91 Mazda Proceed

I'm looking at buying one, took it out for a test drive and noticed that there is a lot of play in the steering wheel meaning that i start turning the steering wheel before the wheels turn, sorry dont know how to explain it.also the heater doesn't work, are those two things fixable and if so is it easy to do!.cheers for your time.

If it's got the 2.6 engine in it be very careful of any cooling system issues , get it checked properly.

thanks for that, yes it is a 2.6, what is most likely to fail on the cooling system

Most likely just the steering box is out of adjustment, but of course you want to be sure thats all it is, if you are used to driving a rack and pinion steer car (most modern cars on the road) they will feel noticeably vague in the steering in comparison.At minimum get a mechanic to put it through a pre WOF check to get a better idea of what you are buying.Heater!could be anything from a broken cable to a blocked heater core to a thermostat thats stuck open, if its one of the latter two, again you need to get a better idea of what you are buying.These engines are a modified Mitsi unit that are shockers for cracking heads if the cooling system hasn't been maintained properly, if its been overheating a common trick is to remove the thermostat completely to try and disguise it, thus the system and heater doesn't get hot enough.Sadly with them knocking on 20 years old theres bound to have been a slacker somewhere along the line who hasn't changed antifreeze or had radiators flushed properly somewhere in that time.If theres any evidence of this don't go near it!Make sure also that there isn't any odd tapping or rattling from the front or top of the engine when its running.You also need to be aware that these vehicles are also more expensive to keep in petrol than most large six cylinder cars, and without the performance to go with it.Beware!

As said above, the heads crack badly. The motors are very expensive to repair and far from economical to run. Good luck.

As with most 4x4 vehicles steering is usually a little vague. I wouldn't get to worried about that. Over the years I have sold many of these vehicles and they have generally been very reliable. But like any vehicle general servicing is advised. I think the people above are being a little harsh on the 2.6 motor which is in many Mitsi's and generally reliable.

thanks for all your info i will take it with me when i go for a second test drive

I took the proceed out for second test drive today, with the knowledge given here and more research of my own, i didn't buy it.more proof that red doesn't go fast