Edmunds dealer partner, Bayway Leasing, is now offering transparent lease deals via these forums. Click here to see the latest vehicles!
Popular New Cars
Popular Used Sedans
Popular Used SUVs
Popular Used Pickup Trucks
Popular Used Hatchbacks
Popular Used Minivans
Popular Used Coupes
Popular Used Wagons
Comments
All that Civic vs. Pro business was really the pits. If either side convinced the other -- what did they gain? Nothing!
dinu01 said:
Browntrout and I don't mean it to be disrespectful, but a large # of Americans are very ignorant about anything outside of their little world that affects them directly. If they don't see it, it doesn't exist.
True, dinu01, 85% of Americans have never traveled outside of the country and many of those have no idea where states and cities are in the USA when major events happen. Many Americans have never been to other states and the less fortunate have never been out of their hometowns. Those who do travel may not be all that interested in foreign affairs, the politics of other countries are not the reason they travel.
About *bobbing* on the road: My Pro was doing that over one stretch of road I travel daily. After the tires were rotated and balanced I noticed it less. Part of the problem was the road surface which has ripples on it. But I don't notice the bobbing as much now. It's sort of a hip-hop action fore and aft as if the car's short wheelbase may be the cause. In a car with a longer wheelbase (110 inches) and softer suspension it would not be felt.
Sport suspension: To be perfectly honest, I don't like it. It has softened up somewhat and is now tollerable. But I DO like everything else about my '01 LX 2.0. I would never buy an ES nor the Pro5. Love the styling of the Pro5, don't like the interior -- never liked black and I don't like the fake metallic pieces.
I bought the Pro for it's styling and comfortable seats. If a car's seats are too firm, read cloth covered rocks, no matter how fine a car it is I walk away. Also, I like the bronze center pod. I have beige trim. I do appreciate the fact that the suspension provides the great handling.
On hard starting: I agree with dinu01 on turning off all electrical accessories. Pilots are trained to turn off all electrical devices before shutting down the engine, so the battery starts the engine the next time. I follow this procedure in my Pro so I don't get a blast of cold air in my face, and for the same reason pilots do it.
fowler3
Me: "But that's what they taught us in driver ed in high school!" (to avoid hard starts)
Him: "But that was a million years ago! That's not necessary for cars these days."
Driver ed, for me, was in 1979. True, that was a million years ago...so who's right?
By the way, fowler, my driver ed teacher was a former pilot
What that precaution really does is prevent a device from draining the battery. Say there is a short circuit somewhere you don't know about.
fowler3
I don't think I have even touched 3000 rpm, even at 60mph, going uphill. I do understand that the break-in period is mostly to make sure all the parts wear properly, and that the parts that are slightly off-tolerance wear themselves properly into tolerance.
Am I missing something?
Dale: All acessories should be OFF to avoid battery strain at start-up. Remember, your battery is under a huge demand at start-up. Why reduce its life?
Ron: good luck w/the speakers. I have limited knowledge on this topic so I won't tell you where you should connect them.
Dinu
Did I mention that the Pro's handling has already saved me from a few accidents?
It is standard electrical engineering practice to indicate the negative wire or lead in a connection. This is sometimes done by color but most frequently done with a stripe on the wire. As such, if it were my car, I would assume the striped wire to be negative and the (dotted?) wire to be positive. This turned out to be true as I recall when I needed to splice my sub into wires going to one of the rear speakers. If you want I have a post(s?) about wire colors for rear speakers I believe over in the Pro5 thread but it may take quite a bit of reading to find it. Sorry I can't be more helpful, and again, you use my information at your own risk (I installed my sub over 8 months ago and have since forgotten most of the details).
Avoid lugging the engine, having it in the wrong gear for climbing a hill, for example, where it stalls.
Vary the speeds by bringing it up to the posted limit, or slightly higher, and then easing off so it slows down. Take it easy with the brakes, too. They need tø wear-in properly.
fowler3
Went to a nearby BP station and put in $2.00 worth, less than two gallons. When I started the engine the light was still on. Putting the Pro in gear I moved forward and then backed up to slosh the gas around in the tank -- the light went out. The needle moved up two tics on the dial. Ahhh.
fowler3
Paul: You had it to 4500 to break-in the parts? You were then probably going 85-90 mph? So what did you usually drive at if that was for the break-in period?
Does anyone know the torque specs for changing the spark plugs on the 2000 1.8L engine? I'm going to change them soon.
Just kidding. I don't know the torque spec, but I have never torqued spark plugs. What I can tell is that they don't require much torque. Be careful because you are threading that plug into an aluminum head.
fowler3
A cheap multimeter (about $15) should easily indicate which is ground. Using the ohmeter (to measure resistance), touch one probe to a piece of exposed sheetmetal (bolt, screw, whatever) and another to a lead. When you get close to a zero-reading, you've found the ground lead. The other is the "hot" or positive lead.
Some multimeters have a continuity tester. Basically, it sounds an alert tone when it detects resistance below a set level.
"In answer to your question about speakers for the rear of your Protege, I have good news and bad news. The bad news is that, unfortunately, the 6x9" speakers will not fit because of the mounting height available under your factory grilles. You are limited to .488", and almost all 6x9" speakers are .6" or more. Sorry I don't have better news for you there."
"However, the good news is that you can move to a 6.5" speaker with an
adapter that we will provide for free with your purchase."
-Larry
I think the grills on the rear deck were lowered from the 99-00 model years to clear the ISOFIX latches up top. This doesn't bother the stock speakers as they don't have dedicated tweeters or midranges, only a "whizzer cone."
An alternative is to mount your 6x9 speakers under the metal deck. You'll want to put support straps under them in case the screws come loose so your speakers don't fall. The upside is they'll be easier to get to/replace. The downside is they cut down on your cargo space.
No worries!
Meade
What's the most mileage you have extracted from one tank with your Protege? I got 392miles on 13 gallons (auto). Without overfilling or cheating. From the same station at the same pump only filing to he auto shut-off. I did have to stay around 60mph the whole time and tried really hard to keep the engine below 3k rpm at all times. Has anyone here grabbed 400 miles from a tank?
-Larry "love train"
This is killing me. I hate not knowing what to do.
I still owe about 4k on it, but after it's paid off I will be looking into something else with better mpg. I see no sense in enduring the safety compromises inherent in a small car and not getting the normal benefits associated with it.
I test drove a Pro ES over the weekend. I was disappointed. Sorry. I'm glad you guys like yours, but it doesn't fit my needs.
The salesguy insisted on letting the car warm up for at least 5 minutes before we went on the test drive. With the references to cold weather noises on this board I'm not surprised at that.
I like the looks of the car. I like the roominess. I like the feel of the wheel and the buttons. I don't like the lack of a useable right armrest, which would make having a 5 speed in Chicago do-able as is the case w/ my Accord.
Anyway, I was stunned at what I found when driving the car. It had an automatic (no 5 speeds on the lot), so I was ready for a bit of lag in acceleration. But I was not prepared to accelerate more slowly than my minivan. Also, the brakes were not acceptable. I rolled past a stop sign (no danger) because I kept gently applying increased pressure to the pedal but had to finally jab the thing hard to get to a full stop. My wife's 89 Escort's brakes were better than what I experienced on this car.
The handling was as great as everyone here has said. It was truly enjoyable to take around corners. But the ride was much more harsh than my wife or I could tolerate for a length of time. By comparison, the Focus ZX5 I drove an hour later had equivalent handling but a much nicer ride. And a nicer stereo, too. ;-)
I'm glad you guys are so enthused about your Pro's. Your testimonials were the main reason I was seriously considering the car. I assume the car I drove was a bad apple in some regards, but the harsh (to me) ride can't be explained away.
And there's no need to bash the Focus in response. I already know its shortcomings (questionable quality control, rear seat legroom, some interior parts seem cheap). But I found it to have better acceleration and ride quality than the Pro and equivalent handling.
The Civic I drove this weekend was okay, but even with the 5 speed it wasn't nearly as quick as my '92 Accord. And the interior wasn't as nice to be in as the Hyundai I sat in at the auto show. It may run for 300k miles, but they've cut many corners on the Civic this time around.
I think to get the combination of room (I need an occasionally useable back seat, which eliminates the Sentra and probably the Focus for me), acceleration, ride, and interior quality I want I may end up paying a bit more and getting another Accord, unless the new Corolla or Matrix knock my socks off during a test drive later this week. For the price of a modestly equipped Matrix, which is going for sticker around here, I could have an Accord LX with $$ left over for accessories or an extended service agreement.
In any case, it's been fun reading your Protege adventures for the past 9 months or so. I wish I could join the ranks of Pro enthusiasts here, but it's just not in the cards.
Thanks!
twist
It sounds like you are recommending the 6.5" rounds over the 6x9s. I thought you got Pioneer 6x9s in your 1999 Protege Sedan? The 6.5" speakers that are available are all component speakers, so I am guessing I will have to mount the tweeters somewhere else. What do you think about 5.25" 2 ways instead? Also, Does anyone know what model number Kenwood 6x9s Mazda sells from the 2001-2002 Performance Accessories brochure? They are 3-way, so either they have a low clearance for the midrange & tweeter, or they mount differently.
Just out of curiousity, which Mazda dealership did you go to?
If mpg is your top priority when buying a compact, maybe you should look into a Toyota Echo? Not much fun to drive or look at, but it does have Toyota reliability, relatively cheap, and boy does it save on the gas....
I think the brakes on my P5 are pretty great. {shrug}
I have also never noticed a cold rattle problem, even up her in VT.
My sister has a Focus and LOVES it and I think the ZX5 is very cool.
twist: Protegés aren't for everyone, particularly the firm ride. The struts do soften up a bit after 2000 miles, but still, it is firm compared to Focus. From your description I would say even a Honda LX would not fill that order; poor handling compared to the Pro and Focus ZX5.
What you really need is an Audi A4, but it also has firm suspension, even without the sport option.
BTW, I had a '92 Accord and one of my complaints about that car was the misserable backseat backrest, it had a big lumbar bulge that was a real pain for most people. Evidently, Honda listened to too many pregnant women who wanted back support on the way to hospital delivery rooms. It was changed with the '94 model.
nematode: On a trip last Fall, I got 36mpg in my '01 Pro LX 2.0 w/AT. It would have gone 400 miles I'm sure. I topped the tank before starting the trip; drove 324 miles and topped the tank again, stopping at the shutoff -- it took 9 gallons even. I, too, kept my speed under 65mph and under 3000rpm. Maybe you don't realize precisely how you drive and that may be part of the problem. I drive for economy every time I get in my Pro: watch the tach, get up to higher gears quickly without excessive speed and rpm's.
vocus: No wonder you had problems with your ES if you were redlining it after only 1000 miles.
We all know the Protegé is a wonderful little commuter car with firm suspension and great handling which adds fun and entertainment value. It is not a sports car. So why do so many stress it to its limits and beyond?
The best insurance/extended warrenty on any car is FREE! I'm surprised so few take advantage of it. It's called COMMON SENSE.
fowler3
It's a very low volume shop from what I can tell. The Mazdas are in an outbuilding at a Buick dealership. It used to be the used car showroom/office. Barely room for two offices, 4 cars, and a bathroom. I've gone in there and played with the Pro & Pro 5 for 10 minutes without encountering another human being.
Salesman I dealt with seemed like a good guy. He was the only one on duty on Friday night. But every time he needed something...to make a copy of my license...to find out when the current financing plan ends...to get a key for the test drive...to get one of his business cards(!)...he had to walk half a block to go back to the main building.
twist
Insurance costs are something else. I thought the pro would be relatively cheap to insure and when I first took out the policy it was. But due to rating code changes those costs have steadily risen until it now costs more to insure my pro than my 2k accord. And it's not because of a poor record. I have an excellent driving record. I guess as the new style pro has compiled a history of accident repair costs, the insurance companies have responded with rate hikes.
I just can't see a long term relationship with this car.
fowler3
I'm surprised that your Protege's insurance rate increased faster than your Accord. I wonder if it's due to a younger demographic among Protege owners, compared to Accord owners, and thus a higher liability?
Well, I hope you enjoy all the time you'll have with your Protege before moving onto something else!
As for mileage in my 99 ES 5sp. I kind of bounce all over between 26-32. My latest tank was around 26, but it was really all city driving. Plus with cheap gas, I find I hardly ever shift before 4K when accelerating from a stop. Then again, I hardly ever go over 5K.
My insurance on the Pro5 is nearly $150 a month. I'm a 21 year old male and had a substantial single vehicle accident a year ago (about $5000 in damage, this was my B2300, not the Protege). Otherwise my driving record is spotless. My insurance also has pretty high levels of coverage and a $500 deductible. Considering this and what you guys have said you pay, I don't think I'm getting a terrible deal. I wish it was less, of course, but it could certainly be worse.
Still, makes me wonder if my next car (probably once I turn 25 and my insurance rates approach adult normal) may be cheaper to insure even if it's faster, more expensive, and newer than the Pro5.