Anyone driven the Mazdaspeed Miata yet?

[Mike O]

I already have a real nice '93 Miata that I've somewhat upgraded (adjustable Konis, Racing Beat springs, rollbar, OZ wheels), but have been thiniking about perhaps selling it and adding the Mazdaspeed Miata to my small collection of toys ('91 NSX and '87 Porsche 911 Turbo Look Cabriolet).

I'm planning on going out and driving one perhaps tomorrow, but wanted to know what others here who have seen and driven the car think about it. The car seems to be a good deal at the $26k pricing, and I understand that with 38 of them here in middle Tennessee right now, discounts are definitely available.

Thanks!

 

[RP-Motorsports]

Not bad for a miata, but you would get more out of yours with a JRSC or a turbo kit. Also for the price of that thing new, you could get a used low milage S2000 for the same price, and 70+ extra bhp!

 

[EIFFEL]

S2000 would definitely be a better choice, especially the later ones with glass rear window, JRSC miata's are nice, but once sc'ed, the 93 needs bigger clutch, brake ,etc, etc, i had a 93 JRSC miata before and it was fun to drive, but it became a money pit due to the constant need to upgrade to match hp-handling, handling-brk, never ending cycle, The introduction of S2000, pretty much made hopped up miatas, unnecessary. The Mazdaspeed will find buyers who already owned miatas, but once you tried S2000, there is no going back.

 

[Mike O]

I used to own an S2000 (when they first came out), and really don't like the car. My son's bicycle has more torque than it does.

 

[nsxn8]

The Mazdaspeed only has 13 ft lbs of torque more than the first S2000, and 4 more than the present S2000. That is pretty sad considering the fact that the Mazda has a 1.8L DOHC Turbo engine. It must run on VERY low boost? Which could easily be fixed by a boost controller! Sounds like a fun car. Test drive it and tell us what you think .

 

[gheba_nsx]

I would go for a S2000 of course!

 

[Mike O]

I think the boost is 7.5 lbs. for the Miata.

Re the torque vs. the S2000, I'm betting that the Miata has much more torque down low (which I prefer) than the S2000 does. I just couldn't get used to have to flogging the S2000 to make it go fast.

The other option I'm considering is keeping the upgraded Miata I now own and buying a super nice Porsche 944 Turbo S. I've looked at two here in town in the past week, and for the price of the new Mazdaspeed Miata (around $26k), I could keep my '93 Miata, buy the Porsche, and have some money left over. BTW, the 944 Turbo S I drove (with an Authority chip and 3" Turbo back exhaust) seems a little faster than my NSX. Really strong pull from 2500 and up.

 

[EIFFEL]

The 944 turbo S is a great buy, but the maintenance is too high, timing belt every 30k, right?

 

[NetViper]

Re the torque vs. the S2000, I'm betting that the Miata has much more torque down low (which I prefer) than the S2000 does. I just couldn't get used to have to flogging the S2000 to make it go fast. .

I think the 2004 S2000 should help the "flogging" issue as it has more midrange punch.

I have not had the chance to drive on as of yet.

 

[Mike O]

Both of the 944 Turbos I'm looking at have had all the services completed recently, including new clutch, front end reseal, belts, etc. In fact, my Porsche mechanic also works on both these cars, and gave them two thumbs up.

Since I'll only drive the car 2000-3000 miles a year, I "hopefully" won't need to do anything soon.

The more and more I think about it, keeping my '93 Miata and buying the 944 Turbo seems to be a better deal than spending the $$$ on the Mazdaspeed Miata.

BTW, one of the Turbos I'm looking at dyno'ed @ 302 hp. It's quick.