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January 2006 RotM - Naprotejay

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    January 2006 RotM - Naprotejay

    A few days late, but it's well worth it . The very first ClubProtege Ride of the Month for the 2006 year is long time member "Naprotejay" *claps*. This is one of my personal favorites among the 1st gens. It's such a clean car, and a strong motor under the hood to boot. Very few other members have contributed as much "NA" knowledge as Naprotejay, and his multiple dyno's have provided a lot of tuning information. Lets all give a big congratulations to this beautiful car.

    1991 Mazda Protege LX
    its been a great, reliable, fun car. Still like the looks as well compared to most cars of its size..... If I could go back in time and buy another just like it, I would











    Modifications

    Engine stuff:

    Newly rebuilt 10:1 motor - see this post for the details -

    Genie header
    Catco cat in a custom 2" midpipe
    EDM Martelius 2" mandrel bent resonated catback

    Suspension/Brake stuff:

    Escort ZX2 S/R struts with matching Eibach springs
    Energy Suspension lower control arm, trailing link, and front swaybar bushings
    Suspension Techniques rear swaybar
    OffTheLine Motorsports rear tie bar
    Corksport stainless brake lines and clutch line

    Interior/Exterior:

    MX3 front seats
    MX3 SE leather steering wheel
    PPG '10-year' clear white paint(factory match) with a coats of epoxy underneath it all and 4 coats of clear on the hood, roof, and trunk
    205/50/15 Falken Azenis mounted on F2 Ultralights

    Future plans:

    Baseline Dyno comes tomorrow
    Then Megasquirt II install; 'exhintake' cam ala Gen1GT; and some new - perhaps interesting stuff - for the intake......
    Once I get that running well and tuned, I would like to do something to the exhaust from the header back........

    About Naprotejay and His Car:

    My 1st car was a '71 Ford 4-door LTD. A big 'boat' with a big engine - 429 4V ......... actually a fun car - had lots of torque

    Anyways I had saved some money up for a downpayment and starting looking for a new small car. I remember looking at the Civic, Sentra, Escort, etc.... I then test-drove a Tracer LTS and liked it a lot. In fact I probably would have gotten one of those if my aunt hadn't sugggested I look at the Mazda Protege as well. So dad and I went, test-drove a maroon LX, and I was sold I decided on either a white or light blue LX with the optional moonroof package (was talked out of black - that was my original choice). The dealer didn't have one optioned like that, but a week or so later they located one about ~150 miles away. We signed the paperwork, and mom drove me to the other dealership so that I could drive it home (I wanted to personally pick up the car - NOT have it driven/transported to the dealer I was working with). I still remember spotting the car at the other dealership and driving it home............ That was Dec 5 '90, the '91 model had 15 miles on it.

    So I varied the revs on the way home and for the next 600 miles. Then after that '600' mile mark passed, I remember taking it up to redline several times one night, and of course it has seen a lot of redlines over the years. The car was very reliable. IIRC only 2 things were needed under warranty: a bad thermostat, and a rusted out fuel filler neck. I have changed the oil personally since the 1,500 mile mark.

    It has seen one accident I was on a twisty rural 2 lane road and while approaching a corner I took my eyes off the road to mess with the radio When I looked up, I was in the curve and going off the road.... so I just reacted by jerking the steering to the left. That sent me into a spin, and so 360+ degrees later I came to a stop when I smacked a mailbox on the front right passenger side fender. Needless to say, I owned up to my responsibility and bought the homeowner a new mailbox and pole. This did some pretty good damage to the front end of my car, and its something that still bugs me to this day; as the front-end parts don't line up like they should. I've worked on it some over the years, but I still need to hammer some stuff around to see if I can get it closer to the way it should be. Man that was a stupid accident.....

    Mods have only come 'recently'..... I didn't do anything to the car untill the very late 90's when I came across mazdaracer's site on the internet, as well as the old protegetech site, and protegeclub.com. Some of the parts were wearing out/old, so I figured I'd start upgrading the suspension, do some bolt-on's, etc. The paint was really bad, as it had seen lots of rocks, etc while being in montana for 5 years. I helped out a good friend of mine in Florida who repainted the car for me in the middle of nowhere at a paint-booth he had set up at his grandmother's house.

    That's pretty much the story - its been a great, reliable, fun car. Still like the looks as well compared to most cars of its size..... If I could go back in time and buy another just like it, I would




    2013 Dodge Dart Aero

    #2
    A nicely-modded car and it looks great, too. A well-deserved win. Congratulations.

    Happy Motoring!
    02 DX Millenium Red - The Penultimate Driving Machine
    MP3 Strut Tower Bar kit; Cusco Front Lower Arm Tie Bar
    MSP Springs, Struts, Stabilizer Bars, Trailing Links, #3 Engine Mount
    Kartboy Stabilizer Bar Bushings; Nyloil Shifter Bushings; Red Line MT-90 Gear Oil
    MP3 Shifter, Knob and Aluminum Pedal Set
    Suvlights HD Wiring Harness; Osram Night Breaker H4 Bulbs; Exide Edge AGM Battery
    Summer: 5Zigen FN01R-C 16 x 7" Wheels; Yoko S.drive 205/45-16s
    Winter: Enkei OR52 16 x 7" Wheels; Falken Ziex ZE-912 205/45-16s
    Modified OEM Air Intake; Racing Beat Exhaust System; Techna-Fit SS Clutch Line
    Denso SKJ16CR-L11 Extended Tip Spark Plugs; Magnecor Wires
    Power Slot Front Brake Rotors; Techna-Fit SS Brake Lines; Hawk HPS Pads
    Red Line Synthetic Engine Oil; C/S Aluminum Oil Cap
    Cyberdyne Digital Gauges: Tach; Ambient Air Temp; Voltmeter

    Comment


      #3
      Congrats Naprotejay. Very nice.
      The T3 BP MX-3 conversion has begun, and is taking forever & will kill me.

      Comment


        #4
        Hell Yes!

        Comment


          #5
          Fo Shizzle!

          I remember seeing it in person a little after it was painted...looked awesome, still does

          Comment


            #6
            Bad ass ride dude, congrats!

            1994 Mazda Protege DX - Automatic - 47K miles - AM/FM/Cass - 13" Hubcaps

            Comment


              #7
              Congrats man!!!

              Comment


                #8
                Yes! This is way overdue!
                -------------------------
                '91 LX
                '03 Mazdaspeed Protege #235
                -------------------------

                Originally posted by pigeon
                well if you're a fan of inaccuracy and uncertainty.... then by all means, go set your timing by feel and sound

                while you're out there, you might as well adjust your air/fuel ratio by smell... and your tire pressure by ride height

                Comment


                  #9
                  Congrats nice clean Protege, keep the good work bro!!!
                  '93 Protege DX 5spd'
                  2" Exhaust System
                  2.5" Custom Intake System
                  Other minor tuning (timing, etc)

                  Comment


                    #10
                    1st gen represent... congrats

                    Comment


                      #11
                      I have to post again If I had a choice, this is the car that I would be willing to do a trade with. Forget all the GTR garbage!
                      -------------------------
                      '91 LX
                      '03 Mazdaspeed Protege #235
                      -------------------------

                      Originally posted by pigeon
                      well if you're a fan of inaccuracy and uncertainty.... then by all means, go set your timing by feel and sound

                      while you're out there, you might as well adjust your air/fuel ratio by smell... and your tire pressure by ride height

                      Comment


                        #12
                        Nice! Congrats you definately deserve it. Cool as hell that you bought her brand new and still have it today!
                        Eat ****.

                        Comment


                          #13
                          thanks guys! I didn't even know what was going on untill marc93lx pm'd me.... lol

                          I hate to say it, but I hadn't even been in this part of the forum! its been interesting to look at some of the previous rotm's and hear the stories, see the nice pics, look at the mods, etc.... good stuff.

                          the new pics were taken recently, in sort of a hurry. pretty much the same as the photo gallery thread of my car.

                          the collage of pics (clockwise starting top left) show the car when it was brand new, on the way back east off the interstate in texas, being prepped for paint at a friend's house, and after being painted in the middle of nowhere florida.
                          Original owner: 1991 Protege LX (now w/SOHC) and a few more BG's ....

                          Comment


                            #14
                            Congrats man! Keep up the good work! Very Clean!!
                            "mess with the mazda...... mess with the chick......."mazdachic"




                            I don't go looking for no trouble but somehow the trouble always finds me, Don't make me have you in the trauma center With your momma crying cause her only son is dying, She just don't know it's just your karma catching up cause I'm a Drama Setter

                            Comment


                              #15
                              Good stuff. Way to go.
                              1991 Protege LX with GTX swap, DD
                              1990 4WD Protege with GTX swap, Project/garage decoration
                              2006 Mazda 3 with 2.3, Her car
                              1980 Ford F100 Short bed with 300ci 6 cylinder, work truck/home for moss

                              Comment

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