Completely new to Mazda. Got a P5. Now what?

Just got these two for free. The Protege threw a rod, and the P5 has a broken transmission. I intend on throwing the transmission from the Protege into the P5 and go from there. I want to make this my daily driver and retire my b15 Sentra. It's got 280,000 and it's been thrashed long enough. Might retire her to rally cross or something.

So I want to do a few things to the P5. Nothing too over the top. I live in Atlanta, and making it too flashy is just asking for the locale to break into/carnap it. I'm going to list what I feel like I need to make this car suitable for me. I would greatly appreciate it if you guys could point me in the general direction of where to shop and what to shop for. I appreciate it

1) Sway bars - Nothing too mental. I just love mountain driving. I feel sway bars would be an ideal mod for this. I loved flicking my Sentra around the curves, but the body roll was unpleasant. With the P5 being bigger I can only assume it will roll more in a corner.

2) Sound system - No sound boxes. I absolutely hate those. Mainly because it kills space. I want some really high quality speakers. I really don't listen to too much with heavy bass. I'm usually listening to Celtic music, Video game music, acapella stuff, and talk shows.

3) Roof rack - I love camping and I know I will need to utilize a roof rack. I've stalked the forums and it seems the stock one is... less than desireable. And I noticed you seem to prefer Thule and Yakima. Which models of each do you guys think is best?

4) Horns - I LOVE two tone horns. Especially the lower pitched ones. If I wasn't selling my 1976 Plymouth Fury I'd take the horns from that. I am okay with the Hella trumpets but if I can get something lower pitched that would be great.

5) Wheels - I am open to suggestions, but I really love the wheels from the Mazda 6. Either way I intend on painting them black.

6) Front and rear cameras - People around here have somehow not been aware of a feature their cars come with... TURN SIGNALS. I want to have cameras set up in case I ever end up in an accident because of one of these jerks. I've had a multitude of narrow misses and I know one day they'll get me.

7) Brakes - As stated above. I've narrowly avoided some potentially major accidents. I got lucky in my Sentra when I had just added some carbon-ceramic brake pads and had to lock up to avoid colliding with an SUV. So needless to say. I want to be sure I can stop and stop fast.

8) Tracking systems - Maybe I worry too much, but instead of deliberately keeping my car shoddy I'd like to actually have a nice car, and be able to keep track of it. I will have to park in an open parking lot (Namely MARTA) because of attending college. So if I can have some sort of safety system that can link with my Android.

9) Window + Sunroof visor.

Anything else you guys would recommend? As you can see I want something unique, but still be a practical and dependable daily driver.

Also I must add. You guys seem to be much nicer than the Nissan guys. Don't get me wrong. There's nice guys there but there's more... comradery here. Most times I see people raging against all things Honda, so reading these forums is a pleasant change of pace.

Welcome.

I suggest that you do all of the preventative maintenance and try out the car in it's best stock form. New rotors with semi metallic pads, new fluid, stock sway bars with good links and suspension, and an engine with a fresh timing belt and tune up. I think you'll enjoy just how well these cars handle in stock form. it's really pretty impressive.

If you find anything lackluster, Mazda 6 brakes can be fitted for extra stopping power and there are aftermarket sway bars available.

P5's have very little sound deadening in the front and rear doors. To get the most out of your high end speakers you will need to install a good amount of it. Adding some in the rear seat, spare tire, and kick panel areas will decrease road noise and make the car feel more solid. They'll also need to be amplified, and under the front seats is a good incognito amplifier mounting location. I don't know how handy you are, but an 8" subwoofer enclosure can be fiberglassed into the recessed side of the trunk. I don't consider a sound system to be complete without a subwoofer.

The P5 will outhandle the B15. I highly suggest the progress rear swaybar though.

Jackie chan said:

The P5 will outhandle the B15.

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Will it? Well that sounds like this will be a great upgrade then! Because a GXE with Spec-V wheels left a lot to be desired in the corners! How about the power? I'm no speed demon, but I do need a little get-up-and-go once in a while.

MrGiggles said:

I suggest that you do all of the preventative maintenance and try out the car in it's best stock form.

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The P5 is in superb shape. Seems to have been well maintained with high quality parts. It was owned by a mechanic buddy of mine who needed to downsize. No rust. New battery. Interior is pristine. The Protege has a really nice interior too. I'll probably sell the Protege once I get the P5 up and running. The only issue with the P5 is a dent in the right fender and the trim fell off on the driver side door.

If the sentra has the 1.8, the P5 will probably be a little quicker. And when I say a little, I mean a little. But in terms of handling, it's a much more capable car.
You have a protege and a protege5?

Progress rear sway bar or the msp racingbeat front and rear. Moog(?) escape endlinks seem to be popular, or AWR adjustable links (got a set that I don't need). As far as brakes, look into the 05-08 mazda6 front brake upgrade and 626/msp rears.

Jackie chan said:

You have a protege and a protege5?

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Yes. Did the image link work?

Absolutely_Mad said:

Yes. Did the image link work?

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Whoops, yeah it does. I just didn't see it.

So the catalytic converter needs replacing. The guy suggested I just go ahead and get a whole new high flow exhaust system as well as new headers. You guys' thoughts?

The cat or the pre-cat? And as far as exhaust goes, there isnt really much to be gained other than sound. And if you go with a high flow cat on a stock p5, you'll probably just end up losing torque.

Jeez I need to update! I have been driving the car for two weeks now. I got the transmission replaced and somehow the guys at AAMCO managed to kill my speedometer and cruise control. Any ideas as to how to fix that?

Also! The engine bogs down every time I'm idling and then kicks back up again (bogs down to 1 and revs back to 2 repetitively. Actually I would even call it rhythmically!). It's similar to my girlfriend's b15 with her MAF sensor but it's not so violent. I'm still not complaining. I've spent less than $1k getting this car on the road and already it's far better than my old B15.

Jackie chan said:

The cat or the pre-cat? And as far as exhaust goes, there isnt really much to be gained other than sound. And if you go with a high flow cat on a stock p5, you'll probably just end up losing torque.

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I was thinking of getting a short ram intake with a K&N filter and upgrading the headers with a new set of high flow headers and getting wider pipes the entire way back. I don't want to rice the car though. I'm looking at the Magnaflow kit. Videos of that exhaust system sound really good.

For cruise control, first thing I'd check is to see if its plugged in. Second thing, I'd make sure the vac line is on. Because if its not, you'd have no cc and a vac leak. Which could be causing your idle issue. Id probably go around and make sure every vacuum port has a hose and every plug is plugged in. You never know with some of these shops. Also, what car is the tranny out of?

Jackie chan said:

what car is the tranny out of?

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It came from the silver Protege I had. I pulled it myself and know there was no water or anything.

Absolutely_Mad said:

I was thinking of getting a short ram intake with a K&N filter and upgrading the headers with a new set of high flow headers and getting wider pipes the entire way back. I don't want to rice the car though. I'm looking at the Magnaflow kit. Videos of that exhaust system sound really good.

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SRIs are good for the noise and looks. Otherwise, they pull hot air from the engine bay, and K&N's are well known for dusting engines and ruining MAF's. IMO, leave it alone or do a true CAI that draws from the fender well. These cars already have a convenient hole into the fender well that makes it pretty easy.

Check the VSS on the trans and make sure it's plugged in. No VSS signal means no speedometer or cruise control.

For the idle, look over your intake tube and ensure that there's no cracks along the accordion section.

MrGiggles said:

Check the VSS on the trans and make sure it's plugged in. No VSS signal means no speedometer or cruise control.

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It's plugged in. AAMCO told me the speed sensor didn't work on the trannie they put in. They even swapped them with the sensor off of the old transmission and it didn't work.

MrGiggles said:

For the idle, look over your intake tube and ensure that there's no cracks along the accordion section.

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No cracks as far as I can tell. Odd!

As far as the Cruise Control problem, check your brake lights. The CC works off a specific voltage, if the lights are burned out (Mine burned out together) then your CC wont work. DONT BUY THE LEDS LIGHTS, unless you use the resistors with them. Your CC wont work with the LEDs bulbs if they dont have the resistors. I learned the hard way. Very happy to have my CC back now...It sucked for few months until I figured out the problem. Good Luck! Please update us if you find out the problem and the fix...thanks!

Also, as far as the IDLE issue, try disconnecting a battery cable for a few minutes. then reconnect, let the care idle for a while, then drive the car as consistent speeds for few minutes. The ECU has to relearn. Logically AAMCO would have removed the battery, which reset the ECU, then they likely started the car and who knows how they revved the motor, which would have programmed the ECU to react the way it is...worth a try.

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So I got a lot done in the past few weeks seeing I'm dead broke! I went from 6 months of unemployment to two jobs! I can now get into fixing the P5.

I got the codes pulled and I got the following:

P0500 - VSS malfunction (I knew this one was going to be there)

P2009 - VTCS solenoid valve circuit low input (WTF is this???)

P0507 - Idle Control system RPM higher than expected. This is either a clog somewhere or a crack in the intake if I'm correct. That being said I am not mechanically inclined and could be completely wrong!!!

Now I am wanting to do a complete header-back exhaust mod to something with a higher flow. I was thinking maybe the high flow headers from Ebay and the Magnaflow cat-back exhaust kit, but I still need to replace the cat if I do that...

I am also wanting to do a CAI, but not the normal CAI setup. I want to either do the hood scoop method http://www.mazdas247.com/forum/showthread.php?123793467-Functional-Vented-Hood-Rare! or the CAI box http://www.mazdas247.com/forum/showthread.php?123846244-505-Cold-Air-Box-Round-2-*GB* . I would like to hear from people who have done either setup and let me know what the pros/cons are to each.