![]() ![]() It had close to 200,00 miles by the time it reached the end of my ownership, and when I sold it, I was told that the mechanics of the car were still in excellent condition and I would've gotten even more trade-in value had the body been in better shape (my fault that it wasn't). I bought this car in 2006 and finally traded it in in 2013. I needed to replace my throttle body due to the sensors being shot, and it telling the car it needs to have the throttle OPEN, running at higher RPMs than it should be at (2000rpm), after a simple remove, and replace, she went back down to a purring idle (700-800rpm) Had to get the alignment done, cause I noticed the steering wheel wasn't straight anymore, turned out my tie rod was busted, a trip to the garage revealed my tie rod was busted, after getting that fixed and aligned (along with a wheel balance) I could hardly believe how smooth and straight my car was driving again. She came with those silly low profile "summer" tires, and since winter in Ohio was coming they had to go, the tiny wheel size was very limiting in what brands and types of tires I could get, but ended up with mid-grade "Wal-Mart tires" with a full warranty, and they were a huge help when the snow started to come down. She ran like a new car, getting 28-30 mpg, when the model is estimated to have 25mpg, smooth and easy to handle, perfect for a beginner driver. If you can find a Protege that's been taken care of, I recommend buying it.I got my Mazda off a used car lot, she was my first car, from the start she needed a little help(80,000 miles), new tires, alignment, and a throttle body to keep the idle in check. of new vehicles but I've been using models that plug into the cigarette lighter for many years and they work perfectly fine. I admit that I wish it had the built-in GPS, back-up camera, USB port, etc. Over all, it's been a great car and I'll miss it when the time comes to change. I know exactly where the car is on the road or in a tight parking spot. Of course, I'm perfectly comfortable navigating now. With my Protege, there is no crease so that took some getting used to. My previous vehicles were all Fords so I was used to navigating using the crease down the hood. Allows us to sit higher in the vehicle and to feel less of the road. I bought seat covers and have a cushion under both front seat covers. It's a sport suspension so you "feel" the road, which is all the more reason I'd prefer to have higher, better-padded seats. The other thing I dislike is the low seating. Of course, that's only a pain if you have multiple drivers. It's on the passenger's door, so you have to adjust, sit back and check, adjust, sit back and check. One is that you can't readily reach the passenger-side, outer-mirror adjustment knob. In my experience, there are a few drawbacks to the interior. My latest mechanic said he's on his fourth Protege and doesn't care that they have none of today's bells and whistles. Virtually every time I take it in for servicing, the mechanic asks if I'm interested in selling it. My car's in excellent condition, with low mileage (less than 100,000 kms) and no rust, thanks to walking to work and parking underground all these years. It had about 12,000 kms on it and was exactly the colour I was hoping for (sand/champagne). It was a 2003 model, leased by a company for short drives around the city, then returned for resale a year later. I bought a second-hand Protege from the dealer in 2004. ![]()
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