#2012 Mazda 5 Grand Touring Minivan Opinions

24 messages · Page 1 of 1 (latest)

little pierBOT
broken willow
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Sorry, the Car Fax aren’t available online. Tried screenshotting the most recent and relevant ones like parts being replaced.

little pierBOT
dark hatch
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" I’m looking for something reliable and cheap"
looks at a 2012 car

broken willow
dark hatch
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I have heard a lot of goof things about newer mazdas, tho i don't have any experience with them myself

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Traditionally toyota has been The Good Ol Reliable, dont know how their newer cars are

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But about that car u linked

broken willow
dark hatch
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101k miles is nothing.
Dont worry too much about that "overdue oil change" thing, i have no idea how carfax is able to track that or tire rotations. They probably only look at Autoshop records.
But, if it hasn't been serviced for 13k miles, that is the first thin gyou wanna do.

If u decide to go look at it, bring a knowledgable friend. Preferebly a mechanic.
Looking up things to look for on a used car is a good idea, but make sure you also look up model-specific things u should look out for.

A pre purchase inspection seems like a great idea, as long as the seller agrees to it.

broken willow
# dark hatch 101k miles is nothing. Dont worry too much about that "overdue oil change" thin...

Glad to hear, because I felt similarly about the mileage and Car Fax maintenance! I don't really have a mechanic friend, so I was mostly going to rely on the pre-purchase inspection, aside from a friend test driving it for me at higher speeds for a little while to see if they can feel anything.
Do you think there's a likelihood of something missed during a pre-purchase inspection vs bringing a mechanic friend? I'm hoping / assuming the inspection will catch 95% of the possible issues.
I plan to look up model & year specific issues as well, thank you very much 😄

dark hatch
meager zephyr
broken willow
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The pre-purchase inspection came back with two issues:

  • Motor Mount is cracked
  • Front strut is leaking

From my research this seems like $600-$1,500 in repairs. It has 101,000 miles, so fair to expect other issues to arise soon?
It's currently $696 below market at $6,999 (according to CarGurus).

Should I be able to easily use those repairs to negotiate further down? Maybe up to $1,000 down?

white plover
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2012 mazda5: the motor mount may be a challenge (ask your shop who did the inspection for an estimate). The struts are DIY-able if you’re so inclined, do the front pair of them. Parts are cheap: https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/mazda,2012,5,2.5l+l4,1501076,suspension,shock+/+strut+&+coil+spring+assembly,15174

2012 MAZDA 5 2.5L L4 Shock / Strut & Coil Spring Assembly | RockAuto

RockAuto ships auto parts and body parts from over 300 manufacturers to customers' doors worldwide, all at warehouse prices. Easy to use parts catalog.

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If it were me, get an estimate for fixing both of the issues, and use that to negotiate down.

broken willow
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I did think about calling the shop back and asking for an estimate to fix it. Gonna call around a few local shops & Mazda dealerships to see

white plover
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Cool. Good luck and good work!

broken willow
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The dude said he wasn't willing to negotiate at all. Full price + dealer fees came out to $7,299, but he said he could help me on the sales tax...

remote cloudBOT
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GG @broken willow, you just advanced to level 4! Chat more to level up and earn top roles!