New P5 owner looking for suspension and engine advice!

[captaingeoff]

Very excited to have just picked up an 03 Protege5 with only one previous owner and only 62k on the clock! Had an 02 P5 and was best car I ever owned. I'm selling my '14 Focus ST st3 to go back to the P5.
I wan to do sway bars and coilovers and strut tower braces to get it handling great. Any advice on good setups?
I also want to add a few HP. Are there any CARB legal turbo kits for this car? I know mazdaspeed from same year existed. Can that be easily adapted to the P5? Smog legal?
Cheers. Thanks!



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[Taco Cat]

Welcome back to the P5 family! 62k miles only? That's insane! I thought I got lucky with 120k haha For sway bars, I know many people run Progressive. They're reasonably priced new and an even better deal used. People also like to run the Mazdaspeed one, but I'm not sure if you can just bolt it on, or if it requires more work like swapping the MSP rear subframe or whatever. For coilovers, the big ones are Yellowspeed, BC, Ksport and Tein. Strut tower braces are usually Carbing or GTspec, but they can be pricey new and are rare used. But we can use a 2nd gen MX6 rear bar, not too sure of the brands, but it doesn't matter too much to most people as the strut bars don't have as dramatic as an impact as sway bars or other suspension mods. Try this site for a general idea/list of some suspension items we can buy -> http://cr3motorsports.com/Protege/Protege-Suspension. Also try Corksport.com for some more parts!

I'm not too sure about your turbo questions as I haven't researched that yet myself. I don't think there are any other turbo kits besides the Mazdaspeed one, most people just put one together, but I could be wrong. I also don't know for sure if the MSP one is smog legal, I'd imagine it is though as there are guys who have them in Cali?

 

[Valk]

progress swaybars are certainly common choice.. i dont think there is anything different about the p5 swaybar mounting location compared to an msp, so at least as far as the rear bar goes it should bolt right up to stock location.
front bar id prob just not touch as it would require the removal of the damn engine lol. but again the msp compatible bar should mount similarly. just match up the bushings to the bar and it should be good..
id stay away from used swaybars... expensive to ship and the bar can be tweaked with use. they not very expensive to buy new.

as for coilovers the two i see most often are yellowspeed or bc racing. both make great coilovers for similar price.

upgrading the strut brace wont really help a lot up front, but an mx6 brace in the back can certainly work well. you might also consider upgrading your rear links. i found one of my lateral links bent the other day when repalcing the rear brakes on my msp lol.

as for turbo.. msp kit is bolt on if you use the msp ecu. all you would need is the turbo, manifold, downpipe/spipe, ecu and some way to run the oil to the turbo and back to block, and coolant lines. if you get the oil cooler and all the lines it drops right on.

unlikely it would pass inspection but nothing stopping you from pulling all that stuff off to run through smog heh..

speed circuit has a turbo kit i belive but its quite expensive and really wouldn't be worth considering unless you plan to do a full engine build.. at which point id say you should have stayed with the far far more civilized Focus ST lol.

 

[Jackie chan]

Don't worry about the front swaybar, because you'll only be adding more understeer into the equation, and lowering the subframe is required. And the stock front tower brace is more than sufficient, especially when compared to an aftermarket hinged model. For similar money I'd go for a cusco lower tie bar. I love my progress rear sway and would highly recommend it. Same goes for yellowspeed coilovers, they've been fantastic. Idk if the gb is still going on here for them, but it's a good deal.

 

[captaingeoff]

Welcome back to the P5 family! 62k miles only? That's insane! I thought I got lucky with 120k haha For sway bars, I know many people run Progressive. They're reasonably priced new and an even better deal used. People also like to run the Mazdaspeed one, but I'm not sure if you can just bolt it on, or if it requires more work like swapping the MSP rear subframe or whatever. For coilovers, the big ones are Yellowspeed, BC, Ksport and Tein. Strut tower braces are usually Carbing or GTspec, but they can be pricey new and are rare used. But we can use a 2nd gen MX6 rear bar, not too sure of the brands, but it doesn't matter too much to most people as the strut bars don't have as dramatic as an impact as sway bars or other suspension mods. Try this site for a general idea/list of some suspension items we can buy -> http://cr3motorsports.com/Protege/Protege-Suspension. Also try Corksport.com for some more parts!

I'm not too sure about your turbo questions as I haven't researched that yet myself. I don't think there are any other turbo kits besides the Mazdaspeed one, most people just put one together, but I could be wrong. I also don't know for sure if the MSP one is smog legal, I'd imagine it is though as there are guys who have them in Cali?

Thanks for the great information. I appreciate it!
Car was an incredible find. Ebay. Seller listed as Protege not Protege5. Lol. One other bidder only.
Leather interior even and dealer maintained!

 

[captaingeoff]

I really appreciate the input from all of you! That def gets me pointed in right direction and checking the ol' bank account. Cheers!


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