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Showing posts with label miata. Show all posts
Showing posts with label miata. Show all posts

Wednesday, April 6, 2016

Just ordered the Flyin Miata Koni Stage 2 Suspension Kit

In the never-ending effort to enjoy the open road in our little MX-5 the suspension on our NC (2006-2014) is a bit wallowey as compared to our older 2000 (NB) with lowered suspension and sways...

So - it's time to get the Flyin Miata Koni Stage 2 Suspension Kit - this is an all-around replacement of the shocks, springs, and swaybars to enhance the handling aspects of our little 2-seater :)

https://www.flyinmiata.com/nc-stage-2-koni-suspension-kit.html


Sway Bars:

Sway bars are used to make your car corner flatter and react faster by keeping the body (and all the weight) under control. Flyin Miata sways are set up for neutral handling and are adjustable so you can tailor the handling of your Miata to your own driving style. 

Shocks:

The *NEW* FM Koni Sport shocks have custom valving developed and tested specifically for FM springs. They're adjustable for rebound so you can crank them up when you're feeling frisky on the autocross course. They come with a lifetime warranty.

Springs:
FM springs are well known for providing a good balance of street ability and track performance. Their combination of ride height - giving the suspension room to work - and spring rate means your Miata will ride and handle better than you would expect from a set of performance springs.
There's more going on than you think, though. See that section with the tighter coils? Those are designed to act as a secondary spring, keeping the spring from going loose under full droop. While these rates might sound high compared to some other springs on the market, they are stiff enough to keep your car off the bumpstops. Softer springs will often give a worse ride because they allow you to blow through your suspension travel and end up on the stops. A special powdercoat with a high zinc content for extra corrosion resistance, too.
Specifications for the NC MX-5

Front springs: 300 lb/in
Rear springs: 196 lb/in
Front ride height: 13.5"
Rear ride height: 13"


Overall - I expect the ride to be about 1.5" lower than stock - and the handling should be GREATLY improved given all the reviews!


Saturday, February 13, 2016

Suspension upgrades... oh the choices!

Thinking of modifying the suspension on our '11 MX-5 SE

There are a couple of avenues here, traditional shocks/springs/sways like the Flyin Miata Stage 2 Suspension kit (with Koni's) for a nice-stiff daily driver setup..



or Coil-overs like the Tein Flex-Z which gives LOTS of variability in ride height, etc... plus it's about $400 cheaper!


What's your take on suspension mods?  Coil-overs too rigid? or just right?

Thursday, April 30, 2015

Time for a tune!

The Ultimate Atmo EcuTek based tuning deal, with a twist!



Ecutek based tuning including all RaceRom features set the way you want them( no off the shelf set ups!)
The option to add an AEM intake for your car at a killer price.
This offer is open to the first 25 folks.


Since this is a VERY SPECIAL price, we are going to do this a bit differently; you can view the page on our webstore, we have created a special page just for this deal; when you place your order, it will be for the nominal sum of 1.00$. This is a deposit only and secures your place in line. (And yes the buck will go towards your purchase). 
Once the GB hits the required number of folks(25) we will send out a link for you to complete the purchase.


Now here is the twist; for each customer OVER the first 25, we will increase the discount for EVERYONE. So tell your friends, and save yourself a few bucks!




Click here to get in on the deal!


The price is $640 (initially) - which is a HUGE savings from the original price of $850!!!.
So far there are 14+ so jump in and get in on it!



Overview
The ProECU Programming Kit can be used by car enthusiasts and owner clubs to both diagnose and program a wide variety of vehicles.

At its simplest, the programming kit can be used for diagnostics and data logging.

 The ProECU Programming Kit comes bundled with data logging for vehicles that you program with the aid of the EcuTek Master Tuner. 

When connected to a car, ProECU  can offer real time data and map tracing.

The following example data shows 22 out of approximately 60 live data parameters is available from the "Live Data" tab of the ROM file being accessed. This data is accessed directly from the ECU in real time.


and a few videos showing the features!










can't beat a 20% increase in power!  W00T!

Monday, January 19, 2015

Installed the RoadsterSport Super-Q Exhaust Tonight!

So we FINALLY got around to installing the RoadsterSport Super-Q tuneable exhaust on the MX-5.

The install took about an hour altogether.  The hardest part was removing the two 14mm bolts on the stock exhaust.  They were on there pretty good after 30k miles :)

Removing the stock muffler from the hangars was the next challenge.  The OEM hangars have a knob on the end which is great for keeping parts on the hangar, but it's great at keeping the part ON the hangar!  LOL  So after about 20 minutes, we finally eased it down.

Installation was a breeze, 4 non-knob hangars lubed up with Dawn soap was 3 minutes, two bolts torqued to 27ft-lbs and it was done!

Seriously nice fit and finish on this exhaust.  It adds a deeper tone than the stock exhaust and there is ZERO drone which is awesome!  I'm sure over time the setup will tune a bit more as most exhaust systems do.



I uploaded a fun video, the first part is without the stock muffler at all - it's pretty fun. The second part of the video is the exhaust with the resonators installed...


I ended up removing the resonators to induce a bit more sound, but it's still very civilized and sporty sounding.  Highly recommended!



Friday, November 21, 2014

Basic maintenance... gotta do it! New Filters and Synthetic Oil

Oh that lovely service time rolls around and what do you do?  Hopefully you don't just dump in some old dino oil and a crappy filter... NOPE!  gotta go synthetic and a high-quality filter!  It's great insurance to keep your engine running clean and frees up more ponies under the hood :)

This time around, I got a great deal on some Pennzoil Platinum Synthetic 0W-20 and Mobil 1 M1-102 Extended Performance Oil Filter filter!

  



Also, next time you check your air filter - I recommend switching to a K&N Filter - they last FOREVER and with our service, I clean them once a year! The spray bottle of cleaner and re-oil has lasted me over 5 years!  This is the model to get for the Mazda MX-5 K&N 33-2335 - direct drop in filter and LOW maintenance while keeping your engine clean!





Our next service will include 3 Quarts of this stuff Genuine Ford Fluid XT-M5-QS Full Synthetic Manual Transmission Fluid - it's supposed to be the best oil to use that removes any notchiness from the shifter in the Mazda MX-5.  Lots of folks recommend this gear oil!


Sunday, November 16, 2014

Sweet brakes!

Since my last post, the Michelin PSS have been broken in pretty well - for a daily driver.  The car sticks like GLUE!  A bit of suspension float, but that should be fixed in some upcoming updates (hopefully!)

Our front brakes were a little warped and the pads were 50% (or less) so I found a great deal on some new rotors and pads!  Just getting the existing rotors turned and leaving the pads would have cost about $100 - so for less than 1/2 the price I got new drilled and slotted rotors and low-dust ceramic performance pads as well!
only $182 after $50 MIR


Ok - first off, I think they look pretty darned cool - slotted/cross-drilled rotors are a nice shiny touch.  We're still breaking them in a bit and bedding the brakes - but the performance is a nice upgrade!  The slots should keep the pads clean and the zinc plating on the rotors give a nice shine!

Definitely pick some up - fantastic price!

Sunday, November 9, 2014

In with the NEW!

From our prior Mazda Miata experience, my wife wanted to update her daily driver to something a bit newer and a hardtop - so we shopped, and shopped, and SHOPPED around!  The Power Retractable Hard Top (PRHT) cars move REALLY fast - we'd see one listed and it would sell in 3 days or less...

We finally found a 2011 Mazda MX-5 Sparkling Black Mica PRHT 6-speed Special Edition.  




Limited to just 750 units, the Special Edition begins life as a loaded, retractable-hardtop Grand Touring model with Premium package. That means the SE has Bluetooth, satellite radio, xenon headlights, keyless entry and start, and electronic stability control. Also standard is the Suspension pack, which nabs Bilstein shocks, a limited-slip differential, and sportier suspension geometry.



To make the Special Edition, Mazda stretches gray-stitched black leather over the steering wheel and parking-brake handle, and then installs gray leather seats, gray door trim, and chrome around the air vents and instrument cluster. The exterior can be sprayed one of two unique colors, Sparkling Black Mica or Dolphin Gray Mica.


They gray interior was a big bonus for us, since the gray leather won't get as blazing hot as black leather will get in the summertime.  And the heated seats are a very nice addition - she loves driving to work in the morning - top down, and seat heaters on!  :D





More posts coming!!





Thursday, October 30, 2014

out with the old...

My wife and I really enjoyed our 2000 Mazda Miata... we've had it for 2.5 years and my wife daily drives it to work ~32 miles each way...  it was a choice to buy this car to save gas money, instead of driving the Denal XL.  In usual fashion, we did some tasteful mods and maintenance on our NB Miata :)


949Racing 6UL 15x7 wheels with Kumho PA31 195/50-15 tires 




 











the only real 'gripe' is in the wintertime where it rains here (no snow) - so we decided to make a little upgrade... so we upgraded to the 2011 (see next blog post)