Sitting lower feels faster

"Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)" (rduncan5678)
06/07/2019 at 12:12 • Filed to: None

Yesterday I finally put in my Ebay-Bride seat so that I can be one step closer to track ready with this car. I also measured out where to drill the holes for my harness mounts and started reassembling the interior bits taken out for the roll bar. I forgot how much I love sitting nice and low in a Miata and how much faster it makes the car feel on the road. I now feel directly connected to the road again like I did in my previous Miata. Sure I am still on stock springs so theres still a bit of unecessary roll. But one step at a time!

Plus I also think the touch of red adds a really nice accent to this car. It is just the right amount of color to really brighten up the “boringness” of silver. I am kind of curious now what even more red accents would do to make this car look great.

Some color ideas:

!!! UNKNOWN CONTENT TYPE !!!

Anyways, new miata is coming along well! Excited to think about suspension next as well as finish installing the harness, exhaust, and then the brakes. June 28th is coming up soon so the track debut is nearing ever closer.

DISCUSSION (33)

MarquetteLa > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
06/07/2019 at 12:24

Nothing like sliding back into a Miata after some time away. Nice seats, but I feel like the other red accents would look out of place. Maybe a red fender stripe would look nice ?

412GTI > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
06/07/2019 at 12:28

I dig that red seat over silver exterior. Coming together nicely, man!

nerd_racing > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
06/07/2019 at 12:41

You should feel how fast the Autozam feels. I miss it... need to do a clutch and engine re-seal.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > MarquetteLa
06/07/2019 at 12:51

Yeah I find it really hard to determine what is “too much” when it comes to aesthetics. It might be simpler to just go with black in those places just to only buy one color of vinyl anyways. Plus matching the reds would probably be way too difficult. I have never been a fan of any sort of stripes but its worth considering, especially to just tape on and see how it might look.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > nerd_racing
06/07/2019 at 12:56

Its nice having more than twice the power though lol. As much as I dig the “slow car fast” thing, a Kei car might be too slow to actually use on real roads in California. I already hit 6-7k through third gear merging onto freeways in the Miata since 80mph is the norm around here.

I would still love to drive one some day. They seem like a blast on smaller roads.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > 412GTI
06/07/2019 at 12:59

Kinja'd!!!

Certainly fits colorwise a bit better than the red over blue in the other car.

Kinja'd!!!

Looking at these older photos reminds me of how frigging dirty that seat has gotten though. I gotta see if I can clean it somehow because it would definitely look even better now in the s ilver car.

Corkscrew'd > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
06/07/2019 at 13:05

I like the red look too! Red/Silver is kind of a classic color combination. If I didn’t have a Shinsen Miata I’d probably do something similar.

Future Heap Owner > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
06/07/2019 at 13:12

Definitely easy to overdo accents. That said, I think a red trunk spoiler would look pretty good. I’m skeptical about the mirrors. You should ask MonkeePuzzle for a more realistic mock-up

CaptDale - is secretly British > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
06/07/2019 at 13:27

NNNNEEEEEDDDDD MMMIIIIAAAATTTTTAAAA *INSERT GAY REEEEE*

HondoyotaE38: A Japanese and German Collab...wait a minute > CaptDale - is secretly British
06/07/2019 at 13:39

“ *INSERT GAY REEEEE*” Lol I’m deadddd—uh wait I mean HOW DARE YOU THAT WAS VERY OFFENSIVE YOU SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF YERSELF REEEEE

CaptDale - is secretly British > HondoyotaE38: A Japanese and German Collab...wait a minute
06/07/2019 at 13:44

But how else are my bf and I supposed to show we are gay unless we have similarly matching Miatas?A

HondoyotaE38: A Japanese and German Collab...wait a minute > CaptDale - is secretly British
06/07/2019 at 13:49

By doing PDgAy around people and being gay obviouslslslsly

CaptDale - is secretly British > HondoyotaE38: A Japanese and German Collab...wait a minute
06/07/2019 at 14:04

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > Corkscrew'd
06/07/2019 at 15:01

But Shinsen is silver isnt it?

MarquetteLa > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
06/07/2019 at 15:31

In this situation I would normally boot up Gran Turismo Sport (or whatever Forza you may have) and tool around in the livery editor. It’s a shame GTS only has NA and ND Miatas. The non-Mazdaspeed NB never gets any love in that respect.

Corkscrew'd > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
06/07/2019 at 15:34

Titanium Gray Metallic actually. I think the Shinsen was the first Miata that color was used on. The next one would have been the Mazdaspeed Miata.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > Corkscrew'd
06/07/2019 at 16:43

I would have never considered there to be a difference between gray/silver. I would think red would work with either just the same.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > MarquetteLa
06/07/2019 at 16:45

GT6 definitely has the NB in there, although I don’t believe that game has much paint customization to do in it beyond choosing solid colors, I could be wrong though. That is a good idea, I am sure there are online sims that might do exactly what you are talking about anyways.

I wish ALL miatas in racing games came with roll bars also . It always seems silly that they are stock looking cars with the tops up in most games. Meanwhile you are wheel to wheel racing and generally crashing through most races.

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
06/07/2019 at 16:55

It is faster! Lowers your center mass! Also I feel you on that stock suspension... I want badly to replace mine, but other things keep coming up. I just ordered some refurbished flow tested injectors... maybe the next step will be suspension. Well after a/c removal.

MarquetteLa > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
06/07/2019 at 17:17

Yeah GT6 has a bunch of NBs but they’re all just ripped from GT4 on PS2, they don’t look nearly as good as the NA and NC premium models in the game. GT4/5/6 also has the Mazdaspeed 6, which makes them like the only games in the world to have it. But you’re right, GT Sport is the first Gran Turismo to have any real livery editing beyond full resprays.

While I don’t disagree with your roll bar argument, I don’t necessarily mind because I still don’t have one on my car (yet).

MM54 > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
06/07/2019 at 17:59

I was going to say “burgundy pinstripe” but the NB is too curvy and I can’t think of a way to run it that wouldn’t look silly. It doesn’t really have body ‘lines’ - just curves.

The red looks good, though.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
06/07/2019 at 18:22

I have the FM coils on the other car that I probably will just swap over for now. I’d like to replace the bump stops at least first and really I need to upgrade since those arent particularly high spring rates (4 00/260 ) . My dream is still Xidas with 800/500 spring rates to really set me up exactly how I want to. But that $2k price tag is steering me towards my FMs since it would be a free install and be “good enough” to at least function. Stock springs and 240k+ mile shocks would be laughably bad with the Toyo RR tires I have for track duty.

Also side note, I just noticed your username has five X’s in it. I just realized how that could be interpreted as Mx5. Never noticed that until now haha.

Corkscrew'd > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
06/07/2019 at 20:03

Theres more of a blue tint with the Titanium Grey metallic. That's why I'd never switch out any of the navy blue stuff lol

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
06/07/2019 at 20:48

Oh yeah xidas or ohlinns seem to be the best of the best for miatas. I can’t justify spending that much more on my car at the moment. I want to figure out something affordable and daily drivable. I will at least need to start with a front sway and lower springs... I don’t know, I’ve seen a diy “ better bilstei n ” setup, but still looking around. I really just need to get an actual daily though.

And yes that is exactly where I got my user name haha! Translates to MX-5 M(edition) and then it was my age.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > Corkscrew'd
06/08/2019 at 00:20

Ahh neat, I do love a blue interior considering my other car!

Kinja'd!!!

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
06/08/2019 at 00:28

I would think you'd be happier with some cheap coilovers, I don't grasp why people bother with the bilsteins aside from trying to meet scca classing crap. I'd rather be on Ricelands than that, they aren't honestly that bad. Plus then it's easy to swap in better stuff if you become inclined. Track use is the only reason I want more, otherwise my FM set would be perfect.

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
06/08/2019 at 09:33

People choose the Bilsteins cause they were on the r package from factory (can be found used) and when paired with lowering springs, new bump stops, etc. they give a cheap but good diy coilover alternative. I think you have to modify the Bilsteins to make them work though.

I think one issue with the cheaper coil overs are the shocks are lacking in quality and that translates to worse that factory ride quality and that’s what I’m afraid of. I will literally slow down to a crawl on shitty roads as it is with all the rattling. Feels like I’m hurting the car.

My philosophy with the car has been to only buy the best (with in reason). This has made progress slower, but so far happy with how parts are lasting. Which fm set do you have? How does it handle potholes and such?

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
06/08/2019 at 11:35

I have the FM Vmaxx classic and it was a definitely an excellent choice for the cost and street feel. It's definitely a bit stiffer than stock but it still feels more comfortable than my completely stock STi. Being lowered has its disadvantages due to steep gas station entrances and speed bumps. But just in terms of ride quality, I'm very happy. I'd say spring (no pun intended) for the xtreme line instead of the classics since shock adjustability would be really useful to dial in more comfort and have the option for stiffer Springs. If I had spent the extra $200 when I bought these, I'd have just ordered stiffer Springs and called it a day, since the shocks in those are actually valved for it. Then I wouldn't need to spend $2k on the really good stuff. But anyways, ride quality is phenomenal on the FMs and worth the minimal price bump over the Raceland/megans/other cheap stuff. I believe the xtreme package is still under $1k

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
06/08/2019 at 14:58

Yeah that makes sense going with solid adjustable shocks for future upgrades/changes in spring rates. I remember looking at the vmaxx and people telling me to avoid them is why I didn’t get them a while back. Then I just put the suspension on the back burner while I addressed other issues.

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
06/08/2019 at 15:09

I have heard a lot of bad things about fm in general. Like their happy meal clutch. It apparently lives up to the name of being very cheaply made Chinese parts. I assume that will translate to other products they offer.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
06/08/2019 at 15:48

I don’t know much about their other parts but I’ve put about 50k on the coilovers and the sway bar I have from them. Also have a tow hook from them that I’ve used a dozen or so times to tow my broken car around. Had zero problems with any of the parts I’ve bought at least! They seem to take a while to ship stuff but I’m spoiled on either Amazon or so many of the Miata parts websites that are located in Socal so I get stuff shipped fast here.

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
06/08/2019 at 17:23

Glad they are working out for you . I only have direct experience with their pedal extender. That’s ok, but it’s also just a piece of aluminum lol.

nerd_racing > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
06/10/2019 at 07:09

The AZ-1 is quicker than an NA miata. It is speed limited, not power limited. Other Kei vehicles are not all the same with that respect though. I drove the car across country to get it home. No issues keeping up with anyone.