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The EGR valve on those engines has the tendency to collect carbon and stick open, which can cause idle droop issues, too.

Glad that worked out!

Makes sense to me, as long as the car is still drivable. For $80, maybe just have it on hand for when you get time: https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo.php?pk=4708662&cc=1506101&pt=2044&jsn=385

If I were going to just throw something at it, it would be the slave cylinder. Shouldn't be too bad, and your plan was to bleed it anyway. Just make sure no air gets into the line up top.

So all clutch hardware was recently replaced? It is entirely possible that the new pressure plate cause either the master or slave cylinders to fail. I would try a fresh clutch hydraulic bleed, and see what that gets you. I would also be prepared to replace the slave or master, or both.

Those choices will be HEAVY, which the Protege5 won't like. You'll want to keep the weight low. Look for a set of 17" NC Miata wheels. OEM Protege wheels are 16x6 +50 and the Miata wheels will be 17x7 +55. Go with a 205/45-17 tire

Unfortunately, the Mazda3 platform is completely different from the Protege/Protege5 - nothing is interchangeable. You might have read about the Mazda5, which is a completely different animal from the Protege5.

Wheel spacer for sure have an effect on springs - they create a longer lever arm, which reduces the effective spring rate. A longer lever arm will put more force on the spring and cause it to compress more. Whether that is the case for you, only Corksport would know for sure. But, the spacers...

The Protege benefited from being part of the compact car scene back in the day, and some aftermarket companies obliged the population with a few performance parts for the platform. Then, when the Mazda3 came out, the Protege was pushed aside and aftermarket support started to dry up.

Nope. I ran a Racing Beat rear sway bar with AXR bracket kit on my Protege sedan for many years. With the AXR brackets, the rear sway bar was VERY stiff, but never felt like it wanted to come around on me.

Manual transmission from MP3 should be the same as the Protege5. Mazdaspeed Protege had an LSD, but pretty sure that was the only difference. Adding the rear sway bar from the MP3 will make the Protege5 feel much more responsive in the corners. Paired with the Racing Beat springs will make...

My old Protegé had that fuel issue. All the screws broke trying to get it out, too. I ended up drilling them all out and tapping for some bigger screws. Then used all stainless for any future servicing. (never needed to go back in there, but had peace of mind) I would love to get another as...

My first thought was air still in the system. Glad you found the issue.

Due to the better materials being used, and manufacturing techniques, along with factory procedures, modern engine "break-in" after purchase is really just to seat the rings in the bore. The bearings will be "broken in" at the factory during the first few minutes of engine operation. By the...

Looks great!

If you will be fully opening the manifold to check it all out, I would most definitely add some Loctite tot he VICS screws.

Here is an old thread for VTCS removal... https://mazdas247.com/forum/t/vtcs-removal.123664420/ When you get into the manifold, the VTCS are the butterflies at the head ports, and the VICS butterflies are the ones inside the intake manifold. Leave the VICS butterflies alone!

I would have to go back in my logs to see if I had any record of what I did on my Protege... I know I swapped over to an MP3 ECU. (the MP3 didn't have the VTCS system) But, I can't remember if I removed the whole system or not. I am pretty sure I removed the butterflies, though. Can't say...

It isn't that hard to remove the intake manifold to find out if it actually is the VTCS. If its just a rattle, could be the VTCS butterflies loose on the shaft. Easiest way to delete the system is just to remove the plates and leave the shaft and everything else in place.

Back in the day, I did a similar conversion on my Protege from H4 bulbs to H7 / 9005. Here is the wiring diagram for the conversion. The first diagram is to convert dual bulbs to H4 with a relay, and the second is to convert H4 to dual bulbs with no relay needed. Might have to check the H4...