Looking at buying a MSP and want advice? Post here!

I live in Union County.





And yeah...the MSP "issues" scare me, lol. I'm leaning more towards getting the car for fun, not to mod it. I don't wanna blow any engines or mess up anything so I probably won't even touch it.

Although I read somewhere that bushings should be changed and etc?
 
yeah rear sway bar bushings need changing like every other year or so


Stolen said:
I live in Union County.





And yeah...the MSP "issues" scare me, lol. I'm leaning more towards getting the car for fun, not to mod it. I don't wanna blow any engines or mess up anything so I probably won't even touch it.

Although I read somewhere that bushings should be changed and etc?
Click to expand...
 
Stolen said:
I live in Union County.





And yeah...the MSP "issues" scare me, lol. I'm leaning more towards getting the car for fun, not to mod it. I don't wanna blow any engines or mess up anything so I probably won't even touch it.

Although I read somewhere that bushings should be changed and etc?
Click to expand...

if you dont plan to mod it then I wouldnt buy it...they dont run that well stock...I put a few thousand into getting mine to run right and I am finally happy with it.

And as for the flash...It depends on if the person brought their car in for the flash or not...Mine was not flashed...although the flash isnt a big deal if you get a piggyback or standalone ecu the flash is a moot point...all it did was advance the timing
 
1st of all,I've always been told that a well groomed vehicle has more than likely been well taken car of mechanically. That thing is filthy. Imagine how this car was treated if it *looks* that bad. If you're driving 7 hrs, I'd find another cleaner MSP. It'll run like s*** judging from the ghetto BOV install, with that in mind what else has the P.O. done and reversed or how did they drive it and maintain it? Ask for service records, ask about suspension clunking, and if he's launched it the LSD may be on it's way out.
 
whats wrong with that bov? I have the same one its a forge. I think I have had it for 4 years. my engine has always looked like that untill recently when I finally decided to clean it up.
 
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msp35 said:
1st of all,I've always been told that a well groomed vehicle has more than likely been well taken car of mechanically. That thing is filthy. Imagine how this car was treated if it *looks* that bad.
Click to expand...

Thats not exactly true.. I can think of over a dozen cars around here that are more dirty than the msp he posted but the upkeep of them is far better than what it looks like.. Dont judge a book by its cover..
 
well we ended up buying it the only thing the previos guy did was injen cold air security system and the bov the car runs great and its really clean inside and out the only thing is i want to take off the bov its sounds way to much like a turkey for me. but what do i have to do to take it off?
 
mspsoontobe said:
well we ended up buying it the only thing the previos guy did was injen cold air security system and the bov the car runs great and its really clean inside and out the only thing is i want to take off the bov its sounds way to much like a turkey for me. but what do i have to do to take it off?
Click to expand...

taking off the bov won't help the turkey sound. the turkey sound is compresser surge. get used to the turkey, lol.
 
I think all around that is a great looking car that was taken care of...but any day of the week my engine bay is 1000X cleaner!

I am very picky! CLEAN YOUR ENGINE BAY BEFORE SELLING! It actually looked like it was cleaned before a long trip or something because it wasn't real cruddy.

There are solutions using a "dual bpv bov" (do a quick search) for your unwelcomed turkey!

Good luck with your new right and don't turn the boost up!!!!
 
Actually glancing back at that engine bay it looks pretty dirty and untouched so you may want to do plugs,oil,tranny fluid,coolant flush, new k&n drop in filter! $100 plus cleaning supplies "brand new car"!

(first)

(drive2)
 
thank you for all your help im working on cleaning the engine bay. as for the turkey the msp i test drove before buying this one had a much less noticable turkey. this may be a dumb question but am i already running the bpv and the bov or do i just have the bov and is there a different bov besides the forge that will help kill my turkey?
 
my suggestion is if you buy it, lightly mod it....really MSP parts arent very expensive, i bought a used injen cold air intake, hard pipes to replace the crappy plastic ones, and a CustomMSP SMIC for 500 bucks, tossed them in and my car runs hella better for it. if you dont wanna risk blowing anything up, run stock boost wiht a few goodies on it, spend a few hundred bucks on the outside, like the aftermarket grill, some fog lights and dress up the interior a bit and youll be pretty happy.

i plan to mod mine out alot more in the future, but for my first summer of owning it, im pretty happy


oh...and the car does get alot of look :) the /drool factor is nice indeed
 
also the car has died a few times while going around 30 is this the blow off vavle? if so can i just put a different one on and fix it? thanks
 
Wanting to buy a MSP, What do I need to know?

As the title says I'm looking at a 2003.5 MSP. Its got 55,xxx miles on her, two sets of wheels with good tires (one winter, one summer), and completely stock after that. He's looking to get $10,800 for it, does that sound like a fair price?

My previous line of cars have varied from multiple Fords and a few Hondas with not one Mazda in there. Now I thought a gokart like this would be a fun reliable car, but I've heard some good and bad things so I want to get some honest opinions. The only line I've read so far that scared me is in the "Looking to buy a MSP"
thaikim said:
Yes their have been incidents of the engine blowing up even at stock boost... so cranking the boost without proper supporting mods usually equals boom.

The MSP engine has weak rods, a crappy tranny and the stock tune could use a big improvement. Their are several incidents of the LSD shattering randomly even under light loads. The infamous clunk cause the bushings Mazda gave us are not so awesome. Oh, and the paint chips if you sneeze on it.

Basically Mazda threw on a turbo kit, a nice paint job and appearance upgrades and called it good... However since the protege was never really meant for power and their was little aftermarket support for the protege already, it has been kind of a tease with the whole Mazdaspeed label (however makes up for it in the Zoom-Zoom). Also in order to cut back on production costs and lower the price of the already inflated MSP they def. cut some corners.

Do not buy this car if you are looking for something that is fast as hell with little money or effort. For most the MSP is a love hate/relationship so it really depends what your plans are for the car.
Click to expand...

Now if I get the car, the mods I want to do include a FMIC, bov and bpv, all new hardpipes, CAI, turbo back exhaust, and turn up the boost to ~8-9 PSI. Now after I do these things I don't want the LSD to pop cause I've already have that done on two of my last cars. I do like to run the 1/4 a couple times a year along with some spirited street driving. I'd also like to do a road course sometime in this car, haven't been to one of those yet, but with everything I still don't want to hear the dredded clunk along with no more forward power.

So lets hear your opinions
 
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You have definetly done your research and everyone on the forum including myself loves you for that. Let me start by saying welcome and i hope we can help you. Your mod list is very good and you are being very realistic with were you want to set the boost. I bought my MSP when i blew the tranny in my 94'SHO. This car is just as fast as my SHO maybe a tiny bit faster but what it lacks for power it makes up for in handling. That price seems very reasonable if you ask me but i could be wrong. If you truly think you can stop at 8 maybe 9psi and your okay with not being the fast person on the block than I say get it you know what your getting into and seem to have a very realistic goal.
Sorry so long.
 
If you were to get one..your power mods are adequate but add the Split Second AFC to it.

The only problem with the suspension are the bushings. I've resorted to changing these every 2nd or 3rd oil change. Might as well for 15 bux per bushing. (or per pair..don't remember)

The LSD scares me too but I can't do anything about that at the moment. If it goes, I'll get a new one. Usually have one sitting as a spare at home is a good idea.

I'd upgrade to a baffled oil pan as some MSP's here have gone through some oil starvation issues during very spirited drives in the mountains and on autocross courses. I'd just upgrade the oil pump and oil pan.

When you put on the FMIC, buy a full length radiator. Your car will thank you.
 
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