![]() Although it doesn't have the hp the Miata engine has, it still had decent acceleration for what it is. I don't care about how interesting it is to drive my daughter will be the one driving it, if we get it. It feels as good as my Miata did with its OE suspension at 42K miles. Nothing rattled, it tracks straight you can drive hands-off at 70 mph and it doesn't wander at all. I took this one for a longer drive today, and was impressed how quiet it was for a car with the mileage it has. Funny that somebody mentioned the sound insulation, because I think the car is unusually quiet for this type of car. I recommend the car, but it's not that interesting to drive. The earlier Protege had the 1.6 BP engine, but I believe it changed in the 01 models, when the car got a facelift. I think there are threads out there about this engine being used in a miata. My mother has a 97 Protege The engine looks just like the one in the NA just mounted side ways. The 3 OTOH has been plagued with all sorts of minor problems, many of which stems from ford designed/supplied parts There are no ford parts in these cars except for the ECU (which is unique to north america only). a recall was issued for these so you'll want to call mazda and make sure it's been done but there were some defects in the intake manifold butterflies, causing the screws to fall off. The 2003 was the last year and most feature rich. The only common problems with these cars are: the electronics are also very simple and there's not much to go wrong either the interior is simple and there isn't much noise insulation at all. Proteges are rock solid, there's very little problems with them at all. you can take the belt off, spin either cam all day and it won't do a thing to the motor so many people just screw things up and get away with it, unlike the popular brands like toyota or honda You can't ever trust anyone except for mazda or mazda specialists on mazda information. They're idiots like many aftermarket vendors and suppliers See page 27 for interference engine cautions.Įither way, it should have been changed by 133,000 miles. Other interference engine applications may exist which are not indicated here. Here is from the Gates belts catalog:Ģ002-03 2.0L 4-Cyl. She loves it, but I know she would take another Protoge 5 in a heartbeat if we could have found the right one. We got lucky and found a steal of a deal on a '05 Mazda 3. If you get it enjoy! My daughter loved hers. Sedans are in the $4000-4500 range around here. My daughter's car was getting rust in both places before the wreck (the only silver lining is I don't have to figure out how to repair the A-pillars!). With the sunroof, I would also closely examine the A-pillars because that's where the sunroof drain lines route. REALLY look at where the rear fenders meet the bumpers. We looked at a LOT of these cars the last month. She felt so protected by the car she wanted another or a Protoge sedan. Pulled right in front of my daughter and she had nowhere to go. An elderly driver in a full-size pickup pulled out from a stop sign without yielding to highway traffic. What do you guys think, regarding reliabilty history or any issues this model had? Plus, around here, less than 110K and newer than 2004, the price goes up quickly. It has more miles than I'd like, but if any of these 200+K Miatas are any indication, it should be good for quite a few years until she's out of college and can afford newer/better. Is this 2 liter engine an upgraded version of the 1.8 in our Miatas, or a different beast? I can get it for $6K and small change, which fits our budget. The used car dealer says the paint job was done because the original had several badly faded areas. I initially thought rebuilt wreck, but the CarFax is completely clean, and there is NO evidence under the hood, in the trunk or underbody that anything's been bent. It's been repainted, nicely done, in its original Emerald Mica color. I drove it and it runs strong, solid ride with no creaking or "loose" feeling, brakes are excellent (rear drum/front disc), engine is mechanically quiet, no oil stains anywhere on the block or tranny that would indicate a cleaned up leak. The one I'm looking at is an '03 LX auto trans, sunroof, cast wheels, very clean, 133K miles. I've seen these around isn't the Mazda 3 a newer version of this car? What was the last year of the Protege, 2004? ![]()
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