I was a Mazda driver for years and now my family has a Honda and a Chevrolet. Not sure how that happened. I'll be back in a Mazda in a few years for the driving experience. Great cars.
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Mazda to Begin Offering CarPlay in September
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He isn't necessarily wrong about Mazda. It's just that their market share is irrelevant to most people buying cars. It should be irrelevant. Mazda has always been an afterthought from a business standpoint. They were Ford's red headed step child for the longest time and now seem to be the son-in-law of Toyota. Without help from their automotive brethren, Mazda wouldn't exist.
Fans of Mazda (count me as one) shouldn't confuse the brand with the business when attacking "haters" - your word, not mine. Two different topics.
It's one of the biggest misunderstandings of the automotive industry. When it comes to cars, Americans think of themselves as very brand loyal, but the actual data shows Americans are the least brand-loyal car buyers among the wealthy countries.
I love my Mazda and have been through multiple of them already, a fanboi when it comes to their cars BUT I can't claim that they're the best Japanese cars...They do give you the most bang for the buck among JDMs.
I would recommend negotiating a deal on 2016 or wait it out till 2020 model for a potential redesign and upgrades (not much new with 2019 to a warrant the price).
I also heard a lot of negatives on the CX-3, what was your main pain points?
My 07 Mazda 3 rusted like no tomorrow around the wheels also but later models that I saw had this issue fixed as far as I know. My 16' CX-5 comes with plastic shield around the wheel for that and the undercarriage is well insulated in plastic. MA in general is rough on cars with all the broken streets and pot holes too.
2018 Mazda6 current owners (except Sport owners) will be happy there will be no cost for hardware and software upgrades.
As for the cars I am looking at, I guess it will be a few years before I will see it.
As for the cars I am looking at, I guess it will be a few years before I will see it.
He is wrong, actually. According to data from April 2017, Ford is #1 with 14.6% market share in USA while Mazda is in place #17 with 1.7% market share. That is actual middle of the pack...
Buick, Audi, Infiniti, Chrysler, Cadillac, Mitsubishi, Acura, Lincoln, Land Rover, Volvo, Mini, Jaguar, etc are all behind them so yah...
No one here confusing brand with business. I just do actual research before I start typing unlike a lot of people on the internet
EDIT: and further, data from June 2018 still has Ford at #1 with 14.24% and Mazda is now at #15 with 1.9% market share
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It was my understanding that all 2018 Mazdas (or at least also the MX-5) were to get the ACP update. A nice perk for those who want it. Having said that, I disconnected my phone from CarPlay in my VW and don't miss it. The VW comm centers are full featured enough that between that and using the phone as a 'dumb' iPod gives most all the features without the headaches. YMMV.
I’ve recently bought a new Vauxhall/Opel Insignia and that’ll be the end of my CarPlay usage - the physical interface on modern vehicles is so good (a dial where the physics handbrake used to be) it makes using a touch screen slow, nor does it work with CarPlay. Obviously the Bluetooth or usb connection works perfectly with my iPhone and let’s me use the rest of the system without CarPlay locking me out of it.
There is no after market unit for the 2017-18 CX-5. Some units can not be swapped out. You can check on Cutchfield.com to see if your Mazda had a compatible head unit.
Very similar situation for me. I replaced my 2010 CX-9 last August with the latest version. Large family and frequent carpooling dictates the need for a three row SUV and the CX-9 is the most fun to drive without hearing too a much higher price point.
Unfortunately an accident in April necessitated replacing the new Mazda and as much as I enjoy driving them, their lack of implementation of CarPlay or Android Auto had me take a look elsewhere and ultimately, I grabbed a new Pilot instead. Not quite as much fun to drive but it has significantly more space and more importantly, CarPlay. After using it for a few months now, I won't get another vehicle without it as OEM solutions just pale in comparison. Mazda dragging their heals cost them a three time customer.
I have CarPlay in my 2017 Accord Touring...only used it twice...when I had to charge my phone...otherwise Bluetooth!
It's called leasing. They're amazing cars.
The last thing I want when buying a car is one with a high market share. Must be an American thing to drive what everyone else drives.
This statement is just silly, and doesn't make any sense.
I am not sure why people always bring up market share, market share does not equal quality of the product.
There are countless examples of products that outsold its competition, but were junk. Windows 95 comes to mind.
More related to cars, was the Mazda Miata versus the SW20 MR2 in the 90's. They were both great sport cars, and even though the MR2 performed better and had better specs almost completely across the board, the Miata was the winner there.
All that said, as someone that has owned five Mazdas over the years, I have been pretty disappointed with Mazda's line up lately.
I always thought that both Apple and Google would wipe the floor with any car company user interface but the fact is that hasn't (yet?) happened.
My 2014 iDrive system is a lot better than both Carplay and Android Auto and that isn't even the latest flavour.
Both Carplay and AA seem that they weren't thought out by someone who understands using a car. And I was a surprised because both companies weren't also phone companies and both aced it in the beginning of the smart phone era.
My 2014 iDrive system is a lot better than both Carplay and Android Auto and that isn't even the latest flavour.
Both Carplay and AA seem that they weren't thought out by someone who understands using a car. And I was a surprised because both companies weren't also phone companies and both aced it in the beginning of the smart phone era.
They added it on the 2019 STI/WRX and forester. So every car they sell has it as of the 2019 model year.
When I bought my '17 Mazda 3 about 18 months ago the sales guy said, "In September you should be getting a letter from Mazda offering a free upgrade to CarPlay. Just bring it in". Now, even then I took that line with an enormous grain of salt, knowing full well he was talking out his butt. And then the news came out about Mazda planning to retrofit all their models several years. So that sounded like good news. Now this latest announcement, with no mention of retrofitting other models. I have to say that this line of communication has been pretty danged annoying and pathetic.
That being said, love the car, with the exception of the infotainment unit. While I like the cupholder-area knobs, the system seems to act a little funky, with occasional crashing (the radio, not the car), a weird habit of Max Headroom-style doubletalking when listening to HD Radio, and mysterious volume changes also when listening to HD.
My dad has a '92 Miata with >300k on it, and it still runs like the day he bought it. Oh and he lives in New England, and granted he garages it, there's no rust.