Some drunken clown plowed into my commuter 2014 Focus when it was parked.

Started by shp4man, February 06, 2020, 09:07:24 PM

Payman


shp4man


AutobahnSHO

Quote from: shp4man on February 16, 2020, 05:58:22 PM
Thanks.   :ohyeah: The more I drive it, the more Iike it.

If you mod anything, get some suspension bits. Car can ride even more on rails. :thumbsup:
Will

shp4man

The 2.0L engine features a 10.8/1 compression ratio. Premium gas is faster. Zoom Zoom indeed.


Payman

Quote from: AutobahnSHO on February 16, 2020, 06:01:15 PM
If you mod anything, get some suspension bits. Car can ride even more on rails. :thumbsup:

Nah man, it might improve track handling at 9/10ths, but you take away the everyday fun handling on the road. I've yet to see a modified Miata that's "better".

AutobahnSHO

Quote from: Rockraven on February 17, 2020, 09:13:07 AM
Nah man, it might improve track handling at 9/10ths, but you take away the everyday fun handling on the road. I've yet to see a modified Miata that's "better".

Maybe it's difference between NA and NB, but I doubt it-

My NA was stock, Rich on the NB put a strut tower brace up front and a few other little braces under the rear and it is night and day how much it does NOT roll. Can totally push it harder in corners than my NA. 
Will

Payman

Quote from: AutobahnSHO on February 17, 2020, 10:26:08 AM
Maybe it's difference between NA and NB, but I doubt it-

My NA was stock, Rich on the NB put a strut tower brace up front and a few other little braces under the rear and it is night and day how much it does NOT roll. Can totally push it harder in corners than my NA. 

I like the roll. Taking corners at legal speeds in my NA is fun. If it gripped like a Corvette in corners, I feel that a lot of the fun would be lost.

AutobahnSHO

Quote from: Rockraven on February 17, 2020, 10:33:23 AM
I like the roll. Taking corners at legal speeds in my NA is fun. If it gripped like a Corvette in corners, I feel that a lot of the fun would be lost.

Scrappy is like a go-kart. Planted and you just feel the lateral Gs.
Will

Soup DeVille

Quote from: Rockraven on February 17, 2020, 10:33:23 AM
I like the roll. Taking corners at legal speeds in my NA is fun. If it gripped like a Corvette in corners, I feel that a lot of the fun would be lost.

They roll because Dan Gurney, who Mazda used as a consultant on the project, wanted them to roll- partially because he wanted the car to handle well on a variety of surfaces and not just flat perfect roads.

But also partially because he was a little weird.
Maybe we need to start off small. I mean, they don't let you fuck the glumpers at Glumpees without a level 4 FuckPass, do they?

1975 Honda CB750, 1986 Rebel Rascal (sailing dinghy), 2015 Mini Cooper, 2020 Winnebago 31H (E450), 2021 Toyota 4Runner, 2022 Lincoln Aviator

shp4man

OK, so today is the first day for the commute. It's 33 miles one way, almost all freeway. This little car has quick steering and a firm ride, both are positive attributes to me.
California traffic can be stop/go/fast/slow...like 85 to stopped, then crawling along at 10 MPH for miles. I'm glad the car's an automatic, not as sporty, but better in traffic.
It has the Bose sound system, I like that. Plenty of bass response. Plus it paired with my phone OK.
It is puzzling to me that the car has auto climate control and heated seats, but manual lights and no intermittent wipers. I don't care, but still, it's unusual.
The seat, which is the source of some comments online, is perfectly comfortable to me.
The automatic trans is programmed to downshift with braking- a nice touch.
Plus I love those orange dash lights- very nice.

MPG counter got up to 26.4 so far, it'll go higher, I'm thinking,

AutobahnSHO

Quote from: shp4man on February 17, 2020, 02:03:48 PM
MPG counter got up to 26.4 so far, it'll go higher, I'm thinking,

My NA got 28mpgeez, but it was mostly 45mph flat road with a few lights and no stop and go.

Scrappy gets in the 20-22range :mask: because I lead foot and there are a lot of hills right around us....
Will

Eye of the Tiger

Quote from: AutobahnSHO on February 17, 2020, 03:02:24 PM
My NA got 28mpgeez, but it was mostly 45mph flat road with a few lights and no stop and go.

Scrappy gets in the 20-22range :mask: because I lead foot and there are a lot of hills right around us....

Scrappy might need a tube up. 3400 lb Dakota gets 20+ MPG all day long, and it requires frequent WOT.
2008 TUNDRA (Truck Ultra-wideband Never-say-die Daddy Rottweiler Awesome)

AutobahnSHO

Quote from: Eye of the Tiger on February 17, 2020, 04:46:49 PM
Scrappy might need a tube up. 3400 lb Dakota gets 20+ MPG all day long, and it requires frequent WOT.

Frequent =/ all the time.... :mask:
Will


Laconian

Kia EV6 GT-Line / MX-5 RF 6MT

AutobahnSHO

Will

shp4man

Man there's a crapload of Miata related stuff online. How to videos/reviews of mods/road tests. You could spend days checking it all out.



:lol: :muffin:

Morris Minor

⏤  '10 G37 | '21 CX-5 GT Reserve  ⏤

shp4man

It's a great little car. Everybody wonders why I didn't buy a big Buick. The Buick is comfortable, but boring. The MX-5 keeps us old fogeys awake.
The other day, I was entering the freeway on a cloverleaf, posted at 20 mph. I had just passed a 90s Firebird, heavily modified, enthusiast owned. He made the mistake of trying to take a Miata in a curve, and actually spun out.
Moral of the story? Think twice before trying a Miata in a curve.

FoMoJo

Quote from: shp4man on April 19, 2020, 07:27:06 PM
It's a great little car. Everybody wonders why I didn't buy a big Buick. The Buick is comfortable, but boring. The MX-5 keeps us old fogeys awake.
The other day, I was entering the freeway on a cloverleaf, posted at 20 mph. I had just passed a 90s Firebird, heavily modified, enthusiast owned. He made the mistake of trying to take a Miata in a curve, and actually spun out.
Moral of the story? Think twice before trying a Miata in a curve.
Especially in a Firebird. :lol:
"The only reason for time is so that everything doesn't happen at once." ~ Albert Einstein
"As the saying goes, when you mix science and politics, you get politics."

AutobahnSHO

Quote from: shp4man on April 19, 2020, 07:27:06 PM
It's a great little car. Everybody wonders why I didn't buy a big Buick. The Buick is comfortable, but boring. The MX-5 keeps us old fogeys awake.
The other day, I was entering the freeway on a cloverleaf, posted at 20 mph. I had just passed a 90s Firebird, heavily modified, enthusiast owned. He made the mistake of trying to take a Miata in a curve, and actually spun out.
Moral of the story? Think twice before trying a Miata in a curve.

Eek!

Last spring (pre-Miata) I was coming back home a different route than normal and was in Impreza rather than minivan and I had a sweet interstate cloverleaf with no one in front of me (unusual). I took it as fast as I can without screeching the tires but some Maserati caught up to me and stayed on my rear bumper 3/4 of it.

I really want to try that one in Miata. :lol:
Will

Morris Minor

If I remember right Jason Fenske said he's going to supercharge his new toy.
⏤  '10 G37 | '21 CX-5 GT Reserve  ⏤

CaminoRacer

Quote from: Morris Minor on April 20, 2020, 07:37:59 AM
If I remember right Jason Fenske said he's going to supercharge his new toy.

Edelbrock sells superchargers for ND Miatas and I want one. Modern day Cobra?
2020 BMW 330i, 1969 El Camino, 2017 Bolt EV

AutobahnSHO

Quote from: CaminoRacer on April 20, 2020, 09:56:32 AM
Edelbrock sells superchargers for ND Miatas and I want one. Modern day Cobra?
Quote from: Morris Minor on April 20, 2020, 07:37:59 AM
If I remember right Jason Fenske said he's going to supercharge his new toy.

That video Morris linked said that's what he's going to do. And has silly whiteboard math showing that MX-5 has more power per lb. of weight than S2000 (as long as you're not revving the S2000 above 6000ish RPMs).  Also interesting the "narrower" tires on the MX-5 compare favorably to cars with tires twice the width because they also weigh 60% more than the MX-5.

Plus as wife and I have been talking about upcoming life this year, MX-5 is one of the few cars I can "safely" town with the minivan. (We'll be moving 3 cars by ourselves LOL).
Will

FoMoJo

"The only reason for time is so that everything doesn't happen at once." ~ Albert Einstein
"As the saying goes, when you mix science and politics, you get politics."

GoCougs

haha. LS Miata swaps have always been popular. So yeah, do that:






MX793

Quote from: CaminoRacer on April 20, 2020, 09:56:32 AM
Edelbrock sells superchargers for ND Miatas and I want one. Modern day Cobra?

My buddy's S/C NA is a beast.  Roughly 2.5x the power it made when stock.
Needs more Jiggawatts

2016 Ford Mustang GTPP / 2011 Toyota Rav4 Base AWD / 2014 Kawasaki Ninja 1000 ABS
1992 Nissan 240SX Fastback / 2004 Mazda Mazda3s / 2011 Ford Mustang V6 Premium / 2007 Suzuki GSF1250SA Bandit / 2006 VW Jetta 2.5

Laconian

Kia EV6 GT-Line / MX-5 RF 6MT

GoCougs

Quote from: Laconian on April 20, 2020, 08:21:08 PM
Ford 302s used to be the default big motor swap for NAs.

My hunch why the small block Ford had a rare win over the small block Chevy (SBC) for engine swaps ;):

1.) The FI Ford 302/5 speed was a common junkyard find (wrecked Fox body/SN95 Mustangs) for many years. Over that same time period Chevy never, ever built the FI 350/5 speed combo. Yes, Chevy did build a FI 305/5 speed in the Camaro/Firebird to compete with the Fox body, but in far less numbers, and the 305 was not good.

2.) The Ford small block (SBF) has a front-mount distributor (most other small blocks are rear-mount, including the SBC) which sure looks much friendlier for the tight fit under the cowl of a Miata, so with the SBF you're not tearing up the cowl or moving the motor forward in the chassis.

3.) The 302 is a bit more compact and lighter than the SBC (esp. width, as the valve train sat a bit more upright). The SBC Chevy was to eventually accommodate 400 cubic inches, and the SBF topped out at 351, and 302 was plenty for such a small car.

As the years rolled on, people started wrecking the 4th gen ('93+) Camaros/Firebirds and late C4 Corvettes ('92+), in which the LT(LS) 6-speed combos were a dime a dozen. Not long after Ford axed the SBF for the Modular ('96 for the Mustang), and then Chevy put the LS into the trucks and SUVs in '99, and well, the history of LT/LS dominance in the swap world was cemented. Of course it helps that the LT/LS is the same size as the SBC, is ~150 lbs lighter, and does not have a distributor.