MSP Falling off?

Yes it is an older car now that the new model MS3 is out we'll be forgoten but we can still love the cars and enjoy them. I still have big plans for my car and have been going through with them little by little as money allows. I broke the diff so upgraded that the clutch and threw in the motor mounts while I was at it. My plans called for a bigger turbo so when I saw a kit I could afford I jumped on that now I have a spool stage one with a t3 turbo so I have all the hardware done and I can easily upgrade when I max this one out. Everything else will be taken care of as it needs to be or as money allows.
 
Sounds great. I have plans for my baby as well. Just put in the AFC, and I'm loving mine more by the second!
 
orng1 said:
Yes it is an older car now that the new model MS3 is out we'll be forgoten

I don't think we'll be forgotten. Especially with the likes of SCC magazine paying homage to the fact that the MSP was the best handling FWD car ever made. I think in history the MSP will be remembered much like the 323 GTX... as a car that "people in the know" will remember as a great milestone in the evolution of the sport compact.
 
I love the speed look, I get a lot of compliments at gas stations. I love the "what the hell is that?" look I get pulling up anywhere. With the functional (bland) styling some carmarkers are using now, these cars are even more appealing. I never get tired of driving in it, and when I drive a van or other car for a few hours and get back in the pro, I remember again why I like it so much. I'll never sell it :)
 
i think it is a great car, but not for the market it was for. Making a car for the tuner market with fisher price rods and a horrible lsd is just not going to make for great sales. for the average driver and people planning to just keep it stock it is great, but for people planning to mod i think it is the wrong car. those rods just pretty much screwed the whole car. they should have replaced those from the get-go. most people looking at the car don't want to spend 1k+ replacing the rods right off the bat, and once they break, if they do, it is going to cost alot more than that to fix the damages. great car, but not for the target market.
 
geeze you suck...

1k = having a motor to hold 300whp... woopty doo....

8cd03gro said:
i think it is a great car, but not for the market it was for. Making a car for the tuner market with fisher price rods and a horrible lsd is just not going to make for great sales. for the average driver and people planning to just keep it stock it is great, but for people planning to mod i think it is the wrong car. those rods just pretty much screwed the whole car. they should have replaced those from the get-go. most people looking at the car don't want to spend 1k+ replacing the rods right off the bat, and once they break, if they do, it is going to cost alot more than that to fix the damages. great car, but not for the target market.
 
smo0f said:
how do you know who the target market is? the car wasn't even advertised on tv

Good point. I just think its another case of someone wanting everything in the world for under 20k.
 
Forged Rods are bassically the only "extra" thing you might have to do compared to other cars to make large ammounts of power. And a good solution for the LSD seems to be welding.:)
 
FI_FSDE said:
Forged Rods are bassically the only "extra" thing you might have to do compared to other cars to make large ammounts of power. And a good solution for the LSD seems to be welding.:)

Not to mention, once you get these installed, your car is more than amazing. Handling that is unmatched by other stock FWD cars. In addition to the fact you will be flyin!
 
smo0f said:
how do you know who the target market is? the car wasn't even advertised on tv


well we can cross of the soccer moms and the business men. we can cross off the people looking for just good gas mileage. we can cross off the people looking for a full out sports car. The car is targeted at the tuner market. how do you not see that? what market do you think the srt-4 was targeted at? it is the same market. fwd, good power, good handling, cheap. At least that's the way i see it. that is the majority of the people that bought it anyway. That's why it wasn't advertised. Most tuner market based cars arent advertised on tv and such because the people that are going to buy them already know about them. The reason the srt-4 did so well is because it responds extremely well to mods and that is what the majority of the people that bought it were looking for. I am not trying to bash the msp, but i didn't buy it because i would hate being afraid everytime i mashed the pedal with some mods. If i wanted to have to deal with internals and such to make the power i want, i would have bought the msp no doubt, but handling isn't that important to me and that is where the msp shines. I just don't like having to drop 1k into a car to take away the little fear in the back of my head that a piston is gonna fly thru my hood if i step on it. obviously it is great for alot of people and i am glad it did pretty well, but i and alot of the tuner market want to start with a motor that can handle alot more power, and that just isn't an option with the msp. i just want straight line performance and decent handling, which is why i bought my car. Hell if i drop 1k into my internals (forged pistons, already have forged rods) i could make 300whp all motor and handle well over 550hp. again, i like the msp, and i was very close to buying one. I just think that the rods were the big mistake on it which is a large part of the equation in buying a car with hardcore enthusiasts of straight line performance.
 
you're really stating the obvious here though. who's a 'tuner' that will go out and buy a 110whp car with a turbo kit slapped on it, and then act shocked that the engine couldn't handle anymore power? the msp was sold stock at near it's full potential power. those running with the stock block at 250whp have invested a decent amount of money and time on it, but that's about it. i don't think anyone went and bought an msp with the idea that 'oh man, that's gonna be a great car to mod to get great power of'. at least not if they researched it. and considering the fact that it was a (very) limited production car, and came at the last second with the final productions of the protege, i believe it was a mere ploy by mazda to get rid of their proteges faster. they didn't care if there's going to be aftermarket support for it. they certainly weren't going to provide it themselves. and why isn't there much aftermarket support for it? well besides that the car was only made for a year and isn't being made anymore, there's only ~2500 of them, and to get any power by buying mods, you have to attach the price of building a motor to get anywhere really. as far as the people who own them goes, they fall into several categories. those who bought them without knowing what it is, then later realizing they can't do much with it after they gain interest into tuning and modding, and end up selling it, or the group that instead of selling it ends up willingly paying money to mod it to try to achieve certain goals, but are still unsatisfied and attempt to turn it back to stock to sell it, or, the group that loves the car the way it is stock and don't care much for tuning or modding, and that in my opinion is who the car was made for, and probably the people who enjoy and benefit from the car the most.
 
If I had an msp, I would fit into the last category. Just buying it and planning to keep it stock, but with all the horror stories I've head of people blowing stock motors at WOT in 5th and other turbo related issues, that has caused me to shy away from the MSP. Still a sweet little car though.
 
Donas64 when are you going to stfu?


Donas64 said:
If I had an msp, I would fit into the last category. Just buying it and planning to keep it stock, but with all the horror stories I've head of people blowing stock motors at WOT in 5th and other turbo related issues, that has caused me to shy away from the MSP. Still a sweet little car though.
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I would not say they are bashing their car, I would say they are being honest about it's shortcomings.

I mean I love my P5 but that doesn't mean that I hate the fact that it's slow as molasses. I think if you pay money for a car then you have the right to say about it what you want.
The MSP is FAR from the perfect car but it is not without it's charms.

It looks great, handles great, and is decently quick. It's also flawed but thats okay because thats what makes it fun. Tinkering with it and getting it to it's full potential. But let's not pretend it is not without its many faults.

____________________

Sometimes when I see a really nice MSP I wish I had one. Then when I visit the forum and see someone has blown a stock motor I run outside and hug my slow but less likely to detonate naturally aspirated P5. Turbos scare me. So fun but so dangerous.
______________________

I guess you could be right, But I've seen sad tales of several members of the ZOOM ZOOM BOOM BOOM club.

Too much money to mod to high levels. Just start with a stronger platform IMHO. Then again I don't have thousands of dollars to spend to mod a car.

Overall though I like the MSP. I think it looks a heck of a lot better than that bulbous (but still kinda funky) MS3.

______________________

I think the P5 is the best looking Mazda

MSP5 + forged rods + FMIC + welded Diff = Awesome little hatch!

______________________

I think the MSP was a delightful little experiment. Mazda really did do this car a disservice by sorta treating it like a red-headed stepchild but it paved the may for future MAzdaspeed Generations. Personally, I would not purchase one due to the large number of problems and things that could go wrong especially being a forced induction car. But overall I think if treated well and modded LIGHTLY, the car can be special and unique. So in summation

Enjoy the Car

Don't sink too much cash into it

Keep up your maintenance

If you really want a faster car, SELL IT!
 
69RMSP said:
Donas64 when are you going to stfu?

I guess when communists like yourself take away free speech rights and come to my house and unplug my computer. I'm sorry, I didn't get the memo that I was only allowed to post as many times as you will let me. Whats your problem man. Back off! If you don't like my posts, don't read them. We're all just commenting on a message board. Did I insult you or something?
 
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