Come on in and watch the transformation of my "new" car!

White95Max- Ah, I've come to *like* Mazda silver, but it took a few years. They can be challenging in their own way, but I do know what you mean...and hey, I bought the M3 in part to have a different color in the stable so what can *I* say :o



Be careful buying a used Subie, I sure wouldn't wish either of the ones I had on my worst enemy. Yeah, yeah, everybody else has great luck with Subarus but there's often a reason why a used car is for sale ;)



Heh heh, take your pick of argument: *do* get the WRX, without the turbo it'll be a real dog/ *don't* get the WRX, it'll have been beat and will soon need a clutch and probably 2nd gear synchros ;)



Having just had a WRX wagon, if I were you (kyak and all...) I'd get a turbo Forester or Outback. But I'd sure spring for the turbo.



Never thought to check if the Subie wheels would fit a Mazda, just got rid of them too :o Hit a forum or two and see if the lug pattern is the same, at least for starters, you can worry about offset later.



But man I like that Protege...do understand about putting the kayak on the roof though.
 
Yeah I understand that a used car is for sale for a reason, but hey, mine will have a reason too. If it didn't, I wouldn't be selling it.



You don't even want to see my roof Accumulator. It's a tear-jerking sight. So many deep scratches from sand being scraped on the paint. :bawling:
 
White95Max said:
1. I want to move to Oregon/Washington in less than 2 years. I took the Protege out there this summer, and the mountains quickly made me realize how weak the little 1.6L really is. I need something with more power.
Click to expand...



Blasphomy!!!!! I wont hear any of this 1.6 bashing :cry: *hugs my sohc 1.6 honda engine*

:chuckle:
 
Another Napervillian! Sometimes I miss Naperville (used to live there). I moved away halfway through my stay at Jefferson Jr High. I kinda wanted to go to Naperville North just to see how many years it would take to not get lost in that place...it's frickin huge! Oh well...I don't miss it enough to move back. The West is calling me. :bounce:



Your engine may be fine in Flatlander country, but believe me, the mountains do not treat tiny engines kindly. I was climbing some of those mountains while flooring it in 4th gear at 60mph and still losing speed.
 
Well actually I went to high school at LTHS, and let me tell you that is one huge school, its actually 2 campuses... my graduating class was 950ish and the incoming freshman was 2,000!



And my friend w/ an eclipse turbo seems to love large hills and such and they have lil 2 liters, and that could be an options to look for as well, an eclispe gsx turbo AWD.



and are you sure you dont wanna come back?



http://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag/bplive/2006/ :woot2: #2 baby
 
The problem with the Eclipse GSXs is that they all seem to be riced out and/or abused. Plus it seems like everybody has one.

I guess one of the main requirements I have is to have 4 doors. I'll be moving 1500 miles in a couple years, so I'd like to have some space in my car. We might end up taking a U-Haul anyway though.



Naperville was full of way too much development. That's one of the reasons we moved. Every time I go back it seems like the stoplights go for another 5 miles!
 
I just picked up a 2001 Protege MP3 in blue this past weekend as my new daily driver. I haven't giver her the "treatment" just yet, but we've got some good weather in the forcast these next few days, so it should be doable.



On a side note, I'm building a house out in Yorkville, which is about 10-15 mins past Naperville on 88. ironic, eh?
 
Awesome. Beautiful color on a beautiful car! I had the honor of driving a 300+WHP MP3 a while back....what a blast.



Enjoy the car, and please post pics.
 
Hey, Paul!



Been awhile...



Just an FYI on the Subaru wheel fitment, correct me if I'm wrong, but I think your Protege's bolt pattern is 4x100, while all late-model Subarus are 5x100, so that's a no-go there...:(



There are a couple other issues to contend with, even if the bolt pattern matched, as I am finding out with my various wheel experiments. First is offset, as was mentioned earlier. Second is the size of the center hole; Mazda, at 54.1 mm, has the smallest center hole of all the imports, so a hub-centering ring may be needed for many 4x100 wheels to center the rim properly and take some of the stress off the wheel studs.



Good news is... Subarus now come with 16" alloy wheels from the factory (Imprezas/WRXs, Foresters, etc.), so you don't have to worry about wheel-shopping for a while if you go with that make.



Good luck to you, and Happy Thanksgiving!



Craig
 
White95Max said:
The problem with the Eclipse GSXs is that they all seem to be riced out and/or abused. Plus it seems like everybody has one.

I guess one of the main requirements I have is to have 4 doors. I'll be moving 1500 miles in a couple years, so I'd like to have some space in my car. We might end up taking a U-Haul anyway though.



Naperville was full of way too much development. That's one of the reasons we moved. Every time I go back it seems like the stoplights go for another 5 miles!
Click to expand...





Go for a 1997-2001 Audi B5 A4 or a newer B6 (will be more expensive). You can get the 1.8T engine (150hp or 200hp with a $350 chip), 5 sp, AWD, and the options for a wagon. I used to own a 90' TSi AWD and a 96' TSi FWD and the Audi is far superior in handling and AWD performance. Plus, you can get the cold weather package that has heated seats, heated mirrors, ski-bag pass through (sedan). Audi also has an 8 or 10 year unlimited mileage corrosion warranty.



Parts are pretty cheap since you can source them from VW dealers/evendors (B5 Passat).
 
Great Job on the headliner. That's a touchy area to clean. Dri Wash n Guard makes a NEW product called Dri wash and Guard GREEN! It's a concentrate. 2 small cap fulls (1oz) with water in a spray bottle will make 16oz. of a great cleaner for headliners, cloth and leather seatting. It also works like Folex for carpets, I think it far exceeds the Folex!
 
this thread deserves a bump.





Whitemax, did u ever get around completely removing/treating all oxidized parts in your engine bay? I see some brackets and other things that have rust/oxidation in them. Im in the process but its a really demanding job seeing as all you can do is sand/polish by hand. Piece by piece....
 
Some of the brackets are terribly oxidized, and there isn't enough room to access some of the pieces. I think I'd need to use a Dremel tool with a little polishing wheel or something. I haven't found the time to do it. Like Setec said, I've been pretty busy lately.
 
White95max, excellent turn around I'm especially impressed with your job on the interior.

HOWEVER, as for every post around page 6 and 7 concerning the temperature.

It is finally my turn to laugh, being from Texas i find 40F quite chilly, but the temperatures yall mentioned, the 95F, absolutely lovely i could run around all day out there w/o breaking a sweat, so suck it up.

and w/ that i'm done haha.

Seriously though i am really impressed w/ a job like that
 
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