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Comments
Gene
Hey, up here in Harrisburg, PA the building I work in has a nesting pair of peregrine falcons. We have live video feeds from several angles. One camera angle looks down on my parking lot across the street where I can see my Pro. I wonder if this would qualify as some kind of passive alarm?
KarenS
Host
Owner's Clubs
1995 Mazda Protege ES (1st real job period)
2001 Mazda Protege ES (1st real career job period)
1991 Mazda Protege Hatchback (Ok...my dads)
MARTIN
"Proteges bring me good job luck...hehe... they are my workhorses... and put food on my table!!"
-Larry
My name's Rick Sparrow and I write from sunny but cool Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. I'm a computer technician for one of the school districts in the area. I do a lot of driving so I'm glad I have my "Grace Green" 99 Protege SE (same as the 99 LX in the US). It has only 24,000 km so far and no problems whatsoever, and it's been great on gas, so as much as I lust after the '01 ES I'll probably wait another year... The only "mods" I have are aftermarket powerlocks and keyless entry, and a remote starter which was great to have over the winter!
Looking forward to trying out the Protege5 this summer!
-Larry
KarenS
Host
Owner's Clubs
KarenS
Host
Owner's Clubs
My name is Jim and I live in Jamestown, NC. I owned a 1981 Mazda GLC, the Special Edition model that year in Silver with black houndstooth interior, it was a hatchback. 5-speed. Ran great for four years, only problem was the heater didn't work and it couldn't be fixed. Boy! Was it cold at five below zero and zooming just made it colder.
I'm a graphic designer, self-employed, and also do media advertising for clients. Won't give my age, but that GLC should give you an idea.
I'm now trying to sell my Honda Odyssey so I can buy a 2001 Pro. Looking forward to zooming with all the Pro owners here.
fowler3
Oh, here is a picture of my car:
Hope that image shows up :P!!
KarenS
Host
Owner's Clubs
The coolest feature of the protege is this... I have had to replace my dishwasher 5 times in three years. We have super hard water. Dishwashers fit in the trunk just right. Well, they hang out a little, but I tie it in with lots of rope. Just slide the box in, tie it to the hinges and off we go!
Do the newer pros get good gas mileage? Mine gets about 32 on my way to work, about 20mi of stop and go, but on the highway I get 41. On a trip from Chicago to Detroit I got 44mpg at 75 mph. I can go 350 miles before worrying about filling up.
I want to find another 97 if the new ones are not as fuel efficient.
I wouldn't wait until you get in an accident to see if your air bag is still working. I suggest having a dealer check that out for you. Air bag repairs get costly beyond the 5yr/60k warranty on the restraint systems but can you put a price tag on life?
I almost always use Chevron 87. BTW has anyone seen a difference in mpg between the "better" gas companies? i.e. Chevron, Texaco, Mobil, Shell. Not counting the "winter gas" problem. I live in San Diego, so I don't have to worry about that like I did when living in Wisconsin!
I'm surprised the newer ones get the same mileage. I thought my mileage sucked.
And you may have to fight me for those passing lanes :P !!!!
I currently drive a 5000lb. SUV PIG! and I'm seriously considering the Protege. Do you have auto's?
the only reason I would consider the auto is the I-5, 805 MERGE if ya know what I mean. Cush is closer to me, but I prefer the gang down at Hine. Any positive comments about the dealer?
I'm not a fan of shifting in bad traffic either, but I couldn't in good conscious get an auto. I'm still young and foolish, and ever since I drove my first '88 RX-7 turbo I HAD to have a Mazda of my own with a manual. The Pro isn't quite the same, but It's close enough for me! Now that I think of it, I've never even driven a Mazda with an Auto ever.
Oh, and maltb, what have you heard about Westcott Mazda in National City?
Ok, something nice to say... they have a good location on the Mile of Cars but other than that, not much else.
I am Wade and own a 2000 Protege ES. I purchased it new last July and have already put over 36K miles on it. My wife Michelle, is currently looking at the 2001 ES. The dealership didn't have the silver with a roof, so they had one put in. Lifetime warranty on the roof as long as we have it annually inspected. We live in South Carolina, so we get a lot of warm weather to cruise with the windows down and the roof open wide. There are a lot of Proteges here. I have probably seen 20 or so in the last few weeks.
We hope to be able to hear about other Protege experiences and pass along ours as well.
-Larry
yetiracer... Hine Mazda is an excellent dealership with a terrific selection. I always refer everyone to Tom Lopez, who sold me my car and I recently sent topazmoon to buy her new '01 Millenium Red LX2 from him. Cush Mazda isn't bad... they have a really nice parts boutique. Westcott Mazda?? Stay away from them! They're newspaper ads look very tempting, but what they lose on the car itself, they more than make up for on trade-ins, finance rates, extended warranties, paint & interior protection, and your satisfaction and time! What worries me especially about them is that they have used cars in their showroom while the new Mazda's are in the back...
And yes, the 5-805 merge sucks!!! I'm sorry you have to go through that! The automatic is just fine in the Pro, particularly with the 2.0. I would say drive both the 5-spd and auto... the 5-spd wouldn't be that great in traffic, but you'll be missing it when the road opens up!! Good luck and feel free to contact me regarding a car you're looking for. I can always "search" the Hine inventory and see what they can get and give you their exact pricing and what not!! Good Luck!!
Respectfully;
Larry
translated from sanskrit it means " So be it"
And don't forget tonight's chat!
KarenS
Host
Owner's Clubs
I have an '89 323LX and a '99 ProLX. Both are bright red with a dark grey interior. Both also have white sport stripes (dealer installed; they didn't charge me and I didn't feel like taking them off). Guess I'm in a rut.
I don't take out the 323 much unless it's a sunny day (when I can open the sunroof) or a very wet day (the Michelin X-Metrics are much better in the wet than the factory Bridgestone FR680s).
I'm glad to see that Mazda marketing has finally hit a chord with people. I'm always glad to see more Pros out there (especially red ones)! If you see a red 99 ProLX or an 89 323LX with white stripes around Cincinnati, wave! I'm sure to wave back.
-Larry
My vehicle is better than yours because....
Brag about your ride on Tuesday, May 8, 5-6pm PT/8-9pm ET in the new News & Views Weekly Chat
KarenS
Host
Owner's Clubs
Thanks much!
KarenS
Host
Owner's Clubs
Thanks in advance!
Respectfully,
Larry
One question: How different is the LX 2.0 from the ES 2.0? Besides the interior and brakes? Which is the better purchase?
Thanks for any and all help!!!!
-Larry
KarenS
Host
Owner's Clubs
Let me know!
KarenS
Host
Owner's Clubs
just wanted to say it has been great seeing so many of you frequent board posters in the chat. i know some of you have been experiencing difficulties getting into the chats perhaps due to a glitch with the HTML/Java chat settings.
I am told it has been fixed so all you regulars: vocus, protegex2, newcar31 and all you others can make like bob barker and "come on down". as karen noted above, we sure could use a community leader - you are a fun group of people to chat with. Also, if you are using AOL, the "realtime" java-enabled chat may work better if you use the Internet Explorer browser outside of the AOL environment.
that's all. i hope to see some of your friendly faces in there next thursday evening!
ps: per karen's announcement, it looks like they are going to start posting logs of your chat every week like some of you have been requesting.
I have always liked bright colours (although not necessarily in cars) and the classic red absolutely called to me. There are so-o-o many silver cars on the roads here, and I wanted to stand out in the crowd. (The yellow reminds me of the colour of Toronto police cars when I was growing up, and I could never imagine driving that.) Well, this red car will definitely stand out.
Tomorrow I take it out on the highway for the first time. I'll keep people posted with my experiences (at least from time to time).
Nomi
When will they be available?
Price increases?
Any changes at all?
The Owners Maunual will say 2002 instead of 2001.
When did the 2001's come out? Is this one of those mid-year intro cars?, I guess I am assuming they have been out since 9-00 and the 2002's would be 9-01.
I don't want to purchase a 2001 and a month later there are some changes to the new model I wish I had.