2006 Mazda MX-5 NC 2.0 Sport
Discussion
There's a few cosmetics on the car that I had been wanting to sort for a while. The cut marks due to the roll bars was one, but also there are some scratches on the glove box that have been there since I've bought the car. I had an idea for both.
Said scratch marks. Ignore the santa hat.
I had some spare stretchy suede/faux alcantara that would look good, and would be easy to fit due to the shape too.
Turned out really well, with the lips of the glove box allowing me to tuck the ends in for a proper finish.
That's better! It's got me wondering if I should do any other pieces of trim, but I also don't want to overdo it. The triangular pieces to the left/right of the radio (you can see it in the photo above) would be easy and would compliment it, so that's tempting.
After the success of the glove box, I thought I'd do something similar here. So I went about designing a 3D printed cover set that would cover the holes.
Velcro is used (thanks for the tip Accelebrate) so that I can re-position them to get them just right.
Far better, and now matches the glove box. Lastly, Accelebrate designed a blank that fits into the wind breaker holes, which he kindly supplied the files to me so I could print.
A job well done.
A few other thoughts. I'll be removing the 25mm spacers. It's a shame as I do want the wheels to be pushed out a little more, but I'm a bit paranoid of a couple of things. Firstly, the alignment will be off; it was already -2 camber on the rear, so no doubt that would have increased it even more. But the negatives of having these spacers would be the risk of cutting the tyres on the arches if I'm tracking the car, as well as bearing failure (apparently anything over ET40 is a risk), and lastly uneven tyre wear due to the increased camber. As much as I like the look, I'd prefer the car to perform better, so I'll be removing the spacers today. In the future I'll look at slightly wider wheels (for a happy medium), or I'll find aftermarket wheels that have pockets in the back for the original studs to stick into so that I don't need to run such big spacers. However, the stock NC wheels are very light, so it would be quite an expense to replace them, and due to the lightness of the originals, it wouldn't be for performance sake. I may just refurbish them and keep them as is.
The seats are another pain in my ass; literally. They're bloody awful. I'm now realising that I'd want the car to be useful on the road more than the track, but to not ignore the fact that I want to get back onto the track more often. It seems that the NC's options are limited to the standard tombstone-like seats, or full-on buckets. Neither of which appeal to me as both sacrifice something. A happy-medium would be OEM-style buckets (like Recaro's) that have the functionality of standard seats, a bit more supportive, and have harness holes.
Something like these:
They're Recaro's from a Vauxhall Corsa D, and because they're from a Corsa, they're quite cheap for what they are (£500 for the pair). Unfortunately there's no guarantee they'd fit, and that's a big risk to take. A bit more research into seating options is needed.
Said scratch marks. Ignore the santa hat.
I had some spare stretchy suede/faux alcantara that would look good, and would be easy to fit due to the shape too.
Turned out really well, with the lips of the glove box allowing me to tuck the ends in for a proper finish.
That's better! It's got me wondering if I should do any other pieces of trim, but I also don't want to overdo it. The triangular pieces to the left/right of the radio (you can see it in the photo above) would be easy and would compliment it, so that's tempting.
After the success of the glove box, I thought I'd do something similar here. So I went about designing a 3D printed cover set that would cover the holes.
Velcro is used (thanks for the tip Accelebrate) so that I can re-position them to get them just right.
Far better, and now matches the glove box. Lastly, Accelebrate designed a blank that fits into the wind breaker holes, which he kindly supplied the files to me so I could print.
A job well done.
A few other thoughts. I'll be removing the 25mm spacers. It's a shame as I do want the wheels to be pushed out a little more, but I'm a bit paranoid of a couple of things. Firstly, the alignment will be off; it was already -2 camber on the rear, so no doubt that would have increased it even more. But the negatives of having these spacers would be the risk of cutting the tyres on the arches if I'm tracking the car, as well as bearing failure (apparently anything over ET40 is a risk), and lastly uneven tyre wear due to the increased camber. As much as I like the look, I'd prefer the car to perform better, so I'll be removing the spacers today. In the future I'll look at slightly wider wheels (for a happy medium), or I'll find aftermarket wheels that have pockets in the back for the original studs to stick into so that I don't need to run such big spacers. However, the stock NC wheels are very light, so it would be quite an expense to replace them, and due to the lightness of the originals, it wouldn't be for performance sake. I may just refurbish them and keep them as is.
The seats are another pain in my ass; literally. They're bloody awful. I'm now realising that I'd want the car to be useful on the road more than the track, but to not ignore the fact that I want to get back onto the track more often. It seems that the NC's options are limited to the standard tombstone-like seats, or full-on buckets. Neither of which appeal to me as both sacrifice something. A happy-medium would be OEM-style buckets (like Recaro's) that have the functionality of standard seats, a bit more supportive, and have harness holes.
Something like these:
They're Recaro's from a Vauxhall Corsa D, and because they're from a Corsa, they're quite cheap for what they are (£500 for the pair). Unfortunately there's no guarantee they'd fit, and that's a big risk to take. A bit more research into seating options is needed.
snotrag said:
The Corsa Recaros have definitely been done in an NC before, so its doable.
Really? I tried to look it up but couldn't find anything on an NC.The other option is the Sparco R100+, which has been done, and are around £500 a pair brand new. That's another route to consider, which at the moment is the main one.
snotrag said:
100% - there was a white car at the OC national rally that had them. Search on NC Europe and you'll find the owner.
I'll take a look. Someone who's selling a set close to me has allowed me to visit them and place the seat in the cabin to see if it fits, so will update you on that. It would be a case of ensuring the original runners fit the new seats - how would I do it, can I drill holes, and so on. Not done this before.Pent said:
well done on the glove box. i did give you credit for the roll bar hoops on facey
I saw - thank you!A few more pieces trimmed as I felt they'd compliment the glove box.
These radio sides pop off easily, and are quite easy to wrap. Took me a total of 10 minutes per piece.
Very happy with how they've turned out.
TameRacingDriver said:
Great thread OP. Really good to see some love for the NC on PH these days. Funnily enough I came from a boxster too. A short and very painful ownership experience that was. Very interesting to see what people do to their cars, lots of inspiration!
Thanks, much appreciated!Okay, last bit to be re-trimmed: the gauge cowel.
It comes apart, which makes this trim job a piece of cake for both neatness, easiness and longevity.
The trim didn't take long at all, and the finish is super neat.
All installed. Balances the interior well.
Very happy with the outcome!
freedee said:
Where did you get the material from as it looks great
Here you go:https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/274548489768
geraintthomas said:
Thank you, I will order some once they have black back in stockI noticed that the brakes were sticking slightly. On very slight inclines, the car doesn't want to roll freely. It's barely noticeable, but it's there. As I was removing the spacers anyway (due to bearing/tyre wear and risk of the arches cutting the tyre), I thought I may as well strip and clean the brakes.
The 25mm spacers were a b
h to remove. One nut was essentially destroyed with an impact gun, luckily not damaging the thread. I'm glad I removed them sooner rather than later.
The calipers could do with a repaint too.
Doesn't look that clean, but that's far smoother. The ends of the pads were also sanded/filed slightly, and with new grease applied, they operated smooth as silk.
The sliders were also cleaned and re-greased.
I had some silver and yellow paint in the shed. While I was under there, I may as well have painted the disc hubs/edges and calipers.
Much neater.
The rears are the only calipers that I haven't re-built. The fronts are simple push-in pistons, but the rears are wind-in. I've not re-built wind-in calipers before, and these pistons are also operated by the handbrake. I'll have to do some research, but I'll be re-building them soon for peace of mind. The cleaning has done them wonders though, with everything moving freely.
Good as new (ish).
The wheels are now 25mm further into the wheel arches. While it doesn't look as good, it's given me a lot of peace of mind. The original ET of the wheels is ET55. Running 25mm spacers essentially makes the wheels ET35. Reading up on the matter, anything lower than ET40 will cause premature bearing failure. I'd love a happy medium, and as I can't have spacers less than 25mm due to the original studs protruding and hitting the back of the alloy, a change of wheels is the only option. Well, I could replace the studs, but that's a huge job. I'll keep an eye out for wheels that are between ET42 and ET45 that are the same size/width. This would also allow me to swap my current tyres over. The problem is finding a wheel that's lighter than the stock NC's wheels for a decent price. The standard weight is 7.7kg, which is very impressive for an OEM 17" wheel.
The 25mm spacers were a b
h to remove. One nut was essentially destroyed with an impact gun, luckily not damaging the thread. I'm glad I removed them sooner rather than later.The calipers could do with a repaint too.
Doesn't look that clean, but that's far smoother. The ends of the pads were also sanded/filed slightly, and with new grease applied, they operated smooth as silk.
The sliders were also cleaned and re-greased.
I had some silver and yellow paint in the shed. While I was under there, I may as well have painted the disc hubs/edges and calipers.
Much neater.
The rears are the only calipers that I haven't re-built. The fronts are simple push-in pistons, but the rears are wind-in. I've not re-built wind-in calipers before, and these pistons are also operated by the handbrake. I'll have to do some research, but I'll be re-building them soon for peace of mind. The cleaning has done them wonders though, with everything moving freely.
Good as new (ish).
The wheels are now 25mm further into the wheel arches. While it doesn't look as good, it's given me a lot of peace of mind. The original ET of the wheels is ET55. Running 25mm spacers essentially makes the wheels ET35. Reading up on the matter, anything lower than ET40 will cause premature bearing failure. I'd love a happy medium, and as I can't have spacers less than 25mm due to the original studs protruding and hitting the back of the alloy, a change of wheels is the only option. Well, I could replace the studs, but that's a huge job. I'll keep an eye out for wheels that are between ET42 and ET45 that are the same size/width. This would also allow me to swap my current tyres over. The problem is finding a wheel that's lighter than the stock NC's wheels for a decent price. The standard weight is 7.7kg, which is very impressive for an OEM 17" wheel.
TameRacingDriver said:
Interesting as I was thinking of getting spacers for mine, it sounds like on balance you wouldn't recommend them. I do like the look with spacers and it does look better but only very subtly in my view and if it causes problems then they probably aren't worth the bother.
My thoughts exactly. If the stock wheels had cavities to allow the original studs to protrude into, you could fit a smaller one. But unfortunately it's not the case!The car is a lot less nervous now without the spaces. With the peace of mind, they'll be staying off. Unless someone wants them of course, I'd be happy to sell.
Good write up. The NC is a good car, the later facelifts look good too with the right parts and ride height.
Re tyres - how do you get on with the falkens after a while? As a road tyre on a "fun car" Good feedback/comfort/progressiveness? I have had some of the previous ZE914 delaminate at the edges (doing autosolos, so hardly fair), but they felt reasonable on my old MR2 (but not a completely equal assessment with various sizes and wheel offsets)
Re your wheels - you could go up in width to get the extra poke without messing with offsets: a 17x8 at standard offset wheel will give you 12.5mm extra - you can probably afford a few mm less offset, so 20mm is possible without messing with geometry. a wider wheel will generally support the tyre better, which could help with your wear. If you are feeling flush, Konig do light wheels it sensible fitments (USA site, but has a good guide on wheels and the styles they offer https://www.good-win-racing.com/Mazda-Performance-... )
I really like the SUPER20 concept they had at SEMA ages back, with big chunky 16x9 wheels and 245 tyres, but that is probably a step to far!
Re tyres - how do you get on with the falkens after a while? As a road tyre on a "fun car" Good feedback/comfort/progressiveness? I have had some of the previous ZE914 delaminate at the edges (doing autosolos, so hardly fair), but they felt reasonable on my old MR2 (but not a completely equal assessment with various sizes and wheel offsets)
Re your wheels - you could go up in width to get the extra poke without messing with offsets: a 17x8 at standard offset wheel will give you 12.5mm extra - you can probably afford a few mm less offset, so 20mm is possible without messing with geometry. a wider wheel will generally support the tyre better, which could help with your wear. If you are feeling flush, Konig do light wheels it sensible fitments (USA site, but has a good guide on wheels and the styles they offer https://www.good-win-racing.com/Mazda-Performance-... )
I really like the SUPER20 concept they had at SEMA ages back, with big chunky 16x9 wheels and 245 tyres, but that is probably a step to far!
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