Mazda Protege Accessories and Modifications

chikoo

http://photos.groups.yahoo.com/group/mazdaprotege/lst

click on the BFG V4 tires folder

protegextwo

Thank's Nick, I purchased eight tires today! They new I was crazy when Trudy & I drove up with our twin 2000 PRO-ES's! BJ's had them insalled with in an hour.

Thax!
Larry

chikoo

Larry,
Please answer all the questions that U have asked me. honestly.

protegextwo

1.)How do your 205/55-15's tires fit?
Fine! No problems, so far.

2.)How do the 205/55-15's tires look?
Look good!

3.)How did it fit on the OEM alloy wheel (rim fitment)?
Fine! No problems, so far.

4.)Any issue's with tire clearance in sharp turns or bouncing roads?
Fine! No problems, so far.

5.)What are your impressions of the 205/55/15 V-rated(BFG Touring T/A V4) tires, you purchased?
BF Goodies 205/55/15's, replacements for the 2000 PRO-ES OEM Bridgestone 195/55/15's. Smooth settled ride. No noticeable loss in handling, however rainy weather today, precluded true twisty work out. Very impressive wet weather handling, no tire slip on take-off (Auto Tranny). These BF Goodies are by far, BY FAR the quitest tires, I have ever owned. The 205-55R tire looks great and does a better job of filling in the wheel well compartment. This gives my 2000 PRO-ES a more complete look, kinda like it is shod with 16 in. Alloy wheels. First impressions: Verrry cool!

Meade, better learn some respect for my buying decisions or I'll drive to Richmond and give him a Knuckle Sandwich, O' wait is that on his Atkin's Diet? Hehe :-)) -Old Head
-Larry

chikoo

I don't like the rubber tranny shifter handle on my 99ES(Auto).

Are there any aftermarket avaialble that I can use?

dinu01

Buy some wallpapaer or "Powered by Mazda" decals and there you go J/k!

I'm not aware of any for ATs. My 2001 feels fine. It provides a solid grip on the shifter with the rubberish cover.

Dinu

chikoo

dinu.... i might do something like that.... maybe wrap it up with leather steering cover...

chikoo

or

http://www.exoticwooddash.com/installed4.htm

mdaffron

... it'll look very out of place in the car since no other trim inside the car (armrests, door inserts, center console, etc.) have wood trim.

We gonna put a fake-vinyl half-top, circular C-pillar windows and opera lights on the car too?

LOL, the Mazda 626 Brougham edition!

Meade

the_big_h

is not my cup of tea, some nice aluminum trim would be my choice.

oh wait, the 01+ ES's already have aluminum(simulated of course) trims, grrr...

chikoo

>>>it'll look very out of place in the car since no other trim inside the car (armrests, door inserts, center console, etc.) have wood trim.<<<

oh no meade...they provide a complete set with armrest, et al.

check this out for our Protege

or

http://www.bitrim.com/woodkits/Wd278.gif

mazdafun

Not for me. Echh. :P

maltb

...go buy some new gold chains.

mdaffron

spokes and curb feelers? Oh -- and those chain license-plate frames? And I'm really gonna need a deep-pile carpet steering wheel cover -- and sheepskin seat covers.

And once I order this kit, I DEFINITELY will need to run out to Pep Boys and get me a bunch of "Special Edition" decals -- in that nice script, preferably in Silver -- to place under my door locks and on my rear bumper. Maybe a set of chrome door panels with the same wording.

Is the word "pimpmobile" allowed here? Or would I be offending Town Hall members who solicit clients for prostitutes?

Just kidding -- thanks for the interesting info. Obviously it's not something I'm interested in personally, but a question ... how much is this kit?

Meade

chikoo

u naughty...

it think it was $129 for synthetic and $169 for Real Wood

maltb

Would you ever consider doing that to your Pro?

chikoo

but i thought it was interesting to share it with u people....
somebody might actually thank me for it

dinu01

"somebody might actually thank me for it" Not me dude! Hate wood trim. Like Hank said, metal/aluminium is the way to go.

Meade: Shipskin: The great seat cover fabric for your circa 1985 Ford pickup in the South.

Dinu

tomciviletti

So maybe I'm an old fogey, but I think real wood trim can look quite nice. It did in my '71 fiat 124spyder. Of course, I'm also a cabinetmaker, so maybe I'm biased.

chikoo

>>>metal/aluminium is the way to go.<<<

this is not only wood trim.

check this out.


http://www.exoticwooddash.com/woodtypes.htm

yooper53

I seriously thought about it given my old fogey status. As near as I can tell you only get one chance to position the piece and if its not, well it'd look like heck. Thought about buying the kit and having a body shop do the install too. I'd really like to hear from someone who has done it. I think it'd look great.

mazdafun

At Mazdastuff.com is now listing for $99.

I've gotta get one now. Esp since the weather's warmed up.

the_big_h

the instruction's available in the Files section of the yahoo mazdaprotege site

theparallax

Will it fit a 99 LX w/ cruise control???

the_big_h

protege_fan

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/ebayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1821943666&r=0&t=0

Or just search for item 1821943666.

mazdafun

And my wife thinks I take the corners too fast now....:)

Hey, at least I don't have the inside of my tire treads wearing out before the outside due to the negative camber. The outer edges are very well scrubbed, thank you.

mazdafun

I ordered my strut tower brace about 10 days ago from Mazdastuff.com and not a hint of it shipping (although I did get an acknowledgement e-mail) yet. Was this typical of your experience, if you'd ordered items from them?

I guess I'll send them an e-mail inquiring about it. At least they haven't charged me for it yet. Guess it may be a back-log. They were offering the kits for $100.

the_big_h

I think they're doing a lot of business lately, since they sell it for a significant amount lower than local dealerships. Mine was shipped 3 days after I ordered and I received it the following week, I guess I was lucky

yooper53

Don't squawk. I paid $146 for mine from mazdastuff.com in 12/01 and it took forever to get all the parts. But considering the unbelievable install instructions, all is forgiven.

yooper53

Haven't installed it yet.

mazdafun

I'm just impatient to install it, now that the weather's improved.

mazdafun

I got my strut tower brace. But I have a bunch of parts NOT in the diagrams Maltb supplied. Guess I'll harangue the dealer for some instructions. I can't figure what a couple of the additional braces are for, although one looks to be a replacement for the stock cruise control mechanism brace.

Any tips from any '99-'00 owners who've done this?

And yes, my bar was scratched up. I hit it with a couple coats of clearcoat to provide additional corrosion protection.

mootarjim

So I have a new MP5, and while I'm very happy with this car as is, I've been reading about different cold air intakes that air available, and the idea of more Horsepower and maybe better mileage appeals to me. I'm not a racer. Just a commuter who likes to enjoy the ride. I don't drive at redline or anything. I shift somewhere between 3.5K and 5k, on average. I'm a bit worried about losing horsepower at lower RPM's, and maybe even never seeing the benefit of the intake at my usual driving speeds/RPM's. Any input on this from those of you that know would be greatly appreciated.

chikoo

wouldn't cold(read really chilled) air coming into the combustion chamber chill out the engine temp, causing it in fact to burn inefficiently?

protege_fan

No...not according to the thoery at least...the theory is that colder air is more dense, thus providing more efficient combustion (more complete).

chikoo

but what about chilled air? especially up here in North America and Canada?

protege_fan

Hmm...well this past winter, the engine was fine in -30 C weather. At startup it was a little sluggish, but once the engine was warmed up (typically around 5-10 minutes to fully warm up), there was really no difference in terms of power.

However, the engine does feel smoother in warmer weather.

mdaffron

by forcing cooler air into it, aren't you doing the same thing the car does in the cooler months, thereby making your engine run less smoothly?

I understand the theory, but it seems these engines like warmer air?

Meade

protege_fan

I think it may be that it likes cooler air, but the mechanical parts like the warmer temperatures (less brittle, etc.).

mdaffron

... to let it breathe warm air?

the_big_h

because the air being sucked in from the intake is used for combustion, not for warming/cooling the engine, so it is perfectly sensible to look for cooler air to burn while driving in warm weather....

am I making sense at all? Cuz I feel like I'm not

protege_fan

I think it's only the air that's entering the combustion chamber (that right?) that is cool. It is this cool air that is denser and makes for more complete combustion, which translates into more HP and torque.

What I meant earlier was that the engine didn't like starting up in frigid temperatures and caused it to run less smooth for the rest of my trip to work. I think this has to do with the entire car being in a cold and fragile state.

mootarjim

Basically, I don't have an answer yet.
But heck...you guy get an A+ for response number to time elapsed ratio.

maltb

With cold air you more oxygen per gulp. With warm air you get a more complete fuel mix and thus better burn. In effect a cold air intake is like having a larger intake manifold.

Ideally, you want the air cold until it hits the combustion chamber and mixes with the fuel.

mdaffron

When you guys say "cold air," it's not really cold -- it's just being drawn in from the outside, as opposed to inside the engine compartment?

If so, I'd be interested to know how much difference there really is in temperature. For one thing, when you're moving, the air that comes into the engine compartment is cooler than, say, when you're sitting at a traffic light and the engine heats things up temporarily before you drive off again. And during the summer months, the temperature of the air at a foot or two above hot asphalt isn't that "cool" anyway -- granted, it's cooler than the temperature of the air under the hood, but it's not that cool -- and by bringing in air from inside the quarter panel, you're still not that far away from the hot engine anyway. So what's the value of doing this? Is the increase in hp that noticeable to make it worth doing? (I'm not trying to sound negative -- this is just a guy who likes keeping his car stock wondering what all this fuss is about.)

Meade

mdaffron

Running an air-conditioner duct through the firewall and into the throttle body? Now THAT'D be some cold air ...

;-)

Meade

protege_fan

Goto http://www.aempower.com/application/induction_application.htm

Then, scroll down and find the Mazda Protege. There is a tiny little flashing red circle next to the model number of the intake.

If you click on that, you will get a PDF file showing the HP and torque gains from this air intake.

Note: This intake is only short ram ("hot" air), not a true CAI. Also, the only dyno measurements they have are for the 1.8 L engine.

IMO, the gains are small, but the air intake is fairly cheap. To get even more gains, I would suggest changing out the stock exhaust. However, more work=more $$

the_big_h

a famous quote from somewhere:

"Speed costs money, how much do you want to pay??"

chikoo

you stole my thoughts.....i wanted to jab this since yesterday....
>>>Running an air-conditioner duct through the firewall and into the throttle body? Now THAT'D be some cold air ...<<<