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I'm going to check a 92 Mazda Protege out tomorrow, and I'd like to know what I should pay attention to while test-driving it. I know that the car has a 5 speed manual transmission, and 140k miles.
Thanks!
Welcome, thais1.
In the 1920s, 30s, and middle 40s, all cars were tall, bodies on top of the frame. Everybody sat high.
By 1950, cars were built with the new "step-down" design, the floor welded to the bottom of the frame. People sat lower.
At the same time the tranny hump was being slowly reduced in size to provide more leg room for middle front seat passengers. Then servicemen returning from Europe demanded bucket seats. So what happened, they put consoles over the hump. Old timers complained they couldn't carry six anymore.
Prosperity provided cars for every member of many families. No need to carry six, or five, or even four. AT's grew from 3-speed to 4-speed and now 6-speed. So what do people want now? ManualMatics, Tiptronics! And BMW goes one step futher with no shifter at all, just a chrome-plated "oil filler cap thingie" on the console -- "drive by wire!"
Haven't they paid attention! Many people now drive wireless -- cellphones. Maps have been replaced with electronic viewers on the dash that wash out in sunlight. Satelite radio? Where do you put the dish...oh, so that's what the big spoiler is for!
IMHO, MazdaSpeed Pros make about as much sense as airdams and spoilers on golf carts. My dealer said they will get their first orange MS-Pro this month, great -- just in time for Halloween!
Who asked for all this crap?!!
Oh, and newcar31, if an A/T is garbage, I love my little garbage truck, it even rides like one! ROTFL!!
folwer3
Mileage: 140,000
Condition: Average
Retail Base Price $2,200
Mileage Adjustment $-540
Total Suggested price: $1,660
Thais 1, Before you get emotionally attached to the car have it checked out by a trusted mechanic. Offer a $1000, and see if you can steal it for that. Don't pay more than $1,500 for a car with over 140,000 clicks on the speedo.
-larry
http://www.thecarconnection.com/index.asp?article=5404&sid=180&n=157
More than 1500 Mazda6 wagon versions were sold within two weeks following the June 24 introduction in Japan. European and Japanese orders for the Mazda6 sedan and hatchback were six times higher than Mazda anticipated within the first month of introduction. Zoom Zoom
American versions do not get the altezzer taillamps, they have red lamp covers.
fowler3
One more thing though the Corolla and Elantra went on to be quickest to 90. Quicker by around two seconds than the Pro.
Maybe they were still in 2nd gear or something. Sarcasm.
Look at the other statistics too...Street start, power to weight, fuel economy.....
===============================================
Since I have my Mazda6, i'm always late for work and come home late. Reason???
Can't have enough of it. Found myself just wanna keep on driving it.
Times when i can go home in less than 30 mins, I took another longer route.
It always put a smile on your face. I've even drove to buy food which is only 5 mins walk!
If the Pro has to be geared too short to reach 60 in second to stay competitive does it mean the engine isn't flexible as some of the others?
"If the Pro has to be geared too short to reach 60 in second to stay competitive does it mean the engine isn't flexible as some of the others?"
Competitive how? In 0-60 contests? Sure. Read this whole article though.
http://www.sportcompactcarweb.com/editors/technobabble/0111scc_technobabble/index.html
I'm not fixated on 0-60. As I've pointed out the Pro was not as quick to 30 and 90 and the quarter mile to nearly all the cars it was slower to 60. I'm not concentrating on 0-60. In fact my original post dealt with the fact that the Pro had V rated tires when many of the other cars made due with H or even S rated ones. I think putting V rated tires on a car that hardly deems more than a good T is pure overkill unless you are going rallying or something.
In fact this article doesn't apply in this case since the two quickest cars to 60 are also the quickest cars to 90, the quarter mile, and the street start. And one has the best fuel economy.
The Pro is the quickest in top speed acceleration though but that probably has a lot to do with the poor fuel economy since it's top gearing is so short.
"think putting V rated tires on a car that hardly deems more than a good T is pure overkill unless you are going rallying or something."
V or T or Z ratings are not just related to speed. While the V rating is a speed rating, tires with this rating are usually performance tires. You are completely ignoring that. A T rated tire will generally handle like crap compared to a V rated tire, hence Mazda's decision to fit the car with V rated tires.
A good T rated tire can handle just as well as a V if you stick with normal size tires that are required for vehicles of this size. In fact many people who put Z rated 17's on cars that come with 15's are slower and handle worse because of the additional weight of the wheel/tire combo.
In fact the Focus has T rated Goodyears and had the best numbers in the test except for braking where it was 4 feet longer than the Pro which had V rated Bridgestones.
Why waste the money on a V rating when you can find just as good performance in lower cost and typically longer wearing T's the cars weren't built for racy handling. And there's no way it's gonna get to 130 mph.
It's like putting Premium in a car designed for regular.
Put better tires on the Focus, and it would handle even better. Are you saying that the Focus will perform the same with T rated tires as it would with Z rated tires?
If the V rating is all that it takes then you are saying the Protege is near it's limit since it comes stock with V rated rubber.
Wider tires would have a mileage penalty.
Taller tires would have a guickness penalty by effectively making the gearing taller.
Just as messing with the tire pressures has a =/- effect on many aspects of a car's ride/handling so does the tire.
Negligible... http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/avid_rd.jsp
I'd have to disagree. There would be a huge difference between a really good Z rated tire and a really good T rated tire of the same size.
If you want to get a "really good Z rated tire" why? I don't see spending at least double price for a tire that will more than likely last half as long and not give double the performance. Why buy an economy car and put luxury tires on it?
That's why the quickest car in the test made do with 195/65/SR15's and an axle suspension yet still posted decent stats. In the driving that these cars will do 99% of the time V or Z rated tires are unnecessary and not worth the additional cost.
However, higher speed rated tires would tend to be more geared towards high performance applications, so the rubber content could be significantly different. This could affect straight line acceleration.
www.specialstage.com/multimedia/rim.asp
There is one space that needs to be deleted in order to get to the pics.
www.frozenmotionphotos.com/ ***DELETE*** WW_02_Burmeister_221.JPG
www.frozenmotionphotos.com/ ***DELETE*** SD_02_044_Burnmeister.JPG
Dinu
Dinu
fowler3
Still working crazy hours?
Dinu
my tires(RE-92 & BFG v4) hardly lose pressure. Maybe a pound in 4 months.
I just put metal caps with gaskets on my tire valves. I'll see if that slows the pressure loss any (it has on my bicycle tires, but they have tubes).
Anyway, 1-2psi/month doesn't really bother me as I adjust them every other weekend, and just before long trips.
after one whole year and hardly any changes in tire pressure over extended periods like 3-4 months or so, I finally started trusting this system.
If it was as much as newcar31, I would have gone bonkers and asked for a tube system.
28 psi rear.
If I kept more than 30, the rear would "ring" like a tuning fork over sharp road joints at highway speeds.
With my 205/55 v4, i keep 30psi all around which provide for a good balance of steering and comfort.
Regards,
Mark.
p.s. The wife smoked me the other day in her 02 MPV. That thing is FAST!!
The more I work the less I like it. Maybe 50 years is enough?
fowler3