Let’s Play ‘Track, Daily, Burn:’ Honda Accord vs Chevy Beretta vs Mazda MX-3

Good morning! Well, you picked ’em; now you have to tell me what you want to do with ’em. We’re going to play the car version of everyone’s favorite celebrity parlor game. One of these cars will become your new track (or autocross, or dragstrip, or whatever) weapon, another will be your new daily driver, and the third must regrettably be given a Viking funeral.

Two winners from this short week were already locked in, so let’s find out what the third winner is. Voting was just about tied early on, but as the day wore on, the Mazda MX-3 emerged as a clear winner. The Subaru wagon had plenty of fans, but its slightly scruffier condition wasn’t a match for the gleaming Mazda. Seriously, how does that car have 360,000 miles on it?

The Subaru is tempting, but I think I’ll take the MX-3 too. I’ve had such good experiences with Mazda and Mazda-based cars that I have no worries about its reliability at high mileage, and I’m sure it’s a hoot to drive even without the trademark V6.

I trust you’ve all played the party game “fuck, marry, kill,” right? Someone names three celebrities, or musicians, or fictional characters, or whatever, and you decide which one you’d take to bed, which one you’d exchange vows with, and which one you’d send to the morgue. All theoretical, of course, and all in good fun. Well, this is the car version of that. There won’t be a poll today, because I feel like it would get too confusing with nine possible choices, so just post your answers in a comment, and I’ll tally them up and reveal the results, along with my choices, on Monday. Let’s revisit the cars so you know what you’re getting yourself into.

1983 Honda Accord LX hatchback

This old Honda, if you recall, has half a million miles to its name. It’s one of the highest-mileage cars we’ve ever looked at here, and the way the seller tells it, it still purrs like a kitten. It still looks good, too. It’s a one-owner car, and it’s clear that somebody really loved it. It does have a rebuilt title, but I get the feeling that whatever happened to it happened a long time ago.

The inside is pretty tired-looking, but that comes as no surprise. If you wanted to turn this into your track car, it doesn’t matter; you’d pull it all out anyway, most likely. For a daily driver, I guess it would serve fine. I mean, it’s not gross or anything, just worn. It seems a shame to waste a car this good, but if you like the other two better, do what you gotta do.

1991 Chevrolet Beretta GTZ

This beat-up Beretta hails from Florida, though it resides in Michigan now. It has been in a minor accident which did some sheetmetal damage to the left front fender, misaligned the bumper, and cost it one of its fancy wheels. It’s a shame, because otherwise it looks like a pretty nice car. It’s equipped with a 3.1-liter V6 and an automatic, instead of the Quad 4 and five-speed stick you’d expect in a GTZ, but it runs great.

Apart from some sun damage on the dash, the interior is in good shape, and those seats look comfy. This would make a decent daily driver, I think, especially if you have a nicer car you’re trying to keep the miles off of. I can’t see it being much of a track car, except maybe rallycross, at which it would excel, if my experience with a similar Grand Am this spring is any indication. I fully expect this to be the most common vote for burning, though. Poor Beretta.

1994 Mazda MX-3 RS

This insectile little Mazda MX-3 is another high-miler, with 360,000 miles on its odometer, and about half that on its current engine. It’s the four-cylinder model, but a twin-cam Mazda four can be a wonderful thing. These are good-handling little cars, and I could see how tossing one around an autocross circuit could be a lot of fun.

But the interior is pretty nice in this one, too, nice enough to spend every day in. And it should get really good mileage. Cars like this were sold as commuters with a little pizzazz when they were new, and it could still fill that role nicely, even with a bazillion miles on it. I mean, you could vote to burn this one, I suppose, but you’d make me sad.

So like I said, no poll today, because it would just get confusing. Make your choices, and leave a comment to let me know what you chose. One car to take to the track, or have fun driving in some other way, and make sure you tell me what you have in mind. One to use daily. And one, regrettably, to burn. Have a great weekend!