2001 Mazda Protege LX review from North America

Ignition Coil Pack went at 95,000 km. Garage couldn't diagnose the problem for weeks as it wasn't a typical failure. In that time period, the cat converter blew out, but was luckily under warranty. Much worrying and headaches, but only $200.00+

AC failure at 110,000 km - $400.00.

Knocking noise when turning, accelerating from standstill - mechanic can't diagnose, so I'll just keep driving it!

One radio speaker sounds like its on the outs.

Cheap plastic all around - moulding at base of windshield easily broke when scraping ice one morning in '03 - luckily, covered by dealer. Paper-thin hubcaps are toast and I'll definitely get some after-market ones to replace with.

Rough idle/stalling/lurching issues at this time - mechanic can't diagnose as no engine code thrown yet.

Some clutch shudder and you must ensure clutch is <b>totally</b> matted when shifting (since new).

Although the quality isn't as good as I would have hoped for, it isn't a bad car and in the big scheme of things it hasn't cost me much in the past 5 1/2 years. I find the 5-speed 2.0 to be quite peppy in its class (quicker than the Honda Civic that I test drove at the time), although you pay for it with some extra gas.

Handling is also good, and the stock 15" Potenzas were a nice bonus! The car loves to corner! The ride is a little rough, but I don't mind it - it's not really a family-type sedan.

If I could only get the stall/lurch issue fixed, I'm hoping to get some good time out of it yet as I can't afford anything else right now!