Mazdaspeed protege vs srt4

Find someone to swap your AllTrac to for a Civic or a Miata. The AllTrac is cool and rare enough that you should get a decently solid car. I would shoot for something as stock as possible with any mods needing to be solid and well done.

I don't have any experience with a mazdaspeed protege, but I did own an SRT4 for about 6 years. The SRT was a great car. It made about 350whp by the time I sold it and it was still 100% reliable for me. I never had any issues with the car the whole time I owned it. As long as the car isn't seriously abused it shouldn't have any issues. It is tough to find one that hasn't been hacked apart at this point. If you can find a clean stock car for a good price - I'd say go for it.

All that said, you'll be looking a more than $2k in depreciation over 5 years for either of those cars..... I don't know for sure, but I'll bet it would be cheaper to keep the altrac. Have you considered something a little more plebeian for your school years? Swapped, well modified hondas are out there for pennies to the dollar. Find one that was swapped properly (not too hard) and you have a fun, quick, reliable, simple car.

Nathan

I haven't been in an SRT-4 but I have done some research on the MSP. While the interior is nicer and it handles great the engine is really a let down. They were never built for boost and even N/A versions weren't big on power and refinement.

May I suggest an RSX or Celica instead? Nearly 200hp na, reliable, newer, with similar prices.

I dont understand how if you cant afford a few thousand every few years, you could afford an $8k car right now..

Id lean towards the SRT4 on this one for all the reasons mentioned.

SRT4s in nice condition can be had for this price? Seems to me one may be handing off one set of problems for another by buying a car that has most likely been beat half to death.

http://sfbay.craigslist.org/pen/ctd/2025192697.html

"modded" http://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/cto/2016714858.html

Civic... In three years, I have replaced the muffler once (about to be a second time) and the CV axles once. And that is it other then normal maintence (windshield wipers, oil, etc)

smog7 wrote: oh, and my alltrac is my first car

Never get rid of it. You'll spend tens of thousands later to relive the dream.

Rustspecs13 wrote: 2k in repairs is nothing over 2-3-4-5 years. You think newer cars are better? They get the bonus of more expensive, more technologically advanced stuff to break! You'll spend more when it breaks. Especially turbo cars. They love cooking things to death. Id stick to your alltrack, or get something Japanese from 95-99. They start getting more complicated 99 and up. But in the middle of that range Ive found a sweet spot of cheap, yet not too old, and not too complicated. Then again, for 2K I could fix every thing on my 240sx I wanted to. New steering rack, a few bushings and stuff, and the normal water pump, timing chain tensioner, the hud for once, the tie rods, etc etc. I love pre-OBD cars, sooo simple. I'd even drive it straight to california as is, and I just hit a wall at columbus motor speed way with it! ~Alex

good points, thinking about sticking with my red headed whore.

what else do you drive besides your 240?

smog7 wrote: the $2k was just an estimate, leaving out oil changes and other smaller stuff.. but yeah, just like how 93celicaGT2 said, my alltrac still needs a ton of repairs! and parts aren't exactly easy (or cheap) to find, even 5th gen gts widebody parts are a bitch to find in junkyards.

Tell me about it. Took me MONTHS to find a good set of widebody fenders for my car.

Junkyards aren't aware that there are two styles, so they list everything as GTS. I drove 150 miles to a junkyard only to find that they were fenders off a narrowbody. I was livid.

I'd stick with it, honestly. If you must get another car, get the cheapest ugliest POS you can possibly find.

Might i suggest a 91-96 Escort? Should be able to get a mechanically acceptable one for $500.

^yup, and after a late run in with some dirt I am in need of a front passenger side fender. Found out one of previous owners bondo'd the crap out of the fender.

ahh the joy of driving a 20 year turbo, awd rally car

The motor in the mazdaspeed car is anemic to say the least. Any boost beyond stock is a recipe for rod emancipation. The car runs dangerously lean to begin with.

As far as the Neon...well it's a Neon. Looks cheap, feels cheap and draws attention you really don't want. But it is damn fast.

However you have an AllTrac..why would you get rid of such a rare piece of awesome? Keep the thing, and buy a 90s protege or neon.

Not to mention you've been holding onto your first car this long. A lot of us here regret losing that first car and I know 200% of us would regret losing our first car, a friggin' celica alltrac.

If you really need cheap transportation I would get just that and keep your alltrac at home where you can start wrenching to give it whatever it needs to be reliable transportation (wouldn't need to insure it while it is down for maintenance if need be).

Yeah, there are a few cars I wish I held onto, like my 1st car, a '91 VW GTI 2l 16v. Or the '93 VW Corrado SLC, or the '88 Porsche 944 Turbo S...

MrBenjamonkey wrote: Left field suggestion, but if you want a nice DD with sporting pretensions that's really comfy ....

WORD!

If you were not in California, I would totally buy the hell out of your All-trac. I have wanted one of those for a LOONNG time.

fastEddie wrote:

MrBenjamonkey wrote: Left field suggestion, but if you want a nice DD with sporting pretensions that's really comfy ....

Wow! I've never been much of a Supra fan but that pic is full of epic 80's sexy win-sauce! Ah, much easier/actually possible to edit via iPad on the mobile version... More info? Or just a random HL?

This one's a random HL, but I had an 89 Supra Turbo in college and loved it. It was too heavy, but damn it was comfy, it got 28 mpg and it was fast. Oh, and I got mine for 1300 bucks. You could get a really, really nice one for 6K.

The one in the picture has an 89 plus front end and some sort of mild lip. Other than that, it's just wheels.

The Focus SVT has the same power as the MSP, is cheaper, handles just as well, and doesn't have the turbo issues.

The SVT doesn't have the torque of the SRT-4, but they are half the price, handle way better and easier to find unmolested.

Mine have been dead reliable - Cosworth had a lot to do with the SVT Zetec excellence, but even the base Zetec is very reliable.

SVTF wrote: The Focus SVT has the same power as the MSP, is cheaper, handles just as well, and doesn't have the turbo issues. The SVT doesn't have the torque of the SRT-4, but they are half the price, handle way better and easier to find unmolested. Mine have been dead reliable - Cosworth had a lot to do with the SVT Zetec excellence, but even the base Zetec is very reliable.

2000-2005 Celica GTS is all the same points, probably just slightly more so, at a slightly higher price.

I just don't feel that the MSP is on the same level as the other options.

Handling on the MSP is definitely on the same level (or better, if compared to the SRT4). My son has a MP3 which is essentially the same chassis and suspension. It handles great. We took it to an autocross (ahem, driving school) with dumb street tires. I took first in GS, my son took second.

I think the only weakness of the MSP is the drivetrain - just not meant for boost. And at least around here, the prices are crazy high.

SVTF wrote: Handling on the MSP is definitely on the same level (or better, if compared to the SRT4). My son has a MP3 which is essentially the same chassis and suspension. It handles great. We took it to an autocross (ahem, driving school) with dumb street tires. I took first in GS, my son took second. I think the only weakness of the MSP is the drivetrain - just not meant for boost. And at least around here, the prices are crazy high.

The drivetrain is what would make me shy away from it. That and the horrific tune they have on them from factory.

I'd rather an MP3.

The Alltrac is such an awesome car and you only have your first car once (usually). Keep it and buy a Saturn or Neon cheap off CL. You will regret getting ride of the Alltrac.

I love the Focus SVT. Easy to find in better shape is true but around here (KC, MO) hard to find at all. I see maybe one or two a year, usually at dealers after a trade in with a ridiculous mark up.

SRT-4's are more common, and in my opinion an equally cool car. I wish Dodge would have continued to develop it instead of producing the Caliber, which is of course disgusting.

All that having been said, the best time to buy an SRT-4 was probably a few years ago. So many have been butchered, or at least have the "black hood " treatment. Its the new Camaro, the fastest car in the trailer park, although it is legitimately fast.

I almost bought one from a Dodge dealership in 2005. I was sitting in the car and got a call for a family emergency and had to leave immediately. Never went back to the dealership, didn't "need" a car. Car had $14,995 on the winshield. Should have gone back. Then again, things happen for a reason.

Ever look at the Saabaru?

Consider this another vote for a school beater car. Garage the Alltrac at your parents if it's an option (my parents would've laughed at me though).

Either that or get a 90's Celica, Integra, Civic, Sentra, etc. Maybe even a E36 non-M (someone else should probably comment on that one though, as I have little experience with BMWs). I also like the idea of the Focus SVT.

Like others have said $2K in maintenance is cheap over that time period. Most turbo, awd, new-ish cars are not cheap, no matter what.

do you live at college.. or commute? If you live there, do you really need the car? If not, take it off the road at your parents and save your insurance money to get the work done that it needs done.

I commuted to college driving a 1975 Fiat 124 Spider.. when I made $200 aweek at a gas station, back in the early 90s