help! Should i buy mazda again

kats · Jan 1, 2006

My first car was a 98 protege. loved it, other than the transmission problems.
Replaced at 80,000 kms, but still hard shifting between first and second gear. Thinking about buying a 2002 protege how common are the transmission problems with mazda. Will Mazda ever deal with this problem. Any input would be appreciated.

peepsalot · Jan 1, 2006

Yeah my 2003 MSP has problems. It's a weak synchro. I can't say I don't beat on mine though. If you shift 1st to 2nd frequently at high rpms it'll wear out quick.

kats · Jan 1, 2006

peepsalot said:
Yeah my 2003 MSP has problems. It's a weak synchro. I can't say I don't beat on mine though. If you shift 1st to 2nd frequently at high rpms it'll wear out quick.

anyway to look out for transmission problems when buying used?

Sveivo · Jan 1, 2006

I say, stay away! Virtually all 02 either do have problems or will develop them.

Sveivo · Jan 1, 2006

I have an 02 and I'm super pissed but stuck with it. Can't afford to switch cars at this time.

JDM Sam · Jan 1, 2006

i wouldnt bother. the car is no longer in production.

kats · Jan 1, 2006

Dim said:
I say, stay away! Virtually all 02 either do have problems or will develop them.

would you suggest another year?

Sveivo · Jan 1, 2006

kats said:
would you suggest another year?

NO!!!

NOT a protege. Period. for the love of God.

Sveivo · Jan 1, 2006

Sorry about getting too emotional there, but seriously. I would not take this chance if I were you, because you will likely be disappointed if your transmission begins to grind.

And selling a car with a grinding transmission is not easy.

02 and 03's are pretty much the same as far as tranny problems go.

Another year? It's probably going to have a lot of miles.

If you are looking for a reliable car, I would get a mid-90's Honda Accord. I realize that it is going to have a lot of miles, but you will be better off fixing that car, since the parts are engineered well and will not break for another 10 years.

Just a piece of advice...

kats · Jan 1, 2006

Dim said:
Sorry about getting too emotional there, but seriously. I would not take this chance if I were you, because you will likely be disappointed if your transmission begins to grind.

And selling a car with a grinding transmission is not easy.

02 and 03's are pretty much the same as far as tranny problems go.

Another year? It's probably going to have a lot of miles.

If you are looking for a reliable car, I would get a mid-90's Honda Accord. I realize that it is going to have a lot of miles, but you will be better off fixing that car, since the parts are engineered well and will not break for another 10 years.

Just a piece of advice...

thanks
what about an 01 or 02 civic

Sveivo · Jan 1, 2006

I haven't had any experience with the newer Hondas, sorry.

A useful website is carsurvey.org, if you want to look at general trends in reliability, etc.

gksspot · Jan 1, 2006

So you are going to base your decision on one unhappy guy. (boom07)

Do yourself a favor and do searches with keywords such as transmission problems or reliability and so on... then you will realize that while yes there are some people that have had bad luck the VAST MAJORITY have perfectly fine operating 02-03 Proteges.

Now if you want to talk about widely known tranny problems look into the 98-0? Accord V6 equipped auto trannies, then you will actually see a car with real tranny problems that ARE widespread.

Replica · Jan 1, 2006

gksspot said:
So you are going to base your decision on one unhappy guy. (boom07)

Do yourself a favor and do searches with keywords such as transmission problems or reliability and so on... then you will realize that while yes there are some people that have had bad luck the VAST MAJORITY have perfectly fine operating 02-03 Proteges.

Now if you want to talk about widely known tranny problems look into the 98-0? Accord V6 equipped auto trannies, then you will actually see a car with real tranny problems that ARE widespread.

There are tons of threads about mazdas being problematic. My p5 had clutch chatter issues and the car would shutter a little when shifting into 4th until i bought some kartboy shifter bushings and that kinda masked it. I'm not sure about the 1st to second shifts at high rpms damaging the car. I used to race the s*** out of mine and the tranny never gave significant problems. However. do a search and there are alot of unhappy owners of mazdas. I know the last thing i typed will get quoted over and over but on the whole i dont see alot of happy mazdas here...

Even new mazdas are garbage...RX8's have tranny issues...the new Mazdaspeed 6 has hesitation problems.

The 01-02 Civics are reliable but it won't be very interesting to drive and are slightly slower than a protege. If i had to choose though....id go find a nice white 02 Civic EX 5 spd between the two.

Replica · Jan 1, 2006

gksspot said:
Now if you want to talk about widely known tranny problems look into the 98-0? Accord V6 equipped auto trannies, then you will actually see a car with real tranny problems that ARE widespread.

My mom had one.....zero problems at 80,000 miles. Traded in for a new CRV.

If V6 auto accords are known for their problems....thats a tiny segment of hondas to consider. That would be like "Hey guys watch out for those 1983 automatic Mazda 323's....they have problems..."

Kansei · Jan 1, 2006

Don't listen to just a few bitter people who had problems with their proteges. Plenty of people only join forums when they have something to complain about. I've had my P5 since 7k miles and it has 59k miles of absolute torture on it now and it's rock solid. My P5 gets redlined at least a dozen times every single time it is driven. I frequently 0-60 test it just to feel the rush, I love my car so much. The people with problems are few and far between. The Protege is rock solid for reliability.

Proteges are so much fun, you know you want another one!

Replica · Jan 1, 2006

Kansei · Jan 1, 2006

Yes, that is just a few. Do you have any idea how many Proteges are on the road? Last I checked the recall (the first for the third gen Protege IIRC) that was just for 2003 not 2003.5 or 2002.5 was like 35k or something cars recalled.

EDIT:

that pic you posted.. the car looks great actually, but it would look better if the lip was CF to match the hood.. FG with CF overlay would get eaten up so quickly that low to the ground though. It is so rare to see a nice Civic in the vast sea of crappy.

Replica · Jan 1, 2006

zverg said:
Yes, that is just a few. Do you have any idea how many Proteges are on the road? Last I checked the recall (the first for the third gen Protege IIRC) that was just for 2003 not 2003.5 or 2002.5 was like 35k or something cars recalled.

EDIT:

that pic you posted.. the car looks great actually, but it would look better if the lip was CF to match the hood.. FG with CF overlay would get eaten up so quickly that low to the ground though. It is so rare to see a nice Civic in the vast sea of crappy.

The links i cut and pasted over a variety of Protege issues. I typed in Blown Motor in the seach but it didnt give direct links. Also search for clutch chatter but again, no direct links. I wanted to post something that the original poster could read himself.

In all fairness, go check out http://www.7thgencivic.com/forums/ and look around to make sure its a car you really want to own. Knowledge is free!

There are quite a few nice 7th gens...EM2's....I'm not a big fan of 7th gen civics but they can be pretty nice cars.

00zmde · Jan 11, 2006

I got a 2000 dx and started grinding into 2nd at around 40000mi or so but I also changed to full synthetic Mobil fluid in the gear box at about the same time I noticed it.

I would buy another Mazda but Would make sure I got 100000mi warranty. It doesnt grind all the time it has its bad days though and only when driving on the rough side.

Warrranty, Warranty, Warranty. Warranty expires sell/trade-in that mofo. I love my car, every bit of it. Im going to put it in the junk yard myself.

00zmde · Jan 11, 2006

All cars have thier problems. My better half has an 01 Civic EX and its been in the shop more times than i can count on both hands. The latest was the tranny replacement. Thank God for the extended warranty. I have a friend who happens to be out of warranty on his 01 Civic EX and has had multiple problems with his car. His car is alot faster though with only bolt ons.

help! Should i buy mazda again

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