A few questions about a 97 protege
 

Hey everyone, i have a 97 protege (1.5L). i was wondering, how much trouble would it be to upgrade it to a 1.8L engine? the engine bay is really tight, so i was wondering if it would even be possible to do. second question, if i do upgrade the engine, will my 5 spd tranny be compatable with the 1.8L? third question.. i've been lookin all around the net for cold air intakes, headers, and all kinds of different stuff for the engine.. any links or anything that can help me out w/ finding parts? if u could post anything u know on any of this, it would be great! thanks

Search, and you will find answers to all your questions.

yeah, i've been searchin for a while now.. just not much luck at all. i've decided against doing the engine swap.. just too much money right now. instead, i've decided just to build up on my existing engine.. i cracked the exhaust manifold, so i was gonna replace that with a header.. i've been having a hard time to find a header for a 97 1.5L. does it have to be for a 97 1.5L engine? or will any mazda protege header work? or will any other kind of header work?

also, i was gonna put on a cold air intake. i've looked on ebay and i've googled a few times, but i still cant find one. is it possible to buy a cheap one off ebay and mod it to fit? (i've read posts about actually doing that, just wanna make sure it can be done tho). if it can be done, how much trouble would it be?

another thing, i was thinking about buying a better muffler, to give it more power.. i've seen several on ebay for very cheap (cheapest i've seen was like $3.25). should i buy one? or should i just go with the stock muffler?

well, thats all i can think of at the moment.. so if you guys can give me any more tips on how to get more power, let me know! also, post some websites that could possibly help. just post anything on the subject, and it would be greatly appreciated! thanks again

Ok, I will make as simple for you as possible. There are no headers for 1.5L. You can either buy OEM replacement on eBay, or have a shop custom make you one. The OEM replacements on eBay are supposedly better, and are not prone to cracking like the original ones are. Intakes go the same way. Essential Speed makes them, for a lot of money, and you would have to wait a long time before you actually get it. Once again, you could be better off custom making one. Lastly, muffler alone, or even the entire exhaust system will not give you power, VERY marginal 2-3hp. The intake will give you just as much. So where ever you heard that a muffler can give you power is a liar, and is only out to make money off of you. $3.25 muffler on eBay will cost you $40 to ship, that is just another marketing scam by eBay sellers. As far as you over all goal of getting power out of 1.5L, then you are really out of luck. Even if you did have headers, exhaust, and intake custom made, you would not gain more than 10hp, so it is totally not worth spending $500-1000 on 10hp. If you want power, get a bottle, and leave it at that. 1.5 engine is really of no use other then moving the car and saving you gas. Other then that, it is useless. Goodluck.

As far as websites go, you can try www.corksport.com where you can find some rare parts for our cars at a higher then normal price. Other then that, eBay and other Protege forums where people are more likely to sell something. This forum is too inactive for 2nd gen Proteges.