might be getting an '00 ES 5 spd

[mpvue]

a good friend of mine is ready to trade up to a new Mazda3. I went w/ her to the dealer when she bought her '00 ES new in 2000. 5 speed, moonroof, cloth interior. she never had a lick of trouble w/ it, one owner obviously. mileage is about 160K, all hwy basically.
best part, she might let me have it for $500!

 

[prof15]

sounds like a good deal if the car is in such a good shape like you are saying.

 

[mpvue]

more mielage than I thought

update (as much for me as anyone else): I drove this car the other day for the 1st time. it has 198K, check engine light is on (she says the mechanic told her the cat is bad, I haven't pulled the exact code on it) and there is a suspension knock, sounds like a strut mount. and its overdue for a timing belt (she only had it changed once, at 120K!)
still thinking if I can get it for a few hundred I might still get it.

 

[Joost27]

Struts or endlinks are likely the clunk, either way no biggie replace both and be good for probably the rest of the life of the car. The cat code, if it is indeed that, just do the non-fouler trick to trick the computer into thinking its fine, or replace it, another thing that wouldn't be replaced ever again.

So:
Struts: $200-$300 for Stock/KYB Replacements, $350-400 for Tokico HPs
Endlinks: $80 for all 4, $15 for vice grips to assist in taking the old ones off
Timing Belt: $100-$150 if you do it yourself
Cat: Pricey, or find a good used one, plenty out there from people who replaced them with a header at low mileage.
Non-Fouler: $5 and maybe $3-4 for a drill bit

so $500-$600 invested plus cost of car for a decent daily driver that won't give you too much trouble. I say worth it.

 

[mpvue]

Struts or endlinks are likely the clunk, either way no biggie replace both and be good for probably the rest of the life of the car. The cat code, if it is indeed that, just do the non-fouler trick to trick the computer into thinking its fine, or replace it, another thing that wouldn't be replaced ever again.

So:
Struts: $200-$300 for Stock/KYB Replacements, $350-400 for Tokico HPs
Endlinks: $80 for all 4, $15 for vice grips to assist in taking the old ones off
Timing Belt: $100-$150 if you do it yourself
Cat: Pricey, or find a good used one, plenty out there from people who replaced them with a header at low mileage.
Non-Fouler: $5 and maybe $3-4 for a drill bit

so $500-$600 invested plus cost of car for a decent daily driver that won't give you too much trouble. I say worth it.

thanks for the tips. if I do it, I'll have to do the work myself to make it worthwhile (I'm not new to cars, just new to the protege). plan to go through the whole car, freshen everything up. would love to do a strut/spring pkg, and check out the condition of the exhaust while I'm doing the cat.
I like the stock ES alloys, just would like it a bit lower.

 

[Joost27]

like this? hehe

 

[mpvue]

yup, just like that. same ES, 'cept it's green.

 

[slavrenz]

thanks for the tips. if I do it, I'll have to do the work myself to make it worthwhile (I'm not new to cars, just new to the protege). plan to go through the whole car, freshen everything up. would love to do a strut/spring pkg, and check out the condition of the exhaust while I'm doing the cat.
I like the stock ES alloys, just would like it a bit lower.

The mileage interval for the timing belt is 105k (if you change it every 60k miles, you're just throwing money away IMHO). By that mark, you should be good for another 25-30k miles

 

[mpvue]

The mileage interval for the timing belt is 105k (if you change it every 60k miles, you're just throwing money away IMHO). By that mark, you should be good for another 25-30k miles

cool, thanks! I was going by my old '96 MPV. didn't know the proto was 105K.

 

[prof15]

The mileage interval for the timing belt is 105k (if you change it every 60k miles, you're just throwing money away IMHO). By that mark, you should be good for another 25-30k miles

Is there a way to know if the timing belt was changed recently on a car? I got my protege with 139 last year and the dealer I got it from didn't know the last time it was change. So I am trying to figure out if I need to change it or what right now some one of the belt is squealing so I am guessing I need to replace it but I don't know.

 

[mpvue]

Is there a way to know if the timing belt was changed recently on a car? I got my protege with 139 last year and the dealer I got it from didn't know the last time it was change. So I am trying to figure out if I need to change it or what right now some one of the belt is squealing so I am guessing I need to replace it but I don't know.

sometimes squealing is from the tensioner pulley. also, don't confuse the accessory belts w/ the timing belt; the acc belts are on the outside and drive the alt and A/C and power steering; the timing belt is a toothed belt under a plastic cover, it doesn't squeal.

 

[NotQuiteB9]

Pardon my ignorance, but I'm wondering why you would change the belt at any mileage interval unless it has some major wear. Do you change it because it's not supposed to last much longer than that or does it actually start to affect perforfance?

 

[mpvue]

Pardon my ignorance, but I'm wondering why you would change the belt at any mileage interval unless it has some major wear. Do you change it because it's not supposed to last much longer than that or does it actually start to affect perforfance?

preventative maintenance. if it breaks, you'r ein a whole wolrd of hurt, w/ broken valves or worse. if the belt skips, or loses some teeth, you might show a check engine code.
so, the belt may very well last longer, but why chance it?

 

[E21BIMMERHEAD]

preventative maintenance. if it breaks, you'r ein a whole wolrd of hurt, w/ broken valves or worse. if the belt skips, or loses some teeth, you might show a check engine code.
so, the belt may very well last longer, but why chance it?

this engine in this car is a non-interference engine so if the belt goes all that will happen is the car will s*** down and leave you on the side of the road. Had it happen to me, changed it out and the car was sweet beans then.

 

[mpvue]

OK, UPDATE: I didn't get the car. once I started looking at how much it would cost to fix it correctly, I decided against it. for my friend, it made sense for her just to trade it and not worry about it anymore.
good news for her; dealer gave her $500 trade towards a new Mazda3 i touring! KBB value was only $675, so I think she did pretty good.
corrction also: the car had 199K miles, not 160K like I thought! so I was surprised the dealer gave her as much as they did.

 

[Raymo853]

OK, UPDATE: I didn't get the car. once I started looking at how much it would cost to fix it correctly, I decided against it. for my friend, it made sense for her just to trade it and not worry about it anymore.
good news for her; dealer gave her $500 trade towards a new Mazda3 i touring! KBB value was only $675, so I think she did pretty good.
corrction also: the car had 199K miles, not 160K like I thought! so I was surprised the dealer gave her as much as they did.

Wow, I just sold my 2000 ES 5 speed with 112,000 miles for 2750 and was thinking I could have got more.
And mine did not have the sunroof/abs/side airbag package like your friend's red one did.

 

[Raymo853]

My sold 00 ES