This 2000 Mazda Protegé Broke the Mold—Literally
The bright-orange 2000 Mazda Protegé born from a forgotten concept-car mold and a tuner’s obsession.
Motor Trend ArchiveWriterJohn NaderiPhotographerAlan MuirIllustration ByNov 11, 2025
000 001 2000 mazda protege ballistic unlimited orange custom build super street magazine may 2002 alan muir design
[This story originally appeared in the May 2002 issue of Super Street.] Orange. It is both an adjective and a noun. Both a descriptor and the described. It is two things occupying the exact same spot in physical space, taunting the space-time continuum, threatening to end the universe as we know it. It’s not possible! I scream with anger, can you hear me? \”Aaaaah.\” Shield your ears! Shield your ears!
John Malozsak. Owner of Ballistic Unlimited, a company that blankets the earth in stylish apparel. Chances are if you wear clothes—if you, like a mindless sheep, have hopped on the “wearing clothes\” bandwagon, a trend that has swept the nation—then you may have worn the kind made by Ballistic Unlimited. John has been in the scene for 15 years, and now, as a business owner, he can take his compact-performance hobby to unheard-of levels. Except now you’re hearing about it, as this Protegé is too good to go unnoticed.
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001 2000 mazda protege ballistic unlimited orange custom build super street magazine may 2002
Four weeks. That’s how long it took John and his cronies to paste together this Mazda. Super Street can barely print a magazine in four weeks, let alone fabricate all the audio and video fixtures in this Protegé the way John did with his very own hands. But with a Kenwood system like his, you too would demand to install it yourself, raving and stomping around, knocking over expensive china, and throwing rocks at the sun. Speaker enclosures form islands of sound in the doors. The expert craftsmanship is most apparent in the trunk, where a Kenwood monitor and wave after wave of custom-built stereo enclosures greet you with four dB subs, like an orange juice flood, the vitamin C-shore at low tide. (Get it? C-shore!)
Do you like my body? We like the Protegé’s body. The kit on the Protegé is one of only a few in existence. Do you like the look of it and want to own one for yourself? Well, you’re SOL; the kit originates from a plaster mold that was made by Mazda strictly for a Protegé concept car. When John found it moldering in the Mazda dungeon, he saved it, defeated the evil dragon, and managed to squeeze one more kit from the fragile mold. The mold has since cracked and turned to crap, but the kit continues to live on in glory on john’s car, to taunt the rest of you Protegé owners out there. Fancy the wing? Similar story. It’s from an early MP3 concept car, meaning it’s as rare as an edible meal at Sizzler.
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002 2000 mazda protege ballistic unlimited orange interior custom build super street
Party time. You may have seen this car at Hot Import Nights. You may have seen this car on the Super Street Tour. We have. And we like it. Ooh yeah. You also may have noticed the Mazda logos glowing in the seats. That showstopping effect comes courtesy of some \”experimental\” fiber optics from Federal Mogul. At long last, it finally appears that technology stripped from downed alien aircraft is finally being considered for consumer applications. Looks pretty tight, huh? That’s one tasty burger. The fiber optics also illuminate the door panels and center console. Talk about shedding a little \”light\” on the situation. Even under the hood, the party doesn’t stop; go ahead and admire the polished intake and valve cover and candy-blue powdercoating.
The future. Is it possible to top the awe-inspiring, electric-boogaloo–inducing Mazda Protegé that appears before you on these pages, trapped forever in the prison of photography? Well, John is sure as hell going to try, this time with a Mazda Protegé5. Expect to see lots of top-secret Mazda accessories and more of that trademark Ballistic ingenuity. Orange you excited?
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FAST FACTS: 2000 MAZDA PROTEGÉ\nOWNER: John Malozsak\nHOMETOWN: Huntington Beach, CA\nDAILY GRIND: Owner of Ballistic Unlimited\nUNDER THE HOOD: 1.8L four-cylinder engine, Monster Flew intake and air cleaner, Bosal after-cat exhaust, Vitek ignition wires and vacuum lines, Hose Techniques hoses, Nitrous Express 50hp wet kit, Optima battery, Jet Performance computer upgrade\nSTIFF STIFF: Intrax springs\nROLLERS: Axis Speed-Six wheels (19×8.25), Pirelli P7000 tires (215/35-19\nOUTSIDE: Custom body kit and rear wing, louvered hood by Sir Michael’s, lettering by Modern Image Signworks, Orange Pearl paint with glass-bead topcoat and candy-coated headlights and taillights by Body Pros, APC Sport mirrors, blue undercar neon by Matt Strange\nINSIDE: Cobra Sidewinder racing seats, Katakin Leather upgrade, Autopower rollbar, Nardi Sport steering wheel, Federal Mogul fiber-optic lighting, indirect interior neon by Matt Strange\nICE: Kenwood P907 head unit (audio/video) system, LZ 700 rear monitor, KAC-X501 subamplifier, DAZ-X401 mid/high amplifier, KFC-XW100B subwoofer (x4), KFC-XR60P mid/tweet combo, Pure Platinum F3 wiring and cables\nStay Ahead of the Curve.\nGet the newest car reviews, hottest auto news, and expert analysis of the latest trends delivered straight to your inbox!”
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The Ballistic Build: A 2000 Mazda Protegé That Defied Expectations
An Enthusiast’s Vision: Capturing the Spirit of the Early 2000s
In the golden era of import tuning, the 2000 Mazda Protegé wasn’t merely a budget-friendly compact car; it was a canvas waiting for individual expression. For enthusiasts like John Malozsak, the founder of the lifestyle apparel brand Ballistic Unlimited, the Protegé represented a perfect blend of affordability, reliability, and untapped performance potential. Unlike the more established tuning icons of the era—the Civic, Corolla, or WRX—the Mazda Protegé provided a fresh starting point for those willing to look beyond the mainstream. This article delves into the story of one such build: a highly customized 2000 Mazda Protegé that emerged not from a factory line
