mk3

[RichyBoy]

Is the mk3 any good? Can rwd fun be had in a car with so much weight and so little power? Is it no different than a safe fwd hot hatch in the way it behaves? I need something rwd to use everyday so I can keep my elise winter garaged, so wouldn't mind the benefit of an oem warranty to keep things cheaply in check but I want a playful back end. Also car brokers seems to be able to offer them close to used prices, so thats very tempting.

[lord summerisle]

RichyBoy said:

Can rwd fun be had in a car with so much weight and so little power?

umm how much do you think it weights? power?

[MX-5 Lazza]

Looking at the performance figures of the Mk3 2.0 they are almost identical to the RX8...

[RichyBoy]

Its around 1200kg and 150bhp isn't it?

[lord summerisle]

loose 200kg and add 10bhp

[MrV]

I thought it was part of the remit that the mark 3 had to weigh the same as the mk2 ,the only thing that needs to be done is a hieght reduction

[RichyBoy]

what's needed to be done for height reduction?

[lord summerisle]

RichyBoy said:

what's needed to be done for height reduction?

tick the Eibach springs option on the order form

or buy them direct from here: http://www.mx5parts.co.uk/product_info.php/product...

That puts the suspension back to how the car was designed to run.
If you do keep the car at stock EU height, then get the aligment done, to adjust the camber angle for the 30mm extra height. (Mazda dont adjust the settings when fitting the EU height springs)

[jez-m]

I've had a 2.0 mk3 for a year and a bit now and its bloody brilliant. It's not particularly quick but its quick enough for most of the time and just good honest fun to hustle along. And yes, it does behave completely differently to a fwd hatch. My other motor is a Focus ST170 and the two are completely different drives. If you so desire, you can have the back end out on every roundabout, wet or dry. My advice is don't listen to all the knockers who've never driven one and don't read too much into the quoted figures. Go and try one for yourself.

And I second the comment about getting in lowered. I had mine done after about 8 months and it transformed the car. Had the alignment done as well which also made a big difference.

[fish]

I've just bought a 2.0l sport with A/c and Bose 06 plate 18k miles for £12,250 which has got to be good money. I'm fitting the Eibachs next week and having a full alignment done at www.centergravity.co.uk

Can't wait but they are cracking little cars..

Edited by Mrs Fish on Saturday 2nd February 16:56

[alock]

lord summerisle said:

That puts the suspension back to how the car was designed to run.

I believe this is how it runs in Japan too. They had to jack the car up to pass EU pedestrian impact regulations.

[TVR_nut]

lord summerisle said:

RichyBoy said:

what's needed to be done for height reduction?

tick the Eibach springs option on the order form

or buy them direct from here: http://www.mx5parts.co.uk/product_info.php/product...

That puts the suspension back to how the car was designed to run.
If you do keep the car at stock EU height, then get the aligment done, to adjust the camber angle for the 30mm extra height. (Mazda dont adjust the settings when fitting the EU height springs)

How do you stand with the Mazda 3yr warranty if you do this? Is it necessary to have them fitted by a dealer, or could you do it yourself (not that hard a job by the look of it)? And are the correct geometry figure available for others (i.e. non dealers) to do the full alignment job?

I concur re the benefit a full 4-wheel laser alignment - it transformed by Griff 500 when I had it done a few years back. Big question now is whether to upgrade the springs on the MX-5, or do the springs and shocks on the Griff. I know which will be cheaper.....

[MX-5 Lazza]

Don't get hung up on the warranty - people seem to misunderstand them.
If you replace a part like suspension springs with after-market parts it does not invalidate the warranty on the whole car. If something goes wrong that can be attributed to the after-market parts they might refuse to honour the warranty on those parts but that's as far as it goes. If you fit an exhaust trim on the tail-pipe it won't affect the warranty on the engine if a piston melts. The same applies on all parts.

The Eibach springs are a Mazda option part anyway so it won't affect the warranty at all.

Mazda technicians might well have the correct alignment settings but few dealers have the equipment to do a full laser alignment.

[hornetrider]

MX-5 Lazza said:

but few dealers have the equipment to do a full laser alignment

...or the expertise