Mazda Protege Accessories and Modifications

mazdafun · June 2003

How long did it take you, and what tools did you need?

theparallax · June 2003

I took it to a local shop, I don't have the necessary tools. It's about a 5 hour job if you know what you are doing. Keep in mind you will need to do an alignment after this.

mazdafun · June 2003

I recall needing spring compression tools, which I can borrow from the local AutoZone, but I wasn't sure what else may be needed. You're right, a 4-wheel alignment will be needed, so why not take the whole job to a shop that's set-up for it?

alternator · July 2003

I would like to tap into the wire going to my back-up lights without removing the rear light housing completely (to install a back-up alarm). As near as I can tell, the available wires are black (2), black + white (2), green + yellow, red + yellow and green. Does anyone have ready access to the wiring diagram for the 2000-2003 Mazda Protege and will tell me which of these is the back-up light (or reverse light in Mazda vernacular) wire?

mdaffron · July 2003

1. Detach all wires from rear light housing.

2. Have assistant put car in reverse.

3. Touch wire pairs to tongue, one pair at a time.

You'll know when you've found the right pair.

Meade

ashutoshsm · July 2003

... detach one pair at a time from back of housing (if removable) and watch when the reverse light stops functioning when aforementioned assistant shifts the car into reverse. Bingo!

(How's that for a redundant post?)

maltb · July 2003

Better yet, you can buy bulbs with built-in alarms and save yourself and your harness. JC Whitney sells them if you can't find them at your local parts store under the Grote or Signal-Stat brands.

alternator · July 2003

Good idea, but they don't make those in a version to replace the 7440 bulb in the Pro.

maltb · July 2003

I just noticed what bulb it uses.

Ok, looked at the Wiring Diag. The hot wire for backup is Red/Yellow and the ground is Black.

Hope that helps.

alternator · July 2003

it's so hot in my garage right now that it may be a few days before I can follow thru on this. But your info should be the answer. Will let you know.

feelander · July 2003

hey everyone, just bought my p5 last week and i didnt get the factory alarm option. now i am thinking that i want it. has anyone bought and installed the mazda alarm for their p5? i dont want to buy it and then find out i am in over my head. or would an aftermarket alarm be better?
thanks!

smasher · July 2003

OK. I've still got that New Car Paranoia with only 500 mi. on the car so far. I posted about a week ago regarding transmission whine in 2nd gear.

The closest thing I could find to a relevant TSB on this was TSB 0002993, which addresses transmission whine at certain speeds due to "a resonance that is generated at varying levels between the primary and secondary gears" which, they say, isn't a problem. (I found this on the Protege FAQ page.) This is in all 3rd generation Proteges.

I went to the dealer for a cargo tray, and stopped by the service dep't to ask about it. They said they'd look at it during the first scheduled service. That's fine with me; I don't think it makes much sense to try to diagnose random noises until the car's broken in anyway. Chalk it up to getting used to a new car. ("The interior isn't blue! Is that normal?!? Do they all do that?!?")

Also: I replaced the OEM front speakers with Pioneer TS-A6870R's. These went right in without problems, though I had splice the electrical connections into the door's wiring harness. (I.e., the Mazda connectors didn't fit.) The rain shields from the OEM speakers transferred to the new ones without alteration.

If anybody's interested, I can post pics, or put up a separate web page on a separate site.

boggse · July 2003

How do they sound? Better I hope?

smasher · July 2003

MUCH better. It was between the Pioneers and the comparable Alpines, which were about $15-$20 more. The Alpines sounded a tiny bit better, but not $15-$20 better. Either way, they're a big improvement over the OEM speakers, with much clearer sound, especially in the high end. This is in a 2003 P5, with the spare-tire subwoofer and the tweeters behind the side mirrors. I'm sure they'll sound even better once I transfer over the (fairly low-end) Alpine head unit I pulled from my last car, but I'm not really in a big hurry to peel apart the dash just yet.

Anybody out there have experience going from double-DIN to single-DIN? What did you use to fill in the extra slot? An OEM part? A simple cheap pocket? How does it look?

boggse · July 2003

The OEM pocket from the MP3 should work fine, although it is expensive ~$90. Another that should work is the one from the 99-00 Miata ~$25. The main difference is the Miata pocket does not have the flip-down door.

smasher · July 2003

OK. I've decided to go with a Yakima rack, mainly because I was able to buy one second-hand from a friend. I also had a chance to see somebody's P5 with a Yakima rack installed, so I knew it could be done.

This guy has some information about roof racks on a Protege5, and his experience with them. After some experimentation, he ended up removing the factory crossbars and installing a Yakima rack. He says the Thule 400-series feet don't fit on a P5 with a factory rack (even with the crossbars removed), so if you have the factory rack the only alternative is to go with Yakima.

The Yakima site says that you'll need the following equipment as a minimum:

2 48" bars
4 Q Towers
2 Q102 Fit Kits
4 lock cylinders

Once you have this stuff, you can add bike carriers, kayak carriers, etc.

One of Q102 Fit Kits I bought didn't include the proper instruction sheet for a P5; it was an earlier printing which showed fitting dimensions only for the Ford Focus. (The P5 and the Ford Focus use the same fit kit! There go those rumors again!)

Anyway, in case you didn't get them in your kit, here are the proper dimensions:

M1 (front crossbar width, inside to inside): 39-1/2"
M2 (windsheld trim to front Q-tower): 8"
M3 (rear crossbar width, inside to inside): 39-1/8"
M4 (front to rear crossbar distance, center to center): 32"

The easiest way I found to get the right M1 and M3 dimensions is to measure in from the ends of the crossbars. For 48" crossbars, it's:

M1: 4-1/4" from each end
M2: 4-7/16" from each end

(NOTE: If I'm repeating anything that's already in the documentation, I apologize; I dead-reconed this from the Fit Kit and from tinkering with a second-hand set, without any additional documentation.)

mazdafun · July 2003

Get the one from the previous Protege (??-98). It cost me only $11. No door, just a bin, but I couldn't justify paying $90 or $110 for a pocket with a door.

iamz · July 2003

I installed a Thule 889 bike rack. I've since modified it to remove the additional Thule front crossbar. The rails attach directly to the Mazda factory roof rack now, which with the moonroof deflector, has practically eliminated any wind noise from the rack.

smasher · July 2003

Update to my previous post: I think Yakima got the M4 measurement wrong; it should be closer to 25", which corresponds to an arrow stamped into the roof inside the door surround. I just talked to their technical support, who are working to confirm the correct dimension.

Crossbars seem to fit fine above the arrows, so the other dimensions in the fit kit seem to be correct.

I'll update when/if I get confirmation of the correct dimensions from Yakima.

smasher · July 2003

Yakima is correct, of course. I, um, measured wrong. Or something. But their dimensions are correct; the front/rear crossbar pitch is indeed 32", and the Q-towers fit fine at that point. I'm not sure why the indentations in the door surrounds are where they are, but they don't seem to have any bearing on roof rack tower location.

Anyway. I installed all the Yakima stuff (CORRECTLY this time) on Wednesday, left on Thursday with my road bike locked into one of the Steelhead channels, and went 600+ miles with nary a peep.

Car is breaking in nicely, and the 2nd gear whine I mentioned in other posts seems to be subsiding as the gearbox loosens up. Engine is smoothing out, too.

icvci · July 2003

While changing the oil this past week I took a look at the air intake. How many baffles does it need? Looks like there are 3 on the first stage. Then there appears to be a condensate area. Then it drops down about 12-14" before it enters the filter area.

I took off the first stage and I'm driving around with it like that until I get home. It really doesn't do much but add a little more throat. I'm thinking about cutting off the part that drops just before the filter and clamping a piece of PVC on it. That drop can't be anything but a resonator/baffle, I think.

From what my friend (who's very close to Mazda R/D) has told me, it's next to impossible to get anything more out of the 2.0. I'm not looking for more H/P, just a little bit of growl. Not to be confused with that buzzy rap of the fart-can exhaust.

Has anyone here added an air intake?

boggse · July 2003

I know some who have gotten the Injen CAI. Essentially, all it does is make more noise and rev a little faster. Essentially, you would need to replace the whole exhaust from the headers back to get any appreciable increase out of the 2.0L. That is where it is restrictive. If you live in a state that doesn't do emissions testing (SC or TN for instance), you can essentially rebuild your engine using parts from the Japanese spec 2.0L and get about 170HP out of it. Corksport will sell you these parts. Another option is to get the Mazdaspeed Turbo kit that is coming out, or the turbo kit from Flyin' Miata for $3595.

Links:

http://www.corksport.com/
http://www.mazdamotorsports.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Home?st- oreId=10001&langId=-1
http://www.flyinmiata.com/protege/default.asp

icvci · July 2003

Nope boggse, I'm just interested in sounding a bit better. Maybe a cat-back exhaust someday. For now, the most I'll do is an intake.

Too bad they charge so much. These companies are making a killing. It doesn't cost much to mandrel bend a foot and a half of aluminum, throw on a couple of rubber connectors and top it off with a high intake filter. K&N wants $500??? For no appreciable performance gain?!?!? What a joke. A cat-back exhaust can be had for $500. Suspension upgrades with real world performance can be had for $500.

The really sad part is some people are buying it.

boggse · July 2003

If I were you, I would spend the money on an RB or Borla exhaust and forget the intake. At least with the RB, you know you will get 4.7HP out of your $449, and it will sound better. Neither K&N or Injen have Dyno results listed for the Protege. I am sure this is because the improvement is so minimal.

icvci · July 2003

Oh I hear that. Like I said, I can't believe anyone would pay the money they are asking. A solid intake can be had for $150 or less and a bolt on exhaust will run three times that.

I'll probably just modify the baffle/resonator. I'm 99.9% positive the last area on it is for noise reduction.

protege_fan · July 2003

I've added a Monster Flow intake (short ram intake, not CAI) that I got off a fellow Pro owner that was selling his Pro to get an RX-8. It only cost me $50 CDN.

AEM has results from their intake for the Pro, although, I can't remember if it's a 1.8L or a 2.0L that they test. At any rate, check out their site.

IMO, the intake I added makes the engine have a more throaty sound that is especially noticeable at WOT.

reitrof · August 2003

I got mine off eBay for 35 bucks shipped. Works great.

icvci · August 2003

Would you post a link to a similar one on ebay?

reitrof · August 2003

Sure,

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item- =2426506571&category=33659

icvci · August 2003

I've seen it there before. Where does all of the wirng that connects to the current intake go?

Do you have any pics of it installed in your P5?

I had a DAC intake on my CRX and it was a breeze to install. I've never seen so many wires coming from the intake before though.

reitrof · August 2003

Not sure what you mean by wires? There are no wires in the picture.

Confused

icvci · August 2003

There are wires on the stock intake. I'm guessing sensors of some type.

boggse · August 2003

Would you be referring to the wires connecting to the Mass Airflow Sensor? If so, most intakes make accommodations for that sensor and the associated wiring.

icvci · August 2003

Well I suppose that would be the wire. If that's the wire coming from the intake, that's it. I think there is more than one though. I saw that the K&N intake had a place for them. I'm not sure about the one reitrof is speaking of though.

reitrof · August 2003

Icvci,

Yes they have place for the sensors.

boggse · September 2003

I know many of you have complained about the AC compressor kicking in every time you put the HVAC controls on anything except face and face/feet. I found this on Miata.net and thought I would share it with you. I do not know if it works with Proteges, but I thought someone might want to investigate:

"If you pull out the HVAC controls from the center console, there is a 2 pin connector at the very top of the module and a little to the left of the right knob. All you have to do is unplug that connector and tie is back out of the way so it doesn't foul the mechanism. If you pull the controls out further, you can see the connector goes to a small limit switch which is triggered by moving the knob to the DEFROST position."

I do not plan to do this mod, but if someone else wants to try it, please report back any success/failure.

icvci · September 2003

My AC compressor kicks in when I put it on face/feet too. That's the setting I despise.

boggse · September 2003

That is very odd. I don't think that it is supposed to behave that way. My 2003 P5 doesn't.

protojason · September 2003

Tinted windows make.

Finally had mine done...big improvement.

Went with Huper Optik...some sort of ceramic in it...was pricy, but it was a slow day so they threw in an alarm too. .. and i hardly haggled.

The only slight dissapointment was after I made the deals, I found out it's only available in one shade.

In theory I'd planned on 35% on driver/passenger side...and limo dark from there back (which he said i could do here in Tx)..something about my little wagon being an Suv. Hehehe

Ah well...this stuff sure does the job. I'm pleased.

Now to tackle the roof rack bike mount problem.
I read one persons saga...::shudder::

Many folks have tried Yakima vs Thule (round poles vs square) and our factory racks are kinda ovalised... I found a system made by Saris that seems similar....will continue research!

Jason

rutger3 · September 2003

Okay, my 17 yr old son wants to change the tire size on his just purchased 99 LX with something that looks better and will allow him to participate in the Indy 500. He has actually mentioned getting 18" tires which I am pretty sure will not fit his car properly. Does anyone know the largest tire reccomended for this car,both in diameter and profile? Tried to tell him speed tires are not good in the winter and will wear out faster. ALso, will the different size effect the speedometer accuracy or other functions? I believe he has 185/70 14's now.

boggse · September 2003

The standard size tire on a 99LX was 185/65-R14. Looks like he could go to 16x7.5 easily on the 99 LX. Anything larger might rub. With that size wheel, I would recommend a 225/40-R16 tire. Here are a couple sites to check out:

http://www.tirerack.com/
http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html

Good Luck!

pjz1 · September 2003

I have 2002 pro and would like to improve on the sound system, by adding speakers to the rear doors. Has any one done this already and how does it sound with the factory radio.

boggse · September 2003

You would need to add an amp to add the speakers. I know that some have done this, but I would advise against it unless you are upgrading the whole system as well. In my P5 the doors are where the rear speakers are. Rear seat occupants can barely hear them since the speakers are pointed at their feet. IMO, if you wanted to replace all 4 existing speakers, plus add a couple of amps, it might be worth it. Otherwise I would say to replace the head unit as well. On the positive side of the topic, I have found a couple of places that sell Japanese spec double DIN head units:

http://www.melting-pot.com/website/products.html

http://www.audiocubes.com/index.php?cPath=61_78

If the stereo ever goes in my Protege5, I am going to get one of these to replace it.

moparbad · October 2003

Is the auto dimming mirror difficult to install? Does anyone have it and what do you think of it?

boggse · October 2003

The auto-dimming mirror is relatively easy to install if you don't mind running some wire. I have it on my 2003 Protege5. It works great now that Mazda found one for me that works. The first 3 were duds. There are some aftermarket ones which are essentially the same which can be found for less money.

chrison · October 2003

Hi guys,

I have just got a 03 ES with the stock single CD player. I would like to add an aux in so at least I can connect my MP3 player to the system. Is there any cable on the market which fits the Mazda connector? Or if not, is there any affordable way to do it? Thank you very much.

Chrison

boggse · October 2003

I posted this in the meet the members forum:

boggse "Mazda Protege Owners: Meet the Members" Oct 5, 2003 9:14am

Ted

osmon2 · October 2003

Hello, I am looking for a roof rack and mud guards for my 2003 Protégé 5, I have checked with several Mazda dealers but apparently they do not sell those parts in this area (Washington DC/Maryland/ Virginia). Do you guys know of any place on the web where I can purchase those accessories?

Thank you.

moparbad · October 2003

Do a search for Trussville Mazda. I just ordered from them and they delivered very quickly.

mazdafun · October 2003

I didn't think they made them for the P5 due to the bumper fascia and the side-sill fascia.

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