Still runs great, which means in over 155k miles it has never had a mechanical problem. 16 years later, it's now the teenager's car. Repaired the hood and front-end plastics myself summer 2019. Hopefully it doesn't cost too much because this car still has LOTS of useful life in it. I have not had an estimate for repairs yet, but the hood is crumpled, the grille is gone and headlights smashed, but the fenders seem OK. Shortly after 150,000, my son rear-ended another car. It runs perfectly - if it wasn't for rust, it would look and work very much like new. Both passenger side electric locks no longer work. Still no mechanical problems or break-downs. Rust wreaks havoc on these cars, though not as bad as some other cars. The timing belt et al has been changed and the car continues to run great. The worst thing on it by far … is the rust in the rear fender wells.Īfter 105,000 miles, everything else still works great.Īt 150,000, I've replaced the right rear strut because it rusted apart. The passenger side electric door lock stopped working at about 50,000 miles. The sway bar bushings wore out at 85,000 miles and the tubing to the mass air flow sensor cracked, but a redneck duct tape fix still works. It's been a great car, extremely reliable and is still fun to drive. If you can find a Protege that's been taken care of, I recommend buying it.I bought my 2003 Protege ES new based on handling and ride - and looks. of new vehicles but I've been using models that plug into the cigarette lighter for many years and they work perfectly fine. I admit that I wish it had the built-in GPS, back-up camera, USB port, etc. Over all, it's been a great car and I'll miss it when the time comes to change. I know exactly where the car is on the road or in a tight parking spot. Of course, I'm perfectly comfortable navigating now. With my Protege, there is no crease so that took some getting used to. My previous vehicles were all Fords so I was used to navigating using the crease down the hood. Allows us to sit higher in the vehicle and to feel less of the road. I bought seat covers and have a cushion under both front seat covers. It's a sport suspension so you "feel" the road, which is all the more reason I'd prefer to have higher, better-padded seats. The other thing I dislike is the low seating. Of course, that's only a pain if you have multiple drivers. It's on the passenger's door, so you have to adjust, sit back and check, adjust, sit back and check. One is that you can't readily reach the passenger-side, outer-mirror adjustment knob. In my experience, there are a few drawbacks to the interior. My latest mechanic said he's on his fourth Protege and doesn't care that they have none of today's bells and whistles.
Virtually every time I take it in for servicing, the mechanic asks if I'm interested in selling it. My car's in excellent condition, with low mileage (less than 100,000 kms) and no rust, thanks to walking to work and parking underground all these years. It had about 12,000 kms on it and was exactly the colour I was hoping for (sand/champagne). It was a 2003 model, leased by a company for short drives around the city, then returned for resale a year later. I bought a second-hand Protege from the dealer in 2004.
0 kommentar(er)
