1995 Mazda Protege Preview Test Drive
Smack in the middle of a recession and at a time when “good, but cheap” were consumer buzzwords, the Mazda Protégé, introduced for 1995 arrived at a very bad time. Sure it was nicely designed and piled high with valuable qualities, but at a substantial price. In short, the right car at the wrong time.
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When this model debuted here in Barbados, it was known as the Mazda Lantis (or the Mazda Familia for JDM versions that were popular as ‘reconditioned’ cars at the time). I remember thinking how big it looked compared to the previous Mazda 323 that it replaced on the local market. It seemed at the time that any aspirational middle manager couldn’t wait to get their hands on one, as they were marketed as ‘executive’ cars here. My first experience driving one came in 2006 when I rented one for a few days while my own car, a Toyota Starlet GT turbo, was in the shop. While the Mazda handled well enough, I couldn’t get over how awfully slow and heavy it felt. Well, at least in comparison to my car; it was an automatic while my car was a manual. It also seemed to really drink a lot of gas and was slow to accelerate when I stood on it. Maybe it just wasn’t tuned well, but otherwise, it was quite comfortable.