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“Mazdaspeed” started in 1967 as an independent racing team (per Wiki) and later ran a pair of Group C Junior cars in the 1983 24 Hours of Le Mans, finishing 12th and 18th overall. Surprisingly, I was there in 1983, and these photos of the 717C’s are mine. The Mazdas ran with the 13B Wankel rotary engine that was also in the first-generation RX-7. Another coincidence….my first grown-up car was a 1985 Mazda RX-7! It’s below, albeit with a 12A carbureted motor, not the 13B. A little-known fact is that when you’re young and buy your first two-seater sports car, your wife will become pregnant in months, and the car will be jettisoned for a sedan. Anyway, in 1991, Mazda won Le Mans overall. Wasn’t there for that.
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What’s the point? Mazdaspeed was to Mazda what AMG is to Mercedes, and Alpina is to BMW, I guess. In 2003, the first retail Mazdaspeed Protege was offered, followed by the Mazdaspeed MX-5 Miata in 2004, the Mazdaspeed6 in 2006, and finally, the Mazdaspeed3 in 2007. The Mazdaspeed3 continued in production until 2013. And that brings us to the unicorn below.
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The first generation Mazda3 was introduced to the USA in 2004 as the successor to the Protege. The Mazdaspeed3 was imported from 2007 to 2013 with a 2.3-liter four-cylinder motor, turbocharged and intercooled. The second generation, launched in 2010, had bigger brakes and stabilizer bars and a number of engineering upgrades to the motor. And the hood scoop was legit, dissipating heat from the too-hot engine.
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The Mazdaspeed3 also had a six-speed manual transmission and limited-slip differential powering the front wheels. It zoom zooms to 60 mph in the low five-second range. The top speed is an impressive 155 mph.
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The interior of this 2013 model is sparse, though. Bose sound, CD player, Bluetooth, a USB and aux port, and cruise control. CarMax rated it 2 out of 10 on features. Decent seats and a stick to row your own gears. A driver’s car, I guess.
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The Mazdaspeed3 has a big old trunk and can haul some gear as a four-door hatchback.
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The fun stuff is below a 2.3-liter, 263-horsepower motor with 280 ft-lbs of torque. Reviews suggest some torque steer, although it’s not horrible. It handles well. It’s a bit of a sleeper.
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The 2013 Mazdaspeed3 sold for maybe $28,000 new. It’s only lost a third of its value in 12 years. My Mercedes GLE63 has lost a third of its value in the 16 months I’ve owned it! The 2013 Mazda 3 Mazdaspeed is here at the Dulles, Virginia store. Wait a minute! That’s my store! It looks like the car was sold by the Lancaster, Pennsylvania, CarMax and returned a few weeks and a hundred miles later? Wonder what that was about. I wouldn’t bother with MaxCare, really. Just drive.
Stock No: 25925209 VIN: JM1BL1L34D1824997
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(By the way, if you’re into the Mazdaspeed3, take a look at this 2010 model I spotted in 2018. It was $19,998 and had only 10,000 miles on it!)
Care to see how the Mazda 3 Mazdaspeed stacked up against its rivals back in the day? Scroll down a bit.
Continue reading “Quick Hit – Zoom Zoom. Last Year Mazdaspeed3”