Your choice for affordable daily driver/track car?
01-17-2010, 01:39 PM
#42
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By design, stock street cars are a terrible way to enjoy a race track. IMO, there are only a handful of (affordable) cars that are capable of daily driving and still offer terrific performance on a race track.
- Integra Type R
- E36 M3
- Evo IX
- Z06
- 996 GT3
Yes, any car can be driven around a race track, but very few street cars were optimized for that type of droving.
- Integra Type R
- E36 M3
- Evo IX
- Z06
- 996 GT3
Yes, any car can be driven around a race track, but very few street cars were optimized for that type of droving.
01-17-2010, 03:26 PM
#43
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Well if not the CR than i would get a Evo. But i feel u on DD the CR. It was geting old to me seemed like i enjoyed the car less. So i just bought a beater for $450 now the CR seems like a super car
01-17-2010, 04:01 PM
#44
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Originally Posted by Chris S,Jan 16 2010, 06:14 PM
Yes.
Obviously, it doesn't have the same power, but it handles better. Most importantly, it doesn't have any oiling or power steering failure issues that 987's are susceptible to.
Consumables are another huge difference. Tires are much cheaper, as are brake pads, and light weight means they're relatively easy on them all things considered.
I didn't think CS maint. was too expensive for street use, but those extended intervals become irrelevant when tracking your car much, and suddenly $230+ oil changes become a lot more expensive. My last NC oil change was $24.95 (DIY) using Castrol Synthetic and a good filter.
Also, the NC is easy to work on. I never did any of my own maintenance on the CS - just having to use pucks @ the jacking points, having to get the car level to drain the oil, poor engine access, etc., made it not very inviting to wrench on.
Lastly, my insurance company eliminated on-track coverage from my policy, and I can stomach the financial risk of losing my Miata much more easily than the CS.
I dearly loved my CS, but my NC has hung well against the ones I've encountered on the track. I will say that the CS is a better DD than the NC or S2000 (and most other 2 seat sports cars) IMO...more comfortable/spacious, better seats, quieter, more grunt, etc.
Obviously, it doesn't have the same power, but it handles better. Most importantly, it doesn't have any oiling or power steering failure issues that 987's are susceptible to.
Consumables are another huge difference. Tires are much cheaper, as are brake pads, and light weight means they're relatively easy on them all things considered.
I didn't think CS maint. was too expensive for street use, but those extended intervals become irrelevant when tracking your car much, and suddenly $230+ oil changes become a lot more expensive. My last NC oil change was $24.95 (DIY) using Castrol Synthetic and a good filter.
Also, the NC is easy to work on. I never did any of my own maintenance on the CS - just having to use pucks @ the jacking points, having to get the car level to drain the oil, poor engine access, etc., made it not very inviting to wrench on.
Lastly, my insurance company eliminated on-track coverage from my policy, and I can stomach the financial risk of losing my Miata much more easily than the CS.
I dearly loved my CS, but my NC has hung well against the ones I've encountered on the track. I will say that the CS is a better DD than the NC or S2000 (and most other 2 seat sports cars) IMO...more comfortable/spacious, better seats, quieter, more grunt, etc.
Granted, I've never driven a Cayman S, but I did own a 987 Boxster S for a year and I've driven an NC...it's not even close. The NC is a damn fine car, don't get me wrong, but better handling than a Cayman? Come on, that's a joke.
I can't disagree with anything else you said, though, except for the ride. I found the NC very soft. I never found my Boxster uncomfortable, but then again, I find very little uncomfortable due to stiffness.
01-17-2010, 04:26 PM
#45
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Originally Posted by Race,Jan 17 2010, 05:01 PM
The NC is a damn fine car, don't get me wrong, but better handling than a Cayman? Come on, that's a joke.
Having said that, Chris' Miata has a number of handling modifications which improve its handling compared to stock.
Also, different people have different definitions of ideal handling -- for example, I prefer a pushier car than some of my racing buddies, so it's possible for us to disagree on whether one car is better handling than another. Not that most people know the difference between handling and skidpad rating anyway.
01-17-2010, 05:07 PM
#46
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Originally Posted by PedalFaster,Jan 17 2010, 05:26 PM
You're telling a guy who's owned and tracked both cars that he doesn't know what he's talking about when you haven't owned either?
Having said that, Chris' Miata has a number of handling modifications which improve its handling compared to stock.
Also, different people have different definitions of ideal handling -- for example, I prefer a pushier car than some of my racing buddies, so it's possible for us to disagree on whether one car is better handling than another. Not that most people know the difference between handling and skidpad rating anyway.
Having said that, Chris' Miata has a number of handling modifications which improve its handling compared to stock.
Also, different people have different definitions of ideal handling -- for example, I prefer a pushier car than some of my racing buddies, so it's possible for us to disagree on whether one car is better handling than another. Not that most people know the difference between handling and skidpad rating anyway.
And I do know the difference between handling and skidpad ratings (skidpads don't mean a damn thing, we both know that), so that's irrelevant. I've done my fair share of driving, research, and writing (I don't know if anyone's familiar with Automobear.com; we were a small, but enthusiastic group)
It's true that handling can be somewhat subjective. Some people may like the neutral balance of a front engine, rear drive car, some people may prefer the sharper, more responsive, and, at times, trickier handling of a mid-engine car, but there are things that true and things that are not. You can't say that a Crown Victoria handles better than a Ferrari 430 because you're more comfortable driving the Crown Vic.
However, I did suspect that driver comfort has a lot to do with his assessment. The NC's limits are far lower and more accessible than those of a Boxster or Cayman, and when coupled with its lower replacement cost, as mentioned, the extra driver confidence could lead one to feel that one car is better for track use. I know I wouldn't have been comfortable tracking my Boxster S when I had it. I'm shopping for a cheaper car for racing for exactly that reason.
But, either way, your point is taken; I forgot my new guy on the forum politicking.
01-17-2010, 06:08 PM
#48
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It's understandable, completely. MX-5s are great cars, even the NC (much like the Evo X, it has sacrificed a little sharpness in the name of comfort). I pushed one up to triple digits on an on-ramp a few years back, when they were first introduced.
From a cost/benefit perspective, the MX-5 is hard to beat. That's why "NA Miata" is the first thing to come out when someone asks "What should I buy?" over at the Grassroots Motorsports forums.
From a cost/benefit perspective, the MX-5 is hard to beat. That's why "NA Miata" is the first thing to come out when someone asks "What should I buy?" over at the Grassroots Motorsports forums.
01-17-2010, 06:13 PM
#49
Originally Posted by CKit,Jan 17 2010, 09:53 PM
He's like a semi-sane ZX-7 talking about rotaries... 
01-17-2010, 06:17 PM
#50
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Originally Posted by DanZilla,Jan 17 2010, 07:13 PM
"Race" is a new member with Zero days under his belt. He has no idea what you are talking about when you talk about ZX-7 and RX-7s
