Protoge Struts

[intcountzero]

How long should OEM struts last on a 2003 Protege5? Is there any kind of maintenance that can be done to prolong their life? Other than driving on smooth-as-glass roads which don't exist.

 

[Nomad]

Will probably be "OK" for 60-100K mi+ on a stock car driven conservatively on smooth roads.

Towards the end of life they'll diminish damping but should not feel too objectionable. Most average people have no idea what the car is supposed to feel like and that's why you have a high number of 150-200K mile cars with original struts.

In reality it might be best to swap at around 60-80K mi to maintain maximum performance. It really just depends on how that particular car is doing.

 

[intcountzero]

I had some joker mechanic try to talk my wife into buying new struts. They wanted $1800 (otrageous, btw), when a Mazda dealer quoted me $1000 for all 4. Anyway, they insisted there was a leak. I took it to 2 dealerships and both said they were fine. I have 110,000km on the car at the moment, so I would assume I should be able to get to 130-140k before I need to replace them. Even this suprised me, however, since I had a pontiac Grand Am GT for 8 years prior with 220,000km on it - even changed the struts, wven though I brought it in several times for evaluation.

Struts are a tricky one. But my guess is the jerk mechanic guy tried to spy oil or water on the struts before having my wife look at them, then tried to tell her it was a leak.

FYI, if anyone is in the Toronto area reading this, it was the Active Green & Ross at Promenade on Dufferin St. that tried to pull this. Avoid all franchises under this name. They're all crooks. No exceptions. Trust me.

 

[Sveivo]

Man, factory struts are like US$280 in parts for all 4.

That said, unless your struts are leaking bad (or at all), they are probably fine.

BTW, I replaced mine at around 80K miles because 2 of the 4 had leaks.