| 1 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 4 |
Mazda Protege repairs by problem area
Engine (41%)
Transmission and Drivetrain (4%)
Brakes and Traction Control (8%)
Suspension and Steering (22%)
Electrical and Air Conditioning (16%)
Paint, Rust, Leaks, Rattles, and Trim (6%)
Other (2%)
Select a problem area
- Engine
- Transmission and Drivetrain
- Brakes and Traction Control
- Suspension and Steering
- Electrical and Air Conditioning
- Paint, Rust, Leaks, Rattles, and Trim
- Other
Chart based on 882 repairs.
Mazda Protege body repair cost distribution
$2500+ (0%)
$1000 - $2499 (12%)
$500 - $999 (6%)
$100 - $499 (14%)
< $100 (69%)
Chart based on 51 repair trips. The repair cost chart excludes repairs made under warranty, do-it-yourself repairs, and repair trips that include maintenance.
2003 Mazda Protege5 4dr Wagon
130-horsepower 2.0L I4 5-speed manual FWD
| 87000 mi US $17 |
License plate light housing plastic broken, so that bulb (which still lit) dangled down by license plate. |
| 83700 mi C $10 |
Some rust in the back wheel well. |
| 88040 mi | only loose heat shield causing slight rattle. car drives like new! |
| 101060 mi | some rust |
| 48000 mi | Finish flaking off wheels. New wheels ordered. Wrong wheels ordered, so not installed. Will have to go back. |
| 49000 mi | Wheels finally replaced. Extra trip required so Mazda could approve use of polished wheels like those that originally came on the car. I had these swapped for regular painted alloys at time of purchase. |
| 77000 mi US $5 |
Repaired rust around the rear wheel openings and along the lower inner seam of the driver's door. Repaired rust around the rear wheel openings and along the lower inner seam of the driver's door. |
| 92000 mi US $575 |
Repaired rust around rear wheel openings and on the lower inside surface of the driver's door. |
| 115000 mi | Removed rust from three fenders and welds under hood, treated areas with rust converter, touched-up. Had to remove a few inches of flange from the forward edge of the left rear wheel opening. Not a complete repair. |
| 1 mi US $400 |
Repaired deep rust on part of the underbody and inside rear wheel openings prior to sale. |
| 108500 mi C $56 |
Took car to bodyshop to assess extreme rust. Told body of car probably has 1.5 years before unsafe to drive.... |
| 108500 mi | Extreme rust on body. Hole in floor of car so just decided to give up. |
2003 Mazda Protege5 4dr Wagon
130-horsepower 2.0L I4 4-speed shiftable automatic FWD
| 128960 mi | 2. Significant rust in underneath in the rear, approaching perforation. |
| 39000 mi | Rattling from engine bay before engine warmed up. The heat shield had come loose. Dealer reattached under owarranty. |
| 117000 mi | rot around rear wheelwell |
| 68200 mi | rust on hatch and rear fenders. |
2003 Mazda Protege
Engine not specified
| 86800 mi | Car was rusting under the paint over rear tire wells, body shop refused to fix the car as they were concerned the $ for repairs would exceed value of the car as well that there was additional rust under the plastic moldings. |
| 89900 mi C $250 |
Passenger side running board trim was removed as the fasteners were rusted through and part would eventually fall off |
2003 Mazda Protege 4dr Sedan
turbocharged 170hp 2.0L I4 5-speed manual FWD
| 52000 mi US $23 |
Adhesive for factory rear bumper skirt molding had failed and was sagging. Removed rear skirt and cleaned all molding adhesive off from rear skirt & bumper. Body shop technicians replaced all adhesive and mounted rear bumper skirt within factory specification. |
2003 Mazda Protege 4dr Sedan
130-horsepower 2.0L I4 5-speed manual FWD
| 49000 mi US $50 |
Rust forming under driver door seam. Removed rubberized rail, removed drain plugs (other doors didn't have them??), removed loose paint and rust, sealed with POR-15 Rust forming under driver door seam. Removed rubberized rail, removed drain plugs (other doors didn't have them??), removed loose paint and rust, sealed with POR-15 |
| 54000 mi US $250 |
Repaired rust on lower front fenders, at rocker panels. Repaired rust on front, upper strut tower mounts. Repaired rust on lower seam of driver door (second repair; seam collects moisture, not sure about longer-term fix) Inside, rear, passenger-side door handle broke in half. Repaired rust on lower front fenders, at rocker panels. Repaired rust on front, upper strut tower mounts. Repaired rust on lower seam of driver door (second repair; seam collects moisture, not sure about longer-term fix) Inside, rear, passenger-side door handle broke in half. |
| 93000 mi | Rusting on bottom of doors and rear fenders. |
| 40000 mi | Dash rattle. |
2003 Mazda Protege 4dr Sedan
130-horsepower 2.0L I4 4-speed shiftable automatic FWD
| 37000 mi US $47 |
Heat shield on underside had rusted and loosened. Auto shop removed same, but did not replace. |
2003 Mazda Protege 4dr Sedan
130-horsepower 2.0L I4 4-speed automatic FWD
| 111000 mi US $71 |
Replaced both RH interior door handles (broken). |
| 114409 mi US $96 |
and broken LR inside door handle |
| 148900 mi C $1500 |
Rust treatment and new coat of paint. |
2002.5 Mazda Protege5 4dr Wagon
130-horsepower 2.0L I4 5-speed manual FWD
| 80000 mi US $1400 |
Significant thru the panel rust on both rear wheel arches, causing the rear bumper to lose its connection points to the body. The connector has rusted away, leaving bumper to rattle in the wind. Also other rust ie bottom of all doors |
| 89000 mi | Sold with substantial rust. |
2002.5 Mazda Protege 4dr Sedan
130-horsepower 2.0L I4 5-speed manual FWD
| 126480 mi | Extensive rust around wheel well. |
2002 Mazda Protege5 4dr Wagon
130-horsepower 2.0L I4 5-speed manual FWD
| 106640 mi C $600 |
Subframe bolts rusted through, car disintegrating due to rust. Shop had to re-weld subframe and buy new bolts to attach tie-rod, etc. Car on last legs, it seems. |
| 111600 mi | The car has rusted to death and must be retired. Sad. Great car. Engine and transmission remain perfect. Front struts and body rusting through.... |
| 123000 mi US $125 |
Rear wheel-wells and under rear passenger seats had some rust cut out and replaced with bondo/sheetmetal. The wheel-wells (rear, left and right) and the floor under the rear seats had rusted out enough to fail inspection. Rusted material was cut away and sheet metal with "bondo" was used to fill in the gaps. Passed inspection! |
| 168640 mi | rust repair. door sills, hood and hatch seam and rear wheel wells. They repair and repaint every year as I have a lifetime warranty with my rustproof package purchase when car was new. sweet deal. I paid for first week of rental car. |
| 96500 mi C $2000 |
2002 Mazda + rust need I say more! HAD to deal with it because windshield busted by icicle falling from power line needed replacement. Had to fix rust first around windshield, so fixed all rust dents + did full repaint |
| 99200 mi C $400 |
rust under the car with approx 2 inch hole near front passenger wheel. took it to a shop that sanded down some of the rust, welded metal plate under the car and did an all-over rust-proof spray |
| 92000 mi | RUST....did not repair |
2002 Mazda Protege5 4dr Wagon
130-horsepower 2.0L I4 4-speed shiftable automatic FWD
| 126700 mi | replace strut towers that were rusted |
2002 Mazda Protege5 4dr Wagon
130-horsepower 2.0L I4 4-speed automatic FWD
| 77500 mi C $40 |
Car is rusty everywhere. |
2002 Mazda Protege 4dr Sedan
130-horsepower 2.0L I4 5-speed manual FWD
| 27280 mi $50 |
Driver side interior handle broke. |
| 127100 mi | Had rust around wheel wells and bottoms of the doors. |
2002 Mazda Protege 4dr Sedan
130-horsepower 2.0L I4 4-speed automatic FWD
| 157000 mi | Driver and passenger front door seals. |
2001 Mazda Protege 4dr Sedan
130-horsepower 2.0L I4 5-speed manual FWD
| 184140 mi | Rear passenger suspension almost completely rusted off frame |
| 174000 mi | and strut tower rust. Car was not worth repairing. |
2001 Mazda Protege 4dr Sedan
130-horsepower 2.0L I4 4-speed automatic FWD
| 120900 mi C $1100 |
as well as unclog AC line |
2000 Mazda Protege 4dr Sedan
122-horsepower 1.8L I4 4-speed automatic FWD
| 84000 mi US $424 |
Rust damage repaired on lower part of 4 doors |
| 134000 mi | The only real bad rust problem was in the right front wheel well on the engine side. |
1999 Mazda Protege 4-door
4-cylinder manual 2WD
| 197960 mi C $1500 |
Replaceemnt of rotted metal: hood, trunk, rear quarters and surface rust on various body parts. Front seats were replaced with second hand ones. |
1999 Mazda Protege 4-door
4-cylinder automatic 2WD
| 166000 mi US $500 |
Windshield had leaks in upper corners for a few years before this. Got the rust repaired and a new windshield put in |
| 111000 mi US $30 |
There was a small rust bubble on the body near the rear wheel. I prepared the area with a sandpaper, and then repainted with Rust Bullet. |
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