Mazdaspeed MX-5 NC?

Sounds cool, 280 torque at 3000 rpm should scoot the NC along nicely.

Give me that and the steering wheel from the M2, and I think I could be quite happy with it.

Seriously, that steering wheel and the height of the rear end are probably what has kept me from signing papers so far, but the folding hardtop will draw me in eventually. I keep hoping that these two aspects of the car that I find negative will grow on me, but they haven't yet.

Pat

I don't think a transverse engine will fit under the NC's hood. :-)

Mazda has historically done Mazdaspeed versions of each model on a rotating schedule, one model per year. Since the Miata was last done in

2005, it'll be a few more years before we see another.

Am also considering moving onto the NC, selling my '00LS, and the rear end height deal is sorta bothering me. Very short test drive in NC. Liked it but - yeah, view out the back was ... disquieting.

Question for any NC transitioners from NA/NB's out there - Have you gotten used to this *different* view rearwards?

Would really appreciate any thoughts.

Thanks so much

-- Steve McMahon Green JRSC '00LS (for now - I think)

I am by now OK with the steering wheel. Being able to put it at the vertical angle I prefer helps.

But I still miss the freedom and rear visibility of the NA/NB. Note however that all the blockage of back flow over the rear end makes the NC much more civilized top-down on the highways and interstates. And it is not that an unobstructed rear end is a hallmark of a sport scar. Just have a look around.

While I would have preferred it if Mazda would have stuck to the MGB/Elan model, I simply do not have time to do the work to keep 10 year old modified cars running reliably. The NC is satisfactory quick for me, has great handling, and it is all out of the box, with no need for me to do anything. I really never considered the NB; as far as I was concerned, it was a toss-up between a Mazdaspeed or a NC, and I decided on an NC because it is made in the fastest color.

Leon :)

I still haven't heard a single person praise the new steering wheel, but I can see learning to live with it.

I don't think that the NC has any problem claiming the title of Sports Car.

This is my second anniversary, (28,000 miles), of driving my 16 year old, highly modified miata and it has been every bit as reliable as my basically stock 1996 model that I owned before. It will turn over 150K soon. Of course, the fact that the PO dumped enough money into the thing to buy a very nice NB miata might have something to do with it. There aren't too many "wear-out" parts on the car that are more than three to five years old,and the engine/turbo/computer/exhaust alone was about 25% of the cost of the NC that I am looking at.

I have never totaled the receipts, but I quit counting one time at about $12,000 with plenty left to go. I am guessing about $15,000.00 and a LOT of hours invested into a $3,000 car that had an incredibly meticulous maintenance history to begin with. Not something that I would do myself unless I were rich and playing around with one of my several cars.

I think that my red '91 can handle your white '96 and '06 with the same driver, but if/when I get a blue NC, then I will indeed be at a color disadvantage, plus mine will weigh 70 pounds more because of the hardtop. I'm screwed... ;-)

Pat

Lanny, you're probably right about that but, what do you think of the rotary engine for the next MS Miata? Have you driven the RX-8? It's a truly magical engine.

Chris

99BBB

I spent 3 weeks in France recently with a Renault Mégane hardtop/convertible rental. Not a bad car for a 4-seat cabriolet and good on gas which was about $10/gal.

I've not seen the Miata hardtop, so I don't know its mechanism. But with the Renault, the biggest pain/ass was access to stuff in trunk when top was down, which of course is most of the time. There's a 'well' in the trunk where you store stuff with this spring-loaded roll-up window shade device that covers it. If the 'shade' is not pulled over this well, the top won't go down. This is the 'safety' - so the top has its OWN space in trunk. So, if you have a lotta luggage or stuff you want to put in trunk, you have to either fit it in this 'well' and pull & secure the 'shade' over it, or put it on the back seat or something.

Point is, you're doing a lot, and I mean A LOT, of 'trunk-stuff management' when you're putting the top up or down. Can't emphasize this enuff. You want to get something out of your bag? It's in trunk UNDER the folded top? You're putting the top up before you get to the bag. then you get stuff out of bag, you put top back down. Then 'Dooohhh!', you forgot something, you're puttin' top back up - repeat procedure, etc., etc.

Gotta admit, I got REAL tired of this top up/down stuff with getting stuff outta the trunk, b/c - being convertible owners - we ALL know - put stuff in trunk where people can't see it. Do this all-the-time. Right? basic convertible security. But, when top's down - it's - IN the trunk!

Finally - I would advise anyone buying a hardtop/convertible to rent one for couple of weeks.

I did and, as cool as they are - and they are - I would never buy a hardtop/convertible.

-- SM

"McMahon" wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@corp.supernews.com:

From Miata.net:

"the MX-5 PRHT provides exactly the same trunk capacity as its soft-top cousin, regardless of whether the roof is stowed or over-head -- a feat no other retractable hard top-equipped car sold in North America can boast."

The PRHT doesn't use the trunk. It folds into the same space used by the soft top in other models.

Yep, that is one reason that I want it so badly. I would describe the operation as "elegant", though I did not applaud. ;-)

The only real downside that I see is the extra 70, (80?), pounds of weight, not a huge deal for me since they kept the car pretty lightweight. I also won't add a rollbar to the NC, so it pretty well evens out for me.

There is the hardtop motor to consider, it will go out eventually, but so do vinyl and fabric tops. The only other thing I can think of is that the hardtop will have somewhat less fading than the rest of the car for people who leave it down most of the time. Again, not a big problem.

The ability to go from coupe to convertible in a few seconds without messing with latches, lifting the top off of the car, or worrying about where to store it has sold me the car, eventually.

Pat

Again, Mazda kicks the crap out of the competition. Sort of like introducing glass rear windows when more expensive European convertibles were still offering plastic rear windows. :-)

Pat

Sorry. Didn't realize that was the case.

My previous post is - inoperative.

-- SM

Thanks, Leon. I also, at this stage, prefer to skip the parts replacement/maintenance deal. I trade my cars at 50K now.

But for me, sports car feel is sorta like a motorcycle; that you're 'riding' the car. You're outside. Lotus 7 outside. after my drive in the NC - maybe I shouldn't say this - okay. I tried an S2000.

It's fast. Smooth. Tight. But, it feels bigger heavier than the NC, to me. And there's that same feeling; that you're sitting way down *inside* the thing. Sorta peeking over the door sill, kinda like the cool street-racer types in "Fast and Furious" movies. Realize that's 'the look' these days - oh, and the real-big wheels. Maybe it's a safety thing; that your positioned in a crash-pod. Whatever. Might very well be that I'm much more used to a Miata. I'll admit to that, but I liked the NC better than S2000. But neither one feels like an wide-open sports car.

Guess that's gone.

-- SM

You don't get off that easily. :-)

If the NC Miata PRHT operated the same as the car that you rented, I would have no interest in it. I would hate to ever be required to raise or lower the top for trunk access, that would really suck.

Pat

I've never driven a rotary, though I would very much like to. The highest redline of any car I have ever driven was an Acura RSX-S which was (IIRC)

8400 rpm. If the rotary is anything like that, it must be truly amazing to drive.

However, I've also driven my wife's '94 Tercel which due to a leaking rear gasket went through a quart of oil every 1500 miles. I'm not sure I want to be monitoring the oil level of any car that closely ever again.

Mostly I wish Mazda had Honda's R&D budget.

Wasn't there a recall on all the RX-8 engines out there recently?

http://www.c> Lanny, you're probably right about that but, what do you think of the rotary

Mazda wanted dealers to check on the engines. Nearly all cars passed the inspection without a problem.

Are there differences in the 2007 Steering wheel, over the 2006 GT with Radio + CC buttons? The added adjustability of the wheel in 2006 was my turning point. ( the "FSB" problem). I can now get the wheel close to perfection. If I could just extend the pedals another inch, or push the wheel in toward the dash an inch, then it would be ideal.

I might have to do that.

There is a very rare breed of salesperson at my local dealership. I hope he lasts. He lets you look at the car while he keeps his mouth shut except to answer questions, does not act like your best friend, and is actually helpful. When he showed me the new hardtop, I went home feeling "un-slimed" for the first time after looking at a dealership car. Very low-pressure.

Of course, he has a giant NC hook in my lip and is just waiting for the inevitable. He is the best salesperson that I have dealt with, but he is still a shark smelling chum when I walk in.

I still haven't test-driven the NC either. I might have to "make up my mind" one day between the NC MX-5 and the RX-8. (wink, wink)

Pat