well i was reading thru the post, yes just about every post related to the pro1, i noticed a lot of people have 1.5 or 1.6 etc. Well my dx has a 1.8 in it, so what exactly is improved in my engine by having that whole .2-.3 extra liters?

 

The first gen DX (or SE in '90) used a SOHC version of the BP motor in the LX (which was a DOHC). Both have 16 valves, but the DOHC motor revs hgher and makes 22 more hp (125 vs 103). But, the DX was geared taller, so it got much better gas mileage, at least with the manual (28/36 vs 25/30 EPA).

Apparently, Mazda felt fuel economy was more important than "zoom-zoom" with the 2nd-gen Proteges, so the motor in the DX (and the LX) was shrunk to a 1.5L DOHC. This helped mileage increase to 31/39 with the 5-spd, mileage with the auto increased also (27/34 vs 24/31, IIRC), which was important since this was the combo in most cars sold. But a 92hp engine with an auto in a 2400+ lb car was a pretty pathetic performer.

With the 3rd-gen redesign, Mazda upped the base engine from 1.5L to 1.6L, which helped somewhat, increasing HP to 105, at the cost of some mileage (actually worse than the original 1.8L SOHC). In 2001, they replaced the 1.8L motor in the ES with the 2.0 version, which was also offered as an option in the LX. In the 2002 model year, they abandoned the little engine and just made the 2.0 standard across the line, at the cost of mileage for all models, but at least the performance is back.

 

In other words, not much. It was a step backward, IMHO.

 

so i dont get it, it seems like a lot of the imports come low rated out of the factory. I grew up in japan so needless to say im going to stay with imports, what are some good cars to look at that have good after market support (plz dont say civics).