1995 Mazda 323 Protege review from Australia and New Zealand

The front left hand CV joint came loose and broke at 118 000km's.

The horn became ultra-sensitive, even the slightest touch would set it off. It was fixed and now sounds like its going off underwater.

Cheap factory CD player doesn't detect Cd's any more and doesn't load em either.

All factory speakers blown and sound horrible, but cheap replacement speakers have never sounded better.

I have fallen in love with this car, although its not as quick as id like.

The beautiful little 1.8L DOHC engine revs beautifully redlining at 7,000RPM.

I've had it up around there a few times and the engine is still running strong.

The car is quick enough and at around 3000rpm it just takes off like a turbo. I even beat my mates 1990 2.2L Toyota Celica over about 200m.

He had me at the lights, but once the motor gets going theres no stopping it, next best thing to a rotary.

The suspension is still stock and is tight enough to swing the car around tight corners and smooth enough to provide a great ride. The direct steering has gotten me out of many a tight spot and saved the car from many accidents when hooning.

This car is also tough as, has had two learner drivers and now two P platers and is still running almost as good as new. Never any problem with engine or transmission and the CV joint only came loose from an accident earlier on.