Thinking of buying a MP3. Your opinions please...

[b00st3d]

Well the story is I am moving to a university to finish my college. Since I will be a full time student, I won't be able to afford my Ford Lightning. I really want a manual sedan that is sporty and economical. One of my high school friends used to have a blue MP3. I really like the styling. Here are my questions:

How would you rate insurance cost (1-10, 10 being cheapest)?
Since it will be my only car, how do they handle in snow?
Obviously going from almost 400 hp to 140 hp (right?) will be a stretch, how much more can you squeeze out of these engines on a budget?

Any additional comments would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance! (eekfu)

 

[Revs]

How would you rate insurance cost (1-10, 10 being cheapest)?
When I last checked they are just slightly higher and i mean very slightly higher than the 2002 P5, at least with my insurance company.
Since it will be my only car, how do they handle in snow? No LSD so it will not be the best, but with good snow tires it will be fine. I have pos Yokohama winters and its awfull, but i used the same tires on my old Nissan 200sx and they were just as bad.
Obviously going from almost 400 hp to 140 hp (right?) will be a stretch, how much more can you squeeze out of these engines on a budget? Turbo is the only way to get big gains. I/H/E will only give you at best 20hp more.

They might be slow compared to your 13sec Lightning, but you will get used to it. The big benefit is that it will out handle your Lighting 10 fold. I used to have a low 13sec Talon which I sold, got a 200sx for a year, now the MP3. sure I miss the power of my talon, but you get used to it.

 

[pro00]

insurance wise, it should not be too bad. as said before, just slightly higher.
In the snow, as good as your tires. I am not sure what tires comes in with the MP3, but it is like any other 4 door. just drive safely i guess.
I don't have an mp3, but from what i have read on the forums, intake, exhast, cams, headers, etc.... prolly put you in the 160 area. If you turbo ($$), then, definitly go over the 200hp.
Any mp3 owners, please correct me if any of this is wrong.

 

[lasermp5]

MSPs are getting down there these days... why not go w/an 03 msp if you like the styling of the mp3?

 

[bhicks]

My insurance on my MP3 is only 100 bucks a month canadian which is reasonable, My handles pretty great in the snow I put "16 snow rims with 195/50/16 dunlop graspics which work awesome so all in all I would go for it.

 

[bharper]

You won't know what to do with a car that can actually handle worth crap, as opposed to the Lightning.

 

[roni]

The car comes with summer tires when it's new. It actually recommends that you change the tires for the winter in the owner's manual. It's really worth it if you deal with snow. All-season tires are okay, but I prefer summer tires for all year except for winter when I do snow tires. The car handles so well that the grip of your tires can be very important once you realize the potential of this car around corners.

The MP3's come with advanced timing in the ECU and a better exhaust than the other Proteges. They do require premium gasoline, but the insurance is quite cheap. I had a turbocharged one and I loved the power from it. The steering is better on the MP3 than on the MSP, and I added an LSD for my transmission.

A short shifter is practically a must for this car in my opinion. Wheel hop can be annoying sometimes (even with the car bone stock) but I have yet to break anything from it.

Where are you located?

 

[CRZbrussian]

i love those cars i wish i had money for one i would buy it in a heart beat

there's a guy on here "jerseymp3" i believe who is selling his for a rather good price and the car looks clean..i don't know where you located, check it out in the FS section.

 

[JerseyMP3]

i love those cars i wish i had money for one i would buy it in a heart beat

there's a guy on here "jerseymp3" i believe who is selling his for a rather good price and the car looks clean..i don't know where you located, check it out in the FS section.

This website kicks a$$. Everybody looks out for everybody. Thanks for the bump I appreciate it.