please help me buy a protege mp3
 

http://www.autouplinkusa.com/FindVeh...&DealerId=6347

hi guys & gals. need help, trying to find info about stock parts and stock stereo equipment! searched google, and sounddomain.com for pics, but nothing (yet).

i've not been on this forum in ages, primarily because i've been finishing up school and starting a full time job. long story short, i became a dumbass and decided to get in a stupid car accident. so the 95 protege is gone. i'm so mad at myself right now. anyway, the insurance declared it a total loss and i have to get a new one. i'm borrowing my cousin's camry for now (after driving a protege for years and stepping into a camry...WOW!) but i need to find something fast. i've tested other makes and models and just stumbled across this mp3 a few days ago. just looking at the pics you can see its been modded. here are a list of things i could find when i test drove it:

-real CF hood by DG Motorsports w/ intake slot
-functional short ram intake under hood slot (dunno mfg)
-stainless steel muffler (might be mazdaspeed?)
-chrome exterior trim on door handles, rear trunk plate, the thin part of the bumper that you sit the grille atop
-cut chicken wire-looking mesh placed over stock grille/bumper to kinda match the chrome trim
-CF side mirror covers
-CF styled engine cover
-CF styled rear tail lights
-CF styled side sills, center console lid, and dash trim
-keyless entry (alarm?)
-aftermarket stereo: Pioneer DEH-1600, i didnt see what speakers were in it, but the rear ones were def not kenwoods.

the salesman assured me the car was "stock except for the upgraded stereo." i have the Pioneer DEH-3400 in my old protege so i know the 1600 isnt "upgraded" as far as i am concerned. my theory is they sold the stock stereo in order to upgrade to a louder system and replaced it w/ cheap system to trade it in. well now that i dont trust the salesman as far as knowing the specs, can anybody tell me or point me in the right direction as to what is stock and what is modded? please check out the link and the pics. do you think $11,995 is too much; should i negotiate w/ them on the price? or does it look about right for the cost of the hood/visual mods? thanks for any help you can provide. (stick shift driving lessons greatly appreciated) ^_^
-meGrimlock

found this while continuing my journey on google:

http://old.soliton.net/protege/

any comments or suggestions would be helpful
-meGrimlock

the rims aren't stock, at least i dont think they are, but that seems a tad high, its got a few miles on it, just about the point where major stuff is going to go wrong (timing belt, things like that), i'd negotiate with them... nadaguides says that car is worth 11,500, i'm sure you can get them to go down some on it... other than that looks like a pretty sweet car :)

Nice-looking car, but the price is too high. You should be able to get them down to at least
ten grand.
Also, regarding rims--they sure look like the stock Racing Harts to me...

kekeke the first link says "body style :truck"

When I was car shopping a few weeks ago I came across a totally stock MP3 and they were asking about the same, and it had about the same miles. I found a silver ES at a dealership I knew well with only 30k miles and a lower asking price. Boy was I torn. I went with the silver ES (my parents threw in the "practical" card) but I would have been just as happy with the MP3 Im sure.

I would put the Mazda emblem back on the front grill for sure, I think that looks real tacky. Do you guys agree? I think it makes you look ashamed of the make of your car (I would only do it to a Kia or Hyundai :gay: ). Otherwise that car looks real nice.

Haha, yeah I noticed that, too.

Pdoty - You opted OUT of the MP3?! For an ES?! 'Whadaynuts?!' You obviously didn't drive them back-to-back and compare.

practical-schmatical!

Oh well. (nothing but peace and love - i am just pokin' ya! :stickpoke )

thanks for the input. any comments on the stereo? does anyone have pics or a link to pics of a protege mp3 system? i didnt see an amp or sub...i dont even know what is all included in the stock system (trying to figure out what is missing if at all). one more thing, during the test drive i found the stick shift to be a bit rubbery and not very precise - i stalled out 3 times in a row between 2 traffic lights. when i test drove a used bmw 328 and 2002 focus, they were much smoother and shifting was more short and exact. is that normal w/ the proteges or do mp3s have an upgraded clutch/shifter too?
-meGrimlock

Uh, dood, the stalling out might be due to a loose nut on the steering wheel....
:shift:

Thats hard! :laugh:
Take a look a this guy! I grew up in the country, we use wire to tie up exhuast! But we were 16, This guy makes money and is way older. Look at what he used for his air intake! :laugh:

i thought it might be me stalling out, but like i said the other cars i've tested havent stalled out? any thoughts on the stereo? does the mp3 have an amp/sub preconfigured?

looked at nada retail price for the mp3: $11,925 which looks bout right for what the dealer is asking for. but the edmunds TMV and Kelly Blue Book retail value is about $10,000
-meGrimlock

Yeah well I went for 30k miles over 60k, and the MP3 had a cracked windshield, broken windsplit, broken foglight, and had a horrible squeak coming from somewhere in the rear (although it had not been detailed yet, so I'm not sure how much of this they would have fixed - i doub the squeak which was real annoying - but it doesn't say much for how it had been driven), where the ES was in pretty much mint condition.

Like I said, I was torn.

hi everybody, thanks for your input. i didnt get enough information to make a decision. i was gonna ask my friend to accompany me and have him test it out since he has more experience w/ driving a stick, i was gonna ask him what he thought about the ride. but when i called the dealer they had already sold it. oh well. he said he was gonna see how many used cars he could put together that were in the same price range and monthly payment to help my search.
-meGrimlock.

You missed out
 

Sorry that I didn't see your post earlier, as I could have cleared up everything for you... you were getting a pretty good deal on that MP3 and I don't care what KB or what everyone said. Given that only 1500 were made, most dealerships will try and get 13000 to 16000 for these cars. I own one of the only 500 yellow ones and the only things not stock is the intake, carbon fiber hood, and window tint/graphics. Wish that you hadn't missed out on that great buy, but wish you luck in finding something as fun and sporty to drive.