I LOVE Miatas and all but.....

[Gene Rodriguez]

I LOVE Miatas and all but when your sitting on coilovers you feel every single thing on the road -_-.
Even before I installed coilovers I felt everything. I call my car the death trap:shocked:


Anyone else feel like this???aha

[SteelReign]

I call mine a "rattle trap". Can't get decent music in it because every bump, whether from the road or the music's bass makes the car rattle and vibrate really badly. At cruising speeds the passenger door rattles non-stop.

I got suckered into this "sports car" and now I'm trapped within its rattle! It seems the only way to ignore it is to drive hard and let the exhaust drown it all out...

But this is how every used sports car seems. Gotta take the good with the bad...

[kung fu jesus]

What coilovers and rideheight are you on? Spring rates?

I had 9/6 coils on my NA with monotube dampers. When I aadded a hardtop, I bolted it down. That took away a LOT of the rattles. When I added bolt in doorbars to the rollbar, it took away 90%+ of the little rattles. Going over bumps and uneven roads made the chassis feel as solid as a modern car, like an Audi. No more shudder and shake.

[WASABI]

I LOVE Miatas and all but when your sitting on coilovers you feel every single thing on the road -_-.
Even before I installed coilovers I felt everything. I call my car the death trap:shocked: Anyone else feel like this???aha

Everyone knows you can't have it all... You want plush comfort?, you give up on handling. You want to stick to the road?, you feel the bumps. You want to lower your car for "stance"?, well, you give up function. It's really what you want to do, and finding a solution you can live with.


I call mine a "rattle trap". Can't get decent music in it because every bump, whether from the road or the music's bass makes the car rattle and vibrate really badly. At cruising speeds the passenger door rattles non-stop.

I got suckered into this "sports car" and now I'm trapped within its rattle! It seems the only way to ignore it is to drive hard and let the exhaust drown it all out...

But this is how every used sports car seems. Gotta take the good with the bad...


When I decided to "really clean" my car (remove seats, rug, dash, door panels) I installed stuff similar to Dynamat (http://www.dynamatstore.com/) It drasticly cut down on vibrations, and rattles. I installed it on the doors, on the inside of the outside sheetmetal, AND I replaced the door's plastic vapor barrier with it. My doors now have a "thud" sound when they are closed. Also, with rattles, there is usually a source that you can trace back too. Somethings come undone, or is loose.

-Cheers,

jim

[Demon I Am]

hahaha, funny. Try coilovers (12k/7k) and delrin motor mounts. Then you'll hear all kinds of racket, that you wish you wouldn't. This spring, my plan is to remove the dash and carpet, install some sound barrier, and heat reflective material. I also plan on putting in a "new" dash, and wrapping everything behind the dash in some type of foam.

[Agent☣Orange]

Holy hell! Haha, that is solid!

[Gene Rodriguez]

but even with stock suspension it was still pretty rough

[Phatmiata]

Save up and get some Fat Cat setups like the Driver has, he loves his suspension.................

paging the Driver............... :whistle:

[The Driver]

Everyone knows you can't have it all... You want plush comfort?, you give up on handling. You want to stick to the road?, you feel the bumps. You want to lower your car for "stance"?, well, you give up function. It's really what you want to do, and finding a solution you can live with.
jim
I must have missed the memo! ;)

Save up and get some Fat Cat setups like the Driver has, he loves his suspension.................

paging the Driver............... :whistle:

Yes boss?


Seriously, my FCM's are 600/375 with 12.25/12.75 height rides. As a previous front engined Porsche owner with friends that had E-36 M3's, wanted to feel that suspension experience again. I've had those coilovers in Tulsa and now Denver where the roads are NOTHING like the smooth glass roads that I had in FL. My car is smooth, supple and with prodigious amounts of grips.

[speedypenguin]

but even with stock suspension it was still pretty rough

Well, the NA is a pretty old car. Even with a '97 NA, the car is 15-16 years old!

To add to what kung fu jesus said, bolting down the hardtop makes a world's difference. I also noticed a difference when I installed frame rails to my car. Not only did the frame rails increase the chassis rigidity, it helped eliminate some annoying rattles and twisting.

[Phatmiata]

Adding a 4-point rollbar will tighten up the car as well, even more so than a hardtop.

[kung fu jesus]

As maxed out as my NA was, suspension-wise, those instances where I was able to use it for how it was designed completely overwhelmed the flaws. JICs, 9/6 springs, sways, HT, roll bar, doorbars, corner balancing, Lotus seats, Torsen, etc. The drive from Raleigh to Deal's Gap was a little exhausting, but when I got out there and started pushing the car, it was pure magic. Same for the track days. I used to drive another car as a daily (e36M3) and I would get back into the NA and fall in love with it all over again. The drives up and down the PCH, blasting across the mountains on the Ortega Highway, far more entertaining in the NA versus the M3, primarily because of the roads and the relatively short trips. Now with the NB as our only Miata, it is set up more for pleasure, but still has those characteristics that make you overlook the flaws.

Now, driving across the desert to Vegas, Havasu or Palm Springs with 100+ degree weather? M3 all the way. 100mph with the A/C on.

[etikoner]

You sold your na!?!

[Anonymous]

only complaint is the wind noise on the driver side. To be expected but other than that I am happy with the car, I like small cars so naturally I drove mainly econo cars so rattles are not new to me though with the miata I have no noticed may rattles. My hate for it is the reverse, sometimes it goes into R nice and easy, other times you fight and swear like a pirate.

[kung fu jesus]

It sounds like you just have a few nagging little maintenance issues. It the kind of stuff that isn't performance oriented, but just solves a lot of gripes.

For the reverse issue, that is usually attributed to bad motor mounts or worn shifter bushings. Wind noise is either a bad window seal or the stoppers for the glass need to be adjusted (glass is going up too high or not high enough).

Easy fixes, just not sexy.


And yes, I sold my NA last summer.

[Lesac]

a slammed car definitely does not have to be a rough riding car there are solutions. but its just all about what your after and how much you work youd like to do. you can build a custom setup for the same price as a set of cheap coils and they will be every bit as good performance wise if not much better and ride nicer at the same time.

[The Driver]

a slammed car definitely does not have to be a rough riding car there are solutions. but its just all about what your after and how much you work youd like to do.

you can build a custom setup for the same price as a set of cheap coils and they will be every bit as good performance wise if not much better and ride nicer at the same time.

Totally agree with the first sentence, and I could not disagree more with the second one. Oh you can build all kinds of things for less money than custom, but it won't ride nicely as a daily driver. I and others have tried, and failed MISERABLY. Something about a Miatas suspension constraints (suspension travel, a proper valving, etc) that makes it tough!

[Lesac]

I think we are on the same page I probably just worded that wrong. I know my car doesnt ride as well as it did stock, but its still very smooth and I have been very happy with it.
It is very tough yes, but there are a few things Ive found that have made the biggest difference and that is revalving as you've said as well as changing spring rates and adding FM top hats. I cant tell you what a difference FM top hats made in the back of my car. :)

[RuckkehrMiata]

I feel uncomfortable in cars where I cannot feel the road. When I drive my GFs car I feel completely blind not feeling the road markers, paint, and small dips.

[The Driver]

I feel uncomfortable in cars where I cannot feel the road. When I drive my GFs car I feel completely blind not feeling the road markers, paint, and small dips.

I can assure you that you can feel the road, without feeling like you are driving an ox cart. It is not cheap, but it is VERY doable.

[mc70]

I just moved from my OEM 7spoke wheels and 185/60s to a 15" wheel and 195/50 Yokohama S-Drive tires. I'm on old OEM suspension (until tomorrow) and that change alone made such a profound difference I would never have imagined it. While my car is nearly pristine, and rattle-free, the chudder and chop of the road was nearly eliminated.

If your car is riding that rough; you have some seriously worn or mismatched components.

[DK Wolf]

Miatas are cheap, dirt cheap. I wouldn't give two shits if it rattled since I paid 600 bucks for mine and I beat the ever living tar out of my Miata. Offroading and wanna-be rallying up at Blackstar Canyon and other Jeep trails. I didn't care about creaks and moans since it was an old essentially shitty car.

I had my Porsche or Yukon for when I wanted a decent ride anywhere.

[Gene Rodriguez]

lmao people are scared to ride in my car my hardtop creeks when i go on a slope angled and the feeling of my lips scraping

[Gene Rodriguez]

just because i can feel everything doesnt mean its a terrible ride. aha i just hear a lot of things and i personally like the stiff bouncy ride

[scsi]

i always thought fairly highly of teins and had tein flex on my old rx8 as well as my miata. back then, i figured good race suspension was just going to be harsh and i was ok with that

fast forward to the Xida-S from 949 utilizing AST dampers and 700lb front and 450lb rear spring rates. these are a bit stiffer sprung than my teins which were 10k/7k (560/392), yet my xida handle better AND are more plush. it's all about quality dampers