Though the low-effort steering can have an over-assisted, rubber-band feel at modest lock under light loads (a trait shared by the current Civic Si), both on-center and when you’re tossing the car precisely through a curve the rack and column seem to transmit EVERTYTHING through a relatively thin, minimally padded rim to your fingertips.
First of all, despite a 2,800-pound curb weight, the car’s reactions to steering inputs are quicker than in any compact hatch I’ve driven since buying it. The Protege5 remains relevant for the same reasons I still own it. How does it possibly remain relevant today? So the P5 was designed and engineered back in the mid-nineties.
I got a great deal ($18,900 MSRP, paid $13,400) because the new Mazda3 was in transit. When I bought my Protege5 back in November 2003, it was already at the end of its run.
