2003 Mazda Protege Pros and Cons at TrueDelta: Owner Pros and Cons by jrcurley

Handling

The steering is well weighted. The car has very good grip, 0.86g in lateral acceleration to be exact. The car feels very planted, even on snow or ice

Fuel economy

On a recent trip from Charlottetown, PE, Canada to Halifax, NS my car averaged 35 miles per US gallon, or over 730km per tank of fuel. As a Merchandiser, my job requires a lot of city Driving and I average 600km per tank of gas

Powertrain performance

The 2.0L engine is very easy to rev. There is plenty of torque for city driving. Clutch uptake is very smooth. Very light clutch

Exterior styling

The car has a somewhat aggressive stance. Not offensively so, just enough to make it look sporty.

Price or payments

The Car was quite expensive compared to similar aged American cars, but you get what you pay for, as the old adage goes.

Quietness

Sometimes I wish that the protege had a slightly louder exhaust note.

Audio & nav systems

The buttons on the Radio are ridiculously large and the display screen sometimes displays messed up looking numbers. Ex: only half of an 8