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Peak power is nice in motorsport but for a drivable and fun car you need a long torque band and perhaps extending the rev range. Typical stage 3 mods often include: Competition cam, Engine balancing, Adding or upgrading forced induction (turbo/supercharger), Internal engine upgrades (pistons/head/valves), Sports gearbox. Typical stage 2 mods often include: high flow fuel injector, fuel pump upgrades, Fast road cam, Ported and polished head, Power/Sport clutch. Typical stage 1 mods often include: Alloy wheels, Suspension upgrade (drop 26-36mm), Lighter flywheel, Remap, Panel air filter, Sports exhaust. Stage 3 (competition) mods just won't work well on the road and will make the car un-drivable. Getting the correct grade of sports mods for your planned usage of the car is essential. This list of the stages and parts are usually fitted by our members, decide how far you want to go before you begin.
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Successive generations built on the previous ones with each offering an improvement, and we now have a wide range of really good engines and a fantastic chassis.
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We would recommend the 2.0 or better still if you can source a 2.3 litre model you have a better basis for your tuning project, but all models have plenty of potential and a growing number of tuning parts available. The range of engines and options on the first generation were limited but the larger engined models give a good basis for tuning. The Mazda 3 replaced the old 323 and was aimed very much as a small family car.
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