Overview & Reviews

User Reviews:

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  I call my P5 Little Zippy - 2002 Mazda Protege5
  By mrt823 - February 5 - 11:46 pm

  I bought this car used 4.5 years ago and I couldnt be happier. I did a lot of research before hand and this car just completely blew away the competition in safety, looks, and pure driving enjoyment. My husband is used to his truck, but even he loves the pep of this car. Now that gas has skyrocketed, Im getting an even better deal, averaging 27 mpg in town/30 hwy. I dumped the standard sport tires after replacing each one twice in short order. They are super responsive, but very expensive and low longevity. I replaced a broken thermometer on it about 15 months ago (~$90 with labor) and that has been my only cost, other than reg. maintenance.

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  Most Reliable I have ever owned - 2003 Mazda Protege5
  By chere50 - January 28 - 1:10 pm

  I bought my Mazda brand new in 2003. Today it has 160,000 miles on it and it is still going strong. It has a few minor mechanical problems but that is caused by just normal wear and tear. This is hands down the most reliable car I have ever owned. The styling is outstanding and it is super fun to drive. I would not hesitate in replacing it with another Mazda. The only drawbacks are where the cup holders are situated. I have a 5- speed and when you are in first or third gear, I continually hit the cups in the holder and sometimes I have to move them to get the car into gear. I do wish it had an inside hatch release, but other than these small things I have no complaints.

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  An excellent choice! - 2002 Mazda Protege5
  By Rssteph - January 19 - 10:00 am

  When compared to the Matrix and Civic EX, the Pro5 wins out. The Pro5 has a high quality, sporty interior, a unique exterior, and drives great. The Matrixs interior isnt as nice or sporty, lacks handling, but has similar accel. and more space. The Civic EX has equal quality, standard ABS and SR, but lacks in accel./handling. The Pro5s accel. is more than adequate when compared to others in its class and the handling is superb!

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  Best bargain - 2003 Mazda Protege5
  By chezbo - January 15 - 2:00 am

  Perfect city and commuting car, also great for trips. Holds substantial amount of stuff and as they say, it is fun to drive.

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  Wow... Nice ride! - 2003 Mazda Protege5
  By JGANDHJ - December 27 - 2:00 am

  Have only 300 miles on it so far but have loved every single one. Everything has been great so far. Love the crisp handling and the Stereo. Test drove the Matrix and for grins, the Vibe but neither seemed to have been built as well or incorporated the same feature set. I purchased the loaded version with every option and was still under $20,000. What a bargain. I have seem some complaints about more HP but dont see why. If it can get to 65 MPH in under 9.5 seconds(which it does), thats plenty fast for me :-) Besides, more HP means less MPG :-(

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  $20,000 BMW Lite! - 2003 Mazda Protege5
  By dstrick7 - December 27 - 2:00 am

  I have the optional semi-manual transmission, and it is sooo much fun. I cant wait for the aftermarket stuff to come out for it...it really could use about 30-40 more horsepower (handling at high speeds/cornering/braking is great, and the car was built to handle close to 200 hp in my opinion...currently, its a slightly weak at takeoff, and it really needs something from about 3000- 4000 rpm). It truly is a small wagon that handles like some of the near- sports cars out there...and it has that expensive-looking styling too.

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  Could be an A+ - 2003 Mazda Protege5
  By njgladiator - December 27 - 2:00 am

  I love the looks of this car but I wish Mazda offered the engine performance to match. The handling & brakes are fantistic but 130hp is simply not enough to make this sport wagon go Zoom Zoom.

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  Almost 30,000 and still smiling - 2003 Mazda Protege5
  By eldermp - December 15 - 10:00 am

  I really like this car. It is among the most stylish cars on the road and has a zoom-zoom identity that is well deserved. I chose the white. This car is the perfect balance of practicality with enough spirit and energy to let me know that I am not deprived of anything, yet the price is right!

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  i love my mazda pr5 - 2003 Mazda Protege5
  By EDLUST - December 15 - 10:00 am

  THE MOST PRACTICAL,ECONOMICAL CAR I HAVE OWNED. VERY USEFUL INTERIOR SPACE, ADEQUATE ACCELLERATION AND COMFORT BOTH CITY AND HIGHWAY DRIVING. PLEASENT TO LOOK AT AND A PLEASURE TO DRIVE. A BIG IMPROVEMENT OVER MY PAST TOYOTA COROLLA THAT WAS A FINE DEPENDABLE CAR ALSO. AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION VERY QUIET AND SMOOTH

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  Love My MP5 - 2003 Mazda Protege5
  By CruzinAltitude - December 9 - 2:00 am

  The MP5 handles like a dream, it looks great no matter what angle you look at it from, it comes really well equipped, and its just plain sexy. Mine has been confused for a Lexus IS 300 sportcross (3 times) and a BMW 5 series wagon (once). That says a lot about my car. Check out Protege5.com for more info