These two were something special in their day, though they’re lost among their lesser bretheren in the classifieds now. But sometimes, an option package transforms a car into something very special indeed, though you have to know what you’re looking at to realize it. “Special Editions” of cars aren’t always all that special often they’re just some badges and stripes. It runs well, and passed its California smog test, but is currently unregistered. The seller says it has a new head gasket and water pump they should have replaced the timing belt too, but it’s worth asking to make sure. Cosmetically it’s not bad it’s missing the lower grille in front, and it looks like the plastic side mirrors have faded at a different rate from the rest of the paint, but for a twenty-year-old performance car aimed at young male buyers, it has held up remarkably well. They look all right, but I do worry that they’d rub. The wheels aren’t standard either the seller says they’re Mitsubishi Lancer Evo wheels. The MOMO steering wheel is aftermarket, of course, and made possible by an airbag-delete hub (kids, don’t try this at home). This car isn’t stock, but the degree to which it isn’t stock is unclear. The requisite boy-racer body kit and rear wing were included too, and if I remember correctly, they only came in two colors – this lurid pearlescent yellow, or a more grown-up looking pewter silver. It carried over the MP3’s four-wheel disc brakes and Racing Beat suspension pieces, but upped the ante with a turbocharged version of the two-liter FS-DE engine, putting out 170 horsepower instead of the MP3’s 140, or my lowly DX’s 130. The MS, as it was known in shorthand in Mazda forums, was an improved version of an earlier Protegé performance package, known as the MP3. I was proud of my plain white sedan, but when I took it in for its first “freebie” oil change, this car was sitting in the showroom: the Mazdaspeed Protegé.
2003 mazda protege es timing belt kit manual#
Mine was a lowly DX model, bereft of power options or even a tach, but it had the tight handling and the smooth-shifting five-speed manual that had gained the Protegé high praise in reviews. Mazda’s third-generation Protegé sedan, known as the 323 or Familia in the rest of the world, is the one and only car I ever bought new, in 2002. I don’t know for sure if that’s what happened to this one, but it’s the most common failure on these engines, so it’s a good bet. If the problem is ignored, the engine isn’t long for this world. This, of course, contaminates the oil, making it slugdy and ineffective at its one job – lubrication. The water pump is mounted inside the V between the cylinder banks, driven by the timing chain, and its gasket has a tendency to fail and allow coolant into the oil. The trouble here is that the Chrysler 2.7 liter V6 has an Achilles heel, and it’s a doozy. The Sebring GTC is so rare that I actually had trouble finding any information on it even Allpar, the great repository of Chrysler lore, barely mentions it. The only “cloud car” variant with a manual that I knew of was the base-model Dodge Stratus and Plymouth Breeze, with the Neon’s 2.0 liter four and a five-speed. I had absolutely no idea this car existed, and I’m kind of a Mopar guy. And in this version, the GTC, that 200 horsepower engine fed the front wheels through a five-speed stick. For its second generation, the Sebring convertible gained a stiffer structure and improved suspension, making it a decent-handling car, and a serious boost in power from Chrysler’s new 2.7 liter V6. 2003 Chrysler Sebring GTC – $1,000īut maybe, just maybe, if more enthusiasts had known about this version, the Sebring could have gotten more respect. Which got me thinking: Could I find another car that’s a rare and special version of an otherwise humdrum car to pit against it? As it turns out, I could. Did you have any idea there was a “ Holy Grail” version of the Chrysler Sebring convertible? Neither did I. I immediately consulted our in-house Sebring expert, S.W. When I was looking for cars the other day, I happened upon something I’d never seen before – a Chrysler Sebring with a very rare option package. This is a great two-car garage for someone. Thinking about it now, that’s the right call. Lots of commenters wanted a “Both” choice, and I actually did consider adding one in when I was making the poll. But honestly, these are both cool little cars that deserve good homes. Looks like the boxy off-roader wins it by a nose. But before we do, let’s see which Suzuki you picked: Happy Friday, Autopians! On today’s episode, we’re looking at two cars that look like nothing special at all – unless you show them to the right people, and then those people get all excited.
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