Phyllis Weiter

What does it feel like to drive a brand new car –  never before touched by human hands (unless you count the assembly people, the guy that put it on the truck... the guy that preps it after it arrives, etc.)?  Well, it's been nearly 7 years since I drove a new car and now I have that special feeling again and it is THE BEST (and yes, it is better than what you are thinking).  I picked up my new 2002 Titanium Special Edition from Thousand Oaks Mazda on April 5. 

Maybe I should back up to actually falling in love with it...  Saturday, March 30:  Otis Chandler Museum, lunch at Sal's Mexican Food followed by a short drive to Thousand Oaks Mazda to see what a Titanium actually looked like in person.  Definitely NOT planning on buying anything; I'm not the type to make sudden impulsive monetary decisions!!

So, I arrive at Thousand Oaks Mazda with my entourage and head for the show room floor.  Lo and behold there before me is the most beautiful car I've seen in seven years.  The seats are comfortable... special wheels... chrome gas cap... bezels around the tail lights and headlights ... the CD player is state of the art ... a trunk light ... aluminum and titanium extras in the car including door scuff plates..  oh, and don't forget the Nardi steering wheel.  Ok, let's all bear in mind that Phylly doesn't know how to drive a stick shift.  The salesman wants to know how he can put me in that car.  I told him to find me an automatic.  He did.  (I hear they only made 150 automatics out of the 1500 Titanium SE's that they made.)  What could I say after that?  I called my sister to see if she wanted to talk me out of it and she wasn't home.  So I said "How much do you want as a deposit?"

After much anticipation, I got the call that the car had arrived at the dealer.  I was unable to work at all the rest of the day.  I finally picked up the car, completed all the paperwork, and drove my car out of the lot.

I'm still discovering all the extras 7 years of Mazda ingenuity can do to car.  Bose stereo system with six CD in dash changer.  Red dash lights at night...  Inside door lock so I don't have to reach across to open the passenger door...  I'm loving it!  I even like the alarm system that I didn't want to begin with!  And I really believe Mazda improved the paint quality, too. 

Now I've had a chance to drive the car (2,300 miles in a month).  The Western Sierras trip was great and really showed me how the M2 handles.  I never would have believed it, but the M2 handles better than the M1 did.  The Turanza tires seem to be an excellent choice and look great on the Special Edition wheels.  All in all, I am sure I made the right choice!

Phyllis Weiter