Test Drives, and "The Sickness"

So i'm looking for a real sports car to take across country on a 3-week long roadtrip in the future.

(Yes, i'm starting a new thread, because i actually looked at and test drove cars last night, and the other thread had a lot of irrelevant material.)

The players:

Miata (DUH!)
MR-S
Z3
SLK230

We can go ahead and scratch the German offerings right now. The Benz is impossible to find somewhat locally at sane prices, and it was my least favorite anyways. The Z3 is only reasonably priced if it's a 4-cylinder, and i'm not buying a 4-cylinder BMW. Not because it's BAD, per se, but because the i6 is so good, and i wouldn't be able to drive the car without thinking about the "if only..."

Looked at 3 cars last night, drove two.

2002 MR-S: http://indianapolis.craigslist.org/ctd/2438370850.html

This car was strange. It's in better shape than it looks in photos, has 4 scratches, no door dings, and one small dent on the front hood. Interior is spotless, the motor runs perfectly and is dead quiet. However... it has KYB AGXs, Ground Controls, a Moon catback, intake, short throw shifter, tow hook, and was wearing T1Rs that showed some pretty heavy sidewall wear.

In short, i'm 99% positive that it's been tracked. I didn't drive it. Storage will be a BIG problem, but doable if the car is really that good. Doubt i'll really look at this particular example seriously.

The interior was great. Nothing special, but felt good, quality was high, and the layout was good as well. Seats were comfortable in the 5 minutes i sat in them. The car SOUNDS amazing. I want to drive it, but i don't. I'm afraid i'll like it too much the way it sits and end up buying something that's better suited for STR competition than a 3-week long trip.

1997 Miata M-Edition. (I think, can someone tell me exactly what the heck this thing was?)

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.jsp?car_id=297255281

This car was in great condition. Tan leather interior, speakers in the headrests, glass rear window with defrost, wood shift knob and e-brake, wood trim steering wheel, power windows, manual locks. Ran well, shifted well, drove well, no clunks, grinds, no funny business.

The fun stopped there. Body roll out the ass. The seats were not that comfy. The stereo sucked. Motor was too quiet and i couldn't hear it well enough to know when to shift, so i had to keep an eyeball on the tach. The shifter feel was light yet notchy as hell at the same time. I could see that it would be much improved with some work, but in stock form.... i hated it.

So, i went down the street and checked out a 2000 Miata SE/Sport Edition. (Same deal, can someone tell me what the heck this thing was?)

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.jsp?car_id=297034490

Yes, it REALLY had 19k miles, i could not tell that it wasn't brand new.

Black cloth interior, Nardi Torino steering wheel. (Is this special or something?) Power windows, manual locks, i assume a premium stereo package.

This car was INCREDIBLE. It felt faster by a little bit, had a nice growl to it even stock, i could eat off the engine, the shifter felt great, the clutch had a nice firm feel to it, the brakes were great, the car had very little body roll, and handled quite well despite being shod with some 195/60-14s, and the stereo was very good. If i was willing to spend $12k on a Miata, i would have bought it on the spot.

I was quite confused, because the forums seem to like the NA better, and more NAs are tracked. It seriously didn't even feel like half the car of the NB.

Sooo... what's the best NB to get? I'm pretty sure this is what i'll be ending up with, despite wanting to like the NA more, and despite being pretty sure that the MR-S would drive better. Should i even bother driving the MR-S? I'm worried that i'll like it the most, but then end up not being able to deal with the lack of storage. Just sitting in it and hearing it run, revving, it felt like a more "serious" sports car than either of the Miatas i drove, but it also wasn't stock. The controls were all more solid and deliberate feeling, motor felt way better connected to the car. (Vibrations were there to prove it.)

And what exactly was the 2000 i drove? Do i want one of those? Do i want to track down a 6spd? Do i want a Mazdaspeed?

TL;DR: I think i've drank the coolaid, and it ISN'T NA flavored. NB for me!

I can only say this about the Z3... never once have I wished for the I6 in my 318ti.. even in 4 cylinder guise.. BMWs can eat up both Highway and back road miles.

I too like the MR-S.. but short of it being a commuter car, I doubt I could deal with the lack of storage space.. especially if I had somebody else along. I think Locosts have more storage space than the offering from Toyota.

I THINK that the JDM versions actually had a small trunk in the rear.. but it was deleted in the US versions due to legal worries about what the extra weight would do to the handling (ie.. make it more twitchy when it was full of stuff)

mad_machine wrote: I can only say this about the Z3... never once have I wished for the I6 in my 318ti.. even in 4 cylinder guise.. BMWs can eat up both Highway and back road miles. I too like the MR-S.. but short of it being a commuter car, I doubt I could deal with the lack of storage space.. especially if I had somebody else along. I think Locosts have more storage space than the offering from Toyota. I THINK that the JDM versions actually had a small trunk in the rear.. but it was deleted in the US versions due to legal worries about what the extra weight would do to the handling (ie.. make it more twitchy when it was full of stuff)

I've got the same feelings on the MR-S. Commuter? Fine. Weekend trip? Fine. A week long trip without wanting to bring anything back? Probably fine. An epic 3-week trip, wanting to bring stuff back? Don't think that'll work. And it just really sucks because i REALLY think it'll be my favorite to drive, and is the most "sports oriented." Sucks that one trip will be the reason i may have to "settle" for something else, but that's life i guess.

Are Saturn Sky Red Lines getting cheap yet?

what if you put a 1" hitch on the MR-S and hung a small sealed storage box on the back for that 1 trip it couldnt make?

the hitch could serve tire trailer use too

WilberM3 wrote: what if you put a 1" hitch on the MR-S and hung a small sealed storage box on the back for that 1 trip it couldnt make? the hitch could serve tire trailer use too

Would i be able to trust something like that hooning around some of the roads i'll be coming across for 3 weeks? I gave thought to that....

you need a support team follow vehicle.

Local guys don't like the storage unit idea... says it'll mess up the weight distribution too much.

Has anyone actually done this? Anyone got links to epic road trips taken in one of these cars?

NB is the best road-trip car of the bunch, but you need to drive a 944...

Individual cars can vary tremendously. From how it came off the production line to what was done to it over the years by the owners. From cheap shocks to wrong springs, broken swaybars and junk tires, bodged wiring and duct tape. So I'm not particularly surprised at someone finding a Miata that wallows like a pig. I would skip that one myself.

Javelin wrote: NB is the best road-trip car of the bunch, but you need to drive a 944...

Sorry, looking at 2-seater convertibles only.

foxtrapper wrote: Individual cars can vary tremendously. From how it came off the production line to what was done to it over the years by the owners. From cheap shocks to wrong springs, broken swaybars and junk tires, bodged wiring and duct tape. So I'm not particularly surprised at someone finding a Miata that wallows like a pig. I would skip that one myself.

Yeah, i will probably drive one more, but it seems to be way easier to find nice NBs these days anyways. This NA was in great shape overall, all the fluids had been flushed, underside was clean, nothing was broken, and the struts LOOKED new, but who knows what they were, i guess.

But even with all that... the NB just fell to hand better, i connected with it much better. (Oh boy, Zen time!)

Wonkothesane wrote: If you want to buy stuff and bring it home, there's always UPS... That said, it sounds like you didn't like original 120k shocks/springs on the NA miata... I don't think that you can really keep the 14 year old shocks on your sports car and expect the same performance that the 14k shocks gave you. Shocking? (bad pun, sorrry..) It also sounds like the shifter bushings need replaced and it was probably notchy because no one ever changed the transmission fluid, either. $40 in bushings and $20 in Redline MT-90 would take care of that. Interior wise, if you don't like the seats and stereos, that's why everyone considers the NB to be "more refined." Most people will tell you that the NA is a better Miata, but the NB is a better car, meaning that an NA is a light weight buzzy sports car, and the NB is better at being quiet and smooth while still handling well and stuff.

I think the shifter woes may have been more because the wood shift knob that was on it sucked pretty bad. No dampening, no weight to it. The bushings felt fine, and all fluids had been flushed on it. For what it's worth, i found the NB a little notchy as well, but it felt much heavier, which i like.

I think my problem with this particular NA was that it was light weight and buzzy.... but with none of the payoff.

My '94 Miata was a great car, but I like my '99 better.

I think I'd rather have a 5 speed than the 6 speed that I have in mine. 5th in the 5 speed is lower ratio than the 6th in the 6 speed IIRC. Better for highway speeds, might save a little gas $ over the 3 week trip.

I like the MSM, but it really isn't all that powerful or fast out of the box. I do like the difference that the lower and tighter suspension makes to the handling.

T.J. wrote: I think I'd rather have a 5 speed than the 6 speed that I have in mine. 5th in the 5 speed is lower ratio than the 6th in the 6 speed IIRC. Better for highway speeds, might save a little gas $ over the 3 week trip. I like the MSM, but it really isn't all that powerful or fast out of the box. I do like the difference that the lower and tighter suspension makes to the handling.

What attracts me about the MSM is that it feels like a better package out of the box, and the interior is nicer, looks good, and so on.

Plus, whatever i end up with will only get bolt ons, and bolt ons do a lot more on that car than the other variants. Downside is that they're a bit more expensive.

I know i'd be happy with an NB with intake/header/exhaust, and a mild suspension job. I'd probably be MORE happy with an MSM with intake, downpipe, FM intercooler, and the same suspension job (if even needed).

More because more and all that. Although the transmission attached to that thing IS infuriating.

TJ, is the 6spd noticeably quicker than the 5spd due to gearing or anything? As long as i could see upper 20s on the highway, i'm not worried about MPG that much. But i do like the idea of a quicker car without working the motor any more.

MSM +1

Those guys on some other mags "drag week" drove 7.0 second drag cars a few hundred miles - I think you should try to do that instead. Is this trip going to be highways? A two seat convert may not be the best choice if so...

Anyway, that wasn't terribly helpful.

In reply to 92CelicaHalfTrac:

My dad has one of these:

I'd rather drive my 325i.

HStockSolo wrote: In reply to 92CelicaHalfTrac: My dad has one of these: I'd rather drive my 325i.

I would rather the 325i, too, which is why i'm not looking at either of those cars.

tuna55 wrote: Those guys on some other mags "drag week" drove 7.0 second drag cars a few hundred miles - I think you should try to do that instead. Is this trip going to be highways? A two seat convert may not be the best choice if so... Anyway, that wasn't terribly helpful.

ROFL!!!!

You said you didn't want to spend $12K on a Miata but not what your budget is, specifically. Boxsters are easily availably under $10K, have two (2!) good-sized trunks, make the most amazing engine sounds, and are great sports cars. You should test drive one.

My good friend replaced his NA Miata with a Boxster S and while he still loves his old Miata, he also really loves his Boxtser.

David

DWNSHFT wrote: You said you didn't want to spend $12K on a Miata but not what your budget is, specifically. Boxsters are easily availably under $10K, have two (2!) good-sized trunks, make the most amazing engine sounds, and are great sports cars. You should test drive one. My good friend replaced his NA Miata with a Boxster S and while he still loves his old Miata, he also really loves his Boxtser. David

I'd like to spend $8k or less, but will stretch to $10k for the right car if my bank will give a loan with a long enough term. Would like to keep monthly payments around $300 or below.

I hear horror stories about engine failures on these cars. Is it really something to worry about?

Read the last GRM, it has a Boxster Buyer's Guide that tells you everything. Basically, go for a later one or an S to get the best. I have found many early S's for $10K up here.

Any Boxster will be 1000% better than either Miata or an MRS for road trips. Two trunks > No trunks

Javelin wrote: Read the last GRM, it has a Boxster Buyer's Guide that tells you everything. Basically, go for a later one or an S to get the best. I have found *many* early S's for $10K up here. Any Boxster will be 1000% better than either Miata or an MRS for road trips. Two trunks > No trunks

Cool, i'll have to check it out. I'm about 3 issues behind on my mag reading, which is why i didn't see it yet.

Sorry, I didn't read all the previous posts....

if you really like the MR, tho maybe not that example, consider buying it anyway. What about 3 weeks on the road? Ship home any "overflow" that accumulates on the road, and learn to pack light. Me? One way I pack light is to cut down on the different colored clothes I take on long trips and while sometimes inconvenient....I wash the clothes I carry with me when necessary.

The only downside to picking an MR for this trip? Lack of available locking storage space. In other words, no locking "cubby" for a largish camera and/or binoculars.