Mazda Protegé

mdaffron

... Because any car enthusiast knows that silver metallic paint is the least resistant to sunlight and will fade and peel prematurely. At least Mazda decided to play TRIBUTE to that fact in the paint color name.

Meade

pat

Meade -- people around here are washing their cars. Of course this area has no water shortage because of the pipeline to Lake Gaston, but that didn't stop our esteemed governor from including us in his edict. AFAIK, the localities around here have not come up with any violation penalties -- has Richmond?

dsm6

Is Millenium Red Mica. That's some pretty old paint.

boggse

Our water restrictions were finally lifted last week after our lakes filled back up with just a couple of storms. I plan to wash both the vehicles this weekend.

vocus

Here in Baltimore, MD, I am pretty sure it's a $500 fine for getting caught breaking the water restriction. I don't know how they would catch you though, all the cops are too busy chasing around the sniper.

vocus

The Protege you should be afraid of buying is one that was owned by me.

cmorton

newcar31

"Because any car enthusiast knows that silver metallic paint is the least resistant to sunlight and will fade and peel prematurely."

I didn't know that and I consider myself a car enthusiast. I would have thought that darker colors would be less resistant to sunlight and fade easier because they absorb the sunlight a lot more. Could you post a link that descibes this phenomenon?

cmorton

I have just under 31K miles on my manual 00 Protoge LX and the car is doing great. I have had a few problems with the keyless entry system, but aside from that the car's been great. I did have the side panels in the back doors replaces as the originals did not fit tightly enough.
I also added the compass/temp. rearview mirror.
Has anyone else gotten this option on a Protoge?
Also, if you've owned or driven a 99 or 00 DX or LX and then the new 2.0 engine, have you noticed much of a change in acceleration or milage?

dinu01

Paul: I will make sure to ask if the car was "Paul owned and operated" before taking it off the lot

Meade and Todd: Really Meadester? I thought darker colours fade easier since they attract more sunlight than lighter colours. How many white cars can you say are faded? None. Darker cars? Definitely more. And I heard tha Emerald Mica actually fades the worst - when it's in a forest Kinda blends in, fades from view...

Cmorton: It's a PROTEGE not a PROTOGE, unless PROTOGE actually means something. Thanks for the heads-up though. I now have to add "panels that don't fit properly" to my "Look-out!" list.

Thanx again.

Dinu

dinu01

to be called an enthusiast? Is a car freak the same as an enthusiast? Are there any courses to take? Just curious since Todd certified himself as an enthusiast. I'd like to be recognized as one too.

Dinu

jeffy729

Any color paint oxidizes and fades, it's just more noticeable on darker colors. My Sand Mica 99 LX looks great (my Mom has it), but the color of the paint inside the doors is definitely darker than the paint on the body panels (at least to a picky person like me!). I live in fear of what that metallic red paint on my '02 will look like in the same amount of time!

Having owned both a '99 with the 1.6 and an '02 with the 2.0 (both automatics) I can say that the new one is much easier to live with (27 extra horsepower will do that!). I do get about 2 mpg less than with the '99 (a good trade off I think).

mdaffron

In my county it's $100 for the first offense, escalating for subsequent offenses. The ONLY exception is you get a month to water your lawn IF you've just had it aerated or you've started a new lawn. But after 30 days you have to stop or you'll be fined.

And they ARE enforcing it.

Meade

mdaffron

Why do I have to do research that you're capable of doing? Here goes ...

http://cartalk.cars.com/Columns/Archive/1995/January/13.html

Silver tends to have the highest metallic content.

And just to illustrate that silver is still hard to do right today, here's a car (apologies to Paul) that not only came with bad silver paint from the dealer, but also had problems with the new paint job done to fix the problem. See the second entry:

http://www.consumeraffairs.com/automotive/vw_paint.html

I also have personal experience with silver paint. My older brother purchased a 1986 Mercury Lynx brand new while I was in college. He babied that car, washed it weekly, kept it waxed, etc. By the time he traded it on a Honda Accord in 1991, it was gray. The shine was gone. And I rarely see a five-year-old silver car that doesn't look this way.

Meade

P.S. Dinu: Know why white's the most durable? No metal flake, more pigment!

newcar31

Sounds like they said that Metallic cars are more prone to the flaking, not necessarily silver. Anyway, my parents have a silver 92' Camry (bought in 91') that still looks beautiful. Soon to be traded on a Mazda 6 though....

dinu01

They're talking about paint flaking off in pieces, not fading. I think that's an important distinction to make. We discussed fading, right?

Now for the VW issue...it's the covers from Méhico!

As Todd said, any colour can be classified as metallic except white. I know this b/c I paid $105 extra for the PRO b/c it was metallic - white was the only colour w/out this metallic content.

BTW, this is the 1st time we're discussing paint. Tires and oil and brakes eventually get boring.

Dinu

dinu01

How often do YOU (not Mazda) recommend as changing intervals for:

1. coolant
2. brake fluid - do you change it?
3. spark plugs
4. brakes
5. AT fluid

Keep in mind I have 45.000 kms (28.000 miles) on it since July 2001 and I plan on keeping this car for 7-8 years (or more).

Thanx!
Dinu

meinrad

Not the 1st time discussing Paint, back in April we debated Paint colors and how hot the car gets.

Also I was ridiculed in July for discussing repainting a new car to get just the color you want.

We've had the orange peel debate......

But it appears to be the 1st time we've discussed paint flaking.

dinu01

I remember the "Hot in the Sun" discussion and the Orange Peel one.

BTW Meinrad, you can get the blue laser paint on any 03 PROs.

Dinu

vocus

I always thought black would fade quicker than any other color, because it absorbs the most UV rays. My friend has a black 1994 Mercury Cougar, and almost all the paint all but flaked off the car. He had it repainted, but the paint still looks crappy.

meinrad

somewhat well. The advanced search function that is. Searching the Protege discussion for "paint" was the first time I was ever able to search for a topic successfully on the Edmunds board.

But Dinu, I don't want Laser Blue, I want the Cosmic Blue Metallic from the Matrix. But I'm satisfied with my Midnight Blue.

vocus

It HAD to be a VW site, didn't it?

Just like these types of chat rooms, people are more likely to come and report negative things than positive ones. So alot of people take them with a grain of salt.

dinu01

Since we discussed paint, I heard that adding MAZDASPEED decals to your ride makes it go faster. I am considering a small Zoom-Zoom sticker, so I actually found out that for $17 US you can get:

DECAL SET, BLACK/WHITE/SILVER $17.50

     

COMPLETE DECAL SET INCLUDES:

1-26" MAZDASPEED,

2-16' MAZDA,

2-8' MAZDA,

2-5' MAZDA,

2 MAZDASPEED MOTORSPORTS DEVELOPMENT,

2 5-1/2' WINGED-M,

2 15" ZOOM-ZOOM,

1 5' MAZDA PATCH FOR DRIVER'S SUIT.

From:

http://www.mazdamotorsports.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CPSearch

Select Decals and Protege

Dinu

Yours in aftermarket "performance" add-ons

mdaffron

PUH-LEASE don't let us start in on that "dark cars hotter in the sun" thing again. That was about as bad as discs vs. drums ...

Hey! I got an idea. Let's talk about ...

DAEWOOS!!!

Meade

dinu01

Daewoo! That's who!

Just had to say that!

Dinu

boggse

I am at 18,000 miles since April 2001.

1. Coolant: Every two years, preferably in the fall
2. Brake Fluid: I don't think I have ever replaced brake fluid -- just added, but it probably is a good idea every 100,000 miles or so, just to be safe.
3. Spark Plugs: Apparently at 18,000 miles. We'll see how long the Bosch Platinums last.
4. Brakes: Well, I suppose that when it comes time to do a brake job, I will upgrade to some nice Brembo cross-drilled rotors, but I expect that is about 20,000+ miles in my future.
5. AT Fluid: N/A. I would just follow the Mazda recommended interval, but make sure you get it flushed and 90%-100% drained first. Some Mazda dealers may not be able to do this, so ask first.

vocus

They stopped importing cars, from what I hear. Looks like they are going belly up.

vocus

The link below is for the Magetbra. This is the one I had on my 2001 Protege, for those of you who saw it in person (Meade). I still have the one from the Pro, but can't find the darn molding to it (that holds the bra to the hood). I feel bad, because I promised it to someone on the Yahoo Protege board.

http://www.magnetbra.com/models.html

boggse

I thought you were talking about heavy construction equipment or consumer electronics.

Seriously, I had to rent a Leganza once (it was either that or a Dodge Avenger, and I had 3 passengers and their luggage). It could not maintain 65 mph on the freeway.

Even my 87 Suzuki Samurai with 65 HP could do that, and it was as aerodynamic as a refrigerator. The Samurai was silver metallic by the way, it still looked great in 2000 when my idiot brother got a title loan on it and forgot to pay it off. Doh!

mazdafun

1. coolant
Every 2 years.

2. brake fluid - do you change it?
When it looks dark or when the pedal feel is spongy.

3. spark plugs
Every 30,000 miles.

4. brakes
Front disc pads when they are at about 15-20% remaining.
Rear pads every other front pad change.
I estimate I'm at about 40% pad material remaining at 30,000 miles. I'll probably change them at about 45,000 miles.

5. AT fluid
Every 60,000 miles. About same time as changing the timing belt.

newcar31

This is what *I* would do.

Coolant, every 2 years or 30,000 miles.

Brake Fluid, change every brake job.

Spark Plugs, every 15,000 miles. They're cheap.

Brakes, it depends. You could easily cook your brakes in one summer or less if you autocross.

A/T Fluid: This is tricky. I'd have the full 100% flush done every 30,000 miles. Halfway between flushes, I'd drain the transmission pan. You could do this in your garage and it's easier than an oil change. This might sound like overkill, but if I had an automatic, I wouldn't be taking any chances.

BTW Meade, dark cars ARE hotter in the sun. Dark color absorb more light, therefore more heat. I used to have a black Integra and a deep jewel green Mustang.

mdaffron

I've run the gamut from white to black. Including a charcoal-gray Hyundai Excel with no A/C!!!

Meade

chikoo

which one would look the best on an Emerald Green Mica?

ashutoshsm

on the top of the rear windshield of a green Pro. LOL (running and ducking!)

chikoo

that is the last thing I will ever have on my car....a big windshield sticker

ashutoshsm

(REALLY ducking now!)

newcar31

This is one beautiful green Protege. It has a turbo too. Oh lordy.

http://mixx.8m.com/images/xenex2.jpg

vocus

I got this custom-made sticker for the top of the Pro's windshield when I had it. I liked the way it looked, and everyone who commented on it seemed to as well.

vocus

I know what you mean, Meade. I have been from light blue to white to dark green and dark red as well. And silver too. I found that silver and white are the easiest to keep clean, and also the coolest in the heat.

My black Pro was hell in the heat, but the silver one (DX with a less powerful engine) stayed cooler inside.

vocus

Coolant: Every 30K or 2 years, whichever is 1st.

Brakes: depends. Had mine checked at 24.5K and they said there was 90% rear, 80% front. So it looks like I will have to replace them at 100K or so.

Oil: Every 5K (manufacturer recommendations)

Spark plugs: 30, 40, or 100K (Pro is 30, my car is 40)

Tranny fluid: 30K (I think)

The 30K service usually covers all that stuff though. I have that big service at 40K though, instead of 30, for some reason.

chikoo

>>>>This is one beautiful green Protege. It has a turbo too. Oh lordy.

http://mixx.8m.com/images/xenex2.jpg <<<<

This is the hottest Protege I have seen till date.

Looks it is ready to kill anybody who stands in its way!!

vocus

That's not a bad looking car, but those wheels are wayyy too big for my tastes.

ashutoshsm

Check out some of the photo galleries at protegeclub - some pretty impressive rides listed and showcased there. And an equal number of 'tasteless' ones as well.

newcar31

Well then maybe this will interest you:


http://mixx.8m.com/rides.htm

Scroll down to the bottom and check out the turbo kit.

vocus

Now the Protege in the upper left corner (the black one) looks very nice. The wheels on that one look factory, but I don't think they are because they seem larger than 16". Of course, the owner could have dropped the suspension too...

mdaffron

Please allow me to show you one hell of a nice Protege, and, if you look closely, you'll see a really good place for a "zoom zoom" decal. I've received many compliments on it.

http://www.protegenetwork.org/chapters/DC/meets/mappiv/meade2.jpg

Meadeball

mdaffron

http://mazdaprotege.net/meets/mapp3/meade1.jpg

Meadeball

chikoo

zoom zoom decal......darn it, can't figure it out.

mdaffron

... and below the "flying wing" logo.

Meade

vocus

Hey, that is a pretty good placement for the decal. I never put mine on the Protege when I had it. I couldn't think of a good place for it.