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Comments
Preventive maintenance: spray silicone lubricant into the cable housings and don't pull harder on the parking brake lever than you have to.
Ted
Is it just me? Can other people try this, please? Should I take it to the dealer? This is my first new car, so I was hoping it to be perfect. I had (and still have) 1990 Civic Si. Even after 13.5 years, it doesn't do anything strange like my new MP5.
By the way, does it use distributor or is it all solid-state control?
Thanks.
After noting that some others here had this work done under warranty, I asked my dealer if this would be covered. They said only if it was under 1 year or 12K kms, i.e. NO. I checked with Mazda Canada, and it appears that they weren't willing to go to bat for me. So it looks like this is a dealer-dependent call; good ones will, my dealer won't (Morningside Mazda in Toronto).
My engine is stays right where I put the tachometer at.
I tried this driving at various speeds, and also using the cruise control.....it stays right where I put it.
Do you mean when your just sitting in neutral revving it you cant keep it steady?
Jason
Ps. I just ticked over 10k miles. No troubles, and 3 hastle free roadtrips under my belt.
On an unrelated note, since it's a wagon and it's red, I named my car Red dWagon. I crack myself up!
I got a P5 last week. It's been a lot of fun driving this car around. I have a question regarding the anti theft device. Since P5 doesn't come with a factory installed anti-theft device, can I install an anti theft device say from circuit city and it won't still affect my warrenty, or else do I have to always get it done through the mazda dealer.
lara
http://www.enjoythedrive.com/content/?id=8128
Ted
I purchased a 2.0L Protégé5 about 4 months ago and with the exception of some intermittent quirks, am really enjoying this car.
Rough spots in 1st and 2nd gears: The owner’s manual suggests shifting from 1st to 2nd at 13mph and 2nd to 3rd at 24mph. (I presume that these recommendations are designed to optimize fuel economy under normal driving conditions.) Unfortunately, I experience a harsh buckling when shifting through an acceleration at this rpm range (aprox. 2000 rpm in next gear following shift. (note: I have no buckling problems when downshifting). If I allow the rpm’s to land at 2500 from 1st to 2nd (aprox. 22mph from 1st to 2nd, and aprox. 30mph from 2nd to 3rd) a slight buckling is still present, but not as severe. If I shift at 25mph and 35mph, respectively, the buckling is usually not apparent. However, if I need to slow down in traffic – take my foot off the gas after shifting -- still in the appropriate rpm range for that gear – my car starts buckling/jolting again. This is a consistent, easily replicable phenomenon.
I find this disturbing because the buckling will occur anywhere between 2000 and 3000 rpm (under 2000 rpm is completely unbearable) in second and third gears if I do not keep my foot constantly on the gas – fourth and fifth gears respond just fine in this power band). If I downshift in an attempt to get around these rough spots, the engine, of course, races at about 3600-4000rpm. While this is not anywhere near the redline, I feel uncomfortable doing a quick acceleration at this range if the traffic conditions require such a maneuver, not to mention associated fuel economy implications. (Minor Rant: I am frustrated that the owner’s manual does not discuss optimal power bands and provide an rpm chart for this vehicle). I have never experienced a problem of this kind with my other vehicles (’74 VW Bus and “89 Nissan Pickup (both manual transmissions). Any ideas?
Difficulty shifting into 1st gear from complete stop: This is an intermittent problem. When I come to a complete stop at a traffic light, my pattern of driving is to put my vehicle into neutral – with my foot on the brake J -- and then to release the clutch. After about three weeks of owning my Protégé5, I started having intermittent problems getting my car back into 1st gear from neutral. When this happens, I back up to 2nd and then try again. It usually lines up the second or third time, but when it does, there is a deep kthunk sound (gears don’t want to mesh?) that is similar to the sound my Volksie made right before the transmission died – first gear just gave up the ghost and the transmission needed to be rebuilt. I have a hard time believing that the brand new Protégé5 is suffering from a failing transmission. I am wondering if the linkage needs extra lubrication – because I was trouble free for the first three weeks of ownership – or if I may have a clutch problem – yes, I fully depress the clutch when placing the vehicle in gear J Again, any ideas?
Thanks
http://www.racingbeat.com/protege/dyno/Chart.htm
Personally, I don't shift until at least 4000 RPMs, just past the torque peak. Please check with your dealer of choice for service.
Also, the rattling on the inside of the car is about to drive me crazy....I mentioned this today and they said something about readjusting the centre console, but now it seems the rattling is worse than ever...anyone had any experience with this? I think its coming from the vents....my '99 Protege sedan started doing it in about its 3rd year...I just chalked it up to age which can't be the case here as it starting rattling almost from day one...
Other than that, I'm loving the car!
Thanks,
Ted
I will post a detailed list over the weekend. However, the most frustrating has been the clutch chatter problem that is listed in a TSB.
pciskowski
I'd get it checked out or try it again in a safe environment.
Ted
ant
ant
This is my first posting ever, though I've checked in on these message boards from time to time. I own an 8 month old 2003 P5 with MT. It currently has about 8300 miles on it. Within the last 2 days, I've started experiencing extremely unstable engine idle. I'm not sure what the normal idle is, but my engine typically idles around 750 RPM when warm. Recently, my engine idle has been varying from 250 RPM to 1000 RPM while in neutral at a stop light. This doesn't always happen, but when it does, it's usually after I come to a stop. Also, if it does happen, it will cycle like this at least 4 times before it stabilizes. Needless to say, I'm going to take it in for service (it's due for an oil change anyway), but I was just wondering if anyone has encountered this before and if they know what the cause of the problem might be. Thanks!
This would be suitable for a P5?
I trust its fairly easy to drain & replace tranny fluid for the 5 speed manual?
If this stuff works as well as Mobil 1 does vs dino oil, it would eliminate the biggest drawback to having a manual trans in a cold climate.
Good news indeed.
To change the fluid is pretty easy. If you can do an oil change you can do this.
The problem is getting the new fluid into the tranny. There is a bolt halfway up on the front side of the tranny that matches the drain plug. You fill it till it flows out , almost 4 liters. You need a funnel with a long hose or a smal handpump.
Anyone have any suggestions on how to secure this panel back in place? Any advice is GREATLY appreciated, as I'm sure it's only a matter of time 'til the whole sucker pulls free and ends up as road trash on some street here in Tempe.
Also, I am curious about possibly installing those cutesy windshield washer nozzle LED lights, but I cannot seem to locate any information regarding street legal modifications for the state of Arizona. If anyone can point me in the right direction, I would GREATLY appreciate that help as well.
Thanks and happy driving!
Sam
the best way to get the skirt off and not damage the car is to take a hacksaw blade and tape off most of it and leave maybe 3 inches exposed. carefully holding the taped off portion of the blade will allow you to slip the blade into the opening and while pulling (be careful) the skirt away from the car start cutting through the clips. there are some threaded clips too on the ends in the wheel wells and on the underside that need to be backed out also.
It's a pain doing this and you can easily scratch the paint if your not careful. Also whatever you do don't try to just pull the clips out of the holes because you will actually bend the sheet metal of your rocker panel.
To have a better idea of what your dealing with, I recommend you buy all the clips first and note where they are used along the skirt and rocker panel. I think there are 15 or so and should cost around $20 to $30 bucks for all of them.
If you're not mechanical, don't even attempt this. If you're accident prone, do not attempt this. If you're easily frustrated, don't even think about it.
Also, I refuse any liability for anything that may go wrong.
Good luck,
Thanks for the input. Man, what a pain in my [non-permissible content removed] this is going to be. I've only had the car (the first I've ever purchased new) since May; is this something that I could take in under warranty?
Ted
Thanks,
Ted