| 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
Chart based on 882 repairs.
Mazda Protege suspension repair cost distribution
$2500+ (1%)
$1000 - $2499 (6%)
$500 - $999 (22%)
$100 - $499 (47%)
< $100 (24%)
Chart based on 181 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
| 92380 mi C $40 |
Car was rattling over bumps. Someone suggested checking the sway bar endlinks for play. Both rear ones had play so I replaced them. Rattles went away! |
| 92880 mi C $130 |
Took car in for an alignment since I replaced suspension parts. Could not align because of bad pass. control arm/ball joint. Replaced balljoint/control arm; the boot was gone and the joint was freely wiggling around. All good now, aligned. |
| 105400 mi C $180 |
Drove down a dirt road getting to cabin, bearing went. Same trip also destroyed the passenger side sway bar end link. |
| 66000 mi US $280 |
Front left wheel bearing replaced after started making a loud noise during even the slightest turns over 20 MPH. |
| 84000 mi US $303 |
Another wheel bearing. Another wheel bearing. |
| 93000 mi US $335 |
Front left wheel bearing replaced again after two years and 26,000 miles. |
| 95000 mi US $580 |
Right rear stabilizer bar link broke. Replaced both links. Shop found worn control arm bushings. Replaced both front control arms. But clunk I've been noticing in the front end is still there. |
| 97700 mi US $258 |
Replaced another wheel bearing, about a year old. Also replaced end links on front stabilizer bar. Clunk gone, handling tighter. |
| 1 mi US $400 |
Right rear strut clunking, needed to be replaced when the car was sold. |
| 111000 mi US $460 |
Bracket on strut where stabilizer bar link connects broke. Replaced both struts and both links. Since one strut broke, I split the cost of parts. If you think we should consider both struts, cost of repair with parts and labor is $460 |
| 133000 mi US $247 |
Right front wheel bearing failing. |
| 141400 mi US $550 |
Both Strut mounts and the passenger control arm with integrated ball joint was replaced. |
| 161000 mi US $71 |
Replaced sway bar end links. Clunking and squeeking observed |
| 161800 mi US $110 |
Replaced Lower Control Arm |
| 169000 mi US $260 |
Wheel bearing |
| 181300 mi US $600 |
Wheel bearing replaced again Control arm replaced again |
| 141700 mi US $550 |
replaced both front wheel bearings, along with front springs. |
| 181000 mi US $460 |
replaced struts, strut mounts and tie rods. (accident repairs below) rear stabilizer, ladder brace. |
| 162700 mi US $969 |
Right rear strut mount broke, needed to replace strut mounts, struts and sway bars links. |
| 119000 mi US $185 |
Left front wheel bearing had been going out for some time. Replaced. Excellent shop, labor charge about half dealer.. Able to buy Mazda OEM parts from dealer at "shop rate". |
| 49000 mi US $144 |
New bushings installed for aftermarket swaybar. |
| 97340 mi C $320 |
rear sway links made creaking sound, dealership replaced. |
| 101060 mi | need new rear brakes, bad front wheel bearings, bent front rim, alternator belt needs replacing |
| 143400 mi | Front passenger side shock was leaking and clunking. The shocks (Tokico Illumina) have 100K miles on them, so installed old one that was laying around and it is fixed now. |
| 153000 mi US $110 |
Strut top mount came off and ended up replacing the strut top mount and the strut itself. |
| 156000 mi US $200 |
Replaced front and rear wheel bearings. |
| 172000 mi | Replaced rear sway bar endlinks. |
| 174500 mi US $75 |
Oil Cooler Hose rusted through and leaked out the power steering fluid. Replaced with a new hose and new PS fluid, and no further issues. |
| 80000 mi US $75 |
1 front wheel bearing, 2 rear sway bar bushings replaced. |
| 82000 mi US $100 |
Driver side front wheel bearing replaced. |
| 57000 mi US $300 |
Left wheel bearing shot, replaced with new one. $300 including labor and parts. |
| 88000 mi US $450 |
Right wheel bearing failed with loud grinding noise. Replaced just under 2 years since left side wheel bearing needed replacement. |
| 107200 mi US $150 |
Can't remember, something about the sway bar end links being worn/broken. Made squeaking noise over larger bumps. |
| 75000 mi US $40 |
RF wheel bearing howling loudly. Repladed DIY. |
| 79000 mi US $150 |
RF outer wheel bearing was making very loud noise. I removed carrier myself, but could not replace bearing as I do not own a press, so I took it to a shop where they replaced the bearing. I reinstalled carrier. |
| 112000 mi US $120 |
Previously replaced front wheel saddle bearing repair did not last- either I did not properly tighten the spindle bolt (not likely, but could have happened) or the part was defective. RR wheel has +3.0 degrees camber- WAY out of spec. Will need a kit to adjust. STAY AWAY FROM FAIRGROUNDS BODYSHOP, MARIETTA GA. THEY DO TERRIBLE WORK AND DO NOT STAND BEHIND THEIR REPAIRS. |
| 144000 mi US $50 |
RF wheel bearing was very noisy. Had replaced it twice already; the real problem was the hub/bearing carrier had worn and allowed the bearing to become cocked slightly- which in turn caused the bearing to fail prematurely. Replaced hub. |
| 181000 mi | Nut welded to subframe above control arm snapped off, control arm had excessive play |
| 65000 mi US $875 |
stabilizer bar |
| 72200 mi US $975 |
Control arm |
| 76300 mi US $600 |
Two front control arms |
| 103540 mi R 900 |
Replaced ball joints and tie rod ends |
| 115000 mi US $300 |
After 13 years and 115,000 miles on he originals, I bought a good set of struts (KYB) through the mail and installed them myself. The bump stops had disintegrated so I replaced them too. I reused the strut mounts and other parts. |
| 130000 mi US $50 |
Replaced left outer tie-rod end cap. |
| 15000 mi | Front suspension bushing replaced under warranty |
2003 Mazda Protege5 4dr Wagon
130-horsepower 2.0L I4 4-speed shiftable automatic FWD
| 54560 mi C $200 |
front right wheel bearing |
| 63860 mi C $300 |
Support links on all 4 wheels replaced. all worn out badly. rear sway bar bushing worn out, replaced |
| 76460 mi C $200 |
another wheel bearing went kapoot. |
| 80680 mi C $280 |
another wheel bearing. third one in 3 years. |
| 115800 mi | Fumbled repair. Shop installed on drivers side(front} bad bearing was on passenger side(front) This repair took 3 days to do the one bearing then it failed at about 7000 miles. I picked the car up and dropped it off at another shop to get the correct wheel bearing replaced and had it back in 2.5 hours. |
| 125000 mi US $350 |
The original wheel bearing repair by idiots failed in 7000 miles. I had the good shop replace that one too. No problems since and very quiet. |
| 115000 mi US $320 |
Sway bar links replaced. |
| 89900 mi C $250 |
Front passenger wheel bearing was replaced |
| 128960 mi | 1. Forward links require repair |
| 106400 mi C $500 |
Full rear suspension and ball joint on rear wheel |
| 93620 mi C $1100 |
Too much play in tie rods. Had them replaced. |
| 101680 mi C $1100 |
Front stabilisers replaced |
| 57040 mi C $300 |
Suspension stabilizers at all 4 corners making pronounced knocking sound on anything but absolutely smooth road; badly, corroded and had to be cut out. Parts replaced were after market as Mazda parts double the cost! Solved the problem completely. |
| 65100 mi C $135 |
A rear bushing "making noise even over slight bumps - annoying to me; my wife [the owner] was oblivious. Shop owner had to work to find it, but I knew it was there! |
| 67040 mi | drivers side wheel bearing replaced |
2003 Mazda Protege5 4dr Wagon
130-horsepower 2.0L I4 4-speed automatic FWD
| 68820 mi C $1350 |
Both front wheel bearings and stabilizer bars replaced. |
2003 Mazda Protege
Engine not specified
| 120000 mi | 2nd wheel bearing in one year. |
2003 Mazda Protege 4dr Sedan
turbocharged 170hp 2.0L I4 5-speed manual FWD
| 23000 mi | Clunking noise when driven over small bumps or uneven roads was noticed coming from rear of the car. During routine oil change, mechanic checked and discovered rear suspension buhings were worn. Dealer shop installed bushings that were ordered. |
| 30187 mi | replaced end links, bushings, and rear sway bar due to design flaw. replace rear sway bar, end links, and bushings |
| 54000 mi US $250 |
replaced bushing and brackets for rear sway bar replaced bushing and brackets for rear sway bar |
| 63000 mi US $612 |
replaced leaking rear struts |
| 57000 mi | One of my struts was clanking and needed its top nut to be tightened. |
| 108000 mi US $250 |
Right side control arm. Right side wheel bearing. |
2003 Mazda Protege 4dr Sedan
130-horsepower 2.0L I4 5-speed manual FWD
| 53000 mi US $1300 |
humming noise; fixed by replacing front wheel bearings; it has failed again twice and repaired covered by warranty |
| 77500 mi | Front wheel bearing. |
| 151000 mi US $300 |
Replaced rear struts and mount. Price reflects friend doing work. |
2003 Mazda Protege 4dr Sedan
130-horsepower 2.0L I4 4-speed shiftable automatic FWD
| 124000 mi US $550 |
Wheel bearing went out, taking wheel hub with it. Protege ES has rare hub, making repair expensive and difficult to source. |
| 37000 mi US $217 |
Loss of Power Steering. Power Steering replaced. Repair facility experienced delay in deliver of replacelment part by Mazda distributer |
| 87580 mi C $170 |
Both front sway bar links were replaced due to wear. |
2003 Mazda Protege 4dr Sedan
130-horsepower 2.0L I4 4-speed automatic FWD
| 88040 mi C $400 |
Front wheel bearing. Had already been changed, but housing out of spec. Replaced bearing (warrantied) and housing. |
| 89240 mi C $300 |
Other bearing |
| 122640 mi C $700 |
Making funny noise from front when turning |
| 132489 mi US $250 |
New LF wheel bearing |
| 140000 mi US $175 |
New LF wheel bearing |
| 146136 mi US $395 |
New LF Wheel bearing and hub |
| 127500 mi US $338 |
Worn lateral links & bolt, LR. 2 new lateral links, new bolt, alignment. |
| 78740 mi C $90 |
Ball joint was replaced. |
| 32569 mi US $9000 |
the only thing that had to be repaired was the wheel bearings at like 50k. it now has 90 thousand miles and is going strong |
| 52080 mi C $650 |
change the shocks and the link kits Change the Shocks and the 4 link kits |
| 99000 mi US $1600 |
Front left and right wheel bearings req'd replacement - were severely worn out. Rear suspension knocking noise -- found that entire rear suspension needed replaced (strut mounts, struts, etc, etc,) estimated cost $3000 + labor. Declined repair and sold car. |
| 63240 mi C $52 |
front sway bar-drivers side replaced |
| 109820 mi C $350 |
Rear sway bar links replaced. Coolant fluids flush done. |
| 132060 mi C $1500 |
Front axle bar needed welding. |
| 104780 mi C $180 |
Replaced left lower control arm and Ball joint |
| 170000 mi US $787 |
Wheel bearings replaced |
2002.5 Mazda Protege5 4dr Wagon
130-horsepower 2.0L I4 5-speed manual FWD
| 52500 mi US $225 |
Had loose front tie rod ends replaced because of noise. |
| 57000 mi US $85 |
Buzzing/creaking noise noticed in the front when turning steering wheel. Worn end links on front sway bar diagnosed. Also power steering pump may be at end of life. Not fixed this trip because of cost and not an immediate safety issue. |
| 65000 mi US $300 |
Replaced broken rear sway bar end links. Also flushed power steering fluid system due to unknown contaminant. Regularly required brake service and lube also performed. |
| 67000 mi | Mechanic noticed that front end links are worn/loose and causing front end clunk/creak. Will repair in the future, not a safety issue. |
| 80000 mi US $1400 |
Front struts replaced - they were badly leaking and had lost most of their rebound capabilities. Was cause severe tire wear. Had car in for tire wear and 2 alignments over past year, but they didn't figure it out til now. |
| 89000 mi US $350 |
Front outer tie rods replaced, were significantly loose. Also complained of loud whining/gear noise, was diagnosed as bad driver front wheel bearing. I think it is the gear box whining. also had rust check, alignment. |
2002.5 Mazda Protege
Engine not specified
| 150000 mi US $500 |
Struts replaced due to wear. |
2002.5 Mazda Protege 4dr Sedan
130-horsepower 2.0L I4 5-speed manual FWD
| 105000 mi US $120 |
Left front sway bar link broke. Needed it replaced to pass PA state inspection (even though a sway bar is not technically a 'critical' component; a car can function without one). It was broken a while; figured I'd replace for inspection. |
| 149000 mi | Left rear wheel bearing starting to go. Probably age related. |
| 110360 mi C $125 |
Rear struts completely shot, replaced. Nearly every bolt was seized, making the repair difficult. Save the hassle and take it to a shop. |
| 143000 mi US $1300 |
Shocks worn -- replaced. |
2002.5 Mazda Protege 4dr Sedan
130-horsepower 2.0L I4 4-speed automatic FWD
| 119000 mi US $575 |
Rattling noise over bumps and increased body lean that steadily got worse over a year - turned out to be bad strut and strut mount. Ended up getting 2 new rear struts and mounts |
2002 Mazda Protege5 4dr Wagon
140-horsepower 2.0L I4 5-speed manual FWD
| 122300 mi US $350 |
wheel bearing and pads |
| 78000 mi | new front struts at 76000 |
| 97000 mi US $400 |
replaced rear struts |
| 135000 mi US $350 |
Replaced struts, performed alignment |
| 118000 mi US $175 |
Endlinks replaced on front suspension |
2002 Mazda Protege5 4dr Wagon
130-horsepower 2.0L I4 5-speed manual FWD
| 106640 mi C $600 |
Tie-rod shot |
| 109820 mi C $350 |
Rear strut, driver's side shot. Replaced. |
| 156800 mi US $600 |
Very bumpy/noisy ride, especially when turning and on less than ideal roads. Mechanic said it was suspension. Replaced all four struts and mounts. Still noisy, but haven't had it checked out since. |
| 88000 mi US $500 |
Replaced stock shocks and springs with Tokico HP kit. The front right shock had failed. I also wanted to upgrade so I replaced all four at the same time. |
| 66960 mi C $600 |
Front endlinks were also replaced on the trip to the shop. |
| 114700 mi C $200 |
Replaced steering arm links. |
| 118420 mi C $800 |
Replaced driver's side front wheel bearing. |
| 120600 mi US $100 |
Rear sway bar replaced. Also Left/Right front wheel bearings replaced (one possibly my fault - whacked a curb). |
| 130700 mi US $340 |
Left and Right sway bar links replaced as well. |
| 169460 mi C $700 |
Control arm replaced |
| 170500 mi | Rear and front links, suspension all around (struts), plus needed new tires and rusting all over. Wasnt worth doing in my opinion. |
| 158000 mi US $350 |
Sway bar links worn and noisy. R&R links. |
| 158000 mi | Rear trailing arms worn |
| 124580 mi C $50 |
Replaced front swaybar endlinks. |
| 133300 mi C $500 |
Replaced sway bar endlinks. Replaced passenger-side front wheel bearing. Replaced passenger-side lower ball joint boot. |
2002 Mazda Protege5 4dr Wagon
130-horsepower 2.0L I4 4-speed shiftable automatic FWD
| 162800 mi US $139 |
Power steering cooler failed rusted |
2002 Mazda Protege5 4dr Wagon
130-horsepower 2.0L I4 4-speed automatic FWD
| 148000 mi US $140 |
Sway bar links had some slop and were causing knocking driving over bumps. |
| 77500 mi C $40 |
Mechanic diagnosed "everything related to front suspension is rusted/ rotted/ worn out". Which confirmed my own suspicions. |
| 116000 mi US $500 |
Replaced front driver side wheel bearing. |
| 130000 mi US $575 |
Wheel bearing and wheel hub |
| 57660 mi C $660 |
While on hoist, mech. reported ft struts leaking and rear sway bar loose...I reported this to Mazda yrs ago while vehicle still had warranty though they told me there was no problem. They fixed other little things that were a by-product of the struts |
| 63240 mi C $750 |
Replaced front struts |
| 96000 mi | Needed new tie rod ends badly. |
2002 Mazda Protege
Engine not specified
| 145080 mi C $390 |
Wheel ball bearing were repaired for a second time. |
2002 Mazda Protege 4dr Sedan
140-horsepower 2.0L I4 5-speed manual FWD
| 100000 mi US $640 |
Front struts worn out. Replaced and front antis way bar |
2002 Mazda Protege 4dr Sedan
130-horsepower 2.0L I4 5-speed manual FWD
| 117800 mi C $950 |
Struts (second time) and strut mounts. |
| 127100 mi | Front passenger side strut is make a big noise, shop indicated it did not need replaced for about 6 or 7 months and okay to drive. |
| 127100 mi | Needed new strut mount when sold. |
| 110000 mi US $30 |
Sway bar end links clunking |
| 105000 mi US $800 |
broke ties at one wheel had to fix in order to drive the car |
| 40300 mi | My car is a 2001, but I couldn't figure out how to enter a different year. Anyway the driver side front wheel bearing was replaced by a local garage. I had to replace the same thing on my volvo S70 and paid well over double that. I think the car had sat a |
| 189100 mi C $600 |
Ball bearings replaced |
2002 Mazda Protege 4dr Sedan
130-horsepower 2.0L I4 4-speed shiftable automatic FWD
| 135160 mi | Wheel bearing needed to be replaced. |
2002 Mazda Protege 4dr Sedan
130-horsepower 2.0L I4 4-speed automatic FWD
| 74890 mi US $220 |
Front left strut broke and was replaced. |
| 95100 mi US $530 |
Replaced struts, aligned suspension, changed oil and coolant, fitted new winter tires. |
| 169000 mi US $80 |
Front and rear tie-rod ends replaced due to rubber boots torn |
| 127100 mi C $700 |
Replace rear shocks and rear links |
| 212000 mi US $5 |
PS pump return tube O-ring fluid seepage at pump, drip spots on driveway. Replaced O-ring on tube, removed, anti-sieze on banjo bolt threads and re-torqued. Flushed system, pressure-washed engine front, pass side fender shield, undertray & driveway. Good for another 200K miles! |
| 107000 mi US $400 |
Replace rear struts, both sides |
| 124800 mi US $200 |
Replace rear stabilizer bar end links |
2002 Mazda Protege 4-door
4-cylinder automatic 2WD
| 81000 mi US $1100 |
The two front struts were replaced due to leakage in both. |
2001 Mazda Protege 4dr Sedan
130-horsepower 2.0L I4 5-speed manual FWD
| 124000 mi US $120 |
Replaced end links for swaybar, front of car. |
| 156000 mi US $375 |
Looseness and noise from passenger side ball joint. Control arm (ball joint is integral with control arm) and bushings replaced. 4-wheel alignment performed at time of repair as well. |
| 167800 mi US $180 |
Noticed shimmy in steering wheel during hard braking and clunk when accelerating from a stop. Repair shop confirmed play in left outer and said right showed no play but had torn rubber. Replaced both outers. Alignment cost not included. |
| 101460 mi C $500 |
I had my two front shocks replaced in the front and a tie rod. It was fairly expensive because I had to get an alignment after the repair. |
| 106020 mi C $450 |
rear shocks had to be replaced |
| 98000 mi US $700 |
Rear sway bars |
2001 Mazda Protege 4dr Sedan
130-horsepower 2.0L I4 4-speed automatic FWD
| 103540 mi C $2500 |
Shocks and springs x 4. |
| 120900 mi C $1100 |
all 4 stabilizer links replaced. |
| 114080 mi C $400 |
Replaced front and rear struts due to age of the vehicle and one was leaking. |
| 189900 mi C $400 |
Joint in lower drivers side control arm (sway bar) failed. Replaced with new control arm. |
2001 Mazda Protege 4-door
4-cylinder manual 2WD
| 112000 mi US $850 |
Steering spindle and ball joint on passenger side were replaced. The spindle was completely cracked and the ball joint was excessively worn. |
2000 Mazda Protege
Engine not specified
| 110000 mi US $800 |
Excessive wear on front sway bar bushings. |
2000 Mazda Protege 4dr Sedan
122-horsepower 1.8L I4 5-speed manual FWD
| 114000 mi US $2100 |
All links were worn or damaged; replaced. Front lower arms, front stabilizer links, front struts |
2000 Mazda Protege 4dr Sedan
122-horsepower 1.8L I4 4-speed automatic FWD
| 82000 mi US $20 |
replaced rear sway bar link |
| 114000 mi US $659 |
Rear struts and mounting plates First repair kit failed in a few miles! It was the old type kit without backup washers. New kit has backup washers and works fine. |
2000 Mazda Protege 4dr Sedan
105-horsepower 1.6L I4 5-speed manual FWD
| 181000 mi US $160 |
driver-side control arm/lower-ball joint replaced. independent mechanic first replaced. noticed "popping" sound which could not be identified. Professional mechanic identified/repaired improper installation of pinch bolt. |
| 100000 mi US $300 |
replaced two rear struts and associated bits and pieces |
| 145000 mi US $450 |
Replaced front shocks and mounts |
| 166000 mi US $400 |
rack and pinion was leaking, |
| 82000 mi US $160 |
Front tires made crashing sound over potholes. Front link pins replaced. |
2000 Mazda Protege 4dr Sedan
105-horsepower 1.6L I4 4-speed automatic FWD
| 176000 mi US $320 |
replace swaybar links |
2000 Mazda Protege 4-door
Engine not specified
| 91140 mi C $375 |
Strut |
2000 Mazda Protege 4-door
4-cylinder automatic 2WD
| 104100 mi US $140 |
Sway bar links replaced |
| 140000 mi US $40 |
Replaced rear sway bar link. |
| 115300 mi US $200 |
Tie rod replaced |
| 139500 mi C $300 |
front swaybar link replaced |
1999 Mazda Protege
Engine not specified
| 188480 mi C $141 |
I was experiencing a clunking over bumps while driving under the speed limit, which turned out to be a loose passenger side (R) tie rod end. I replaced both with lifetime warranty parts. |
| 176000 mi | Diagnosis of worn suspension bushings. Lower control arms, tie-rod ends, and sway-bar links will need replacing. |
| 177000 mi US $450 |
Lower control arms, ball joints and sway bar links replaced. |
1999 Mazda Protege 4-door
4-cylinder manual 2WD
| 174840 mi C $300 |
Replace worn ball joint |
| 211420 mi C $800 |
Struts,shocks, idler arm worn due to age. |
| 150000 mi US $270 |
The front suspension was leaking oil. Replaced both struts in the front. |
| 158000 mi US $350 |
A piece of the left strut had broken free. |
1999 Mazda Protege 4-door
4-cylinder automatic 2WD
| 175860 mi C $80 |
replaced worn tie rod |
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