I love everything!!! This engine is amazing. Mazda has moved the powerplant from the 626 into the 2.0 Protege. The body is FLAWLESS! The nose resembles an IS 300. The tail retains the 2000 protege look, but the standard spoiler has been redesigned and is not as high on the tail. The integrated brake light is perfect. I could write a book about the body of this car!!! The tires on mine are the standard 16in rim with Dunlop rubber. The rubber is cut like a fan to push water out of the way and they are low profile with a tire pressure rating at 32lbs. Firm but very enjoyable!!! I have taken a 20mph curve at 60mph, and there was no squeal and the car seems to say, "Is that all you got?"! The view out of this car is orgasmic!!! The interior is heaven on wheels!!! This dash is a work of art. It has been completely redesigned and the metal accents are sooooo fine! The doors are perfect, though the plastic locks could hace been intigrated into the door handle. They have fabric on the upper portion of the door that you would never know is faux suede. The support from the seat is amazing! The driver seat is also very adjustable. Everyone should be able to put this seat in the right spot. I am in heaven!

This car should come with darker standard tint, all the way around. A little pricy if buying in Hawaii.

The car is rumored too be replaced in 2002 with a product built by FORD (Focus platform!!!) Get this car now, and you will be on a gold mine!

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Honda Civic(NO POWER!!!) Nissan Sentra (Too Small inside but almost the same size outside.)(How?)

it starts all the time even when it is freezing cold out. and the gas milege is good. and so far it didnt give me any problems but i had to replace the driver axle.

how slow it is ,it has very little pick up power. the steering wheel gets real hot in the summer . and the seats are sometimes uncomfortable.

i would recommend this car to any one. it is a real resonable price for the quality that it has. this is my first car and i wouldnt change it for the world , its my best friend .......i would also recommend it to some one that wants more for there money. and that want a nice car b/c it has a
nice up to date look.

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to a mazda 626 limted addition

Extremely reliable. Required only normal maintenance over 6 years and 90K+ miles. Neat in appearance and solidly built. Lots of trunk space for its size (especially with the 60/40 split rear seats). Power sunroof never gave me a problem as often occurs with cars approaching 100K miles. Timing belt lasted up to 80K miles before needing to be changed. Brakes pads weren't required until well over 60K miles. Not a single mechanical problem arose during the entire time I owned this car. Additionally, the paint still looked new, no rust, and no component parts failed. The interior held up very well. The seats and carpeting showed no signs of wear. My co-workers were astonished at the age and mileage of this car. Many thought that it was only a couple years old when I traded it in. Gas mileage was fantastic at over 30 mph in just about any driving conditions.

Road noise is pronounced at speeds over 45 mph. Power window motors seem barely strong enough to move the window although they never did break on me. Often shifting into reverse the gear didn't seem to engage fully and you had to start moving a little before you could "force" the shift knob in the rest of the way. Failure to do this meant that you just sat there as the gears made a terrible grinding sound as you pressed the accelerator. This never seemed to cause any damage to the car but it was certainly annoying.

I bought the car new and paid about $16K. The car came fully loaded with all options for this model: 5 speed, sunroof, power windows, power locks, alloy wheels, upgraded interior. Originally I thoguht that $16K was a little steep but after owning the car for a while I feel that it was a bargain for what I got in return. I would absolutely recommend this car to anyone looking for a reliable fuel efficient compact car. I would not recommend this car if you need a lot of interior room or make a lot of long distance trips. The car did great on long distance trips that I took but it wasn't the most comfortable ride and the road noise made carrying on a conversation nearly impossible and even the radio was somewhat drowned out at 75+ mph interstate speeds.

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1996 Ford Escort LX - Another surprisingly reliable car. I always considered Ford Escorts as not so great vehicles. However, the 1996 Escort turned out to be a great car too.

Roominess, Gas mileage, fun factor very high, looks,desighn , uniqueness, power, color choice

power at passing, 13" rims. vague at times steering.

I payed 8 grand for my Protege and I love it. The power may be a bit low but that is cause of the 1.5 being restricted . An addition of a aftermarket filter (conical) and a muffler quickly cured that up. Some rims and a set of new struts and lowering springs and my car is set. The protege is a very underestimated car as not a lot of advertising has been done for the car by Mazda.
As for the suspension even stock I could out handle the best of them and even push the car to limit and it would give very subtle warnings of when it is getting close to the edge. I recomend the Protege for any young person wanting a car that stands out and really looks unique,, can't get that with a civic or a sentra.
Bruce
Protosport Racing
my web site
www.geocities.com/dbest1a

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honda civic, Ford focus, toyota corolla, pontiac sunfire(not) ,

Its going on a year since I had my 93 Protege LX. Has great accelaration from standstill so far has been reliable broke down once but this was due to my neglience(radiator hose). Has great handling takes dips and bumps pretty well for a car this size. Its also a Civic, Corolla eater.

Power windows are slow driver window gets stuck. Noisy at highway speeds leaking valve cover possibly needs new CV joints as they "creek" especially when driving for the first time. The car has 116K on it and still runs strong. Been aHonda lover most of my life this car equals the Civic
on reliability gas mileage and surpasses on accelaration. The body and interior are holding up well for a car with 116K.I plan on keeping it for another 2 years and im planning so minor mods to it also the 1.8 DOHC is great.

This so far has been a great Car for me. Ive always bought Hondas. So I wasnt to sure what to expect. The car has good gas mileage rides extremely well has great accelaration. Its perfect for a daily driver. With the exception of probably needing new CV joints soon. The only thing i have to do the Car is minor stuff.(belts,hoses,brakes)Im sure with the proper maintenance this car will go 200k before any major work has to be done. This car is becoming extremely popular in my area and dare i say it will replace the Civic soon. The body and exterior are also in great shape.It starts everytime the first time even in the winter. I will probably buy another one.

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Honda Civic,Prelude. The Mazda equals both of these cars on gas mileage reliability and accelration. It also seems to ride even smoother over dips and bumps on the road than the Civic.

I love this car! It handles great, has power to spare, lots of room inside, gets all kinds of admiration, absolutely a blast to drive! Looks good, well put together. No squeaks, rattles or any problems at all.

A little noisy on acceleration, but that's just being picky.

Buy this car! I have the ES model with GT package(alloys,sunroof,AC,spoiler,ABS). This is my 10th vehicle and is better than any before it. I owned a 1999 LX before this one, but couldn't resist the changes made for 2001. This is the first car that was available exactly as I wanted it. In the past, there was always some feature not offered or some other feature that I would have preferred not to have, but this time there were no sacrifices! Anyone in the market for a compact car that is reliable, roomy, sporty, well designed and loaded with available options for an attractive price should definitely consider this car. It's roomier and better looking than Sentra, better equipped and sportier than Civic, nowhere near as boring as Corolla and far more reliable than anything with an American nameplate on it.

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I've tested and owned Honda, Toyota and Nissan as well as two previous Mazdas. This is the best total package for the price.

VERY Attractive styling (pictures don't do it justice)
Wagon/Hatchback cargo space
Standard Roof Rack
ES standard options (130hp engine, 4 wheel discs, 16 in alloys, interior)
Leather wrapped 3 spoke alloys

Youthful styling may not appeal to "older" people (carbon trim etc)
Lots of plastics on the interior
Roof Rack causes lots of windnoise, especially with open moon roof
Needs more power.
COMFORTABLE seats.
Plenty of head room and leg room - front and rear.

I am currently on the honeymoon stage with the Protege5. I am the first one in my area to own one. There is very limited availability right now. The car is very nice looking. If you fit in the target audience 18-36 you will probably like it alot. I am not a fan of wagons, even small ones, but this is a looker. It has the same lower body kit on it that the MP3 edition has which includes painted rocker panels all around and an aggressive front bumper with large fog lights. The roof rack only adds to the appearance as does a rear spoiler (which also helps keep the rear window clean).
Being 120+ lbs more than the ES and taller it's acceleration and handling are less. The utility of the hatchback certainly, IMO, makes up for this. It has nice low end torque to get it moving but at highway passing speeds it runs out of grunt. Its not bad, it could just use another 30-40 hp. The ride is firm. It shares its suspension with the ES but still very comfortable (unlike my lowered toyota mr2 turbo). The seats and driver postion is very comfortable (manually adj seats).
My only major complaint so far is the wind noise when the power roof is open. I believe alot of the sound is from the roof rack (which is removable). I'll probably get the sun roof deflector but I don't think it will help much. The luggage area should have some grocery bag hooks like most of the newer SUV's have.
I'll post another review once I've owned it for awhile and can really get down to the nit picking. Right now though I HIGHLY recommend it (though I'm going to hate it when every civic owner moves on to it and begins tricking it out).

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Mazda Protege ES - Less luggage space, styling not as nice as Protege5
Nissan Sentra SE - Small back seat. So-So styling. Faster.
Ford Focus - Buy the Protege now before it fully becomes a Ford.
Civic - Too boring for my taste.
Corolla - over priced, small back seat, lasts FOREVER.

Very fun to drive, great handling, and fast

Brakes and CV joints

I bought my 1991 Protege DX used with 58,000 miles in 1998, and I have loved it every day since. I added K&N filter and RS racing exhaust. Remote controlled fog lamps, neon blue interior lights, 3-3/8" tachometer, Sony ES-M550 stereo with two Sony 10"s, and new (stock size) Michelin tires, are among the many other mods I have done to my car. My car currently has 107,500 miles on it and I plan to keep it forever!

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In comparison to the Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla of that same year, the Mazda has a sportier feel. If you are planing to modify the car, the protege is often overlooked. Everybody already seems to have a Honda or a Toyota.

It is very reliable. No major problems to date. This is our third mazda Protege. We owned a 1997 and a 1991 Protege. My wife wrecked both of them, but they performed well while we had them.

The timing belt broke, but was easy to repair and no engine damage occurred from the broken timing belt. Small and compact. Lacks power. Appears to be having some tranmission problems with over 130K miles.

We purchased our current Mazda with 116K miles. It has performed well and has been easy to perform minor repairs. The only current concern is the transmission, however, it had similar problems ever since we originally purchased it. The transmission hesitates on occasion. It does not have a lot of power and the engine is a little loud. I have noticed similar engine noise on other Proteges of the same year. We did not have problems with our 1997 or 1991. The Protege is small, but the interior has held up well for a vehicle with 130K+ miles. I would recommend the Protege to anyone based on reliability. However, I would never recommend it to a larger person as it will be very cramped.

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Nissan Sentra (we have owned three of these and they perform about the same)

Reliabilty X 3
In Good condition X 3
Like the Handling X 3
So much Performance Start&Long run X 3
Zoom..Zoom..Zoom..Zoom!!!! 125mph so far i've done....Zoom'Zoom'Zoom'Zoom X 3.

Put New 17" Racing Rims and seems kinda heavier not that much difference just a tad.

I love my ES it has so much performance now with it's aftermarket parts that were kinda hard to find it's even better than better. I have PRM Intake/Greddy Exhaust/dual center friction crank pulleys/drilled cross motors/pacesetter headers 4-2-1/denso iridium plugs and wires/interior stuff/spoiler with led pipe/springs with coil overs. I can beat a Integra Type R stock from 0-60mph.. if you buy modifications for your car you"ll see what i mean all you need is just (intake and Exhaust) just for a 25 extra horses and you will feel the power.

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94 Mazda Protege LX
96 Honda Civic EX
94 Honda Accord EX
95 Ford Probe GTS
97 Mitsu Mirage LS