MP3 / Mazdaspeed Protege Conversion Guide

blynd_spy said:
yes it is the actual bumper. pretty sure when ordering, all protege model bumpers are the same and looks like a P5 front. The part number above is for the msp bumper and the P5 bumper is BN5V-50-031B-AA not sure what the difference is though. best place is the dealer, my p5 bumper was $180 primered..

just need a rear skirt and paint the front bumper and i be able to finally post pics in this thread...yaaay

maybe the difference is the hole on the sides of the bumper for the side markers the P5's have? My car is a MSP by the way.
 
Nextruss said:
maybe the difference is the hole on the sides of the bumper for the side markers the P5's have? My car is a MSP by the way.

possibly, but i think i remember someone saying that they all come without the holes...ill do a little searchin
 
blynd_spy said:
possibly, but i think i remember someone saying that they all come without the holes...ill do a little searchin

JCell said:
if u buy the bumper new, there is no difference between the p5, mp3, or msp bumper, the bodyshop puts the holes in afterwards

still not 100% sure on the whole situation however..
 
I've never heard of anyone having problems putting a P5/MSP/MP3 bumper on a sedan. Where the bumper mounts on the frame should be the same weather it's an LX,ES,MP3,P5 or MSP.
 
MSP Front Bumper
5416618.gif
P5 Front Bumper
5416022.gif
 
caliblue15 said:
Hey guys, i'm doing the conversion only on the outside right now, just wondering if these part numbers are right, and if i should put them on, or just have a professional do them!

>B30K-V4-910F side skirts-------------$156.00 plus shipping.
>0000-8M-C16 rear bumper skirt--------$234.00
>0000-8Y-C32 rear spoiler----------$288.00
>
>?the front spoiler is B30P-51-9K1B ? -----------$30.84
>?or front spoiler is BN7H-50-031 ?------------$174.00
you probably want to have it professionaly fitted and painted (unless they come painted, but at those prices...i doubt it). not to say that if you're pretty handy that you can't do it, but i know i would mess something up during install or painting process so i'd prefer a pro to do it. dont forget the upper radiator grille and lower mesh grille, side fender splash shields, license plate holder, and bumper reinforcement. ...oh i still cant figure out if piece number 21 (air deflector - not the wind splitter) in the diagram is required? ^_^
 
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Im guessing those peices come flat black all you have to do is scuff them and throw down some base and clear if you got it smooth enough I wouldnt even wet sand they are down low you wont see much orange peel.
 
^^
if you change out the front bumper from a regular sedan to the MSP/MP3 style then no you cant use the old ones. The reinforcement bar isnt the right style, the upper grill is slightly different, and the lower grill is completely different. I don't know if you already said this either, but you need new inner fender wells also, as the ones you need are a bit longer.
 
my lx went into the shop yesterday for the rest of the conversion, sides, rear and wing, also some eyelids and grill she should look nice afterwards :D
 
do it professionally so they get it right, if the holes arent right itll ghey up your car, grills arent the same so youd need one, reinforcement is for safety, yes you need one, splash guards, you need them to keep water out of the engine bay...
 
If you don't have any experience doing any kind of body work, don't try the side skirts yourself. They seem a lot easier than they really are. I cut the corners out of my reinforcement rather than getting a new one. I would definitely recommend getting a new one. I was kind of a guinea pig for the conversion. If I would have known that it was different, I would have gotten a new one at the time.

The upper grille isn't needed but if you want it to be clean, you should replace it. The only fogs that will fit are the MP3/MSP/MP5 fogs unless you get some aftermarket ones. I used the PIAA 540's(they are a little smaller, but look much better IMO). You NEED the bottom grille(unless you want to leave it wide open which looks stupid unless you have an intercooler). Your old one won't come close to fitting. The splash guards aren't needed but are highly recommended if you live in a rainy climate.
 
I agree about the side skirts. When I got mine, I read the instructions and once I saw that I had to first cut out these templates ( I believe 14 on each side), tape'em onto the skirts, then stick the skirts on the car and transfer the templates to the car so that you can drill the holes (14 on each side), I said na. Let the body shop do it. They are much more experience.

By the way, how long do you guys think it should take the body shop to do the install. Mine have just got painted and I am just waiting for them to schedule my car for the install. They said that it might a whole day.
 
it took my body shop a week to paint them...but i installed them all myself...looking back i think it was probably a bad idea with the side skirts, cuz i'm all afraid its gonna rust in the holes that you drill...plus it doesnt sit perfectly...we'll see in a couple more years. been 2 years so far.
 
I installed everything myself and had a friend paint the parts. He paints as his profession so no worries on that. Anyway, the bumpers are a simple install, very straight forward. The sideskirts and rear valance are a lot more complicated and require you to drill on a template that they provide you with. If you are worried about money I would recommend not getting the rear valance at first. It is one of the more expensive pieces, last time I checked, and is a pain to install. Plus aesthetically speaking you dont need that piece as much as you do the front bumper and the side skirts. So you might be able to save a bit of change doing it that way. And some people say that they have gotten away with using their old splash guards. I dunno how, but some people do it. And again, to save money you could do what 1garnetredlx did and cut your old reinforcement bumper, instead of spending 220 on a new one. But there are a bunch of things you could do to cut down on price you just have to decide if you want everything done at once or not.
 
Everything should be 1500-1800 for parts, paint and installion. Really depends who you go to. I had a quote for painting the front bumper cover, front air dam, side skirts, and rear skirt for $1,500 from one place and $350.00 from another. So I went with the 350 place and the paint looks exactly like stock. I definitely recomend shopping around.
caliblue15 said:
Do you guys have any other info... cause that's going to make it way too expensive, i was looking at 564 for parts, now it's like 1,800!!!! plust 1,000 install... i was looking at the most a 1,200 dolllar job???

Any ideas??
 

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