yo, when will the 3rd gen be gone and the new 4th gen be arriving? I'm interested in buying a protege but I don't want to make the plunge if there will be anew body all together in the next year or so? any info out on this yet?

 

usually its every 4 years and they come up with a new generation. 95 - 98, 99 - 02 etc. But 2003 is the same. I saw a magazine with a concept Protege for te near future it is 4 doors with a focus back hatch. ITS embarrasing!! The focus sucks. They should be getting rid of the Focus not the Protege. Damb ford people screwing up one of Mazda's elite cars.

 

new body style goes into production within the year i believe.

 

The NEXT Generation will start with the 2004 year model...but there is something else yet.....it won't be called the "Protege" it will be called the Mazda 3. at least here in North America.

 

may still be called "protege" in canada.

 

anybody have pics of the Mazda 3 concept? that would be nice to see.

 

I hope not, but marketing can be a funny thing. Mazda has come up with Canada-specific names in the past, e.g., the Cronos, Mystere, Precedia and Serenia from the early '90s (aka the 626, MX-6, MX-3 and 929).

 

No more Protege

That really sux.....

 

The Protege is a big seller in Canada, especially Quebec. I believe it was the #3 top selling car in Canada this year...behind only the Civic and Cavalier.

That's probably why they want to hold onto the name here.

 

apparently, it outsells them all in quebec.

 

I read somewhere online they thought the Mazda 3 might even be delayed until the '05 model year. I'm personally hoping for this, because my girlfriend wants to get a brand new P5 in Midnight Blue, but she won't be ready to buy until late '03 or early '04. The whole possibility of the replacement car having significant Ford content is unappealing to me.

 

*wow* Such harsh feelings...

I happen to think that the P5 and the ZX3 are the best hatches around, which is why I own BOTH!!!

Here is my Focus and my Protege with our friends' M Roadster at Hallett Motor Raceway:

 

The Focus has always been an excellent car in terms of ride comfort, refinement, handling characteristics, quietness, and roominess, but the one critical area that your ZX3 will never compete in is reliability.

The Focus has never once produced a model year that dragged its *** out of the "Worst possible reliability" category. Never. Focus has victimized its owners with a shockingly disproportionate number of recall campaigns, and maintains a problem list that rivals the worst cars ever built in our modern times; I kid you not.

Reliability is my first, ultimate demand in a car, and if it hasn't demonstrated a consistent history of reliable operation I consider it unworthy of my time and money, and furthermore consider it an egregious violation of human decency, trust, and respect. In my opinion the Focus is a vile, offensive, revolting vehicle based thereon. I also personally find the Focus nauseatingly ugly.

Mazda seems to have more recently placed their emphasis on building attractive, great looking cars, and I believe the new Mazda3, even if it indeed is based largely on the Focus, will at least look cool. God have mercy on us if the new Protege/Mazda3 demonstrates anything close to the current Focus' reliability, however. I don't care how great it looks, if the car doesn't compile a year's record of at least better than average reliability I'll never waste my money on it. Never, I say you.

 

I agree. My friend traded in his ZX3 for an SVT 3 months ago, and he is already having transmission problems. The "getrag" transmission as it has been nicknamed, is renowned for having problems.

 

ProtegeMaster, your thoughts on the reasons for buying a car just supports the latest tests that show todays under 40 car buyers are the most conservative in history, basing purchases on reliability and namesake alone sometimes. This is why cars like the camry and the accord are a dime a dozen. This is also why north america doesn't get anything exciting as far as cars go. There are so many more really cool cars throughout the world that will never make it too our shores because america thrives on boredom. Thatnkfully there is a healthy aftermarket available for just about everycar put out today so that we can bring our performance up to where it should be in the first place. Me personally, reliability is the last thing I look at. I have never regretted my decision to buy a vehicle based on how good it suits me and my lyfestyle at the time. I picked up my 5 cause I didn't want a stupid suv but needed to be able to haul stuff around. It also looks as good as it scoots. I didn't find out the reliability until I had car for over a month. That just sweetened the deal for me. Reliability or not the focus SVT and ZX3 are still great cars. Still on Car and Driver's 10 best list. The new focus/protege is supposed to be mostly mazda. Similar to the probe/mx6 of a few years back. Considering a car company that puts out a car that has a few problems to be a break of trust is a bit on the harsh side. If they do not take care of the customer, thats one thing. If the car has a few problems and they are taken care of, it sounds to me like someone is trying to ensure the happiness and safety of its owners. Thats my rant. Gonna put on my nomex suit to protect against the flamethrowers.