Mazda Protegé

newcar31

You could try pouring a little Coke (the soft drink) on it and let it sit for a while. There is also stuff called liquid wrench that is supposed to loosen rusted bolts. If all else fails though, use a torch, and get the bolt real hot, then try to take it off. I had to use the heat method with the exhaust on my Integra.

the_big_h

does that really work? are you saying I can loosen up rusted nuts and have a nice refreshing drink at the same time???

sunbyrne

Actually, most any soda--they're mildly acidic, so they will tend to eat away stuff that sticks bolts.

mdaffron

Man, it's miserable here in Richmond. This morning it's already 80, the humidity is about 80 percent, and it's supposed to hit 97 today and 98 tomorrow. As if that's not enough, it's also a Code Red Ozone day. Zoomster's a/c works so well, I had to turn the thermostat up on the way to work. And when I got out of the car, my glasses fogged up so much I had to take them off to see my way out of the deck. Gonna be one horribly hot day, folks!

Meade

mazdafun

before you start the engine, or you'll be in the hot seat.

I've used WD40 to unstick rusted fasteners (when are they going to switch to stainless for those exposed parts?). Give it time to work its way into all the nooks and crannies (about 10-15 minutes, or more, depending on how bad it is). And, of course, use a full socket or closed-end wrench instead of an open-ended wrench, so you can get leverage on all the faces of the nut. Especially important with a slippery rusted nut.

mdaffron

You damned straight better call me when you come through Richmond today!

Meade

newcar31

To add to Mazdafun's advice: Use a 6 point socket, not a 12 point.

Meade: We've had the same nasty weather here in MN for the past week. Dewpoints in the 70's and highs in the upper 90's. Nasty. At least I don't work at Jiffy Lube anymore; it's climate controled cube-land for me. My uncle was here visiting from San Diego last week and he was looking forward to going home and getting a break from the heat and humidity.

protegextwo

Meade, I worked until 12 midnight and when I got home from Cracker Barrel, I read my newly arrived copy of Consumer Reports August 2002. They did a nice comparo on the Ford Focus ZX5 Hatch, Subaru Impreza Outback, VW Jetta Wagon, Toyota Matrix/Vibe Crossover and the Mazda Protege 5. The VW Jetta Wagon GLS 1.8T was ranked highest, by CR. The Mazda Protege in it's various forms has started to fall out of favor with Consumer Reports. The Mazda PRO-ES sedan was CR's top pick in 1999 and 2000 and now CR rates the re-designed Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla well above the Protege sedan. In the Consumer Report 08/02 Hatch, Wagen & mini Cross-over comparo, they rank the Mazda PRO-5 below the VW Jetta Wagon, RAV-4, Subie Forester S, Ford (hocus) Focus Wagen SE, Matrix/Vibe Cross twins, and the Honda CR-V EX. IMHO, the Protege 5 is not a SUV or, or a Cross-Over vehicle! It is, what it is.... a very fine, small wagon! Nonetheless, CR's common complaint on both the Mazda Protege sedan and wagon??? In the most recent CR reports; they claim the ride is too "abrupt and stiff, and road, wind and engine noise are constant". I kinda see their point on the noise, however in my opinion the Protege rides crisply and handles like a sports car, and the ride quality is the precise and responsive. These qualities are commendable and ARE the reasons I purchased two 2000 PRO-ES's!!! The Mazda PROTEGE is NOT some wimpy chick car, for petes sake. I wish Consumer Reports would get a grip and hire a few car enthusiasts to balance their reviews!

Meade, I read the following last night or in reality this morning (3 am)."Among our car's (the VW Jetta Wagon GLS 1.8T) five sample defects were overly tightened wheel nuts and a dash rattle."
-Consumer Reports August 2002

"I am picking up my car tonight from the dealer. They said it's working within manufacturer specs, and they can't do any more with it..."
by vocus

FIVE sample defects!! The Vibe had 1 defect, the Matrix had 2, the PRO-5 had 1 and the Subie and Foci had 3 sample defects each. Volkswagen had better pay a little more attention to their assembly line. A lot of people read CR. "Among our car's (the VW Jetta Wagon GLS 1.8T) five sample defects weree overly tightened wheel nuts ..... and a dash rattle.". Perhaps, Paul King's dash rattle is a built-in manufacture spec?

Meade, time to take my son to the pool! It is so flipping hot today in south central Penna.!!! Stay cool old buddy!

-love train

rbrooks3

Just wanted to say how happy I am with the Pro's A/C system. It's been killer here in NY like a lot of the country for the past week or so. I don't miss my former black leather interior at all! No more human pancake impersonations. Now I hope I can just stay away from the stinky sock A/C affliction I've read about here.

mazdafun

PS, I detest 12-point sockets too. Good way to round off your bolt head points (oh no, here we go again).

mazdafun

Pretty inventive, aren't we?

mazdafun

Then again, they favor "driver-oriented" cars. Given a choice between fun handling & good tactile & aural feedback or a cushy and quiet ride, they seem to prefer the former. Of course, C/D doesn't seem to take into account reliability history, thus their putting the Focus into their top ten list a couple of times.

maltb

rather than waste time Hank, I'd go to a muffler shop. Any good muffler shop will have you in and out for $30. With all the salt on the roads in your area, there is a good chance your pipe will be rusted together as well and that will be 10x worse than a rusted nut (btw, just cut it off with a hacksaw or rebar cutter).

newcar31

That is SO true. CR is a mag for people who aren't really enthusiasts. Remember, these are the same people that test blenders, cameras, lawnmowers, baby diapers, etc. Their articles should be called "Car reviews for dummies". I have always respected Car and Driver and it continues to be my favorite car mag.

maltb

protege_fan

I think I had 7.2 or something like that.

newcar31

Please post the numbers if you have them.

mdaffron

Not one more occurrence of "gym sock a/c" since my one and only report on it last week. I've changed where I park in our deck (nice open location above ground and Zoomster now has a view while he sits there all day, waiting for daddy to zoom home).

Meade

protegenic

I'll chime in for 7.6.

mdaffron

I used to have days like that when I was assistant manager at a Domino's Pizza in my twenties. Get home at 1 or 2, and read or watch infomercials until I finally got unwound enough to go to bed around dawn. I admire your ability to keep doing it. Must be all the biscuit-and-gravy perks.

;-)

Yeah, I read all that stuff you posted yesterday about sample defects and rattles. Funny stuff.

Wanna see how closely the Jetta and Protege stack up in their class? Read this from Edmunds Most Wanted list for 2002; it oughta help you feel a little better:

http://www.edmunds.com/reviews/mostwanted/2002/47581/article.html

Meade

P.S. BTW, CR sucks. I bought a grill a few years ago on their recommendation. It sucked. I bought a lawn mower based on their recommendation. It has a wheezy engine and any grass taller than about four inches will make it nearly come to a dead stop. And like you, I wonder who their reviewers are -- from their opinion on the Protege, it would seem they're all middle-aged women.

mdaffron

Well, I'll be leaving work in about an hour and I won't be back to the computer until Monday. Can you live without me?

Looks like there'll be one fun event this weekend -- I talked to Paul, who'll be traveling to North Carolina (and passing right through my town) tonight, and while he can't stop on the way down, he promised to give me a call when he comes back through Richmond Saturday evening. We're gonna show him the house and take him out to dinner if it all works out! Too bad, however, that he won't be driving the Jetta -- he's renting a car for the trip. That's TWICE now that I will have seen him while he's owned the Jetta, yet not gotten a chance to see it yet!

Meade

maltb

it depends on the mag, but 7 is too high. Nothing more.

mdaffron

I KNEW I could get Dale to come to Richmond again! That was TOO EASY!!!

;-)

mdaffron

I take back EVERYTHING I just said nice to you in my e-mail to you.

Blah. Pitouey.

Meade

chicagopro

Dang...I really need to get out of the house now.

ashutoshsm

If I understand maltb's email correctly, 7 is too high! My guess was 6.6-6.8, if they've gotten it right with the gearing/torque increase/LSD. (does LSD help prevent wheelspin during straight acceleration?)

Please - Let us know as soon as you know!

shrique

I'm shooting for about 7.0 even.

newcar31

Depends on the mag? What mags? Stop this teasing crap!

chikoo

6.0 even, as tested by Mazda.

maltb

rbrooks3

On what an 85 degree delcine?

rbrooks3

On what, an 85 degree decline?

mazdafun

as do C&D and Automobile and the rest. I do value the reliability statistics, and they give realistic physical numbers on dimensions, turning circle (wall-to-wall instead of "curb-to-curb", which doesn't keep you from rubbing bumpers against stuff).

chikoo

'was just making the dream more interesting..;)

protegenic

Wow! That would put the MPS in some pretty good company. The WRX would be the only thing faster in our class that I can think of.

chikoo

>>>but 7 is too high<<<

too high as in "7.2 is better"

or

too high as in "6.8 is better"

??

mazdafun

Especially since I took several pictures of them after I'd washed and waxed them this weekend.

Hey, on top of the dust etc. falling on my cars, apparently a nearby ant colony was releasing a bunch of new queens and drones, thus winged ants stuck all over where water beaded or sheeted up. Ick. :b

newcar31

Which mags tested the MS3? I just went to the newstand and didn't see any tests of the MS3. What gives?

vocus

But I have a change in plans, even though you won't read this. (I love surprises, don't you?) I AM going to be driving the Jetta to NC, so Meade will get to see it.

And he can tell you all how he liked it on Monday when he gets back, because I am going to let him drive it while I am there (providing I can catch him on Saturday night on my way back). But it should be interesting to hear him say how he liked it though. And I will have to see if his written review compares to the review he gives while in the car.

maltb

I don't have your current work e-mail addy so I sent you an e-mail on yahoo.

protege_fan

HAHA! That's going to totally surprise him! I can't wait to read his post on this!

meinrad

I can't wait to hear Meade's review of the rattle! LoL.

Better yet Paul, ride with him in his Pro and complain that it rattles too much! That will get him going!

newcar31

Thanks Malt! I'll have to check it when I get home.

vocus

I have never ridden in Meade's Protege. I want him to teach me how to drive a clutch with it, but he won't.

I am sure he will have something to say about the car, that's if I get there in time and can join him and his family for dinner on Saturday.

sunbyrne

So, of course CR rated the Matrix and the Jetta over the P5, complaining that the P5 suspension was too stiff and the car is too loud. Whatever.

But did anyone else notice that the Jetta had a few sample defects, including a dash rattle? A dash rattle? Hmm, sound familiar?

pjd58

tinted. The Pro looks alot nicer with dark windows. Standard OEM tinted windows(I don't even know why Mazda calls them tinted) just don't cut the mustard. Have 35% in the back 3 windows and 50% in the front 2. Installer did a great job and used Solar guard tint. Hopefully the tint will keep my Protege cooler and prevent fading of the interior.
Pjd58

alternator

When I eventually replace my 2002 Pro LX 195/55-15 tires I want something less expensive, and more "all-season" than the OEM Potenzas reportedly are.

Every reference I had seen said that a 205/50-15 would be an appropriate (Plus Zero) replacement to fit the 15 inch OEM wheels.

However, I have just received a reply from Discount Tire Co. saying that "The original equipment size 195/55r15 is 23.44 inches tall and
there is not an exact match for this tire in 15-inch. The 205/55r15 is 23.87-inches tall and the 205/50r15 is 23.07-inches tall.

We recommend the 205/55r15 as it is always better to increase the size slightly as this tire will carry the weight of the car better than a smaller tire".

Does this surprise anyone? Has anyone used the 205/55-15 size as a replacement?

dsm6

For the record, ashu was the only one to make an "official" guess (when we took the poll) of fewer than 7 seconds. Others may have said something here or there about times under 7.0 seconds, so sorry if I didn't record it.

That's good news. I'm looking forward to reading about it.

ashutoshsm

What did we decide on as the reward for the closest initial, uninformed guess (so maltb and audia8q/richard aren't allowed to 'guess')?

Discount vouchers to use on the purchase of a new MS3, (wishful thinking, huh - they're making, how many, 1500 of these?) or Mazda 6?

Humour (or humor!) aside, sub-7 would be pretty cool, giving Mazda a genuine competitor (should they decide to go mainstream and have larger runs of Protege's with these mods). Unfortunately, they may then decide to soften/tone down the ES and P5 (suspensions and aggressive handling capabilities) to satisfy CR and other lard-a$$ed seat-of-the-pants (in the BAD way) reviewers! That would be a pity!

mazdafun

That would be going back to the old way of trying to be "mainstream", which would put them head-to-head with Honda and Toyota again. That just got them bloodied and bruised. I think they have a handle on their niche, which is affordable, practical, reliable and a lot of fun to drive. I'm willing to trade off softness for better handling and more intimate feel for the car and the road. The Corolla always felt too small, soft and tippy to me. I'd never buy one so long as there's something more fun (I bought my 323 in 89 instead of the Corolla, Sentra or Civic for the same reasons: affordable, fun, practical).