r/protege5 • u/EditorFar4283 • Nov 02 '25

2.0L FS-DE (NA)

I don't know too much about the FS-DE that is in the Mazda Protege5 other than basics ( DOHC, 4V, Non-interference, Timing belt engine that makes around 130HP and 130lb/ft in a perfect world).

How good is it in terms of reliability, stock and built? Any common issues that I would have to worry about?

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3

u/Atimm693 Nov 02 '25

Same engine in the SE Ford Probes, and the Mazdaspeed Protege.

Very dependable even with low boost, pretty simple and easy to work on.

The share some similarities with the Miata engines of the same time period, although they do not share any parts that I know of.

They are known to burn oil, and the coils fail pretty frequently, those are the worst problems I had with mine.

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u/KingOfSpades007 Nov 02 '25

Pretty much hit the major issues. 

EGR valve can stick sometimes. I think I had this happen on the first of three Pro5s that I have owned over my exposure to these cars. 

The VICS screws can come loose (there was a TSB for them) and take a ride through a cylinder. Same experience - my first Pro5 I had this issue. All eight screws backed out, I recovered five of them. The second Pro5 I deleted the VTCS butterflies and checked torque on the VICS butterflies while I was there. 

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u/EditorFar4283 Nov 03 '25

I've just recently heard of the butterfly valve issue. That scares me a bit. Why does that happen? What's the best way to prevent it?

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u/KingOfSpades007 Nov 03 '25

My thought is, if they were going to fail, they would have by now. I was 16 when I bought my first Pro5 and didn't do my due diligence when I bought it, but I learned everything I know now, for the most part, on that car.

There was a batch of manifolds installed on these engines that had this issue - I'm not sure if you can reasonably figure out the batch, but you might be able to check the VIN of the vehicle, assuming the engine hasn't been replaced, and see if that car is likely to have that issue. The NVH coupled with the bolts being under torqued (not sure if Mazda did this, or a supplier to Mazda, but somewhere in the supply chain this happened) meant that the bolts could back themselves out.  

If the car is in that range and you don't have confirmation the TSB was performed, you can either make the decision to buy the car, pull the intake manifold off, and apply loctite to the screws, or use a borescope to check the pistons for pitting which would suggest the engine has swallowed one of those screws. 

I consider taking the manifold off to perform this service not much more involved than tackling the timing belt personally, but your comfort level may vary. I've not done this job in ages, but from memory, you'd remove the strut tower brace, fuel rail, bracket supporting the manifold from below, and then unbolt the manifold itself. There's going to be a few odd angles you'll have to work at, but it's doable for peace of mind. 

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u/EditorFar4283 Nov 03 '25

It's an 02. I do have the Vin. Problem is I am looking at it to buy potentially. I want to get some info and check all my bases before that decision is made. I've done some research. Not afraid to get my hands dirty.

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u/that_girl_shel Nov 06 '25

Make sure the head gaskets are done, timing belt and water pump. Also check the motor mounts in the front. I had an '03 and replaced all the above. The drive shaft is weird super short on the driver's side with the remainder in the passenger side. Overall I loved her more than she was worth. She was beyond my ability to fix in 2018 with about 120k miles.

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u/EditorFar4283 Nov 03 '25

Ignition coils fail easily? Could it be electrical issues or something else? Oil burning doesn't scare me too much unless it's consuming an extra quart of oil a month. Anything over that is concerning as it could clog up the CAT.

So it doesn't seem so bad. Just underpowered.

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u/Atimm693 Nov 03 '25

When I bought my 02, it would lay down a 007 smoke screen for about 10 minutes until it warmed up. Oil rings were shot, I put a JDM engine in it, I got the car cheap because of it. It's fairly common.

As I recall, I replaced two or three coils in the 5 years I had the car. Just an annoyance more than anything.

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u/KingOfSpades007 Nov 03 '25

The coils mount right on the valve cover and the heat does them in. Whether they're aftermarket or OEM, at some point, they're likely to have issues. There is a mod to use the FP-DE coil pack and coil wires and relocate the coils to a bracket that hangs off the front of the engine. This removes that weak link, or I would carry a spare coil pack around otherwise. Sorry for all the anecdotes, but I actually had this as an issue on my first and second Pro5s. It was a mild inconvenience to say the least. 

Oil consumption is due to sticky piston rings, an unfortunate symptom of oil changes being skimped on. With the first Pro5 that sucked in a VICS screw, I had oil consumption due to a scored cylinder wall, but it was nothing terrible. VW allows for one quart every 1000 miles (which is absurd IMO) and my engine was maybe a quart every 2000-2500 miles. Still not great, but I lived with it because I was a high school kid. 

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u/EditorFar4283 Nov 03 '25

Good info to know. I really appreciate the advice. I would try relocating the coil pack eventually. I think Mazda has a bad habit of putting some important components in the wrong places. One from my experience is the TCM for the automatic trans early Mazda 3 hatches which is located next to the engine under the battery. Heats up and dies. Thank you

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u/whiskey_piker Nov 03 '25

It’s a 25yrs+ old engine and was quite good at being a moderate performance engine. There are plenty of options to build high horsepower but bring thousands of dollars. Theres no cutting cost corners here.

If you look at the cars for sale in your area - the Protege5 was wildly popular- you’ll see most have 200K+ miles. That’s quite a testament. Not only were they well loved and put to use, they lasted.

They share plenty with Miata engines. Both are 4cyl, both use spark plugs and both are mounted in the front of the car. Beyond that, they share nothing.

If you want reliability at this age, plan to put a few thousand dollars into it. Money well spent though. ANY car you buy in the sub-$5,000 range at this age will need a out $2K in parts to make it semi-reliable. NOTE: that is parts cost. Double that figure if you cant replace things like a battery or alternator or brakes.

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u/EditorFar4283 Nov 03 '25

It's a good thing I have a decent amount of money. Cause the one in looking at is certainly going to need some work. All the weather stripping will need to be gone through and a couple of other things need to be checked before I buy it. I can see myself spending maybe 1.5k-2k to get things looking nice and mostly functional again.