1993 Mazda Protege Consumer Discussions

Mazda Protege Maintenance and Repair

• Re: Help Please!!! [helpme101]

  Written by: autonomous on Aug 26, 2009 1:26:01 PM

  My husband has a 1993 Mazda Protege and he ran it severly hot to the point where it shut down. The heads are not cracked but the engine now just turns over. Do you mean the motor is running but the car does not move? If it does move, I suggest you head to your local mechanic. On the other hand, it's almost 17 years old so it may be time ... Read More

• Help Please!!!

  Written by: helpme101 on Aug 25, 2009 12:03:09 PM

  Ok I'm really new to this but hope it works. My husband has a 1993 Mazda Protege and he ran it severly hot to the point where it shut down. The heads are not cracked but the engine now just turns over. We can not afford a new car so I am hoping someone here may be able to tell us what is wrong with it.

• 1993 mazda protege fuel filter

  Written by: jwhitehurst on Dec 9, 2007 5:44:28 PM

  Where is the fuel filter located on 1993 Mazda Protege? Thank you so much for your help with this.

• Stalling when warming up

  Written by: pete79 on May 1, 2006 10:33:48 AM

  Hi! I have a mazda protege 1993 SE. I have a similar problem... When I start the car (in cold temp), it runs perfectly. When it almost reaches its optimal temp, and I drive in city (lights/traffic), and shift 1/2/3 or just step on the gas while stopped, the engine stumbles too. This can last for 10 minutes and disapears. But if I do highway (from cold engine to full temp) ... Read More

Mazda Protege Basic Maintenance Questions

• Tire Noise

  Written by: skip616 on Oct 18, 2005 5:45:09 PM

  I just recently acquired a 2001 Mazda Protege ES from my mother. It has 98K miles and it is excellent condition (it has all the options, side air bags, ABS, sunroof, 6CD changer). I bought this car new in 2001 and sold this car to my mother in 2004 with 68K miles. I noticed then that the car was very loud on the highway and the noise was very pronounced in ... Read More

Mazda Protegé

• no title

  Written by: barich1 on Jun 16, 2004 6:48:07 PM

  The 1993-2002 4 cyl. 626 and 2002-2003 Protegé all share the FS-DE 2.0l engine. It has certainly changed since it was first introduced with the 626 in late 1992 (it produces more horsepower, no longer has hydraulic lash adjusters, etc.). And the Protegé must have some additional differences (such as the annoying cause of the "cold engine rattle," VTCS) because the 2002 626 was not ULEV whereas the 2002 Protegé was. ... Read More

Does the Protege compare in reliability to Civic or Corolla?

• Love my '93!

  Written by: charlesms on Feb 10, 2003 2:28:11 AM

  Hey guys... have a '93 DX with 120,000 miles... it's great and fun!! :) No problems with it! As for the current models... you're probably going to find that the reliabilty is really good. 10 years down the line, the honda or toyota might be better, but honestly I'd say you can take the Mazda to 150,000 easily. I really don't think you'd have a problem. :) My guess is, it's ... Read More

Mazda Protegé

• hello

  Written by: andyss6 on Aug 27, 2002 8:06:48 PM

  I just found a 1993 LX Mazda Protege with 37000kms (22000 miles)..fully loaded with a/c, owned by my moms old maid friend, who in 9 years never even went on a highway with the car! But serviced every 6 months at mazda dealer, and had car rustproofed yearly, due to the fact we live in montreal. The car looks like new, drives great and she wants $5900 cdn ($3800 usd). I ... Read More

• Vocus - 626 Impression

  Written by: austinnerd on Jun 29, 2002 8:22:04 PM

  Yes, I think the 626 has more of a closed-in feeling than the Protege. While I was impressed with the 626 power and luxuries, it felt too....... let's say "Americanized". What do I mean by Americanized? Well, for starters, the appointments on the car itself. One of the things that sold me on the Protege' was the accents. Very European. For instance, black door handles on a sand paint job. My ... Read More

Mazda Protege5

• Sedan and Protege5 Plant Locations...

  Written by: jstandefer on Jun 3, 2002 10:22:51 PM

  Both the Protege sedan and Protege5 are built in the Hofu plant. Prior to September 2001, the sedans were built in the Ujina plant. The Ujina plant has been closed as part of Mazda's restructuring. There are two Hofu plants. They build nine models including the Protege, Protege5, Tribute, and Atenza (Mazda 6). The number one plant was built in 1982; the number two plant was built in 1993. January 25th ... Read More

Mazda Protegé

• emnightingale--aim for a mid to late 90's Protege

  Written by: curt3 on May 17, 2002 11:11:19 PM

  The later the Protege, the better the car. The Proteges from the early 1990's are more prone to reliability problems than the 1995-1998 models. You may just find a high mileage older Protege with light options and an A/C for $ 3,000 at traderonline.com or even on eBay. Late-model Proteges, however, hold up well with the miles and are really quick to depreciate with high miles. This makes for a great ... Read More

Mazda Protege Maintenance and Repair

• The fit and finish of Japanese-built Mazdas

  Written by: curt3 on May 17, 2002 10:59:55 PM

  You can really see the quality difference between the fit and finish of the Protege and the 626. The Protege is a superior car in paint, panel alignment, and overall feel to the American-made 626's. Something just hasn't felt right about the Mazda trucks made since 1993 and above--the Ford in them just falls short of the predecessors. They have a kind of rental car generic vibe about them...

Mazda Protegé

• Cars I have driven...

  Written by: vocus on Mar 22, 2002 8:44:31 AM

  This is a pretty long list, but here goes: 1995 Explorer Eddie Bauer (co. car at the time) 1995 mercury Tracer (my other co. car) 1996 Olds Cutlass Ciera (another co. car) (I was a fleet mgr. for awhile. That's where the above vehicles came from) :) 1990 Pontiac 6000 (mom's old car) 1994 Bonneville SE (mom's car too) 1988 Dodge Aries America (my first car) 1997 Sentra GXE (friend's) 1994 ... Read More

• Zoom Zoom- the whole Civic vs. Protege thing

  Written by: gandalf17 on Mar 1, 2002 12:26:29 PM

  I agree with Pat the host. Let's call the Honda vs. Protege debate a stalemate and stop debating ad nauseum about the relative merits or demerits of each car. A little discussion is good, this was getting too much. The real point is that most people here love their Pro's. Some here may have owned Honda's and are not as impressed with them as you are. This is not a bad ... Read More

• no title

  Written by: zoomzoom79 on Feb 13, 2002 9:52:54 AM

  Regardless of whether the engine is a version of the 1.8 or the 626's engine they should've stayed with the 1.8. It had only 5 less HP and it's times are better than the 2.0L. By putting the pwoer down low Mazda has shown that the Protege is a commuter car not a sporty car. But obviously Mazda isn't too concerned about making sports cars because they axed the RX-7 and ... Read More

• Cars for Dinu...

  Written by: browntrout1 on Feb 11, 2002 7:40:48 PM

  I would add a Nissan NX2000 to your list of cars in that price range. I really wanted one but I couldn't find one with a 5 speed in Montreal. I looked for like 3 months and then test drove a Protege which I bought. Anyways, the NX was the best compact coupe you could by back then for the price. It comes with alloys and most of them had t-roofs ... Read More

• dan175

  Written by: narenji on Dec 14, 2001 2:02:50 PM

  Mazda reliability varies with model, IMHO. The Proteges are all quite reliable, and the 97-98 models should be very good. My fiancee and I leased a 98 626 LX 5 spd (we had to lease, otherwise we would have bought it), and it gave us flawless service for 3 yrs/36k mi-didn't go to the dealer even once for anything. My 1993 Mazda MX6 is pretty much rock solid except for tie-rod ... Read More

• Transmission history

  Written by: windowphobe6 on Oct 15, 2001 5:53:02 AM

  The G4A-EL dates back to 1987, was revised for 1988, really revised for 1993 (it was at this point that it got the F infix), and got a minor update in early 1995. Before 1987, the 626 used the F3A, a fairly straightforward 3-speed. The changes in the G/GF were, in my opinion, more mechanical than intellectual. As for the F4A-EL in the Protegés, it is substantially the same as the ... Read More

• MAPP II -- TOMORROW!!!

  Written by: mdaffron on Oct 5, 2001 5:21:25 AM

  Here's an update to make the rest of you green with envy. Tomorrow morning, at a park in Northern Virginia, 13 Proteges representing model years 1993 through 2002 (including a P5) will roll in, one by one, their freshly waxed bodies glistening from a morning drive in the drizzle (dammit). As the clouds break around noon and the sun comes out, sixteen new friends from as far north as Danbury, Connecticut, ... Read More

• no title

  Written by: black01coupev6 on Jul 28, 2001 8:47:43 PM

  I was having doubts. To me the new Civic looks a little plain. It does not look as substantial as previous models. It could be made to look better but to make it a car that I would want I would've had to pay even more money which made the Protege look like a better bargain. After driving a 1993 Accord for a few months I just hope that this Mazda ... Read More

Mazda Protege Basic Maintenance Questions

• no title

  Written by: jstandefer on Mar 26, 2001 11:12:46 AM

  I remember having a similar problem on my 1991 Ford Escort GT. The 1991-1995 Escorts were built on the Protege chassis, but used Ford engines except for the GT. The GT's used Mazda's wonderful 1.8L DOHC based on the Miata's engine (basically the same engine used on the 1990-1993 Protege LX, and the 1994-1998 Protege ES). I will have to say that Miata-based engine was much smoother (particularly in the upper ... Read More

Mazda Protegé

• Talking About Impulse Buys...unmarkedcar...

  Written by: curt3 on Feb 14, 2001 8:23:07 PM

  Well, I am a happy owner of a 2000 Mazda Protege LX with A/C and 5-speed. I must say, however, that I have gone through a few cars in the last few years. I have actually kept the Protege for 15 months now and I have no plans for dumping it. I have well over 30,000 miles on the odometer but I just like it too much to trade it. Here ... Read More