#Mazda protege car through trunk manual#
#Mazda protege car through trunk windows#

They prove that, while a lumbar adjustment is always welcome, it's not crucial if the seats are designed right in the first place.

#Mazda protege car through trunk manual#

The manual front buckets are comfortable even after prolonged sessions on the road. The SE and LX gain a standard tachometer for model-year 2000. You get big, readable gauges, logical controls and good storage. The SE's dash is uneventful but strong on common sense. The absorbent suspension held its own against occasional stretches of aging pavement. Its superior mileage was appreciated when it came time to fill up with Quebec's extortionately priced essence ordinaire: 8.5 L/100 km city, 6.7 L/100 km highway.

The smaller motor spun freely, exuding a dash that belied its modest displacement. The LX gets a 122horse, 1.8 L DOHC four.Д«oth powerplants have double overhead camshafts (eliminating pushrods and rocker arms, allowing revs to build more quickly) and four valves per cylinder (for better engine 'breathing').

#Mazda protege car through trunk windows#

The market needs a cost-shaving hybrid system - manual windows in front, power for the rears.ДX and SE models pack a 105 hp, 1.6 L four-cylinder engine. This is easy to do with the front glass, even if you're alone in the car, thanks to the Protege's compact width (although it's billed as having the roomiest interior in its class).Д«ut reaching those backdoor winders from the driver's seat is a chore, even for a six-footer. Two amenities more than paid their way: a standard four-speaker CD player for entertainment and optional air conditioning, allowing comfortable highway runs with windows up.ДЇor low-speed touring in good weather, I like the a/c off and my windows open. It had a manual-tilt steering wheel, one-speed intermittent wipers with mist feature and a locking fuel-filler panel. (The base car is the DX.)Д«ut the car was no stripped chariot.

It offered bracing, hands-on motoring, not spineless surrender to decadent full-power convenience.ДЄnyway, that's what you can tell yourself if you can't afford the high-end LX version. The green tester had wind-up windows, manual locks and mirrors, a five-speed manual gearbox and beige cloth upholstery. Points easily overlooked in cruising around town leap to the fore after a few intense days on the highway.ДЄ 1,750 km test run to la Vieille Capitale, Quebec City, and back in a Mazda Protege in mid-level SE trim left me admiring this sporty little sedan's solid feel and can-do nature. Perhaps the surest way to grasp a car's strengths and weaknesses is to take it on a trip.