I have a couple of questions for all of you out there...ok here is the situation....I have a 2002 Mazda Protege one because im kinda tired of the speed and two the tranny is whack, now I owe probably about 12k on it or less, and i now have about 50k miles on it. I really really want a MSP. Now for the questions...how much are they, are any for sell still, and if so would it be worth it? Thanks

 

I've been considering the same thing. However, a lot of people are experiencing problems w/ their mazdaspeeds. Some have already traded their's. Do a search @ www.msprotege.com .

 

Problems such as?

 

I traded in my P5 for a MSP and IT'S AWESOME.


All the problems Mazda SAYS they are trying to fix, we'll see.

 

I dont have one but I read a lot about them and the car is worth it. They are still selling and if you decide to get a black or spicy orange make sure that you dont pay over 20k.

 

I paid $20,500 for mine. I put zero down and was upsidedown $3,000+ on my P5.

 

I traded in my black 2002 Protege (5sp 4dr) a few weeks ago for a 2003 Garnet Red Miata because I couldnt stand the feeling I got anymore whenever I looked at a Miata

I got about $8500 For trade - but it had a small dent on the side where some dipwad bumped the door trying to park a mommybox. According to edmunds It would be worth about $9200 in perfect condition. Or $8500 with some 'work needed'. So I didnt get ripped off. Can probably sell privatley for a bit more.

The Mazdaspeed Protege, to me, didnt seem worth it over a Miata. I didnt test drive it, but I sat in it and it felt like my old Protege. I dont think I would trade in a car I was upside down on for essentially the same car with a turbo and stiffer suspension. In a sense, I think it would be more fun to spend the money to add the turbo to the standard Pro, and essentially bring it up to Mazdaspeed spec, or close to it.

Looking at your mod list and your mods-to-come list, you will end up with a car that is just as fast or faster than a MS-Pro. So why not stick to it? Now I guess I could have waited for the Mazdaspeed Miata to be released in January, but I concluded I would rather add a turbocharger (actually a supercharger I think would be better for the Miata), and various other mods myself, and have a sortof 'sleeper' Miata than to have the Mazdaspeed branded one.

 

interesting point. Are there any specs on this new Mazdaspeed miata?

 

I had an auto P5 with NO options. I would have wasted a LOT fo money fixing up my car for NO resale value. The MSP was the best option for me.

 

You can walk out the door with a 2003 MSP @ my local dealer for $18,340 after tax/title/license if you take the incentive(s) and college graduate rebate.

That equates to about $17,000 before tax/title/license.

 

it would be more worth it to supe up your stock Protege....one because the turbo on the MSP is from a turbo-deisel from europe, with a tiny *** intercooler. For roughly the same amount of money, you could get a greddy water-air intercooler and a decent turbo, and get about 30 more HP than the MSP.....granted there is no warranty on the parts, but if you get a good shop to do the work, they will warrant their work.

 

Actually the intercooler is from the turbo deisel.. And the MSP has a LSD, EBD, ABS, Racing Beat tuned suspension, etc, etc.


That and my MSP will be worth WAY more than your turboed Protege in resale.

 

Depends...

I paid $16800 for my Protege. Kelley Blue Book lists my car at $17,400 with 3000 miles on it for the options I priced out.

If you price out a MSP at $21,000 and put 3000 miles on it then Kelley lists the car at $18,900.

P5 = 103.57% value hold

MSP = 90% value hold

So here is a NA Protege5 that holds it's value on a dollar-to-dollar basis of 13.57 points more than a MSP.