Good acceleration and power.
Roomy interior and spacious trunk.

idles a little ironic but only when on a cold start up.

I love this car. It handles very well and has good ac. Wish i would have gotten the dx. The lx 2.0 is a very good choice.

LOOKS, carbon fiber accents in the dash look good, comes stock with 16inch rims and low pro tires which is nice, the antenna in the back center, all nicethouches to have a nice looking car, and the clutch is real smooth jst like the shiifting

GUTLESS, the engine is way underpowered, it needs more kick

This car is pretty good, well it looks good, from inside and out, and thats what it has, looks

Similar Products Used:

99 civic, 85 civic, 86 mazda 626 turbo, they all felt, except for the 85 civic to have more power

Air Conditioning, Looks (the chics look at me like I am Brad Pitt in this car), price (i got all the milk and cookies and paid 100 bucks over invoice) gas mileage, and best of all the steering.

The arm rest for the driver (too short), loud noise when moonroof is open at high speeds (need deflector), no real good spot to put money to pay tolls (Damn NJ Parkway), and the not so great stereo speakers.

I just bought my car last night after having a Nissan Maxima SE for 10 years (it was very good to me). Man o Man does this car attract attention. I must of had 5 people around my car at every parking lot I was in. From the "thunk" of the door when it closes to the handling of this beauty, if you are considering this vehicle, GO BUY IT YOU CRAZY FOOL!

Similar Products Used:

Hyundai Elantra (cheap interior), Honda Civic (no style), Nissan Sentra SE (close to buying it but too plain and too small in the back), PT Cruiser (didnt want american car)

Good pick-up
Great handeling
Great looks
Great standard features
Great value
mess of storage space
VERY quiet ride, my uncle was up set when he got in and my car has less road noise then his brand new top-of-the-line accord.

dark interior shows up lint
, nothing big.

I got this car 5 days ago(first car im 16, 17 in like a month), and we wanted a silver manual, but the dealer couldnt find one so he gave us the red manual for 200 over invoice (16,101) normally 17,500, it has the abs brakes, and 6cd changer, and its really a great car, the handeling is out of this world. In my opinion the acceleration is pretty dam good, all the standard options its really a great deal, i can get from 0-60 in about 8.3 seconds. it sticks to the road. Only thing i was pulling out of the bank and scraped the outside of the rim:( but i sanded it down and bought some touch up paint. ITs a real head turner, and im glad now i got the red, everyone who got the yellow will be sorry in about a year, because the yellow paint job is gonna fade. This car should really get its own catagory because there is nothing even similar to the regular protege,

this car has standard
2.0L DHOC 130HP
4 wheel disc brakes
16in alloy rimms
cd player
Fog Lamps
rear spoiler, roof rack
and a mess of other things (like rear heating ducts)

Similar Products Used:

Mazda 626 '97 (the p5 kills it in every way)
96'Millenia
94 Silverado 350 ext cab

-Quick For a 4-banger.
-Comfortable on long trips(SUPRISINGLY! But I'm 5'2'' so that could have something to do with it).
-Lots of Trunk room for my standards.
-Smooth Shifting
-Reaches 120+ with NO problem :)
-Handles well, a little understeer tho.
-Again, quick car for what it is.

-Air noise
-Light...really light.
-Parts are a tad expensive, but do your comparison price hunting, there are ways to get around the high priced parts, and its worth it.
-Alot of road noise and a little "strange" @ 55mph, but go higher or lower and its fine.
-THE PAINT SUCKS
-Driver seat squeaks, a little annoying but ill get over it
-Crappy CV joints.
-The power windows are a far cry from solid. I have a feeling I'll be needing a new master (driver) control unit for them soon. They are all slow and both of the rear get stuck about 3/4 of the way up. But if you just nudge 'em a little while pushing the button, they'll go.
-The suspension isnt anything to rant over, its a little mushy, but still handles well.

Reliable car with few complaints. Excelent pickup and speed for a 4-banger. Always have been a rice-burner (Japanese car) enthusiast, But had never delt with a Mazda. Now that i have, its no Honda, but it matches up well. Faster, more hp and better pickup then both of my Honda's. I have alot of little nit-picking with this car, but overall its well worth what I paid (and more, this car was a HUGE BARGAIN). The good outweighs the bad by far. I have 162,000 miles on this car and i bet it'll keep on truckin' 300,000 and beyond.

Similar Products Used:

98 Civic, 88 Accord

Interior build quality, reliability, roomy trunk, roomy interior, high quality cloth interior, folding rear seat, large body, european styling that puts Honda Civic sedan and Toyota Corolla to shame

Only one: could use more power. Because car was demo model, I had to get it with automatic transmission and it sometimes saps power with the 1.6L engine

I bought a demo 1999 Protege LX with 6,011 miles on the odometer on May 29, 1999. I have owned the car for over two years now and besides routine maintenance, I have had zero problems with the car. I was drawn to the car because Consumer Reports rated it as the top small car and the reliability of the car was Much Better than Average, on par with the Toyota Corolla and the Honda Civic. The Protege was cheaper than both and could be had with Mazda American Credits 1.9% financing while similar Civics I shopped around for had 5.9% financing

The Mazda has been a great car and now has 57,000 miles on it and I look forward to much more mileage than that (200k, 300k, etc.)

Similar Products Used:

Honda Civic sedan - Protege cheaper and better looking
Toyota Corolla - Protege cheaper and better looking
Nissan Sentra - 1999 model seemed flimsier than Protege and not as solid
Subaru Impreza - too expensive for what you get which is not much
Chevy Cavalier - low quality and low reliab. accord. to Consumer Reports
Dodge Neon - low quality and low reliab. accord. to Consumer Reports
Ford Focus - too many recalls make me think Fords are junk
VW Jetta - Mexican made and many owners have problems with them

Reliable, Good Looking, I like the way it Drives.
Take good care of it and it takes care of you.

I have noticed that the Transmission feels like it slips sometimes.
I believe this is the only FORD manufactured part on this car which worries me.

I have had my Mazda Protege since July of 99 (since new) I just hit 50,000 and have had no issues.

Similar Products Used:

89 Escort (Very Bad Car)
94 Sundance (Just CV Joint issues)

My Protege is nimble, and just plain fun to drive. Still! With the 2.0L engine, it has plenty of power and still gets gas mileage in the 30-35 mpg range. It's comfortable and reliable.

After 160,000 miles, the front suspension is a bit creaky, but it's still tight and handles well.... and the front struts and everything else in the front end are all original equipment! Clutch, still original. A/C only recharged once in 11 years. Amazin'

My Protege had two Achilles' heels, without which I would have given the car a much higher rating.

The worst problem must be a major design flaw in the 2.0L engine. At 62,000 miles, after the warranty expired, the pulley that drives the timing belt came off the front of the crankshaft! That wouldn't be so bad except that it scored the front of the crankshaft so that I had to replace it as well. If you are going to replace the crankshaft, you might as well replace the bearings. $2,900. I asked the mechanic at the dealership if this happens often. He said, "Well, you have the first 1990 model that we've seen." My advice: GET THE EXTENDED DRIVE-TRAIN WARRANTY!

Last month, at 160,000, it happened again. Only this time, I was lucky. The pulley turned before it came off, throwing the timing out of whack. I quickly found a good mechanic who could do a little grooming on the crankshaft and put a new pulley on. It still cost me $600. However, my old Protege is back on the highway, and running well. It barely missed being reincarnated from old Mazda into new beer cans by the thickness of the keyway that slipped, warning of impending disaster.

The second weak spot has been the CV joints. I don't know how many I've replaced... 6 or 7 on each side. That adds up to a lot of parts plus labor. You'll see the CV joint and boot mentioned in some of the other reviews.

I bought my Protege new, with the LX package (A/C, sun roof, cruise, power, etc.), 5-speed, and the larger, 2.0L 16-valve engine. After having read all of the reviews here, I'm amazed that so few of them mention the problems that I had. On the other hand, just read some of the Jetta or Neon horror stories to find out what a lemon is really like! I still give the Protege a good rating, but I've also had some very costly problems. Maybe Mazda has fixed some of these things since 1990. I would recommend a Protege, if Mazda has reengineered the parts that gave me the worst trouble, and if the Ford influence hasn't ruined the car.

Similar Products Used:

It isn't fair to compare a 1990 Mazda with current technology. So, how has the Protege held up compared to some other old compacts with which I've had experience?

My 1983 Toyota Corolla has 140,000 miles and is in better shape. The Toyota is more reliable and less costly to run, but it's not as much fun to drive. Life is full of tradeoffs.

My girlfriend had a 1987 Chevy Cavalier. It reminded me of a Ford Pinto with the terrible visibility and handling, especially compared to the Mazda. Amazingly, although the Cavalier gave a poor impression of quality, it cost less to maintain over the life of the car than my Protege did. Another tradeoff...for me, the Mazda wins.

I've driven a few Ford Escorts in my day, and they have all of the wallowing, mushy handling of a big Grand Marquis, without any of the interior space. And if my Mazda would throw a pulley now and then, I've seen lots of blown head gaskets in old Escorts. Protege wins, hands down.