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Post by wannabe on Jul 27, 2016 12:51:46 GMT
I replaced the setup with the OEM bilstiens/20mm eibach lowered springs, fitted a roll bar at the same time, result? Stiff as a dead badger. I can honestly say I don't think i've found one thread on mx5 nutz praising these shocks, every man and his dog seems to think them way to harsh, maybe they are just zimmer frame bound casualties. I was thinking the other day - I am one of those who has slated the NA Bilsteins as being ridiculous for the road over here, but I am wondering if it is just the case that my setup is, er, Canoeed... Crashy over potholes and bumps, a little floating over crests - I'm thinking they might just have reached the end of their useful life and have stopped working properly, meaning I'm now bouncing off bumpstops regularly. I still think the rear doesn't have a lot of suspension travel, especially on a setup in this condition, so OEM Mk2 is the way forward for me, I reckon. |
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tsp
Chats A Lot
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Post by tsp on Jul 27, 2016 14:04:55 GMT
I think, in essence I'm chasing the impossible! As a complete contradiction, the average decent silencer for a bike (my background) is £700. I'd pay that in a heartbeat. On the MX5 subject, even though I try to only make modifications that are functional and vfm I'd buy a Zoom bumper or GV rear light panel regardless of cost (within reason!) I love the idea of the mk2 kit but research says you can't lower it too much too easily. Talk about vein. Maybe more investigation is needed! Some great posts here, in danger of sounding cheesy this is a great friendly forum. I wonder if anyone has ever priced a bush kit from Mazda? I'm guessing it'd be more than an ILM kit. Also... Has anyone had any experience with the Gaz fixed height kit? Looks tempting...  |
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Post by bombercounty5 on Jul 27, 2016 14:11:28 GMT
I replaced the setup with the OEM bilstiens/20mm eibach lowered springs, fitted a roll bar at the same time, result? Stiff as a dead badger. I can honestly say I don't think i've found one thread on mx5 nutz praising these shocks, every man and his dog seems to think them way to harsh, maybe they are just zimmer frame bound casualties. I was thinking the other day - I am one of those who has slated the NA Bilsteins as being ridiculous for the road over here, but I am wondering if it is just the case that my setup is, er, canoeed... Crashy over potholes and bumps, a little floating over crests - I'm thinking they might just have reached the end of their useful life and have stopped working properly, meaning I'm now bouncing off bumpstops regularly. I still think the rear doesn't have a lot of suspension travel, especially on a setup in this condition, so OEM Mk2 is the way forward for me, I reckon. But it's that old favourite, personal preference. What some people may find ridiculous, others maybe won't! I certainly wouldn't call my setup ridiculous though, I am running 14" with 185/65/14 (retro balloons) which may make a little bit of difference. A bit of give in the side walls! The white JDM NA8 I had last year was on lowered standard shocks (As far as i'm aware), I got some wheels off a mate. 15x8.25 ET20. 195/50/15 tyres, and I found that pretty dire to drive on the back roads, seemed crashy, tramlined like a beast and the tyres just felt slippery  . I reverted to the OEM daisies and it was a vast improvement, ride comfort wise. So IMO wheels can make a difference to how a car rides, not just handles. I'd say my billies are a bit crashy over potholes, but it's a 25 year old car that's done 210k, with a stiff half cage, so I don't expect it to be supple. Certainly now way near as crashy as the Tein's I had previous. I find mine really predictable over bumps and undulations. I can go batting down some of the lanes round near me, can't even class them as B roads, more like farmers tracks, at 80 MPH and I don't even realise how fast i'm going until I look down! So certainly hasn't compromised the ride in that manner. I DID notice a difference when I changed to them from OEM though, I literally used to be howling to myself down some of the lanes as I just wafted over the bumps nigh on flat out. It lapped them up no problems as I was bouncining about inside. Absolutely amazing for a worn, standard set up really! But I could certainly feel more roll into the corners, a bit more of that spongey feeling on the standard shocks! Ideally I'd say my bilsteins on OEM height springs would be superb, but hey, i'm still only 26 so need a bit of street cred when it comes to tractor height! Can't say i've ever bottomed mine out, not even over the bridge where I can catch some air miles. However the shocks were in excellent condition when I fitted them, seen much worse on eBay that look like they've been dredged up from the bottom of the North Sea. I'd certainly buy billies again, I had a set of peugeot sport grp N dampers (bilstein made) on my 106 rallye and that is the best damped car i've ever had. |
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Post by bombercounty5 on Jul 27, 2016 14:22:00 GMT
I think, in essence I'm chasing the impossible! As a complete contradiction, the average decent silencer for a bike (my background) is £700. I'd pay that in a heartbeat. On the MX5 subject, even though I try to only make modifications that are functional and vfm I'd buy a Zoom bumper or GV rear light panel regardless of cost (within reason!) I love the idea of the mk2 kit but research says you can't lower it too much too easily. Talk about vein. Maybe more investigation is needed! Some great posts here, in danger of sounding cheesy this is a great friendly forum. I wonder if anyone has ever priced a bush kit from Mazda? I'm guessing it'd be more than an ILM kit. Also... Has anyone had any experience with the Gaz fixed height kit? Looks tempting... You don't need to spend £700 for a silencer on an MX5! I paid 300 for my car make corn cat back, Only because they are rare and hard to get hold of, and truthfully, it aint even worth that! You could get a very nice custom system made + buy a nice used JDM manifold for £700. The manifold is the best piece of the exhaust jigsaw puzzle that i've done to mine so far ( I did fit the decat at the same time though ) It's freed the engine up no end and sounds like an 80's rally car, I love it! |
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Post by myothercarsa2cv on Jul 27, 2016 14:42:38 GMT
If you're going aftermarket I personally wouldn't bother with fixed ride height shocks, adjustable means you can flat floor the car / set up the cross weights and boy does that make a noticeable difference...
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Post by bombercounty5 on Jul 27, 2016 14:45:44 GMT
If you're going aftermarket I personally wouldn't bother with fixed ride height shocks, adjustable means you can flat floor the car / set up the cross weights and boy does that make a noticeable difference... Never had a car corner weighted/balanced in such a way, Is it really that much of an improvement? I know from experience having a good geometry alignment makes a heck of a differennce, corner weighting is something i've always thought about and then never got around to investigating further! Make a big difference even on such a small car as an mx5? would it be beneficial even on a lanes/fast road car as apposed to a pure track machine? |
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Post by myothercarsa2cv on Jul 27, 2016 14:49:14 GMT
If you're going aftermarket I personally wouldn't bother with fixed ride height shocks, adjustable means you can flat floor the car / set up the cross weights and boy does that make a noticeable difference... Never had a car corner weighted/balanced in such a way, Is it really that much of an improvement? I know from experience having a good geometry alignment makes a heck of a differennce, corner weighting is something i've always thought about and then never got around to investigating further! Make a big difference even on such a small car as an mx5? would it be beneficial even on a lanes/fast road car as apposed to a pure track machine? I'm the first to admit that I'm not the most amazing driver, plenty of improvement to be made. Chris at Kent MX5s made a few minor adjustments to my geometry (I clipped a kerb  ) and set up the cross weights and boom it was like a different car. The back end is more planted, the traction off the line is silly, and it felt more planted than ever. Best value upgrade I've made on this silly car! |
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Post by Horney on Jul 27, 2016 14:56:32 GMT
Corner weighting makes quite a difference. Been meaning to get mine doen for a while but it's low down the list of priorities at the moment.
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Post by wannabe on Jul 27, 2016 16:38:45 GMT
I was thinking the other day - I am one of those who has slated the NA Bilsteins as being ridiculous for the road over here, but I am wondering if it is just the case that my setup is, er, canoeed... Crashy over potholes and bumps, a little floating over crests - I'm thinking they might just have reached the end of their useful life and have stopped working properly, meaning I'm now bouncing off bumpstops regularly. I still think the rear doesn't have a lot of suspension travel, especially on a setup in this condition, so OEM Mk2 is the way forward for me, I reckon. But it's that old favourite, personal preference. What some people may find ridiculous, others maybe won't! I certainly wouldn't call my setup ridiculous though, I am running 14" with 185/65/14 (retro balloons) which may make a little bit of difference. A bit of give in the side walls! I hear what you're saying but I do think mine are just plain Canoeed - they just bounce hard off bumps, to the point that I have to slow down because I'm not sure if it's going to catapult me into the scenery!  I know the Michelin PS3 tyres are quite stiff in the sidewall, too, and that 195/50/15 are not exactly that deep of a sidewall, but the suspension is definitely the main issue in my eyes lol I need to get to a meet and do some passengering / give some rides so I can get some comparisons! |
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Post by bombercounty5 on Jul 27, 2016 16:49:14 GMT
I'm still debating on what to do with my wheels.
I really like how they drive on the 14's. Mine are only 5.5j like the original daisies (albeit with a lower offset) They are so light and nimble!
A part of me really wants to try some 7j 15's with 195/50/15, mainly just to switch up the look of the car from time to time.
I'm thinking of keeping the 14" panasports that I have now and using them for track and sticking on some wider, 15's for the road.
Read some good reports on the Ps3's. I bought a set from a ginetta jr car, nigh on brand new, with the intention of sticking them on the E30 BBS wheels I have but i've sold them, and selling the BBS tomorrow. They are so heavy compared to what is on the car now!
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Post by myothercarsa2cv on Jul 27, 2016 17:32:57 GMT
I'm currently on 15x7 et24 Tailgate McNoIndicate BBS wheels on PS3s... It's a brilliant setup but not quite perfect. My other set is 15x6.5 et35 and lighter. Night and day, mostly because of the offset. Can't wait to get those wheels shod in some RSRs and back on the car...
Whatever you do with wheels, just try to keep the offset and rolling circumference as close to stock as possible. They don't need to be wide, unless you have silly power.
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. I reverted to the OEM daisies and it was a vast improvement, ride comfort wise. So IMO wheels can make a difference to how a car rides, not just handles.
) and set up the cross weights and boom it was like a different car. The back end is more planted, the traction off the line is silly, and it felt more planted than ever. Best value upgrade I've made on this silly car!
