2003 Mazda Protege Reviews

Really reliable little cars, if well taken care of. Relatively inexpensive for parts. The performance is lackluster, but what do you expect for a 4door and 4cylinder. Mileage is a little lower than you might expect, only around 25mpg. AWESOME in the snow, hard to get stuck. Fun to drive, handles very well, especially for front-wheel-drive. Slight bit of torque-steer, due to the low gear ratio's in the lower gears.

i just got the car today, but so far i love it.  i love all the options on it, its got auto locks and windows, a sunroff.  Got to love the 5sp.  its a little fastest than my cavalier.  i put more words about it later.

I purchased this car 30K miles used, my first used car purchase, in mid-2005.  It now has almost 90K miles and has enjoyed a couple road trips across country and survived a flooded parking lot at work where I was able to limp it out of the drink while other cars were left totaled.

Overall, it's been a good car.  Air con and temperature controls failed under warranty.  Original owner told me no warranty work was required while he had it.  Three power door lock mechanisms have died this year, but they're mounted near the bottom of the doors and I suspect they died a delayed death due to water exposure in the flood.  Driver-side window also expired, last year.  Replaced the brake pads around 65K.

When you buy an inexpensive compact you're gonna have to deal with price-oriented compromises and this is no exception.  It's the perfect compact for me, though, as its lows are mildy in the arena of ride quality and amenities, and especially in sound deadening, but that money was spent on making it athletic.  4-wheel-disc brakes (ES trim only), front and rear sway bars, taut tuning to the 4-wheel-independent suspension.  The car's very responsive, and I view that as a requirement when procuring one.  It has a little push to the balance, which is probably for the best on public roads.  I autocross raced it a few times in '08 and very much lamented the lack of a limited slip differential (and RWD!) leaving the corners with the hammer down, but it eats up back roads like as though the boys at Mazda custom designed it to do so (and maybe they did) and is a blast to drive otherwise.  Very good handling, exceptional braking, but only adequate acceleration.  It has a very lightweight, athletic feel to it.  It came shod in pretty worn OEM Dunlop "ultra high performance" all-seasons, which I never got near that mileage out of from the Khumos of the same rating I'd driven since.  I'm a damned spirited driver, though!  Now switching to Pirelli's for a little extra $$.

All in all it's been a good car, reliable, pretty efficient, and an absolute driver's car as long as said driver looks for balanced performance rather than straight-line thrills.  I recommend also looking at the newer Mazda 3 if you're looking for a used car and have the funds to buy one, simply because Proteges are old enough that finding a low-mileage one is unlikely and you'll never know how the previous owner maintained it.

Nitpick:  The fold-down sun visors are annoyingly inept.  Move it to block the sun at your left and take a left corner hard -- and fix your hair when it swings in and hits your head.  Even Car and Driver expressed annoyance at them back in the day!

It is a stickshift, so it gets a little complicated for an
inexperienced driver, but on the other hand it handles
like a sports car and has some power to it. It is actualy
my parents car so im learning to drive it.

Over all a deadly old car. Wicked on gas, easiest standard I've ever drove. The few trouble spots that the proteges are famous for are fairly cheap to fix. It is easier to mod the 2.0L then the 1.6L because parts are more common but it is all fun and easy to work with.