http://burlington.craigslist.org/cto/2168460800.html
So what are the pro's and con's of this generation Mazda speed? You don't see many of them around. Are the part's readily available? Aftermarket? Do they class well for autocross?
While I like the coolness factor of a "rare" car, it doesn't always translate to being an inexpensive experience.
The motor is ill-suited for boost and weak, very slow for a turbo car, terrible tune from factory.
They handle very well, though.
I'd be leary of that one because of the boost controller. The motors are seriously THAT weak.
And yes, they class well for autox. One placed top 5 at Nationals this year in DS i think. (i may have the class wrong.)
They are in GS now and the top placing one was 8th.
That is the best color (same as mine) but I have to agree with 92CelicaHalfTrac on the rest. If you are looking for autox try to find something a little closer to stock since that is where I would say it is the most competitive.
moxnix wrote: They are in GS now and the top placing one was 8th. That is the best color (same as mine) but I have to agree with 92CelicaHalfTrac on the rest. If you are looking for autox try to find something a little closer to stock since that is where I would say it is the most competitive.
Oh... i must not have kept track of one of the days by accident then.
I lost interest when you said the motors were weak and slow for a turbo car. Still like the looks of them, though.
sachilles wrote: I lost interest when you said the motors were weak and slow for a turbo car. Still like the looks of them, though.
Get one with a blown motor for cheap, throw a BP + boost or a KLZE in it.
Both have been done. Both are far stronger motors, and cheap to buy.
Is the trans in this thing any stronger than the G-type?
pres589 wrote: Is the trans in this thing any stronger than the G-type?
Nope. Because it IS a G-type. 
But in this case, the motor will blow up FAR before the trans even thinks about it.
http://www.cardomain.com/ride/503974/2002-mazda-protege5
Quite possibly the best build Pro out there. The guy is insanely intelligent as well.
slowest mazdaspeed car ever made, but the suspension in the 03.5 cars at least is amazing. Buy 03.5 instead of 03 if you're going to get one, but you can honestly get a far quicker car for the same amount of money.
Friend/Challenge partner has one and it handles AMAZINGLY but is almost as slow as my Forte. Has crazy torque numbers, like all the speed cars though. You can get a GTI or the like of the same era for about the same price and its a little quicker.
92CelicaHalfTrac wrote: Get one with a blown motor for cheap, throw a BP + boost or a KLZE in it. Both have been done. Both are far stronger motors, and cheap to buy.
Im gonna bet there is no way to make that emissions legal. Which is sad, that is a great looking body style and I hear they handle very well.
corytate wrote: slowest mazdaspeed car ever made, but the suspension in the 03.5 cars at least is amazing. Buy 03.5 instead of 03 if you're going to get one, but you can honestly get a far quicker car for the same amount of money. Friend/Challenge partner has one and it handles AMAZINGLY but is almost as slow as my Forte. Has crazy torque numbers, like all the speed cars though. You can get a GTI or the like of the same era for about the same price and its a little quicker.
Also see: Celica GTS.
Nitroracer wrote:92CelicaHalfTrac wrote: Get one with a blown motor for cheap, throw a BP + boost or a KLZE in it. Both have been done. Both are far stronger motors, and cheap to buy.Im gonna bet there is no way to make that emissions legal. Which is sad, that is a great looking body style and I hear they handle very well.
Not in California, probably not. Better chance with a KLDE, but that died out in 2002 as far as i know with the Millenia.
The FWD BP, maybe, though. You'd have to go shopping for Kias in junkyards.
There is really no difference between the 03 and 03.5 models besides the colors and shape of the rear spoiler.
The MSP handling is close to being miata-like. It was on par with the integra type r according to SCC magazine at the time. The engine is a let down as the tune from the factory is piss-poor. I fixed mine with a split second air fuel controller. It ran much better and got improved mileage.
The rods are the weak spot in the engine. The intercooler is puny and the second cat is a choke point in the exhaust. You can safely run these at up to about 200 hp before you run into trouble.
I would not buy one that has a boost controller. I believe 7 psi is stock and anything over 10 psi is asking for a popped motor. These are very underrated cars. I really enjoyed mine.
It's sad that Mazda made earlier motors that were so stout and then this one ended up being kinda lame.
ccrelan wrote: There is really no difference between the 03 and 03.5 models besides the colors and shape of the rear spoiler. The MSP handling is close to being miata-like. It was on par with the integra type r according to SCC magazine at the time. The engine is a let down as the tune from the factory is piss-poor. I fixed mine with a split second air fuel controller. It ran much better and got improved mileage. The rods are the weak spot in the engine. The intercooler is puny and the second cat is a choke point in the exhaust. You can safely run these at up to about 200 hp before you run into trouble. I would not buy one that has a boost controller. I believe 7 psi is stock and anything over 10 psi is asking for a popped motor. These are very underrated cars. I really enjoyed mine.
sorry thought it was more than that for some reason lol
the 03.5 spoiler esp. makes it look like a baby rally car, too bad they werent awd like they were in japan. There are people running all forged internals and more boost, but not many people that We've seen on their forum that are doing too much beyond stock to the car.
His has been kind of a nightmare thus far, but it's more than likely just bad luck.
The engine is so disappointing because after they did all the phenomenal suspension and aesthetic work they probably found out they were over budget, so all they did was turbo the regular 2.0 protege motor lol. The DISI turbo motors are amazing though, swap the fwd disi from a speed 3 and there and you have a QUICK car that handles better than almost everything fwd out there.
JamesMcD wrote: It's sad that Mazda made earlier motors that were so stout and then this one ended up being kinda lame.
It is an earlier motor. It's essentially the same motor that was in the 2nd gen MX6/Probe/626 base models. FSDE turd. Was around in 1992.
can klze hold boost good and does it swap right to the tranny what kind of wiring needs to be done for the 2003 speedr
sorry speed3
basically i have a 99 prelude i turbo'd and tuned on 10psi i can trade for an 03 speed3 for my girlfriend but it needs to be as quick or quicker so i dont want to be putting 10k into a mazda when i already have a decent fast car
Actually had dinner last night with Mazda's Dean Case and Jim Jordan and we were talking about how awesome and how few of some of the special edition Mazdas were made.
Did you ask them why they couldn't make a decent FWD transmission?
Sincerely, A still-peeved previous H-Type owner.
Outside of my cooper S, they're the best FWD car i've ever driven suspension wise. They're SERIOUSLY one of the best FWD cars. But as everyone's already echoe'd, weakest freakin motors ever, stock ones are known to sneeze rods on the stock turbo at 10psi... and good luck with the trans, I know a guy that actually kept spares IN HIS GARAGE because he had a built block, was putting down like 300whp, and was smoking transmissions about 2x/year. He now has a TT G35 coupe w/like 500whp.
holllandb88 wrote: basically i have a 99 prelude i turbo'd and tuned on 10psi i can trade for an 03 speed3 for my girlfriend but it needs to be as quick or quicker so i dont want to be putting 10k into a mazda when i already have a decent fast car
One thing of note, don't say Speed3 when you're talking about a Mazdaspeed of that gen- It's a Mazdaspeed Protege. You'll confuse a LOT of people if you say MS3 instead of MSP.
Lol... the said thing is that the H-type is WAY stronger than the G25-variant that's in the MSP. Good luck with all that.
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