Miata Owners...
 

Seen a few here mention that they own or have owned Miata...lets see them!

Here is mine...it's a 97.

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y47...ta/RearEnd.jpg

Since this picture we got the suspension upgraded so it is a bit lower and added new gauges on the pillar. :beers:

All we have done to it is installed the roll bar, Konig wheels, upgraded the suspension, new speakers and stereo (nothing fancy but the old speakers were blown) and Carbon Tech brakes which my husband is currently taking off the car...we only use them for track days (was at Horse Thief Mile at Willow Springs yesterday :rockwoot:) and not for the streets because they squeak SOOOO loud! :panic:

So lets see what you have...

If anyone has race seats...please tell me about them. I want some but want some feedback on what you have.

Maybe I was dreaming what I saw other people say they had Miatas! :panic:

R6chick has one

A lot of people have had them, but it is typically slow on motorcycle forums over the weekend, especially as the weather has started to turn bearable in a lot of the country. I'm sure some will jump on this Monday.

RacerX had one.

James

I'm not sure if the guys want to admit it. LOL

used to own a '94 that had ALOT of work done to it



FM springs / sways
kyb AGX shocks
brospeed header
thermal exhaust
JR CAI
engine bored .30 over, balanced and blueprinted
BBS 15" LE mesh wheels
low pro headlights
hard dog hard core 2x bar
r package skirts
trailer hitch
boston speakers
kenwood H/U

I just sold my '99 10AE a couple of days ago.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3322/...6c68df29_o.jpg

Here's my new '08 GT I bought a couple of weeks ago. Totally stock for now, but not for long. I've already ordered Tein Mono Flex coilovers, Mazdaspeed CAI, and Mazda ipod adapter for it. A Roadstersport Q exhaust, AWR rollbar, Voodoo shift knob, and Enkei 17x9's w/ RA1's are next..

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3460/...096c781a_o.jpg

There's a well-prepped '08 at my local track (Harris Hill Road) that is #4 or 5 on their lap time rankings. #1 is a Radical (1:18i), #2 a Ferrari 355 Challenge car (1:19), then IIRC a 911 GT3 RS (1:23), then IIRC the Miata @ 1:26. I drove it for a session on Sunday, and it was amazing, the most fun I've ever had on 4 wheels!

How much do each of the 3 Miata generations weigh?

They all vary dep. on year, model variations, etc., but off the top of my head, I'd say roughly:

NA: 2100 -2300
NB: 2300 - 2500
NC: 2450 - 2500

They're the lightest sports car in production today that's not a Lotus.

Well that's still pretty good........I was assuming the latest one would be around 2800, given how much cars have gained these days.

OMG..the 1990 was 16% lighter than the newest version. Japan is def. going in the wrong direction.
LOL

A Smart car is lighter at 1609.

Looks pretty much the same to me. lol

It does look like the origanal but trust me they are different. If you had two of them in the exact color both with perfect exteriors, you would be able to tell them apart at a distance.

James

I know I know I'm only fuckin around with Chris S...since he loves me so much. redflip

:lol:

Chris, it was fun seeing you out there...

and its most definately not a sports car :P

miatas i dont have. my girl is looking for one though, prob try to grab her a clean first gen in a few months.

all these rollbars make me want to post pictures of my shelby Z :lol:

shelby z? :scratch:

You know how the Ipod adapter works right? I got so pissed at people that wouldn't listen to me when I explained how it worked BEFORE the install, then bitched that they didn't like it afterwards. :panic:

Yeah, it sucks and was a PITA to install, too! I couldn't get my antenna back in the HU jack, so now I have limited AM/FM. I just gave up and said screw it, I'll take it to the dealer.

Seems like all the Mazda ipod adapters have various weaknesses, I got this one cheap through the Mazda Motorsports program. I'll deal w/ it, I bought it for primary use as a track car, & iPod functionality is just icing on the cake.

Good seeing you out there too! Hopefully I'll be out there more in the fall, perhaps even as a member if my finances are in decent order and I feel reasonably confident about my job security....

shelby z was the highest spec daytona available in 1987

# This year brought new body styling; the front end got pop-up headlights, making it look more like its 1969 namesake. A new rear spoiler was optional, the taillights became wrap arounds, and other options were also added. The interior was changed slightly for a more modern look and feel.
# The sportier looking Shelby Z edition was offered also, with the turbocharger intercooled for 174 hp (the Turbo II). A deep chin spoiler and 225/50-15 tires outwardly identifies this model. Top speed was somewhere around the 130s and 0-60 was a quite good 7.2-8.0 sec. This was the performance Daytona of the 80s.

* To handle the power, the Turbo II had a stronger bottom end with a cross-drilled block, forged crankshaft, the larger 1984-85 turbo rods, stronger bearing caps and full-floating pins, and Mahle cast pistons.

heres mine:
http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b3...g/DSCN0072.jpg
way too much done to list :lol:

Oh, ok. Were you on CF? There was a guy on there who was into those cars. Any shots of the inside?

no i wasnt. and yes i do

http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b3...g/DSCN0079.jpg
http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b3...g/DSCN0078.jpg

these arent entirely current. theres a nitrous bottle behind the pass seat now. kinda debating pulling it out and stuffing it in a cheap pos :lol:

Nice Daytona....those were pretty cool back in the day and nice to see one still kicking around.

How's the up-keep on it now that it's 20+ years old?

its not bad at all. The 2.2/2.5s were basically cut down slant sixes with an aluminun sohc head. Dead simple to work on and parts are so cheap in comparison to other cars that they are damned near free. That said ive got a caravan 2.4 in my garage that im planning to build up to srt4+ specs and drop in there. couple of guys on the turbo mopar boards have done it with great results

I love those cars...way better looking than a Miata and more fun to drive!

Did you ever own one? I had one in college and it's not exactly high on the fun-to-drive scale. It really ended up being a bit of a POS honestly. No offense to the modded one here.

mine

Here's mine!

http://photos-g.ak.fbcdn.net/photos-...46766_1967.jpg

none taken, which model/trim did you have? chrysler in the eighties was just like the old muscle car days. you could put any engine in any trim with whichever interior you cared for. made for some scary layouts with the base suspension. :eek: still, FWD takes a different driving style to RWD its not everyones cup of tea.

ive never seen a miata pull 500 wheel on a stock block ;) granted that was a TIII with the lotus head but hey the miatas all had dohcs so its fair

That's because they only had 2 platforms in those days..........The pickup truck platform, and the K-car platform for everything else. :lol:

I remember back in those days, reading the magazine tests of the Shadow, Lancer, Charger, Omni, Daytona, and LeBaron, and I was like, why even bother testing them when they're all the same thing except for bodywork, interior, spring rates and shock tuning :lol:

Every time they came out with a higher-spec engine they would first put it in the Laser/Daytona, then the LeBaron, then the Shadow, and finally the Omni GLHS........And they'd stage it out over 12 months so that by the time the Omni got it, the Daytona had already moved to a better engine.

cept in the case of the turbo II the omni got it first and then dodge beefed the piss out of it for the daytona

I had a 5-speed Dark Gray Shelby Z. An '87. The paint basically fell off the car at about 3 years and the passenger window dropped into the door at the beginning of a very long and very cold and wet drive. Any car that I have to hold together with duct tape gets huge deductions from me. About a month after I got it I was being bugged by a buzzing noise coming from the shifter. I opened up the console area around there and found a pristine, never soiled or used 3" long screw just sitting under the shift boot. I guess someone just left it in there when they assembled the car.

That car eventually got traded in on an Acura Integra which never gave me a lick of trouble and would probably still be running like a champ if my Dad didn't total it. :lol:

I had drove a 92 many times..but my brother had a 1986 Lebaron 4 door with a turbo. I loved how the turbo spooled up and the 3 speed automatic shifted. lol

I've worked for a Mazda dealer as a tech back in 1990-1993 and drove those little Miata shitboxes. Every guy that drove in with it was a homo. lol

But which was quieter?

haha yeah paint and windows were bad points. 2/3 of my daytonas were repainted before i aquired them. and the third i scooped up for parts so i really didnt care about the paint. (soo straight though. wish i hadnt left it in texas) funny enough, the nsx's window track design is also crap :idk:

How did a Miata thread evolve into a discussion on K cars? :scratch:

because im an asshole :zowned:

Yeah, but your girl is hot.
Carry on.

meh. There is seriously no elan in stuffing an ugly pushrod motor in anything it didnt come in no matter the performance

Enjoy your elan as this is blowing your doors off.

Where else are you going to get 450+ hp for under $7k that doesn't add significantly to the weight of the car? I would love to put the 260 horse Cosworth 2 liter in something, but I am certainly not going to pay $20k+ plus for it. A Hartley Enterprises Busa based V8 would also be fun, as would an RS Performance RST-V8 but those make the Cosworth look cheap. While I am no big fan of GM they have impressed me with what they have been able to acomplish with the LS series motors.

:lmao: :lmao: :lmao: we were JUST talking about 2.2/2.5s and you want to say 450 with a 7k limit?

i remember saying stock block too. not somebody elses stock block. and you shoulda been impressed with the LT5. how many years did i take them to match its power with pushrods? 15? :lol:

Well, if Dodge motors from the POSbox era turboed to the moon don't scream elan I really don't know what does.:lmao:

Too bad GM needed Lotus to design the heads and Mercury Marine to build the things. No matter how long it took, you can easily surpass the power of the LT5 with a few different LS crate motors direct from GM.

hey im just sayin if they took lessons learned from the zr1 and engineered off of that the current crop of engines would be far more impressive

How much more impressive do you need over a 500 hp dry sump engine that gets 24 mpg highway, a 6.2 liter factory crate motor making over 500 hp, or a lightly supercharged 6.2 liter that makes 640 hp. That is also with stricter emissions standards than the LT5 had to contend with.

Of course you could also factor in the new LSx block GM has come out with that takes LS series parts and is rated for up to 2,500 hp.

I am sorry but a V8 in a Miata just doesn't suit it. You would be spinning your tires everywhere at only 1/10th throttle, with that short wheelbase and light weight. Power isn't fun if you can't get it to the ground easily.

I have seen FD RX-7's with LS motors, and that is a much better marriage imo.

DO NOT get me started on the new "zr1". its pathetic to charge that much money for a car you could build with aftermarket parts. and has a fisher price interior on top of it.

13b would be a much better fit

All of the special editions have gained value over time, so there are a lot of collector who will pay any price for it.

All this Miata talk....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bRfGS...eature=related

"Miata passes Ferrari while racing"

Looks more like: "Ferrari bottlenecks race for a 1/4 lap" :idk:

The Monster Miata is the only one I ever wanted. I watched a show about it and in the end one of the owners said something into the camera while rolling in 2nd I think. Next he jumped on it, the ass end was buried in a cloud of smoke. He did a 180 and took off down the road banging gears. :rockout:

James

I'd rather do the V8 conversion on one of these
http://videos.streetfire.net/video/D...By-a_91978.htm

I was never a huge fan of the Datsuns but that one looked pretty good. The brick behind the wheel killed it for me. :panic:

James

rb25s and 26s re a far better match for the Z cars. thought about doing that to mine for a while

Funny story; it's physically impossible for me to fit in any year miata. I've tried getting in one with aftermarket race seats that were much lower than stock, knees still rested on dashboard and head still completely above the windshield. I've never even tried getting in one with the top up.
I shall never know the joys of one of the cheapest, most fun sports cars out there. :(