Mazda 3 mps mk1 progress

[Hargreaves284]

Hi everyone this is my mazda 3 mps mk1 track car / daily after after a few people asking my mate about it I thought i would make progress thread.


I bought the car about a year ago after my focus st was stolen. After looking at many different cars i ended up with this

After driving the car for a few weeks i found the suspension was pretty shot and wanting to use the car on track i decide to fit coilovers. I decided to go for the bcracing er series.

And had the 4 wheel alignment done

Which completely transformed the car would recommend to anyone, the next mod was a sure ventus recirc valve which ive no pics of unfortunately. But feels like it holds boost better so perhaps the old one was on its way out.

Then came my first proper trackday at oulton park there was 4 of us in our cars so was a good bit of competition between us non racing of course..

Since then just been driving and enjoying it, fitted a new 7" screen headunit.

And then went for a bit of a blast round snowdonia park and got a couple of pics with friends cars ...

Since then the modifying bug has bitten again so just ordered a yellowspeed 6 pot big brake kit & team dynamics pro race 1.2 18x8 et40 hopefully be a bit wider fitment than the oem boring wheels

Will update with more pics as the progress continues and i spend more money [emoji23] got a trackday booked soon at anglesey so hope the brakes and wheels are here for it [emoji1305]

Thats all for now folks [emoji846]




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[Silent_Scone]

Looks great.

I miss mine as a daily driver.

 

[Scrooge]

Proper!

 

[Ol’ Tarby]

Yeah miss mine too now that I'm older

Will keep a watch on this :up:

 

[JB21]

Seen your vids on YouTube, goes well and looks ace. Good decision on the coilovers as well before power. What camber are you running?

I'm contemplating another mps myself as a full on track car, the weight you could shift would make a massive difference, on the Mazdaspeed forum people have got them down to 1200kg from 1485kg.

Not as track focused as the R26 though, but I just fancy something totally different, plus they're reliable, parts are cheap and the tuning technology and capability is brilliant.

Subscribed :up:

 

[Hargreaves284]

Seen your vids on YouTube, goes well and looks ace. Good decision on the coilovers as well before power. What camber are you running?

I'm contemplating another mps myself as a full on track car, the weight you could shift would make a massive difference, on the Mazdaspeed forum people have got them down to 1200kg from 1485kg.

Not as track focused as the R26 though, but I just fancy something totally different, plus they're reliable, parts are cheap and the tuning technology and capability is brilliant.

Subscribed :up:

Thats the reason i got it because its something completely different. I have not messed about with the camber just yet i need to widen the top of the struts so i can get to the bolts on the top mounts. Also waiting for my wheels to come then i can get it set up.


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[imprezaworks]

Are they massively reliable? What's the general ass problems they give?

 

[Hargreaves284]

Are they massively reliable? What's the general ass problems they give?

Ye mine is spot on i drive it daily and i drive it hard on track and never had a problem. It had the timing done when I bought it which is something to look out for. Also heard a few things on week rods if you put your foot down at low rpm,i use the full rev range and its been fine.


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[Silent_Scone]

They're practically bullet proof. General wear items not applicable, drop links for instance.

 

[JB21]

Are they massively reliable? What's the general ass problems they give?

Only catastrophic engine failure, lol! It's the mixture of bad timing, stretched chain and weak rods. It's very preventable though, keep it maintained and don't be a tard at low revs in high gears and you're good.

 

[imprezaworks]

Allways really liked them. There was a mk2 next door in work today. I'm sure capable but I prefer the mk1.

 

[Ol’ Tarby]

Allways really liked them. There was a mk2 next door in work today. I'm sure capable but I prefer the mk1.

I really like the mk2s! Dropping in price aswell now

 

[bloke]

ZZB!!!!

 

[imprezaworks]

I really like the mk2s! Dropping in price aswell now

Think it's the understated looks. That and this was a used variant

 

[Silent_Scone]

Only catastrophic engine failure, lol! It's the mixture of bad timing, stretched chain and weak rods. It's very preventable though, keep it maintained and don't be a tard at low revs in high gears and you're good.

That's quite amusing because I used to bog mine down all the time like a champ, and it had a whiff of chain rattle before I traded it in.

Gave it death, never let me down once. And of course, now it's back with a vengeance in Frankenstein form in the Focus RS

 

[Silent_Scone]

dp

 

[JB21]

That's quite amusing because I used to bog mine down all the time like a champ, and it had a whiff of chain rattle before I traded it in.

Gave it death, never let me down once. And of course, now it's back with a vengeance in Frankenstein form in the Focus RS

Was it mapped or standard? In standard guise it's less likely to happen as the utter s**t torque limiters in 1st-3rd help prevent it, different in the 6 I had thought as no limiters as standard due to being awd.

Know a few guys who's made the mistake and paid the price.

 

[K_McDermott]

Looks slow, brakes look good I'll see if I can cook them at anglesey [emoji106]


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[Hargreaves284]

Looks slow, brakes look good I'll see if I can cook them at anglesey [emoji106]


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.

It is slow mate. You can try your best to cook them but the should hold up to your driving [emoji23]


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[Smiffyboy1990]

Quite like these, these and the Mk2's have a LSD don't they ?

 

[Hargreaves284]

Quite like these, these and the Mk2's have a LSD don't they ?

Yes they do mate and they work really well . I am lead to believe they ate the same diff in the megane r26.


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[Crybert]

I really like them. I'd go mk2 though. I believe that has a forged engine?

They do sell for peanuts for the performance you get

 

[mitch1503]

Id hardly call them bullet proof, s**t loads blew in the 2yrs i had mine.. Mine also finished its self off when it blew rod out through the oil return for turbo and went up in flames.

Mine was Running BNR S3 Turbo (GT28), fully catless,Uprated cooler,Autotech HPFP,3bar map sensor,3port BCS,Injector seals,intake, Cobb AP V3, J-Tuned and other bits and bobs.

Suspension on them is bloody awful and the LSD in them isn't that good but did help abit

 

[Silent_Scone]

Id hardly call them bullet proof, s**t loads blew in the 2yrs i had mine.. Mine also finished its self off when it blew rod out through the oil return for turbo and went up in flames.

Mine was Running BNR S3 Turbo (GT28), fully catless,Uprated cooler,Autotech HPFP,3bar map sensor,3port BCS,Injector seals,intake, Cobb AP V3, J-Tuned and other bits and bobs.

Suspension on them is bloody awful and the LSD in them isn't that good but did help abit

So basically you ruined yours lol.

They're bullet proof if you don't strap s**t to them. North of 300 they'll let go.

Also agree the suspension is awful but it's not as track focused as other hatches

 

[massiveCoRbyn]

I like these. Would go for a MK2 myself, but I think both are great value. A lot of power for not a lot of cash and there seems to be plenty of bits out there to tinker with them. A car I'd like to own at some point I must say.

 

[mitch1503]

Haha i wouldn't say ruined it when it was running all good mods and th very very common mods route.. iv seen loads go at standard power, the only bullet proof thing on them is the gearbox..

Nah theyre safe north of 300 aslong as you upgrade the HPFP its usually the rods that let go and are considered on the limit @ 400FTLB..
Engine wise they're s**t iv seen atleast 3 just s**t a rod whilst sat in traffic (standard power).. Turbos are common for failing on them aswel

Ohh and for anyone considering one STAY AWAY FROM TOTALMPS.. Nowt but a conman, ruined a lads engine he built by not gapping the rings at all along with many others

Very boring car imo in all honesty, i was bored within a year of owning it.. Over the moon when it went up in flames and thats the truth.. Think i eneded up about £200-£300 out of pocket from what i paid for the car in mods so it was 2years cheap motoring for me

Bose sound sysytem is nice and the fact most people dont know what they are

 

[McGherkin]

Great chassis, meh engine. They do look good though, especially the newer ones.

 

[Silent_Scone]

Is three the metric for unreliable then ?
They're reliable. Everything has a tolerance, dude. They're not tuner cars.

TotalMPS is a conartist, correct.

 

[bloke]

TotalMPS is a conartist, correct.

the first 3 that a worked on had been done by gunther and then sc in bolton had worked on it, poor car...

 

[JB21]

For the amount of engines produced there have been a hell of a lot of publicised failures, do the maths against something considered unreliable for example the F4R (we know its not but is stereotyped as unreliable...cause reno) but I'd bet the % of engine failures against engines produced the MZR would be more than double the F4R, but as above with correct maintenance, tuning and driving style the MZR can be considered reliable, its the lack of understanding of its characteristics and ignorance of there owners that makes them seem unreliable IMO.

Doesn't help with cowboy outfits like TMPS working on them either...

 

[Darren S]

What are they like for rust, generally? As woefully reliable as other Jap metal?

 

[Darren S]

For the amount of engines produced there have been a hell of a lot of publicised failures, do the maths against something considered unreliable for example the F4R (we know its not but is stereotyped as unreliable...cause reno) but I'd bet the % of engine failures against engines produced the MZR would be more than double the F4R, but as above with correct maintenance, tuning and driving style the MZR can be considered reliable, its the lack of understanding of its characteristics and ignorance of there owners that makes them seem unreliable IMO.

Doesn't help with cowboy outfits like TMPS working on them either...

Totally agree. Why do people play blind ignorance to maintaining their car - then whinge like a b**ch when the thing failed and made them late for work/not able to pick the kids up, etc.

Especially on higher performance cars such as these. Don't sit there and expect "your mate" up the road to fully understand the intricacies of cars like these and service them with glorified chip-fat.

 

[JB21]

What are they like for rust, generally? As woefully reliable as other Jap metal?

The 6MPS pre 2006 are the worst Jap car I've seen for rust, they binned the water based paint off and they where much better, but still suffer on the rear arches and boot lid, the 3MPS is pretty similar the post 2006 6MPS with rusting arches and boot lid, but not to bad TBF.

 

[mitch1503]

Mine was quite ok on the rust side, just a tiny bit in the centre of the boot where the window comes down (MK1 3 Aero) common place as it traps water.

Yeah you need to maintain them hence me doing oil & filter every 3k miles and then if something broke rather than standard parts i went uprated. All sourced from US as thats the best place to get things for them

Nahh seriously in the 2yrs of having mine and being on the owners group etc there was loads that went. Only 1 mechanic i would trust to work on one if i ever some how found myself with another (Highly doubtful as its just a boring car to me imo) and only 1 person i would trust to tune it (J-Tune)

 

[JB21]

Mine was quite ok on the rust side, just a tiny bit in the centre of the boot where the window comes down (MK1 3 Aero) common place as it traps water.

Yeah you need to maintain them hence me doing oil & filter every 3k miles and then if something broke rather than standard parts i went uprated. All sourced from US as thats the best place to get things for them

Nahh seriously in the 2yrs of having mine and being on the owners group etc there was loads that went. Only 1 mechanic i would trust to work on one if i ever some how found myself with another (Highly doubtful as its just a boring car to me imo) and only 1 person i would trust to tune it (J-Tune)

Was that the fella in Ambleside? Can't remember his name now...

 

[mitch1503]

Yeah it's Dave! Absolute spot on bloke and very well priced, when i went i always got a much smaller bill than i expected and he wouldn't even take an extra £10 or anything for himself.. His words were nah you've paid the garage so that's good enough for me

 

[Jimbob 2705]

Great chassis, meh engine. They do look good though, especially the newer ones.

Am I right in thinking these are a Focus ST chassis, or very similar?

If so, can't say I've heard of them being a great chassis, could be wrong though...

 

[Silent_Scone]

It's not a great chassic, it's a better engine. 280ftlbs back then from a long stroke duratec isn't anything to be sniffed at. Of course if you ask Mitch it's a chocolate engine. Even though I didn't service mine in the last 2 years I owned it, gave it death every day and it didn't let me down once.

*Cough* Tuners

 

[McGherkin]

Am I right in thinking these are a Focus ST chassis, or very similar?

If so, can't say I've heard of them being a great chassis, could be wrong though...

Yes.

The reason people don't think they're a good chassis is the Focus is heavy as f**k and a lot of that weight feels like it's in the front. The other cars sharing the platform don't share that problem, the MPS particularly so.

 

[JB21]

The focus is the lighter car even in st-3 spec and 5 doors coming in at 1362kg, where as the Mazda 3 MPS comes in at a lardy 1483kg.

Info taken from parkers.