Considering MSP, have a few questions...

[jdgti]

Hey all, I found this board after thinking that I was never going to find a Protege enthusiast sites on the internet - multiple searches were coming up with nothing at all! Anyways, I've been reading through the last 15 or 20 pages of this forum and a few of the other forums, looks like there's a pretty cool group of mazda owners here.

Honestly, I had been holding out for an SRT-4, decided last year I was going to get one, and tried to convince myself that is isn't ~really~ a Neon. I know, it is, and I couldn't convince myself otherwise. I got a real wake up call when they added the SRT-4 to Kelley Blue Book recently - a used SRT-4 with 3,000 miles on it was listed under $15k! As much as I would like to own one car for a long time, every few years (or sooner) I always find something else I want and end up buying it. But I don't want to take that much of a hit on selling an SRT-4.

So I went in search of other cars, and not having even thought about the MSP at all, I quickly realized I was being stupid and definitely needed to add it to my list. I really like the look of the car (especially '03.5 Titanium), and it's got enough power, great handling, good stereo, all the little things I'd be tempted to mess around with on a car don't need to be messed with.

I have to drive 40 miles to the nearest dealer with an MSP, so I'll probably be going this weekend to check it out, even though I'll likely be waiting another couple of months to buy one (I hope they're still around!) After all my reading I did come up with a few questions. Some people have mentioned the spicy orange paint being very thin and prone to rock chips, and I've seen other people mention that some of the other colors might not be as bad. Was there any mention from someone at Mazda about the 03.5 paint being a little better, or is this just based on what owners have said about it?

While I like the spoiler and front fascia design on the 03 better than the 03.5, I really like the titanium color, and there's not very many 03's left around here anyways, so by the time I get one I'll probably have no choice but an 03.5 - I've seen some people say they don't have as many features as the 03 - unless I'm wrong the only "missing" component from the 03 would be the foglights, right? Sure, shifter and pedals now say mazdaspeed, but they're the same parts, right? I hadn't seen anything else that was "missing" from an 03.5.

Having been into drag racing for a long time, I'm sure if I get an MSP it will see the track every now and then, though as I get older the drag strip gets more boring, and I'm consdering getting into some solo ii autocrossing, as I know a lot of people who regularly attend events but I've never bothered. The MSP seems like a great car for this, but to anyone who has taken it autocrossing, how competitive is the MSP in its class? If I recall, it's in D-Stock, and there seems to be some stiff competition in there as well.

Oh well, this post is long enough, I'll have more questions later, and I'll be back this weekend with test drive impressions.

 

[KYREDP5]

Actually if you wait that long you may be looking at getting an 2003.7.

 

[hesitationhater]

Welcome.

First off, the handling of this car is not great. It is way beyond that. If you like a car to handle, buy the MSP!!! Auto-Xing is the only way to go with this one. Forget the dragstrip, unless you add some of the good stuff.

It isn't only the spicy orange that is thin. I have a black mica and it is soooo thin, lots of rock chips. Mazda paint in general lately is that way. Titanium is the better color IMO.

All of the little details are really just individual's preference, do a little searching and you can find all of the differences between the two. I agree with the spoiler and facia looking better on the 03, but I do like the matching mazdaspeed stuff on 03.5 interior, and the fat shifter.

BTW, you will want to mod this car.

 

[jdgti]

Yeah, I doubt I could resist doing some mods on the car here and there - I'm always messing around with whatever I have a little bit. But honestly, my two least favorite things to mess around with are suspension and stereo setups. I figure in the MSP the stereo is already set up good, and there's no way me and my limited suspension knowledge would even attempt to mess around with the sweet setup mazdaspeed has already given this car. I'll probably try to squeeze a little more power out of it, and even though it won't be the fastest car I've owned, it will be faster than what I drive now, and the handling will more than make up for the lack of power.

I think autox will be fun, the dragstrip really gets old unless you're doing new mods each time out - I can't stand going over and over again and just running the same times, then I feel like I'm just beating up on the car.

As far as paint, I called up my sister who has an '03 Laser Blue Protege ES, it's about six months old with 2,500 miles on it, and she said that there weren't any noticeable chips on it last time she washed it, so I'm not too worried.

I've not got a chance to see an MSP in person yet, only MP3's - but from the sound of it the pictures of Titanium Gray don't do it justice. I have a whole folder of pics, but I'm really looking forward to getting a look at it tomorrow. The dealer I'm going to has 10 MSP's, so hopefully they won't be weird about a test drive. Then again, I seem to have pretty good luck with that, I got to drive an SRT-4 a week after they hit dealerships, and I never even asked to drive it! That car is pretty fast, and it sounds mean, but underneath the hood scoop, spoiler, fmic, and dual tips, it's still a homely little neon at heart, and that's just too bad. I really tried to like it, but I just don't think it's going to happen. I don't quite know how to describe it, but the MSP has a more "mature" look to it than an SRT-4 does. I'll be 25 next month, and I've had 11 cars over the last eight years, and it seems like (with the exception of a couple) they've pretty much all either been beaters, or the kind of car you expect to see a young kid driving. Not that I'm ready to go buy a Buick or anything, but I think it's time for a more refined looking vehicle. And for all the things that come stock on the MSP that most other car owners buy from the aftermarket, this does not look like a car littered with aftermarket upgrades. It's very clean, everything goes together well, and it looks ten times better than a honda civic with a bodykit, wheels, exhaust, and a spoiler!

I'm very impressed with everything I've read about this car so far, and I feel like a jackass for not paying any attention to it sooner. As a car enthusiast I like to think I know about all the cool cars that are available but honestly, I really overlooked this one. At least I didn't wait too long to realize my mistake, I can still make up for it and go buy one as soon as I can get rid of my other cars.

Everyone here seems really helpful, and I think this board is a bit "hidden" for some reason, there's not the huge influx of members from some other board just because someone posted a thread comparing an MSP to some other car and word got out about it. I can't tell you how many times I've seen this happen on other sites, and it's completely aggravating to see good conversations turn into flame fests!

 

[jonnydoe48]

40 miles for a msp? damn there are like 7 dealers that offer them here in the bay area. sacramento is whack =p