Used Mazda Protege for Sale

I got my Mazda off a used car lot, she was my first car, from the start she needed a little help(80,000 miles), new tires, alignment, and a throttle body to keep the idle in check. She ran like a new car, getting 28-30 mpg, when the model is estimated to have 25mpg, smooth and easy to handle, perfect for a beginner driver. She came with those silly low profile "summer" tires, and since winter in Ohio was coming they had to go, the tiny wheel size was very limiting in what brands and types of tires I could get, but ended up with mid-grade "Wal-Mart tires" with a full warranty, and they were a huge help when the snow started to come down. Had to get the alignment done, cause I noticed the steering wheel wasn't straight anymore, turned out my tie rod was busted, a trip to the garage revealed my tie rod was busted, after getting that fixed and aligned (along with a wheel balance) I could hardly believe how smooth and straight my car was driving again. I needed to replace my throttle body due to the sensors being shot, and it telling the car it needs to have the throttle OPEN, running at higher RPMs than it should be at (2000rpm), after a simple remove, and replace, she went back down to a purring idle (700-800rpm)

The car gets some 40 MPG and I drive a lot, so this is number one in my book. Repairs are not too bad either. The parts are reasonably priced and I can do a lot of the work myself.

Overall this is a good car for commuting to work as it has decent gas mileage for being 16 years old. It's needed repairs (alternator, brakes) but some of that is to be expected when getting an older used car. The body doesn't look pretty at this point but the engine still runs well. It starts up with no problem during the cold Minnesota winter and doesn't leak or anything. Overall I've been satisfied with the car. The interior has held up well and still looks great. The radio is in working condition. I enjoy that it has a sun roof. If I had to fault it for anything it would be the amount of rust around the wheels, but again the car is 16 years old. I would probably get a Mazda again, the mileage is good and there haven't been many problems. With proper maintenance it should continue to run well for a few more years and maybe then I can upgrade to a newer Mazda.