX3s, (1) RX4, (1) RX7, (1) 626, and my wife’s current driver, a 2006 Mazda5.
During my brief car sales career, I sold a 2009 or 2010 Mazda 6. It must have been a base model, as it had plastic wheel covers instead of alloys, but it had a nice interior and rode well. I remember that after I sold it they couldn’t get the license plates on because the standard-size screws did not fit. I had to get the guys in the body shop to help me find the proper size!
A former boss of mine had a 2001 626 ES in metallic bronze with beige leather and the four. It was really nice. I helped her in her car search, and remember seriously eyeballing a gunmetal gray 626 ES V6 with light gray leather at the dealership. I rode in her car several times; it had the rotating A/C vents too. That was one sharp sedan!