im looking into buying a protege to replace my integra GSR for college and was wonder what you guys here think are the pros and cons about the car. im looking into getting one with a 2.0 and a 5-speed or even trying to find the rare MP3 version. id also like to know how well they handle both stock and modified and what you have done to them. im not looking for speed as much as i am looking for a car that can handle great. thanks for in advance for your input.

 

pros:

cost
features
uniqueness

cons:

lack of straightline speed
lack of aftermarket
poor oil pan design
mazda won't honor warranty



If you're looking for a decent protge you should look for a used MSP (mazdaspeed protege). They are about 40hp higher and have the same suspension as the MP3. The struts are re-tuned a little softer but it handled better thanks to the LSD and added power.

If you REALLY want something cool you could buy my p5! Sure it's a wagon but it's loaded up real well and has a lot of the mazdaspeed parts already on it. Besides I need to sell it!

 

Well first of all welcome to the forum. I have had my protege for a little over a year now and I really do like it a lot. For the price it is hard to rival. They are not fast cars to start with but the 2 liter engine is definatly a plus considering how light the car is. I do believe that they are a more powerful car than a Civic and several other competitors.Not to mention they are different then what u see from day to day. On the fun to drive side of things they do get a big thumbs up and get even more fun to drive with modded suspension ( I've heard they handle exceptionally well when struts, springs, and sway bars are upgraded) I personally only have Eibach Pro springs on mine with stock stuts for now but I can feel a night and day difference in handling. When it comes to bang for your buck it is a great deal. One thing I and a couple other owners have noticed is that even though the interior is very nice, it does tend to rattle a little more than would like. But that comes with most cars after some mileage, and some fun driving! They certainly are not a sports car, but overall they are nice.

 

^ plus its can be bought SC'd - cant forget that... the 1st of its kind...

 

forgot to mention


pros:

short gearing means quicker acceleration


cons:

short gearing means cruddy highway cruising mpgs

 

pros:

you coulod belong to this forum.


cons:

you'd belong to honda-tech with your old car.

 

What I love about my Pro:

Nice looking car for an econobox.
Looks even better modded.
Not a hundred million other ones on the road.
Handles well straight out of the box.
Pretty good low-end grunt.
Much fun to drive.

What I don't like:

Aftermarket parts are tough to find sometimes. But I knew that when I bought it, so it's not really a complaint. And they can be found. Even though they can be pricier, a little patience can net a good deal.

 

yeah, this isn't like buying a honda....aftermarket isn't crazy for these cars. Expect to pay for parts since they're not produced in mass quantities.

We have a good user base here of people that can get good deals on parts.


The one main thing to think about when buying a 2.0L protege is that it will NEVER be a race car. Not without sinking TONS of cash into them. The engines are WEAK SAUCE. Plan to build one? ok, thats about $4500. Now you've got power you've got to handle the tranny...upgraded synchros, Quaiffe LSD and axles will set you back about $3K. $7500 and you haven't even touched the power yet. FI kits will cost you between $2999 and $3999.

Gotta pay to play and sadly the protege is more expensive per dance.

 

Yeah, I think everybody covered everything pretty well! I'm pretty sure my car(with equal drivers) is probably the slowest amongst my friends, but I'm not too worried, because in turns I will ruin all of them, so that puts a smile on my face! And cant go wrong with the MP3. I've loved mine! But truthfuly, a Mazdaspeed is probably a better choice!

 

In my book, it's always about the turns. Anybody can buy or build a fast car.
It's a lot more fun to me pushing a hard turn than straightline speed.

Straight & fast=boring

 

Pros
Good styling
Great Handling in ANY trim level
Great reliability

Cons
Not a lot of power
Road noise
Harsh ride

The MSP is going to be easier to find than the MP3....many more produced...plus you get the extra goodies

 

Be sure to know that only the 2.0 is a little weak motor. The 1.6 is the boost *****, with a very nice very flat power band (if only it had more of it).

What do you mean by modded? you want 300 whp you need a full rebuild, (unless you have a mighty 1.6) you want 250 your fine. You want NA you can get decent numbers out of the 2.0 with only bolt ons. Nothing earth shatering. BUt something in the 200's is possible with full engine work.

Our aftermarkets not bad you can pretty much get whatever you want for it, the only problem is most of the better stuff is gonna cost quite a bit because we dont have many competing companies.

Now then, the protege is slow. But compared to the other similarly priced econoboxes this thing is still quicker. I routinely walk integs, and most other normal cars. Its no sports car of course but your not paying for one either.

Test drive one and just go nuts with it. Youll enjoy it. esp if its an mp3. Youll forget all about 0-60 times. And go around smiling for the rest of the day.

 

I dunno about that. There's a guy on msprotege right now complaing about how he's spent 6k and only makes 158whp. I've never seen an N/A Pro dyno at 200whp.
Funny thing about it is this guy has been around long enough to know ANY kind of N/A build is going to cost a fortune for very little gain.
That to me is just overspending. One of these days I'll go FI and I'll pay half that to make 158whp and more.
Anyway, that's enough for me to be happy with for my purposes.

 

pro:
-if youre a buyer, little or no 2nd-hand price markup (compared to honda)
-nobody will say its "just another honda"
-suspension is so nice you'll find yourself wanting to push your car not cuz you wanna look like vin diesel, but because the car begs you to

con:
-if youre a seller, doesnt hold value too well (compared to honda) but then again resell value isnt a good decision to buy a car.
-if buying 02-03, some of the colors/features you'll want are only found on Protege5
-road noise which is common in this class of car
-if you have "friends" like i do, they will all try to gang up and convince you that mazdas are garbage.
-i wish it had a 6th gear for cruising, it sorta buzzes along the highway sometimes

 

yeah....keep the exact same ratios we have now but just add a 6th for cruising...It would get 20% better mileage easily and the high final drive will mean it'll still have enough oomph for passing without downshifting.

5th gear for me now (NA) is so strong that it feels like I'm in 4th in other cars or 3rd of my civic.