Alright, I've driven over 10,000 miles in my MSP and thought it was time for a follow up review of sorts. Keep in mind, I am *not* a professional driver by any means. Nor a mechanic or anything of that nature. I'm just a computer geek who wanted a hell of a nice car. My car's in the shop right now which is the only reason I'm here writing this and not out enjoying the car.
A little history before we begin. I'm 21 and I've previously owned a handed down 93 Honda Accord which was completely stock. I then totalled it when Bambi decided to cross the road as I was going 70mph.
Move on a few months as I get a 90 Accord from a autocrosser with suspension work and an intake. That started my love for modded cars and was a bit before the import craze took off. I had a bit of bad luck involving a Austin Police Department Forensics van and the front end of that Accord which then landed me in a free 78 Ford Fairmont. I don't feel like I need to go into that car, just use your imagination.
Fast forward a few months at a car show here in Austin. I see the MSP up on a rotating platform and immediately fall in love with it. Yet I forget about it for a few months until I look around on the internet and remember it. Needless to say, I now have the car.
On to the good stuff...
The first thing that attracted me to the car is the paint. The spicy orange is unlike any other car I've ever seen. I've had too many compliments about the color to count. Then again, there are also those that dislike the color and think I'm out of my mind. Either way, I love it. There's not too much sparkle or color fade effect from far away unless you look at a curved surface like a rear bumper in the sunlight. You can then notice the orange going to a yellowish hue. Very nice. However, close up the flakes are very visible and it looks incredible.
The only thing that bugs me is that the paint is extremely thin. I've never noticed as many rock chips on any car as I have on the 'speed. I have a feeling it'll be a pain to cover up with touch up paint since the flakes are there. I may just look in to having my car repainted with some tasteful graphics/logos. I'll see about doing the whole thing in a thicker paint at that time, but that'll be a long time from now.
Also, the flake effect looks best when freshly washed. Once one part of the car gets even mildly dirty, it takes away from the rest of the body paint and causes a "faded" look. Even if the dirt has just collected on the side skirts and lower doors, the rest of the body paint just doesn't shine and glisten as it does when it's clean. Most cars I've seen don't have the same problem. Then again, maybe it's just me.
As far as cleaning goes, I've never had a car that I've washed so religiously. I don't know if it's because of the paint thing mentioned above or if it's just because I love this car. I can't stand to see it dirty. Wether it's overkill or not, I only handwash the car and I wax it every time I do wash it. I've bought more care car products in the past two months than I have in my life.
Moving on, the body of the car reminds a lot about people of a WRX. It's not uncommon for people to ask me where I got the hood without the scoop or how I like "the WRX". I was walking towards the car the other day and finally saw a little bit of WRX in the body style. After staring at the car from a ways away, I've come to the conclusion that if someone doesn't know cars that well, it'd be easy for someone to think it's a WRX. However, the lines are completely different for those who have seen both cars a few times. I blame the confusion on Mazda's lack of marketing.
People just don't know about this car, as many people do with the WRX.
Anyway, the body is smooth flowing and there aren't too many abrupt spots as I've seen on some cars. Overall, I'm very pleased with how well the body is put together and the overall look of the car. However, the side skirts seem a bit too plain for my tastes. A few hundred bucks and a call to a Wings West dealer can change that, though. I really think the "wind splitter" extensions on the WW sideskirts would look killer on the car. The front bumper is very strong as I found out by stressing the hell out of them while trying to change out the foglights. The bumper cover did flex quite a bit and did not show any signs of stress, even after my exhausting pulling and bending. The rear bumper cover, however, does have a mark on the corner of which I can't tell if it's a stretch mark or a scratch. I do wish they would have left the license plate holes undrilled, but that can be fixed if I choose to persue that.
The wing on the 2003 is very nice, feels completely bolted on, and compliments the car but I do like the 2003.5 wing the more I look at it. The only drawback on the 2003.5 wing is the lack of the center pillar, so it's a bit more flexible if you try to pull back and forth on it. I don't know if I like that.
I mentioned the lights earlier, so let me jump back to that for a second. The headlights and taillights are nice, and do not detract much from the look of the car, as some newer car's lights do. The dark housing in the front headlights look very good and add to the aggressive look. Very nice. One thing I do want to mention is that I did notice after some time that there were some white "mold" type spots in the amber corner lenses. The spots are still there and I've called the dealership to have them switch them out. We'll see how that goes.
The taillights have a pinkish hue in the clear lens area where the reverse lights are. I'm not sure why, as my Mom's regular Protege does not have this coloration. Maybe it's just the Spicy Orange clashing with the red causing an illusion of a pink tone. I dunno, but I don't see why they'd change taillights for the car.
The lights themselves are the standard H4 in the headlights and I've replaced them with a set of Phillips Vision Plus bulbs. It seems, though, that there's actually less light when I've switched to the highbeams. There's a slightly noticable difference with the color being a whiter tone than the stock ones, but not enough to recommend for the money spent.
I also have a set of Phillips Blue Vision H3's waiting to be put in the foglights, but I have yet to get the 14mm bolt off. They seem to have torqued the screws in there so well that I cannot get them out and have started stripping the head of the bolt trying to get them out. I'll try some Liquid Wrench when I get the car back, in hopes of getting the bolts loose.
One more thing about the body. The black "downforcers" look very nice and are yet another piece that add to the agressive look. I did crack mine, however, along with denting my hood when I ran into a barricade going about 50mph. They're not so nice when they're cracked. I'll be taking them off soon.
Now, on to the interior. The doors feel very secure and are not "loose" like the Accord's felt. They close tightly and do not let in much more noise than normal. They're covered in a very nice cloth and the plastic matches the silver/black two tone effect that is spread throughout the interior of the car. The plastic feels thick and very high quality. It does not feel cheap, as some cars I've been in lately do. The door is comfortable regardless of if I'm resting my arm on it or if my arm's out the window, which is not the case with my Mazda6 rental car.
The window controls are all within easy reach, as is the power lock switch. The interior color scheme impresses me yet again as the glossy silver plastic around the buttons surround the black buttons giving off a subtle but noticable sense of class.
Once you sit in the car, the color scheme again pulls you in and doesn't let go until you've left the car. Immediately noticable is the steering wheel with it's grey/black leather wrap and orange stitching. The wheel is contoured so you hand fits it well without causing too much hand fatique during long trips as I recently found out. Mazda throws a bit more style in with the carbon fiber background in logo placed at the center of the steering wheel, along with what appear to be screws which throw in a bit more of the "racey" feel.
Looking at the dash to the left of the steering wheel, you'll see the air vents and under that, your lighting controls. Now, while I have no complaints of the actual vents themselves, I'm wondering to myself how it would look if Mazda had continued the silver/black scheme with the vents as well. Maybe a silver housing and black vent? Something I may be looking into in the future.
As mentioned, two light switches are found below the vent along with a blank cover and a coin holder. While I don't use the coin holder that much because of the coins falling out, it's still nice that they included it there within easy reach. I may replace the coin holder with another blanked out piece when I put Whelen strobes/wig wags on the car so I can have room for another switch. We'll see though.
Look even further down and there's a nice pocket to put a good ol' turbo timer or something down there. While the pocket does have a lip on it, it doesn't keep much from sliding out while driving, so I rarely use that pocket.
Moving back over to the steering wheel area, the headlight/wiper stalks are both within easy reach and seem very well attached to the column. I do wish, however, for two things. One being an intermittent wiper control and the other being cruise control. Both are doable, it's just a matter of money and time to install them. I'd love cruise control on this car. No telling how many tickets I could've avoided having one and having it set to the speed limit.
(To be continued in a second post if I get good feedback..)
A little history before we begin. I'm 21 and I've previously owned a handed down 93 Honda Accord which was completely stock. I then totalled it when Bambi decided to cross the road as I was going 70mph.
Move on a few months as I get a 90 Accord from a autocrosser with suspension work and an intake. That started my love for modded cars and was a bit before the import craze took off. I had a bit of bad luck involving a Austin Police Department Forensics van and the front end of that Accord which then landed me in a free 78 Ford Fairmont. I don't feel like I need to go into that car, just use your imagination.
Fast forward a few months at a car show here in Austin. I see the MSP up on a rotating platform and immediately fall in love with it. Yet I forget about it for a few months until I look around on the internet and remember it. Needless to say, I now have the car.
On to the good stuff...
The first thing that attracted me to the car is the paint. The spicy orange is unlike any other car I've ever seen. I've had too many compliments about the color to count. Then again, there are also those that dislike the color and think I'm out of my mind. Either way, I love it. There's not too much sparkle or color fade effect from far away unless you look at a curved surface like a rear bumper in the sunlight. You can then notice the orange going to a yellowish hue. Very nice. However, close up the flakes are very visible and it looks incredible.
The only thing that bugs me is that the paint is extremely thin. I've never noticed as many rock chips on any car as I have on the 'speed. I have a feeling it'll be a pain to cover up with touch up paint since the flakes are there. I may just look in to having my car repainted with some tasteful graphics/logos. I'll see about doing the whole thing in a thicker paint at that time, but that'll be a long time from now.
Also, the flake effect looks best when freshly washed. Once one part of the car gets even mildly dirty, it takes away from the rest of the body paint and causes a "faded" look. Even if the dirt has just collected on the side skirts and lower doors, the rest of the body paint just doesn't shine and glisten as it does when it's clean. Most cars I've seen don't have the same problem. Then again, maybe it's just me.
As far as cleaning goes, I've never had a car that I've washed so religiously. I don't know if it's because of the paint thing mentioned above or if it's just because I love this car. I can't stand to see it dirty. Wether it's overkill or not, I only handwash the car and I wax it every time I do wash it. I've bought more care car products in the past two months than I have in my life.
Moving on, the body of the car reminds a lot about people of a WRX. It's not uncommon for people to ask me where I got the hood without the scoop or how I like "the WRX". I was walking towards the car the other day and finally saw a little bit of WRX in the body style. After staring at the car from a ways away, I've come to the conclusion that if someone doesn't know cars that well, it'd be easy for someone to think it's a WRX. However, the lines are completely different for those who have seen both cars a few times. I blame the confusion on Mazda's lack of marketing.
People just don't know about this car, as many people do with the WRX.
Anyway, the body is smooth flowing and there aren't too many abrupt spots as I've seen on some cars. Overall, I'm very pleased with how well the body is put together and the overall look of the car. However, the side skirts seem a bit too plain for my tastes. A few hundred bucks and a call to a Wings West dealer can change that, though. I really think the "wind splitter" extensions on the WW sideskirts would look killer on the car. The front bumper is very strong as I found out by stressing the hell out of them while trying to change out the foglights. The bumper cover did flex quite a bit and did not show any signs of stress, even after my exhausting pulling and bending. The rear bumper cover, however, does have a mark on the corner of which I can't tell if it's a stretch mark or a scratch. I do wish they would have left the license plate holes undrilled, but that can be fixed if I choose to persue that.
The wing on the 2003 is very nice, feels completely bolted on, and compliments the car but I do like the 2003.5 wing the more I look at it. The only drawback on the 2003.5 wing is the lack of the center pillar, so it's a bit more flexible if you try to pull back and forth on it. I don't know if I like that.
I mentioned the lights earlier, so let me jump back to that for a second. The headlights and taillights are nice, and do not detract much from the look of the car, as some newer car's lights do. The dark housing in the front headlights look very good and add to the aggressive look. Very nice. One thing I do want to mention is that I did notice after some time that there were some white "mold" type spots in the amber corner lenses. The spots are still there and I've called the dealership to have them switch them out. We'll see how that goes.
The taillights have a pinkish hue in the clear lens area where the reverse lights are. I'm not sure why, as my Mom's regular Protege does not have this coloration. Maybe it's just the Spicy Orange clashing with the red causing an illusion of a pink tone. I dunno, but I don't see why they'd change taillights for the car.
The lights themselves are the standard H4 in the headlights and I've replaced them with a set of Phillips Vision Plus bulbs. It seems, though, that there's actually less light when I've switched to the highbeams. There's a slightly noticable difference with the color being a whiter tone than the stock ones, but not enough to recommend for the money spent.
I also have a set of Phillips Blue Vision H3's waiting to be put in the foglights, but I have yet to get the 14mm bolt off. They seem to have torqued the screws in there so well that I cannot get them out and have started stripping the head of the bolt trying to get them out. I'll try some Liquid Wrench when I get the car back, in hopes of getting the bolts loose.
One more thing about the body. The black "downforcers" look very nice and are yet another piece that add to the agressive look. I did crack mine, however, along with denting my hood when I ran into a barricade going about 50mph. They're not so nice when they're cracked. I'll be taking them off soon.
Now, on to the interior. The doors feel very secure and are not "loose" like the Accord's felt. They close tightly and do not let in much more noise than normal. They're covered in a very nice cloth and the plastic matches the silver/black two tone effect that is spread throughout the interior of the car. The plastic feels thick and very high quality. It does not feel cheap, as some cars I've been in lately do. The door is comfortable regardless of if I'm resting my arm on it or if my arm's out the window, which is not the case with my Mazda6 rental car.
The window controls are all within easy reach, as is the power lock switch. The interior color scheme impresses me yet again as the glossy silver plastic around the buttons surround the black buttons giving off a subtle but noticable sense of class.
Once you sit in the car, the color scheme again pulls you in and doesn't let go until you've left the car. Immediately noticable is the steering wheel with it's grey/black leather wrap and orange stitching. The wheel is contoured so you hand fits it well without causing too much hand fatique during long trips as I recently found out. Mazda throws a bit more style in with the carbon fiber background in logo placed at the center of the steering wheel, along with what appear to be screws which throw in a bit more of the "racey" feel.
Looking at the dash to the left of the steering wheel, you'll see the air vents and under that, your lighting controls. Now, while I have no complaints of the actual vents themselves, I'm wondering to myself how it would look if Mazda had continued the silver/black scheme with the vents as well. Maybe a silver housing and black vent? Something I may be looking into in the future.
As mentioned, two light switches are found below the vent along with a blank cover and a coin holder. While I don't use the coin holder that much because of the coins falling out, it's still nice that they included it there within easy reach. I may replace the coin holder with another blanked out piece when I put Whelen strobes/wig wags on the car so I can have room for another switch. We'll see though.
Look even further down and there's a nice pocket to put a good ol' turbo timer or something down there. While the pocket does have a lip on it, it doesn't keep much from sliding out while driving, so I rarely use that pocket.
Moving back over to the steering wheel area, the headlight/wiper stalks are both within easy reach and seem very well attached to the column. I do wish, however, for two things. One being an intermittent wiper control and the other being cruise control. Both are doable, it's just a matter of money and time to install them. I'd love cruise control on this car. No telling how many tickets I could've avoided having one and having it set to the speed limit.
(To be continued in a second post if I get good feedback..)
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