Sport Tech Coupe Options

[JD68]

Following all the positive comments on this forum and very helpful information from hornetrider, I have taken the plunge and bought a new Sport Tech Roadster Coupe in Copper Red Mica.

On a decently long test drive I noticed the car was a bit floaty on some high speed undulating roads and that my left ear was rather chilly after about an hour. I am therefore considering the lowering kit and a wind deflector.

The spec of the car seems very comprehensive so most of the options seem to be just cosmetic decoration, many of which are standard on the Sport Tech. Any advice on the following?

1. Lowering kit: Mazda Eibach springs or Wheels in Motion lowering coils?

2. Aluminium strut bar: Is this any better/lighter than the standard item?

3. Windblocker: Clear or mesh type?

Are there any other options that owners would recommend?
Thanks for your help!

JD

[MX-5 Lazza]

I thought they fixed all the handling problems on the Mk3.5. If so then it might well need the geometry setting checked by someone who knows what they are doing (most dealers don't seem to).

[Raffles]

I recently purchased my Sport Tech and chose 3 options:

• Clear wind blocker
• Illuminating gear stick
• Eibach suspension

Yeah people say the handling is sorted anyway but I think the car looks so much better on the lowered springs and it drives so well, but I haven't really driven one without the Eibach kit.

Suspension:


A wind deflector is a must. I like the clear one as it doesn't harm the backward vision. But it writes off the space behind the seats when the roof is up for any storage. The smaller wind blockers can be folded flat whereas the clear one is too big. I like this though as my friends always used to chuck stuff behind the seats in my mk1 which annoyed me!

Wind deflector:


I love my illuminating gear stick as it looks gangsta'. haha! But man, I'm on my third one now as they keep falling to pieces, but it's always a quick fix under warranty.

I would ask you reconsider on the Coupe vs Roaster. What are your reasons for choosing the Coupe? I was just reading in Evo this morning, on the wrap-up of their long termer, that he noticed a suffering of driving dynamics with the hard top, and there was no noticeable reduction in road noise. He said that it felt heavier, that the center of gravity felt higher, and that the soft top had shown no signs of wear. I also personally feel having the roadster is truer to the roots of the MX-5.

[hornetrider]

Nice car raffles. You spec the front spoiler from the bodykit too?

Question, are you able to reach over the wind deflector to pull the roof up from a seated position?

I almost got the illuminated stick but tried to include it too late into the deal, so elected not to bother, sounds like I dodged a bullet!

Edit: oh yeah, congrats on the purchase James welcome to the club! Getting a good deal?

Edited by hornetrider on Tuesday 28th September 10:30

[Raffles]

hornetrider said:

Nice car raffles. You spec the front spoiler from the bodykit too?

Question, are you able to reach over the wind deflector to pull the roof up from a seated position?

I almost got the illuminated stick but tried to include it too late into the deal, so elected not to bother, sounds like I dodged a bullet!

Edit: oh yeah, congrats on the purchase James welcome to the club! Getting a good deal?

I got the bodykit from MX-5 Parts and got it painted and fitted by a bodyshop. This is a better picture:


You can also see my rear diffuser in the picture of the wind deflector which I did the same way. I saved a huge amount of cash doing it this way.

I reach behind my right shoulder and lift the roof up from the side of the roof, rather than from between the seats. When lowering the roof I just have to push my back up the seat so that my arse is abit higher to give it the click down. I can do either in about 3 seconds

I am still glad I chose the gear stick; I blame dealer ineptitude.

One thing I wish I had purchased are the black 18" wheels. I think they look sweet but am undecided how they would look on the copper red car...

[hornetrider]

Spoiler looks good. I think the black wheels would work on the aluminium or grey cars. There's a guy on mx5.com with them on a black car and nice as they are it's a bit too black I think. When the time comes for new tyres I may get some OZ Chronos, nice looking wheel and floaty light.

I did consider the diffuser but I think they could have done a better job with it. It looks too much like the standard one with fins on the bottom. If they had binned the horizontal bit between the exhausts and had the fins there I'd have bought it!

[JD68]

Thanks for the replies. Raffles, your car does look great and I agree about the lowering – mine will be done at some stage I’m sure. Fantastic location for the photos as well!

The car I am buying seems to have some extra chrome bits on it, around the grill and on the door handles. Do you know whether there have been any changes in 2010?

I thought long and hard about the soft top/hard top choice but preferred the security of the latter. When I use the car for work there will be a large musical instrument on the passenger seat and I will feel happier with the solid roof. Also my insurance company were muttering about garaging being a requirement with the soft top (as they did when I asked for a quote on an Elise) but have no problems with the Coupe.

The lines are better with the soft top and I understand the idea of the roots of the MX5 but the weight difference is only around 3 – 4% and I felt the car had enough performance to be fun on country roads where big power and speed are not relevant. I did not actually test drive a soft top but sitting in both cars with the roofs up, I preferred the snug feeling in the Coupe. The rear visibility is also better and it seemed quieter although the difference is small. At some point it would be very interesting to do a ‘back to back’ comparison between both cars and also between suspension options!

The final clincher for me was that the Copper Coupe was in the dealer’s showroom and he was very keen to meet sales targets at the end of this month. I did not do as well as hornetrider but am happy with the result and the dealer could not have been more helpful with two long and unaccompanied test drives, allowing me to try the car on my favourite local roads.

The car is being registered today but I may not have a chance to pick it up until mid October. I will let you know how I get on and am looking forward to some open air winter motoring.

Thanks again for the advice!
JD

[Raffles]

Thanks for your kind comments about my baby! And I echo Hornetrider's congratulations at the purchase of your own.

Yeh it sounds like you had good reasons for choosing the coupe, it is certainly more secure. The chrome additions are part of the coupe package; I far prefer the grille you get with your car and I have inquired about getting that one for mine but apparently it wouldn't fit my bumper.