Let's build a car for nobody

If you had designed the Miata to be a lower cost all-out sports car, what changes would you have made from the somewhat soft production version? Would you have perhaps used a stiffer suspension, a different wheel/tire combination, or more aggressive seats? I'm curious of how the Miata might have developed if selling it to the general public had not been a concern.

Matt Balvin, Roseville, CA USA

Changes? Very very few.

First off, I wouldn't have made a harder-edged car, since that would have dropped the car's market volume below a sustainable level (which means the project wouldn't have made it past management for approval). If there was no concern about selling it to the general public, there wouldn't have been a Miata to sell to anybody. Hard or soft, there wouldn't have been much of an edge to a program which would have remained on paper and never seen the light of day. Mazda (like all car companies) has tons of those.

Having said that, if I had been in the responsibility seat, I would have made sure that nobody rolled over on the subject of adding non-assisted steering and made sure that the power-assist gear exceeded the original targets. When the 1.8 came up, I would have fought hard on the plan to retain the 1.6 and add a 2.0 to supplement (rather than replace) the 1.6. That would have had a 2.0 FE engine with larger brakes and 195/50 15 tires on suitable wheels and suspension to suit.

But that's about all that'd be fiddled with.

bwob

How fast do you want to go?

When I recently asked a question about converting a FE3 dohc engine to the Miata, I went to the Solomiata web site and was left asking some questions:
1) Will the FE3 engine bolt strait onto the MX-5 gearbox or do I have to change the bellhousing?
2) In your opinion do you think it is worth doing the FE3 conversion taking into account I already have the engine ems computer left over from my Mazda 626?
3) --- or should I just turbo the engine ( I have a Nissan VG20 ball bearing turbo in the garage - would this turbo be suitable?)
4) Basically what I'm after is a bit more power out of the MX-5

Thanks for your time! I am new to MX-5s so sorry if I ask too many questions

mustafa, Australia

1] Not sure about the bell housing. Sorry.

2] Yup. But for rational, please see answer number three.

3] I don't like turbos if the engine and driveline have not been developed by the manufacturer to accept them from Day One. Conversions and swaps are way too easy to do badly. Very badly.

4] Freer breathing (intake and exhaust restriction can be addressed with exhaust from the port back and a low-restriction intake like the Loch Stewart hardware or that from R-Speed) will help and introduce better driveability.

Is it you want more power from the car or more performance? If the latter is what you're after, there are other things beyond performance upgrades which may help. Don't laugh, but a good performance driving course will provide the most bang for your buck if you are interested in anything other than going fast in a straight line, which is NOT what the MX-5 is about.

bwob

Please help. I badly desire some info regarding the next generation Miata. It doesn't have to be photos of a full scale mockup or anything like that but please just some word of mouth hints of where the design is going. Surely there has to be some "dream verbiage" floating around Mazda that if spread on the grapevine would help to entice some new car (roadster) buyers to hold off on making a purchase until we have seen the coming m3. I bought a new 1999 Miata and right now I would love to trade up to an all new m3 except of course that it doesn't exist yet. There are however a couple of roadsters out there now that are very alluring and just before you say "Yeah but at what price?" let me point out that you can't get the m3 at ANY price right now. So how expensive is it really for Mazda to release a little information? It could have an effect not unlike putting new car sales in a savings account for Mazda.

Roger Burgan, Indianapolis,Indiana, US

You can't get an M3 at any price right now? Unless Indianapolis has been moved to Antarctica (where there are no car dealers of any kind), M3s are available in any BMW dealer if you want to pay the price. Immediate delivery in many cases. Maybe you should drive to Chicago, since I know they have a BMW dealer there.

Mazda is about as likely to release information on the NC series Miata at this point in time as George W is to send an e-mail to Saddam Hussein with complete details on how he intends to walk into Baghdad.

It ain't gonna happen.

Mazda still has quite a few months of NB series Miatas to build and sell, and it does them no good to give people a clear-cut reason to delay purchase for a car which is still a ways off in the future if it will slow - or cut - sales of the model its is currently producing. Simple cash flow from Business 101. If NB sales drop off the planet as a result of people deciding to delay the purchase of an NB series car, it's still not too late for Mazda to pull the pin on the NC series car and stop Miata production altogether. Since there are people at Mazda who really want to introduce the NC, they're not going to threaten the business cases for both the NB and NC by releasing details of the latter car prematurely.

Mazda has no such worries about re-release info on the RX-8 because it offered no car in the RX-8s slot in the marketplace. With no current stock (or allocated production) to worry about, the info on the 8 was exceptionally free-flowing. However situations like the RX-8's are the exception rather than the rule.

Mazda's aware of the importance the NC will have for the company as well as the fact there are still many, many months of production scheduled for the NB, Under these conditions it's placed a real clampdown on information on the car. Which is as it should be.

bwob

Have you heard any inkling about a Special Edition this year? I'm ready for a new Miata, but aren't crazy about the '03 colors. I loved the '02 SE titanium gray, but was never able to find one when I wanted it (new). Thanks!

Rick, San Antonio, TX

Not a word, but then I'm not hanging out for anything on them. I have a feeling that Mazda's gone to the well a few times too many for the cynical exercise of producing another not-so-Special Edition with no substantive change to the formula.

bwob

I'm just sending in a little piece about the Miata owner who was filling his crankcase with 5w-50 accidentally. I'm recently relocated to the west coast from the snowy Midwest, and I actually preferred 5w-50 in my Miata. It's the best of both worlds, it pumps like 5 weight, but protects like 50 weight. I found that my HLA's were a bit noisy in very cold conditions with 10w30, and I'm a bit scared of the "thinness" of 5w30.

Anyway, that's all in this auto tech's opinion.

Mike Sage, San Francisco, CA, USA

What can I add?

bwob

I really ought to get paid to answer ones like these

(Unedited)

hi bob i woold like to know how is goinf to effect my carif i install 18 inch wheels.how ia going to bE WHEN I DRIVE THE CAR
ALSO WHAT IS THE BEST SOLUTION TO MAKE THE CAR LOW (SPRINGS WHEELS ETC)
I DONT WANT TO MAKE YOU DIZZY BUT I WOOLD LIKE IF YOU CAN SENT ME SOME PICTURES OF AFTER MARKET WHEELS FOR MY CAR MAZDA MIATA 2002 YELLOW
THANK YOU MUCH

george, parsippany nj morris

With 18s, any Miata (NA or NB series car) will be overtired by an order of magnitude or two. Expect the steer points to be screwed up (since the front geometry was not designed to accept much of anything more than 7.5 in width and finding any 18s narrower than 8.0 in may be tough indeed), a problem which can only be addressed by swapping the upper and lower control arms with fabricated replacements. Ride will probably be brutal and worst of all the increase in unsprung weight from the smallest wheel and tire combination available on an 18 (without going to alloys which will cost about US$800+ per wheel) will be well past the point of no return as far as the poor suspension is concerned. In other words it will leave the car a less competent handling car than a 1990 Miata on base 14-inch wheels and tires.

Nonetheless people do put 18s on Miata, probably because they think they look cool and it is physically possible to get them to fit under the car. It's also possible for a human being to eat Drain-O, but that doesn't mean they should. But it's your car and your money.

My e-mail is configured to not accept nor send attachments of any kind, so I don't send pictures out. Get away from the computer, go out into the Real World and visit some wheel and tire shops. I suspect must be one or two within reasonable driving distance of your residence. Yes, I know such a radical move means you'll actually have to deal with people, but it probably won't hurt you. If the idea of stepping outside and coming face to face with a person is too daunting, the mob at Tire Rack have lots of pictures on their website so you can use up your own bandwidth instead of someone else's.

By the way, your shift key is stuck. Fix that or spend a little time learning the rules of capitalization. Unlike the 18-inchers, you can't lose either way.

bwob

When is a question not a question? (And that's a question.)

Just had my drivers window explode over the nite.
No evidence of foul/fowl play??? Heard anything like it before? Temps were in the 60/70 yesterday and 40's last nite... more glass outside than inside. Top up glass up???

Alan Corell, Tampa Florida USA

Inasmuch as I see only one answerable question in there - despite the surfeit of question marks - the only answer I can offer is 'no, not on a Miata'.

bwob

News Flash; INSURANCE COMPANY HIRES IDIOTS

I bought a 1993 LE (with ABS brakes). When I went to insure it they stated that I was not eligible for the ABS discount as the Miata did not have 4 wheel ABS. Seems odd. I thought only some older, cheaper GM cars had only 2 wheel ABS??
mike

Mike, Saint Louis

The Mazda ABS system used on the Miata is a four-wheel setup and always has been.

Your insurance agent or whoever made such an ignorant statement is a low-grade moron. And I am being charitable.

If it were my car I'd be looking for another insurance carrier, preferably one which has hired people capable of counting beyond three; the mouth-breather you've been dealing with sounds like a first-class oxygen thief as well as an ongoing waste of food.

bwob

It Hurts When I do This

I had a 91 Miata, it's fail the California smog test. What should I do first before get the car to very costly mechanic to repair to make it Pass the smog test?

Tommy, USA

Well first is to find out why it failed the smog test. It might be that the catalyst has gone bad and need replacement. It may be a problem of engine adjustments. What you can't do is determine which of these - if it's not something else altogether - is the culprit via e-mail. The car has to be in the hands of someone who has access to the car to determine what's causing it to fail the test. SO that means it should be in the hands of a knowledgeable mechanic IF you really want to find out what needs to be fixed.

bwob

How un-Spitfire-like!

I have a 90 that I have had in storage for about 10 years (12K miles). I have put a few squirts of oil into the cylinders and hand-rotated the crank a few times every month or so. This spring I am going to get it back on the road. The question is how do I disconnect the coil (or other method) to allow engine to build up some oil
pressure before starting. On my old Triumphs I just yank the wire. I am assuming that may not be the best method on this car.

John Goethert, Knoxville, TN, USA

The Miata uses direct ignition, so there's no discrete coil for all cylinders, but rather one per plug. To get the same effect as removing the coil lead, you'd have to remove each of the leads to each of the spark plugs.

bwob

Top repair job or replace it?

Hi Bob! I have a small tear on the top of my '99 Mazda Miata, I was wondering instead of replacing the entire top, is there a possible way to get around that to fix it-------less economical? Thanks, Yenny

yenny, Woodbridge, VA

If there is a good - VERY good - upholstery shop near you which specializes in convertible top repairs, a make-do fix (good for perhaps a year or so) is possible, though much depends exactly where the damage has take place. Because of the manner in which the top folds and some of the stresses it carries when it's erected, there are areas of the top which cannot be repaired economically or uneconomically.

bwob

My first Miata was a new 93. Sold it to buy a proper family sedan in 1999. Sold an SUV to buy a new Miata in 2000. Sold it to buy another proper family sedan in 2001. Just bought a 2003 Miata, nothing sold. What is about the Miata that keeps us coming back? With the new variable valve train, are there any special concerns such as reduced life, more maintenance, etc.? Keep up the good work!!!

Wayne, Shavertown/PA/USA

What is it about the Miata? I suspect its the fact it's focused on the driving experience, not just numbers. SO many people equate whether a vehicle is good or bad to power output or 0 to 60 times, they've lost track of the fact that there's more to driving than the figures.

The variable valvetrain hardware should create no problems as regards maintenance, presupposing it gets maintained properly and regularly. If not, well, all bets are off.

bwob

Bob, got a few questions for you.

#1 I know you are a big fan of the Koni Yellow shocks, I am wondering what kind of springs you would use with it? Would you try the original ones or are they too soft for your liking?

2. Are you a believer of power steering on the Miata?

Tom, Connecticut

1) I started with the OE springs (NA6A), but eventually went to a set I had wound with the rate I wanted. It was an expensive exercise, but since I was able to swap them from car-to-car I was able to rationalize the money spent. Too bad my wife didn't...

All things being equal, the Konis on the softest (or 1/4 turn to the stiff side off the baseline if you find the car tapping the bump stops more than you like) worked pretty well with the OE springs. If I had to do it all aver again, I am not altogether sure I would have dropped the dosh on the custom wound coils.

2) Hell yes. The non-assisted tiller is utter crap. I wouldn't own a car with the non-assisted rack on a bet, though I would unhesitatingly and wholeheartedly recommend one to my worst enemy or the President of the Honda DelSol Owners Club.

bwob

Bob: I have a 2001 BRG Limited Edition Miata and would like to find some real wire wheels for the car. Can you recommend a manufacturer that makes the best wheel to replace my factory 16" wheels? Any reason why I should not consider putting wire wheels on a Miata from a performance perspective?

Jon Robbins, Walnut Creek, CA, USA

Wire wheels are heavy (very heavy), and the Miata doesn't take well to heavy wheel and tire combinations. There will be a deterioration of ride as well as chassis competence which is, to my standards, unacceptable. Some types - radial-laced ones, for example - don't handle being curbed (event gently) well at all and wire wheels need to be overhauled every few years to tighten loose spokes and replace broken ones. Since they are more delicate than a modern pressed, cast or forged wheel. With 45 percent aspect ratio tires (the OE suggested fitting with 16s on an NB Series car), the tire's narrow slip angles will transfer more harshness and road shock to the wheels, and this is likely to make wheel overhauls more frequent; my father was able to get by for about 24 to 30 months before he's have to get the wheels overhauled, a task which usually took three days.

Having said that, if I were placed in a position where I had to get a set of wire wheels or become a member of Congress, I'd opt for the wires - and in any case I would not use anything larger than a 15-incher with 195/50 15 tires - and go for a set of cross-laced Dayton knock-off wires (from the Dayton Wheel company in Dayton, Ohio). No Dunlops or bolt-ons. And to reiterate I would avoid 16s at all costs.

bwob

I hit an orange barrel in my Miata but the only thing that broke was the mirror on the passenger side. I would like to get it fixed but all the dealership say that they have to replace the whole mirror mechanism. Is that the only way??

Tracey , durham, nc, us

I'm afraid so. Mazda does not sell the mirror face separate to the mirror housing, since that is how they purchased the entire mirror assembly from the outside supplier which produced it. It is possible a wrecking yard specializing in Imports may have one at a price cheaper than the dealer will sell a new one for, although tracking one down will take a little foot and perhaps phone work on your part.

bwob

What kind of vehicles do you have in your garage at this time? If the NC is available in Mariner Blue do you think you will be tempted back into MX-5 ownership? Thanks.

James, Atlanta/Georgia/USA

Right now the sole occupant of garage space is Spunky, the 1985 Subaru Leone, so obviously we're between Miatas at the Hall household.

Mariner blue would give the NC a leg up on an NB, but much more would depend upon how the final car shakes out. As things are right now, there's nothing that'd keep me away from one, however.

bwob

Glad to see another guy out there that loves the Mariner/smurf blue! It is by far the most beautiful color ever.

So my question is this.. I currently drive a 96 Black and Tan PEP, and am on the hunt to trade it for a Mariner. What's the best year to look for? 93 because it's newer?? 90 because its the original? somewhere between??? Also, what package would you be hunting for?

BTW. I see in your 'Ask Bob' picture, your driving a Laguna??? What gives???

jared dimartine, Philadelphia

Actually the car I'm driving is the one and only H4143 color test car (http://miata.cardomain.com/id/tealp729). It isn't Laguna blue by a long shot. It's teal mica in fact. One of six 1991s which were painted in non-standard colors at the factory and then sold rather than destroyed after the research they were used for had been completed.

To me the best year for a Mariner blue Miata is be 1992. Still pretty faithful to the original formula, but niggles like the short-nose-crank and the reverse-friendly gearbox have been eliminated. By 1993 some decontenting had started. Also, by nature of being newer, Father Time hasn't been able to work on the newer NA6s for as long as he has on the originals.

bwob

Maybe size doesn't matter (part I)

I Have A 1994 Miata. I'm Thinking About Going To A Larger Wheel. Maybe 16 or 17". I Now Am Running 14". I Would Like Your Opinion Or Advice. Thank You.

David T., Martinsville,Va. USA

If it were my car I'd be focusing on 195/50 15s. On an NA it's an optimal size as regards performance, weight (presupposing properly lightweight wheels and tires are selected), tire availability and price are concerned. NAs on 16s are edging past the point of diminishing returns because of the minimal performance benefits in relation to tire replacement costs and the fact the lower profile tires can leave wheels exposed to damage to a much greater degree when encountering potholes and the like.

For an NA 17s are just for those more interested in looks than performance or even maintaining the balance which makes a Miata a Miata. That mob is beyond advice from me or even somebody who actually has a clue.

bwob

Maybe size doesn't matter (part II)

I have a 1990 Miata which I bought used. The previous owner put 16" wheels with 205/40-16 tires on it. They are wearing out. Tirerack seems to say that a 205/45-16 tire fits my car, but my local tire dealer recommends that I stick with my 40 series tire. The new Miatas come with the 45 series tire, and I would prefer the larger tire (I think). The Miata.net tire diameter calculator
seems to indicate that the 40 series tire has a diameter which is slightly smaller than stock, while the 45 series has a diameter slightly larger than stock.

I will have to live with these tires for a while, so I want to get it right. What set-up do you recommend for 16" tires?

Brian Rudy, Vancouver, B.C. Canada

First off, I don't recommend 16s for any NA series Miata. If it were my car I would go no bigger than 195/50 15 under any circumstances. While the wheel envelope of the current NB series cars was designed to accommodate 16 inch wheels and tires, the NA's was not.

Additionally, unless you're in it solely for the looks, the benefits offered by 16s over 15s with NAs are less than the trade-offs introduced by the additional unsprung mass of the larger wheels and tires This is especially pronounced in the case of early (1.6 litre) NAs.

If somebody put a gun to my head and made me run 16s (and that's what it would take to get me to put 16s on an NA), I'd opt for the 205/40s and not touch the 45s with a barge pole.

After which I'd find somebody who wanted 16s for his Miata.

bwob

Maybe size doesn't matter (part III)

Dear Bob; I have just purchased a 99 Miata that came with 17" (x7 I believe as they are the Zenetti, and the only 17" Zenetti rims that resemble the ones in my car are 17 x 7)and 245 40 17 tires. Problem: I love the rims but the tires rub when hard cornering or turning the complete radius. I also hear a rub when I go over bumps at high speed. Question: Do you think I can keep the rims if I get different size tires? If so, what size should I purchase? The tire rack's suggested size is 205 40 17. Your insight will be greatly appreciated. Thank you very much.

Lucho Bravo, Pacifica, California

The car is way, way overtired. The wheel well was only designed to accept up to a 205/45 16 without clearance issues. The wheels are probably borderline, but the rubber has to go. If you have to stick with 17s (which is well beyond the point of diminishing returns) try to get the smallest 205/40 17 you can find (despite the sized being 'standard', tire envelope sizes can dimensionally vary considerably between brands as well as different models within one brand.

bwob

This Gun for Hire. Sorta

Bob, I'm not sure if this has been asked here before. But if a car manufacturer asks you again what kind of car should they build, what would be your answer?

Joey, Southern California

I've got a few ideas, but since I also have been chatting with three car companies crazy enough to be interested in hiring me, I'd rather keep them, to myself, if you don't mind. I don't wish to sound melodramatic, but It puts me in a slightly more advantageous bargaining position to offer my skills at what I do the least poorly.

I will admit, however, that there's not a single two-seat, rear-drive open-topped sports can amongst 'em.

bwob

Hope you can guide me ... what is the process of taking off my existing top w/ frame and then reinstalling another soft top still on the frame onto my Silver 1991 MX5

Glenn Bushong, St Charles, IL USA

It's all outlined in the Factory shop manual, available through the parts department of any authorized Mazda dealer. The procedure is too complex and lengthy for me to duplicate via e-mail, especially with the existence of places which sell the owners manual (or good search engines - like Google - if you want to be a cheapskate) and with my wife telling me we are late for a lunch appointment. Sorry, but family's the priority at these prices.

bwob