so i jus got back testing out the mazda 3's handling on my local mountian road. i wanted to compare it to my old stock 626(no comparison). the 3 handled well even tho i couldnt do wat i really wanted to, because im still breakin in the engine so nothin above 3,000 rpms. but me and my friend noticed something a lil awkward. when we took this particular turn(the turn was like the letter"U") at around 55-60 mph we felt the car shift a little but it was stickin to my line like glue. best way i could describe it was it felt like my tires were jello. i didnt feel like body roll because i wasnt stuggling to stay in my seat like i would in the 626. idk if thats a good explanation but i jus kno it wasnt body roll. is this just a case of crap tires or is that jus how the newer cars feel? i havent driven anything above a 99. i tried out my friends civic but there wasnt really any comparison since he highly tuned high suspension and wat not. thanx in advavnced for any insight on my situation.

 

what size are the tires??
my 3 came with the 15" steelies with 70 (i think) series sidewall.

so what your feeling is just the sidewall flexing...
if u wanna fix it, get larger rims, with a lower profile tire
and if you want, lower it, and your car will handle amazing.

 

First of all, as dentinger indicated, it would be nice to know what model, tire and size you have.
I have the 17's and the car came w/BadYear RS-A's. They sucked in anything but dry weather.I finally replaced them w/Falken's and while not the absolute best (they rate well and are relatively cheap,) I am much happier now.
I found that pumping up the fronts to, oh... 36-38psi, and/or reducing the rears to 30-31 helped a lot. This is an old autoXer's trick when running FWD cars too, though they might go up to 44psi. So not exactly an original idea on my part.
Keep in mind though, that the 3 is a bit heavier than what you seem to be used to and that isone of the biggest enemies of handling. The wheelbase may be a bit longerthan your 626 too, though I'm guessing about that one.
While this car handles well, it's not up to the standards my old autoxer '80 Honda Civic was either. That car weighed in @ 2150 w/me and half a tank of gas onboard, and had a very short wheel base (88.6".) But the 3 understeers less naturally than the (old school) Honda did too.

 

sorry it was really late and i forgot to add the important tings like year model and what not. i got a 07 hatch back with the stock 17" tires( goodyear rs-a 205/50r17). it doesnt look like i have a lot of sidewall, but it does make sense. is there anything with a stiffer sidewall. i am definetly gonna try the tire pressure thing. as for the weight of the 3 its not to bad in my opinion. im planning to go with some yokohamas soon. and as soon as the shocks go they are gonna be replaced with tein dampers with the edfc. till then strut bars, braces, and sway bars. and i completely agree about hondas they handle great and have great potential for power. was gonna get one but wanted to be a little different. if u have any other advice about handling it would be greatly appreciated. would like to hear your opinion about the strut bars and sway bars.

 

Sure! Easy one. Lose unsprung weight. Wheels (OEM 20lbs+/-,) tires (OEM22-24 lbs,) anything outside of the springs.
Yes, sway bars are good@ reducing understeer, but unsorung weight, and overall weight is that absolute enemy. Just ask Colin Chapman of Lotus! Well OK, bad eample since he's dead, but you get what I mean.
Sway bars, I am currently running the Progress rear, but if I had the funds and time would go w/either the Eibach set, or the Racing Beat set. Eibach seems a better mix of street/track, where as the RB is just a little bit more radical.

 

i got the eibach sportline springs...
very little body roll now compared to stock and im much happier now with the handling too....

oh, and off topic, but virgin, how much did u pay for ur exhaust??
is it a catback?? and it's a vibrant exhaust right??
ive been thinking about doing a cat back eventually when i have the money

 

wats the difference between sway bars. i mean aint it just a piece of metal that prevents body roll. and im kind of reluctant to swap out my rims. there the nicest stock rims i've seen in a while. idk if i was i might switch them out wit some three spoke. o and is there a carbon fiber trunk lid for the 3? that would b sick.

 

the vibriant sounds mad nice. im pretty sure its a catback that what it sez in the description. im liking the 5zigen exhaust myself.

 

u mean like a full carbon fibre trunk??
ive looked, and all i came up with was CF hoods... mostly oem replacement ones tho.....

 

yea me too. i about to go as far and find someone to custom make one for me. my friend had it on his civic. it was so kool. and im gonna do a quick swap out of my tires and rims. one friend gonna let me borrow a set to test out. ^_^. im so freakin excited.