Mazda Protegé

gamejunki · February 2001

I will be getting my Silver beauty today! 2001 Mazda Protege ES. I test drove it Saturday and loved it! They only had the light green color so I am waiting on them to bring in a silver one from another dealer. I paid $15,992 + TTL with the 0.0 APR. Monthly payments are only $305 with a $2000 Down Payment and $400 discount for being a college graduate. I won't sign the contract until this afternoon. Does anyone have an opinion about getting an extended warranty? The current warranty is good considering most dealers give only 36,000 miles instead of 50,000. I was curious if I can get the VIN number etched on my windows for free or take it somewhere and get it done relatively cheap? Also, can I claim the keyless entry to be an alarm on my insurance or not? The best quote for insurance in my area was Allstate for $616 / 6 Mths. Sorry about all the questions but this is my first car outside of "loaners" from my parents. I enjoy reading the posts here and can't wait to break in the puppy.

maltb · February 2001

It's the color you are trying to find. There are no ES Proteges in the color you want with the premium pkg in your area. Either get ready to drive, or pick anther color. Looks like the closest one is in Rochester. Ready for that weekend trip?

pcalvin · February 2001

Does anyone know if you can get a cargo net for the trunk in the '01 ES? I saw it as an option for the ES on one of the websites. Not sure which one. Thanx

maltb · February 2001

Mazda part number is 0000-88-5499-0A and it should be about $37 at your dealer.

vocus · February 2001

Mazda is doing this whole "Mazda Magazine" thing for its 2001 brochures. All of them are like that, from the Tribute to the Miata. I have seen the 2001 Protege brochure, and it has nice pics of the interior and exterior of the ES. In fact, the ES is the only one depicted in there, except for a 1.6 LX on the "accessories" page with a nose mask. Guess Mazda is putting its "eyes" on the ES 2.0.

sfrat · February 2001

Just thought I'd mention that Heritage Mazda on Reisterstown Rd. in Owings Mills has a Silver ES 2.0 with Prem. Package, automatic. Unsure whether they still have it. Congressional Mazda in Rockville also had a couple 01 ES 5spds, one black, one dark green. I think both had the prem package. Worth a call

340 miles....can't wait till its broken in.

speedypt · February 2001

Here's my house that I'm selling to move to Chicago. Just thought you'd all like to see where "Speedy" lives (for a few more days!)

http://www.forsalebyownerhomesaz.com/4010.shtml

Let me know what you think!

Regards,

Pete

vocus · February 2001

Thanks for the tip. I have to go to Schafer & Strominger Mazda on Joppa Road in Towson to get my second trade, the Bonneville, evaluated tonight. I am going to play that dealer along with Russel Mazda (where I got my 1999 DX and have a strong contact with a salesman, but they have no 2001s because I went there yesterday). I might just check out Heritage Mazda too.

Are the rebates of $750 still effective? And how about the 0% financing? Also, does your credit have to be something like "Tier A" to get it? Just curious...

Also, signed up for the EAA organization online to get my S-Plan pricing last night too. Still will save me at least $200 off the price of the car, a small price to pay for only $40.

vocus · February 2001

Is that the house you are leaving in Arizona? It's beautiful. You must be crazy!

Just kidding. I have never been to AZ, but always heard it's so damn hot all the time. Going from warmish summers to cold winters in Chicago is going to be a bit of a change for you I bet. Just be warned that your Protege is going to collect its share of road salt now, so get used to seeing it dirty alot of the time through the winter.

speedypt · February 2001

The weather is actually beautiful for 8-9 months out of the year, with the summers being brutally hot.

I plan on looking at new homes with two car garages ONLY when we move. The good news is that my brother-in-law works for the city and has access to a heated garage for washing my car. I don't plan on letting it suffer too much!!!

Regards,

Pete

vonnyvonce · February 2001

There was an earlier post regarding why Corolla/Civic had better gas mileage than Pro. I proposed that at least for Corolla, highway rpms are much lower. I did verify this last night. 99 Corolla with 4AT 60mph-2000 rpms, 65mph-2200. My wife's 2000 Pro LX with 4AT is at least 500-600 rpms higher at similar speeds. Don't know if this accounts for the differences in gas mileage.

vocus · February 2001

Using a heated garage to wash your car in? Come on now. I mean I love my current Protege and will love the new one even more (maybe, we shall see), but I am not about to wash it in a heated garage! Surprisingly, most of the "spongeless" car washes here in the Baltimore, Maryland area stay open even when it's cold outside, so you can have the car washed year-around.

peterj · February 2001

Thanks for the link to the Carpoint review...it WAS largely positive and I appreciate any information on the Protege. But as a side-note I find Carpoint reviews to be among the most worthless out there. Their numerical rating system doesn't communicate anything and the reviews themselves seem to be a collection of individual statements that don't really paint a comprehensive picture of the car. That's not your fault of course, speedypt...it's just that Dan Jedlica and Ann Job's review style really bugs me.

I didn't get a chance to actually drive the newest Protege yesterday but I did sit in one. My wife and I are replacing two cars w/in the next 2-3 years, so we're looking at a broad spectrum of sizes and types. Yesterday's shopping/driving list included car based sport utes (Tribute, Highlander, RAV4, Forrester) and sporty wagons (new, updated Passat, Outback, Audi A4 1.8 Quattro).

Even though the Protege doesn't fit in the same class as those others in terms of size and price, I am absolutely floored by how incredibly roomy it is and how it feels instantly comfortable the moment I sit behind the wheel (I'm 6'2", 220 w/ long legs). As impressive as the utilization of space is in the Tribute, RAV4, Highlander and Passat, none of those cars could match the instant comfort I found in the Protege. Comfort is as much about proportions and positioning as it is about space. It's interesting to notice how the Audi A4 does such a poor job w/ providing occupant space in comparison.

After a day of test-driving, the Passat was our top choice for what we actually drove...but oddly enough after all that driving, were convinced we'll end up buying the Protege 5 sport wagon when it comes out this spring. For about $17,000 loaded I think it's going to be an astounding value ($8000 less than what we'd pay for an optioned Passat). With a good set of snow & ice tires for the winter, it will go anywhere we'd dare to take the AWD vehicles we looked at.

Look forward to hearing other's observations as more people get to drive the new Proteges.

maltb · February 2001

For some reason I have never cared for the rock "lawns" out there in the desert, but I guess it keeps the water bill down. Go for the heated garage, if you are like me you spend more time in the garage than in the living room.

sfrat · February 2001

The financing is still in effect, they were advertising it in this Sundays Balt. Sun. You do have to have good credit to get the zero percent. Fortunately I did, but they were still reluctant because I'm a first time buyer. They let me have it though. I was prepared to buy the car regardless, because the 5.9% plus 750 rebate was still a good deal. There's no rebate on the zero percent, its an either or thing.

Good luck,

Steve

phantom100 · February 2001

How did you find out they have one in Rochester??? Are you a dealer? And how come my dealer can't figure that out? I mean, if it has to be special order and will take three weeks, fine. But so far he just tells me they are still looking and can't give me any kind of date.

Actually, I am heading to Niagara Falls this weekend, so Rochester wouldn't be bad!

So, what are the popular Protege colors out there? I saw mostly the beige ones here, and white. I was afraid to go for one of the greens without being able to see it in person first. Some greens are sharp, but some can be nasty. They make two beige's and two greens, but not a single shade of blue.

maltb · February 2001

Silver and white seem to be popular in the ES. Also, call the dealer before you swing on through there to make sure another zoomer doesn't have his/her eyes on it already.

The other thing you have working against you is that you want the premium pakage. A loaded ES starts to get up there in $$ making it harder for dealers to sell.

Dealers can find these cars but then they run into transportation costs and loosing one of their cars in the deal. Money always talks and the rest walks!

speedypt · February 2001

If so, can you send it to me electronically? I'd like to have it for my start-up on the computer!

Regards,

Pete

the_big_h · February 2001

maybe they're saving the blues just for the MP3s.

vocus · February 2001

When we had the MAPP picnic here in Maryland, I had a copy of the song on tape and played it there. But I have since misplaced the tape and don't know where it is. If I find it, I will send the thing to you via mail if you want, Pete. But since I just moved and all, I find it highly unlikely to find it. Sorry.

maltb · February 2001

If you can get it off of here, let me know...I'd like a digital copy.

http://www.mazdausa.com/mpv/interior/audio_top.asp

elicez · February 2001

Hi All -
Does anyone know anything about air bags failing to deploy in Proteges? I was checking out cars.com and a number of owners have been commenting on their air bags not deploying at 40-50 mph collisions. I'm thinking of buying a Protege and this seems like a big turn-off (even though i love everything else about the protege).
Any comments would be very helpful, thanks!
Elice

hkchan · February 2001

Please provide a link for the comments.

maltb · February 2001

Air bags are a very touchy subject and in order to validate claims it takes lots of investigation. The Protege system and many others use a SAS module that measures rapid deceleration and when the deceleration meets a certain threshold, it triggers the air bags. The problems that have been seen in some vehicles is the threshold being a bit low or high. I would be very surprised to hear about a 40 mph impact with a solid object not triggering the air bags.

Note: The side air bags use actual body mounted sensors.

newcar31 · February 2001

Hello everyone. I've been reading these posts for a while and there are some interesting comments. I am looking at a 01 Protoge ES for my first new car. I've owned many used cars (86 mazda 626 GT turbo, 87 prelude si, 88 subaru DL wagon, 91 mustang LX 5.0L, 92 integra GS) I am graduating from college in May and I am impressed by mazda's college graduate program. I was wondering if anyone knew if you can use the 180 day defered payment AND still get 0% financing. In the case that I did get both, would the dealer be willing to negotiate on price too? I want a Silver 01 Protoge ES 5sp, with no other options. How much should I offer?

totustuus · February 2001

I'm seriously considering a leftover 2000 ES Pro with an automatic. Any of you have any comments or words of wisdom for me? Do the auto's have an history of problems? Is it worth getting a 2001 ES 2.O instead of the 2000 with the 1.8 (looks almost like the same engine to me ). Long term reliability on these cars? any input will help!

skip616 · February 2001

I am in market to replace my 91 Mazda 626 with a 01 Mazda Protege ES. My 626 has been a great car and have owned (5) different Mazda's in last 10 years. I was very impressed with Pro ES and would like to purchase car within a week. I am not sure about this S-plan program and if it would be worth it to join EAA for $40 to participate in program. The sticker on ES I test drove was $19.2K (Premium pkg., perimeter alarm, 6 CD Changer, cassette tape player, automatic). The car is Sand Mica with black interior. If I join EAA to partipate in S-plan what would I be paying for this car. The TMV (True Market Value, per Edmunds) for this car is $18,136 which includes $480 destination charge. This will be the 6th Mazda I have bought from same dealership and sales person. I want a clear understanding of S-plan, what I would be able to buy car for, and be entitled to rebate as well. I requested a price quote from Carpoint and closest participating dealership is 50 miles away. They indicated they didn't have many 2001's but had some leftover 2000's. They indicated rebate is 1,000 and 6.9% for 60 months or 0% for 48 months. What would be a fair price to offer dealer for a $19,200 vehicle? Also, do all dealerships have to honor S-plan?

Thanks, Skip

jk111 · February 2001

you can usually get a protege pretty close to invoice. I would try 400 over invoice+parts to see if they bite.

skip616 · February 2001

jk111

thanks for the response....what does invoice + parts mean.....not sure what you mean by parts.

Thanks, Skip

pcalvin · February 2001

Hey, nice Phoenix house. I just drove there for the weekend to see a friend in Gilbert off Elliot Rd. The house is almost identical. In fact they must of built thousands of houses with almost the same plan. Just a bit different with personal accents! The stone yard and tile roof kinda keep em all lookin' the same as well! I just wish I could buy one here in San Diego for that price! That place would go for 250k+, it's insane! Oh, just a note on the trunk cargo net: My dealer told me it wasn't available on the 01 Pro. Is that a load of blank or is it only available as an aftermarket item?

theparallax · February 2001

I don't see why it wouldn't be available for the 2001's. I don't think they even touched the trunk area when they facelifted it. Try seeing if the 2000 model's cargo net will work.

pcalvin · February 2001

peterj, I wish they had the bule in the 01 as well! Dark green is nice, but a nice dark blue is great! I'm almost thinking of trading in my 01 for a MP3 just to get the blue! lol... If it wasn't for the large spoiler and larger $ I would!

speedypt · February 2001

The trunk net may not be listed as an option yet, but I am almost 100% positive that the net for the 2000 would easily fit into the 2001.

Thanks for the nice comments on my house. I am HOPING to find a similar sized house in Chicago for under 300k. That's nuts! I did get a very lucrative job offer there or I couldn't even think about going.

I too am thinking of trading in my 2000 for the '01 MP3 Protege.

Regards,

Pete

gamejunki · February 2001

Looks like my car won't arrive until tomarrow

The one good thing is that the car is coming straight from the factory instead of another dealer.

the_big_h · February 2001

A curious observation...

I went to University of Maryland today for the basketball game, and while on my way there, I saw at least 6-7 different '00 proteges either parked or running around on campus, all within a short time frame (like 10-15 minutes). College Park Mazda must be selling them to UM students like hot cakes!

gamejunki · February 2001

Those "Zoom Zoom" commercials must have subliminal messages! Might be the 0.0% APR until April.

tomciviletti · February 2001

My IP was belly up for a few days, and i had over 300 messages to wade through. Looks like the protege is no longer a secret [I think "Zoom, Zoom, Zoom" must have something to do with it.] Here are a few comments on topics I saw during my reading marathon:

Tires- the RE92's are not bad tires. Worst points are noise over rough pavement and short life. the Dunlops on the '01 es should be better. For those replacing tires on the '99-'00 es, take a look at the Kumho ECSTA and the Bridgestone RE730 if you don't need all-weather tires. [All-weather tires are not very useful in snow anyway.] the RE730 is not available in 195/55-15, but the 205/55-15 has almost the same dimensions as the 195 RE92.

Fuel mileage- the protege's numbers are not as good as civic and corolla, but real world results are not as different as the government estimates. Check out the mileage that Consumer Reports and Car and Driver comparison test results. I get about 28/city and 32-35/hiway with my '99 pro es.

Oil- changing your own is not too hard. I like castrol syntec 10-30, but I'm sure others are fine.

Welcome to all you new posters! Zoom!

vocus · February 2001

I just went last night and checked out a new 2000 Protege ES (wanted a 2001, but could not find one around Baltimore). I am driving a 2000 Emerald Mica Protege ES now.

It's a very nice ride and great power compared to my old DX. I am going back to the dealership tonight to finalize the paperwork (if I like it enough to keep it).

Yeah, right!

I LOVE driving this car! Now I know why everyone is so enthusiastic about their Proteges. The ES is worth smiling over!!!

ZOOM, ZOOM, ZOOM

protegenic · February 2001

Well, there is nothing worse than self-inflicted damage to your beloved Protege as I found out this weekend. While returning home from some mountain biking, I kind of forgot that my bike was up there when pulling into the garage. Lucky for me the shattering rear window alerted me to that! Overall the damage is not too bad, just some scratches and the obvious lack of glass. I just wish I had a picture of the look on my face when I the glass came raining down.

On the positive side, my marriage is now enjoying a certain detente it didn't have prior to this accident. My wife and kids are having a field day with this!

unmarkedcar · February 2001

Hey guys...I have the standard POTANZA ( bridgestone) tires on my 2001 LX 2.0 ....are these any good?

vocus · February 2001

The Bridgestone Potenza tires are only good for about 25-30K. They only last that long, because they have a treadwear rating of only like 160 or something, pretty low. The 2000 ES I am thinking about purchasing (will finalize paperwork tonight on it- driving it with a dealer tag now) has these tires on it. I hate replacing tires so early, but it's better than risking my life, my passengers', or someone else's.

hkchan · February 2001

Hello vocus. I'm not criticizing you but you seem to make decisions too quickly. You liked your DX very much. Then you liked the Bonneville better. Then you're thinking about the '01. Then you drove the '00 and liked it. You're going to buy it without testing the '01? What's the hurry? I guess the problem is the dealers are not getting any more '00s? Drive the '01, then make a decision. As others have mentioned, there're definitely dealers in the DC area that have the '01 ES's.

maltb · February 2001

As I stated in post #354, the cargo net for the 2001 is available at the dealer. Check my previous post for the part number.

nikecar · February 2001

yeah.. While I'd advocate taking the 00, you don't want to kick yourself for not getting the 01. BUT that's the joy of car buying.. every month there will be something we all kick ourselves saying I should have waited.

but the deciding factor is your bank account and your back. get what you feel the best with.

BUT GET A PROTEGE!!!!!!

vocus · February 2001

I test drove an '01 LX and it felt alot more powerful than the 1.8 2000 ES model, but also alot noisier too. And, I do not like the revised front-end styling of the new 2001 models. I like the 2000's better. Also, the price is alot lower than on the 2001 models thanks to the S-plan pricing I have and the $1500 rebate.

When I bought the DX back in 1999, I could not afford anything else. I was negative on a 1996 Chevy Cavalier I had, and it was a total heap. I got the Protege DX because it was the only car I could afford. Now I am paying for making a hasty decision.

With the Bonneville, it's nice to drive and has alot of power and all. It also uses a LOT of gas. I commute 60+ miles a day, and simply cannot afford to fuel the beast. Also, it's got 77,500 on it and it's 8 years old. Starting to wear out and things are squeaking and rattling (you know, typical GM) and it's time for it to go.

I am going to evaluate the 2000 ES I am driving very hard on the way home (30+ miles), and if I find one thing I do not like, I will not buy it.

maltb · February 2001

Driving an ES Protege hard tends to make you really want the car. The car loves to be pressed, so if you are looking for faults, you are going about it the wrong way. The last time I borrowed a Protege, I found myself doing 100+ on the way to my folks house and having a little too much adrenaline left over when I got there.

vocus · February 2001

I just went on CarsDirect.com to figure out the invoice prices for the 2000 vs. 2001 Protege ES. It turns out that the invoice price of the 2001 (since I am buying with the S-Plan, I save like 1.5% off invoice) is lower than on a 2000 with about the same equipment. Plus, you get 4-wheel disc brakes, bigger wheels, and a more powerful engine. It makes more sense to go for the 2001 model then. I am going to tell my dealer that tonight when I go in to see him.

fritz1224 · February 2001

Have you all checked that Kiplinger site where they estimate the 5 year cost of maintenance and unexpected repairs? They have the Pro at over $3000 dollars. What gives? The Accord was at $1100. I wonder how they come up with these figures. I know the timing belt gets replaced sooner but are there other major expenses I don't know about. Sure seems like a lot of money for maintenance. Or are the Protege's not as reliable as we think?

hkchan · February 2001

vocus, while I recommend the '01 over the '00, I don't see how the invoice on a '01 would be lower than that on a '00. Show me the numbers. As I mentioned before, one price advantage a '01 has on the '00 is if you want ABS and Side Airbags but not the moonroof. You can get it that way on a '01 but not on the '00 (Premium Package is the only way to get ABS and SAB).

john1726 · February 2001

The 01 protege DOES have a higher invoice than the 00. Maybe you configured it wrong at carsdirect, or maybe, just maybe, they may not have the correct information.

Mazda Protegé

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