Hey all! I'm about to go look at a 2003 Mazda Protege 5 tomorrow. White. Completely stock. 125,000 miles. $2,750. What specifically should I be looking for? Anything I should pay extra close attention to? Common problems? If I see something should I turn away? Thanks in advance!
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In the market for a Protege5
- Thread starter drewskii5
- Start date
Alright. Thank you.Look for rust on the bottom of drivers door, rear passenger fender well, strut towers, and windshield.
Also check for smoke on a cold start. Start it dead cold, if it's already warm, come back the next day.
What is smoke Indicative of? An easy fix? Or something more spendy? Because for $2750 I feel like I have some wiggle room for repairs.
00protegees
Member
- :
- 2000 mazda protege es
On these cars, smoke likely indicates worn valve seals. Fix requires removing and reworking the head. Not worth fixing. Just live with it unless it's ridiculously bad. Wouldn't be a deal breaker for me, as it seems to be so common with these.
Unless it had a proper HID retrofir(doubtful) please ditch those hid lights. And don't waste money on aftermarket lights. Throw normal bulbs back in, or buy used oem housings if they were changed.
If it's clean, I'd say $2700 is a pretty good price
Unless it had a proper HID retrofir(doubtful) please ditch those hid lights. And don't waste money on aftermarket lights. Throw normal bulbs back in, or buy used oem housings if they were changed.
If it's clean, I'd say $2700 is a pretty good price
Dammit. It was kind of a pile :/On these cars, smoke likely indicates worn valve seals. Fix requires removing and reworking the head. Not worth fixing. Just live with it unless it's ridiculously bad. Wouldn't be a deal breaker for me, as it seems to be so common with these.
Unless it had a proper HID retrofir(doubtful) please ditch those hid lights. And don't waste money on aftermarket lights. Throw normal bulbs back in, or buy used oem housings if they were changed.
If it's clean, I'd say $2700 is a pretty good price
00protegees
Member
- :
- 2000 mazda protege es
Ah that's to bad! What was wrong? Little bit of everything?
Little bit of everything. Lol. Wheel bearing was going out. But there was another noise similar coming from the engine bay. Idk what that could've been? Ticking. Sketchy to drive. Etc. :/Ah that's to bad! What was wrong? Little bit of everything?
00protegees
Member
- :
- 2000 mazda protege es
P5's are nothing special, but they're cheap to buy, cheap to fix(relatively) and easy to work on. Great transportation, and the body and interior style has held up great for its age imo. Glad to hear you passed. I've seen to many people buy completely beat cars, then complain when stuff goes wrong lol. Keep searching!
I enjoyed the interior. And the snappy handling. The guy was just a garage mechanic that kinda jimmied everything together... didn't do the best job... sad to pass it up but I know I'll be happier without it.P5's are nothing special, but they're cheap to buy, cheap to fix(relatively) and easy to work on. Great transportation, and the body and interior style has held up great for its age imo. Glad to hear you passed. I've seen to many people buy completely beat cars, then complain when stuff goes wrong lol. Keep searching!
