RE: Chris Harris video: the MX-5
Discussion
I think chris is spot on, i bought one as an every day commuter as i do quite alot of miles but was sick to death of diesels and i thought it would be the perfect eveyday sports car, however, i didnt like it at all. Steering i thought was poor, it didnt "flow" down the road at all and it felt like you sat on it and not in it. The only good thing about it was getting it a little bit sideways in tight corners and round abouts and then only in second gear really. Kept it two months and happily lost money on it to get rid of it! Good video chris whish i had seen this a few months back.
Edited by leon9191 on Wednesday 5th September 22:06
I think chris is spot on, i bought one as an every day commuter as i do quite alot of miles but was sick to death of diesels and i thought it would be the perfect eveyday sports car, however, i didnt like it at all. Steering i thought was poor, it didnt "flow" down the road at all and it felt like you sat on it and not in it. The only good thing about it was getting it a little bit sideways in tight corners and round abouts and then only in second gear really. Kept it two months and happily lost money on it to get rid of it! Good video chris whish i had seen this a few months back.
Edited by leon9191 on Wednesday 5th September 22:06
HeatonNorris said:
Don't understand the hero worship and fawning over his reviews - he appears to change his mind depending on who is paying his wages and / or subsidising his latest exotica purchase.
Rather a strong statement. Might be nice to provide some examples if you're going to question someones professional integrity.
A fair review IMO.
I bought and owned a H reg Eunos 1.6 for a number of years and found it to be quite enjoyable (The old car smell and girly looks put to one side). For the money (£1500) it was all very good,Quality, reliability, top down wind in hair experience etc. but when I bought it I read up, did research and justified the purchase based on the premise that it would blow my socks off. In reality, it was pretty much as Chris described word for word. The legend was better than the reality. I got bored of telling people that for the money..........etc.
Funnily enough I've also owned a 1.6 205 gti and again I found the hype was better than the reality in that respect too.
Now though (and anther car Chris mentioned) I own an Elise 111r and that really is everything I expected. It gets better every time I drive it and push on that little bit more. Sure it needs to be thrashed to get it on cam and inviting guests to share the experience can get a little cosy, but it's the best thing I've ever driven/owned.
For a regular bloke on a regular wage, can motoring get any better??
Now how about a review on another old car of mine, a S14a Nissan 200SX. A drift god/bit of a truck to drive.
I bought and owned a H reg Eunos 1.6 for a number of years and found it to be quite enjoyable (The old car smell and girly looks put to one side). For the money (£1500) it was all very good,Quality, reliability, top down wind in hair experience etc. but when I bought it I read up, did research and justified the purchase based on the premise that it would blow my socks off. In reality, it was pretty much as Chris described word for word. The legend was better than the reality. I got bored of telling people that for the money..........etc.
Funnily enough I've also owned a 1.6 205 gti and again I found the hype was better than the reality in that respect too.
Now though (and anther car Chris mentioned) I own an Elise 111r and that really is everything I expected. It gets better every time I drive it and push on that little bit more. Sure it needs to be thrashed to get it on cam and inviting guests to share the experience can get a little cosy, but it's the best thing I've ever driven/owned.
For a regular bloke on a regular wage, can motoring get any better??
Now how about a review on another old car of mine, a S14a Nissan 200SX. A drift god/bit of a truck to drive.
Interestingly, I've just picked up an identical car to the one Chris drove, it's a VR LTD with just 45,000 miles. Compared to my 1997 MK1 1.8 UK Classic, it drives like a bag of s
te....
Why? Tired s/absorbers (16 years old). Bad tyres (Japanese ditch finders), and the geo hasn't been addressed since it's import in 2002.
Change the shocks for newer/fresher ones, or ideally decent coilovers, put a set of decent, matching tyres, and a good wheel alignment, and it will feel like a different car!
If this VR LTD was the only mx5 I had driven, I would also agree with his comments, but, the difference between a good, and an old, tired mx5 are night and day.....
te....Why? Tired s/absorbers (16 years old). Bad tyres (Japanese ditch finders), and the geo hasn't been addressed since it's import in 2002.
Change the shocks for newer/fresher ones, or ideally decent coilovers, put a set of decent, matching tyres, and a good wheel alignment, and it will feel like a different car!
If this VR LTD was the only mx5 I had driven, I would also agree with his comments, but, the difference between a good, and an old, tired mx5 are night and day.....
SWoll said:
HeatonNorris said:
Don't understand the hero worship and fawning over his reviews - he appears to change his mind depending on who is paying his wages and / or subsidising his latest exotica purchase.
Rather a strong statement. Might be nice to provide some examples if you're going to question someones professional integrity.
Until now, at which point I can only assume Ferrari have subsidised a deal this time around.
It's also funny that the MX5 opinion is now much less extreme when PH, where the MX5 is held in high esteem, are paying the wages!
I trust motoring journalists opinions about as much as I trust Arsene Wenger to see a controversial penalty call.
Going from a 599 to driving that, of course its going to feel slow. I remember my Mk2 Golf was the best thing since sliced bread. After having driven a newer car and going back to my old Golf, I could not beleive how crap it was. The brakes, steering, engine performance. I was shocked at how I ever liked it.
Good video and I like that he is honest and objectionable. I am not an MX-5 fan boy, but do like them. I would like to drive one to form my own opinion, but I fear that now owning a motorbike, any car will feel slow anyway. Hainvg said that, I do like my Ford Focus 1.8. Not the fastest, but I do like its mediocre performance.
Good video and I like that he is honest and objectionable. I am not an MX-5 fan boy, but do like them. I would like to drive one to form my own opinion, but I fear that now owning a motorbike, any car will feel slow anyway. Hainvg said that, I do like my Ford Focus 1.8. Not the fastest, but I do like its mediocre performance.
HeatonNorris said:
Everything Porsche has ever made is supposedly the best thing in the world, ever. And Ferraris were always rubbish.
Until now, at which point I can only assume Ferrari have subsidised a deal this time around.
It's also funny that the MX5 opinion is now much less extreme when PH, where the MX5 is held in high esteem, are paying the wages!
I trust motoring journalists opinions about as much as I trust Arsene Wenger to see a controversial penalty call.
Lol, you have a point.Until now, at which point I can only assume Ferrari have subsidised a deal this time around.
It's also funny that the MX5 opinion is now much less extreme when PH, where the MX5 is held in high esteem, are paying the wages!
I trust motoring journalists opinions about as much as I trust Arsene Wenger to see a controversial penalty call.
Beautifully shot video - well done the cameraman who thought, hell, it's my car in the video - so I will go to extra obscene levels of creativity. Well it worked! Love the scene where its like you are driving over the hedge and the slider shot of the nose of the car and that high speed squiggle as he goes over the hill.
Back around 1990, I jumped straight out of a new 205 1.9 GTI into a demo MX5. To say I was smitten would be an understatement.
Sorry, Chris, but for handling, balance, gearchange, sense of occasion etc etc, no fwd hatch is in the running.
Elise S1? Absolutely, but an entirely different proposition both in terms of cost and practically.
Sorry, Chris, but for handling, balance, gearchange, sense of occasion etc etc, no fwd hatch is in the running.
Elise S1? Absolutely, but an entirely different proposition both in terms of cost and practically.
abarber said:
Back around 1990, I jumped straight out of a new 205 1.9 GTI into a demo MX5. To say I was smitten would be an understatement.
Sorry, Chris, but for handling, balance, gearchange, sense of occasion etc etc, no fwd hatch is in the running.
Elise S1? Absolutely, but an entirely different proposition both in terms of cost and practically.
Interesting, and fair comparison. Sorry, Chris, but for handling, balance, gearchange, sense of occasion etc etc, no fwd hatch is in the running.
Elise S1? Absolutely, but an entirely different proposition both in terms of cost and practically.
HeatonNorris said:
Everything Porsche has ever made is supposedly the best thing in the world, ever. And Ferraris were always rubbish.
Until now, at which point I can only assume Ferrari have subsidised a deal this time around.
It's also funny that the MX5 opinion is now much less extreme when PH, where the MX5 is held in high esteem, are paying the wages!
I trust motoring journalists opinions about as much as I trust Arsene Wenger to see a controversial penalty call.
We all know he is a Porsche fan, but lets be honest here they are universally praised in the press so he's hardly alone in that. However, his issues with Ferrari were always with the company, not the cars. How Ferrari SpinsUntil now, at which point I can only assume Ferrari have subsidised a deal this time around.
It's also funny that the MX5 opinion is now much less extreme when PH, where the MX5 is held in high esteem, are paying the wages!
I trust motoring journalists opinions about as much as I trust Arsene Wenger to see a controversial penalty call.
He's man enough to reassess his opinions on the MX-5 after massive outrage, and TBH other than conceding that they might make good sense as a cheap roadster I wouldn't say his opinion has softened much at all.
SWoll said:
We all know he is a Porsche fan, but lets be honest here they are universally praised in the press so he's hardly alone in that. However, his issues with Ferrari were always with the company, not the cars.
The problem being that they wouldn't give him cheap cars on subsidised finance deals, maybe?It's frankly pathetic, seeing the obsession some posters have with one of the most biased journalists in the industry.
FELIX_5 said:
Not sure why people judge wether he's right or not.
At the end of the day he's not right, nor is he wrong, it's his opinion.
That's the great thing about opinions, everyone has a different one. Doesn't make it right or wrong in my eyes.......
Exactly this! At the end of the day he's not right, nor is he wrong, it's his opinion.
That's the great thing about opinions, everyone has a different one. Doesn't make it right or wrong in my eyes.......
We all have cars we just dont like for whatever reason.
Edited by KM666 on Wednesday 5th September 22:34
Think that Chris missed the point here :-(. Which is unusual for the Harris money!
This was a car that brought RWD to the masses. In an era of hot hatches, this was a refreshing change. Great weight distribution & forgiving RWD handling made it an ideal steppingstone to something quicker. I've had a mk1 & mk2 and enjoyed both.
Have a Golf GTI as a daiy driver now, which is good, but not what I'd call fun. I've recently bought a TVR Chimaera for some RWD fun and although quicker than the mx5, it is not as chuckable.
All in all, I think that the MX5 is a cracking introduction to "proper" motoring & if it keeps bringing enthusiasts from more mundane machinery into RWD cars then I'm all for it! After all, all those owners can't be wrong. Can they?....
This was a car that brought RWD to the masses. In an era of hot hatches, this was a refreshing change. Great weight distribution & forgiving RWD handling made it an ideal steppingstone to something quicker. I've had a mk1 & mk2 and enjoyed both.
Have a Golf GTI as a daiy driver now, which is good, but not what I'd call fun. I've recently bought a TVR Chimaera for some RWD fun and although quicker than the mx5, it is not as chuckable.
All in all, I think that the MX5 is a cracking introduction to "proper" motoring & if it keeps bringing enthusiasts from more mundane machinery into RWD cars then I'm all for it! After all, all those owners can't be wrong. Can they?....
Edited by JPW231 on Wednesday 5th September 22:41
FELIX_5 said:
HeatonNorris said:
Everything Porsche has ever made is supposedly the best thing in the world, ever. And Ferraris were always rubbish.
Until now, at which point I can only assume Ferrari have subsidised a deal this time around.
It's also funny that the MX5 opinion is now much less extreme when PH, where the MX5 is held in high esteem, are paying the wages!
I trust motoring journalists opinions about as much as I trust Arsene Wenger to see a controversial penalty call.
Lol, you have a point.Until now, at which point I can only assume Ferrari have subsidised a deal this time around.
It's also funny that the MX5 opinion is now much less extreme when PH, where the MX5 is held in high esteem, are paying the wages!
I trust motoring journalists opinions about as much as I trust Arsene Wenger to see a controversial penalty call.
It is boring, damaging and simply untrue when people make statements accusing Chris of being in the pay of various manufacturers. When the suggestion is about Ferrari given everything that has happened in the past 18 months it is absolutely laughable. It happens on every thread, and I'm bored of it. Let's not go there on this one, please.
He's not far off in absolute terms with this review, but condescending about an excellent product that gives owners so much fun for so little headache or outlay. The car is compact, biddable, charming fun and very very dependable. I prefer driving one to most things. I don't own one, but don't care how I look when I've driven either of the MX 5s we've had. I imagine I'd feel much more uncomfortable about how I'd look driving a 599 or a track-refugee Porsche to the shops.
And what car isn't above criticism by the terms Chris chooses that can be had for real money?
I've never wanted an Elise because the engine lacks charisma, the gear lever is good for stirring stew and every owner I know has unwittingly spun theirs in the wet. Even the steering is not the best for me, and they will give problems MX 5 owners will never see, while being noisier and leakier.
My brother's Boxter S was a long way from the perceived quality I expected, and confirmed this impression with a warrantied £1500 bill for a new water pump at 16k miles. It had really brilliant steering but a synthetic engine note and throttle response, which made it feel calculated more than thrilling. It also cost him £10k in depreciation in one year.
I could go on, but for me the MX 5's perceived deficits are very acceptable indeed. I think it's a great sporting car, full stop.
And what car isn't above criticism by the terms Chris chooses that can be had for real money?
I've never wanted an Elise because the engine lacks charisma, the gear lever is good for stirring stew and every owner I know has unwittingly spun theirs in the wet. Even the steering is not the best for me, and they will give problems MX 5 owners will never see, while being noisier and leakier.
My brother's Boxter S was a long way from the perceived quality I expected, and confirmed this impression with a warrantied £1500 bill for a new water pump at 16k miles. It had really brilliant steering but a synthetic engine note and throttle response, which made it feel calculated more than thrilling. It also cost him £10k in depreciation in one year.
I could go on, but for me the MX 5's perceived deficits are very acceptable indeed. I think it's a great sporting car, full stop.
Edited by Baddie on Wednesday 5th September 23:41
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