Finished up a brake refresh on the NC this morning. Centric 120 series rotors with Hawk HPS pads and a fluid flush with Motul RBF600. I had this setup on our previous NC, and it was great for a street car.
Old hubs were a little crusty... wire brush took care of that. New hubs with endurance studs are in the plans, but these will do for now.
Old fluid wasn't terrible (I've seen worse)...
I also hit the calipers/brackets with some black caliper paint.
Ready to rock
While trying to remove some PO installed, suboptimal spot mirrors from the driver's mirror, I managed to break the glass...
New glass is ordered, but for now I'm going for the hillbilly look with a 4" stick on spot mirror from O'Reilly. Frustrating...
I was immediately cheered up by the arrival of a big box for the NC from Supermiata...
Mmmmm.... Xidas.
Not much going on lately. I did get new mirror glass for the NC, and I weighed it today.
100% stock except for the Goodwin exhaust and rotors/pads... all of which should be a wash for the stock parts. 1/2 tank of fuel.
2574 lbs...
Sorry for the long radio silence...
Just pulled in from 22 days on the road, 4867 miles, 10 states, 2 hurricanes and a whole lotta diesel. Still unpacking, but I'll post up a full report in a day or two.
So, my wife wanted to take the RV to the Southeast, including a beach on the Gulf. In Hurricane season, I asked? Sure, she said, why not? More on that later....
The weekend before departure, we washed the RV and the Jeep, and generally got everything ready.
1st day out was beautiful, and we spent the night in a nice little park in Roswell, NM. Day 2 was on to OK, and of course we got rained on and both the rig and the Jeep were now filthy. Day 3 was into AR and an overnight on the Mississippi in West Memphis. It was on the warm side, but beautiful.
This rig was in the park and reminded me of our old rig, though we never flat towed any Miatas. I would have liked to have talked with the owner, but never saw anyone around the site.
Day 4, we had a beautiful TN sunrise, and the last good weather for a while.
We finished the day in a nice little park in Gatlinburg, TN, where we had some rain overnight. We were going to get a lot more...
The next day, we dropped the dog off at a local boarder and headed to the airport in Knoxville to pick up my wife's parents (I'll touch on the wisdom of an RV trip with your in-laws later). The plan was to spend the week in Gatlinburg doing stuff, then move to Maggie Valley, NC (west of Asheville) for several days, then down to Pensacola. Eventually, the in-laws would get put on a plane in Pensacola, and we would make our way home.
That was the plan. Helene changed most of it...
I was keeping an eye on the forecasts, and the morning after we picked up the in-laws, it was already raining pretty good, and this was the forecast:
I did a little online research and found that the area we were in had significant flooding and road closure problems with 3" of rain in January. We had already had over an inch, and Helene was still several days (with rain forecast) away. Helene was forecast to drop 8-12". After a discussion over breakfast, we decided to bug out. In retrospect, it was a brilliant decision. My wife started calling and canceling stuff we had already bought tickets/made reservations for, and went and picked up the dog. I started working on a plan to circle West for a week and still end up back in Pensacola (if it was still there) in a week. We pulled out Thursday in steady rain, caught I40 and headed West. Where we got on I40 was about 12 miles West of where it would wash out on Friday morning (9/27).
Of course, everyone now knows that Helene hammered Western NC, coming in slightly East of the track in the above forecast, then settling west. We ended up in Nashville, saw a few sights, ate some good BBQ, and spent an evening with some high school friends of my in-laws, and then the rain caught up with us. We were pulling out of Nashville headed back to West Memphis as Helene settled in to soak the area. When we left Nashville, there was 2-3" of water all around the RV in the park, and the whole day was the most relentless rain I've ever driven in. I've driven in heavier rain (monsoon downpours), but never anything as solid and endless for 100s of miles. It was a short day of less than 250 miles, but probably the most stressful I'd done in the RV.
We made it back to our park in West Memphis on the Mississippi, where everything was wet, but the rain was tapering off...
In Memphis, we went to see the Duck March at the Peabody, hit Central BBQ for some more good BBQ and then went to Bass Pro. But not just any Bass Pro...
Pretty impressive, as was the view from the observation deck...
From Memphis, we headed down to Hot Springs, hung around for a few days and then it was on to Pensacola. Meanwhile, another tropical depression was brewing in the Gulf...
We stayed at a nice park on the bay side of Pensacola Beach.
It was within walking distance of the beach and most of the better restaraunts in the area.
Our first day there it was still raining, so we dropped the dog off at 'day care' and headed for the National Naval Aviation Museum on Pensacola NAS. I had expected this would be the highlight of the trip for me, and it was. I've always been an aviation nut and it was like a huge candy store for me.
All of the exhibits are listed here, and there's too many to talk about here, but a notable one for me was an SBD Dauntless dive bomber that managed to survive the attack on Pearl Harbor, and flew in the Battle of Midway (the only known surviving aircraft from Midway), two of the most important battles of the war in the Pacific. It had visible bullet hole patches on the fuselage... lots of them.
Another that I was happy to see was a boring little training helicopter, a Jet Ranger or TH-57 in Navy parlance. When I was big into RC, I built a replica of one of these for scale helicopter competitions. The one in the museum was from the same training squadron, but a different bird. It was just cool to see it up close after spending so much effort to replicate it.
The real deal
Mine
The rain finally stopped the next day, so we wandered around Pensacola Beach, had some great fish tacos, and saw a couple cool unicorns. I think there was a show going on... we saw a number of classic muscle cars on trailers on the highway. This was in our park, came in towed behind a motorhome.
This was in the hotel lot across the street...
Later, we picked up the dog. When we travel, if we're going to be doing 'touristy' stuff, if Kona can't come along, we try to get daycare for her. That way she gets to play with some other dogs when we're traveling. In this case, the boarder took pictures of all their charges in 'fiesta' attire... Kona didn't look impressed.
In other news, Milton was slowly brewing in the Gulf, and I was keeping a close eye. Fortunately, it didn't look like it was coming our way. We put my in-laws on their flight back to PA, breathed a big sigh of relief (don't ever go on an RV trip with your in-laws, or any other extended family, or anyone beyond your immediate family for that matter... trust me), and prepped to pull out for home the next morning.
The four day trip home from FL was pretty unremarkable, except for an I10 closure in Houston that created some epic traffic, some suicidal Texas drivers in Houston and San Antonio and a lot of construction. While the trip wasn't what we planned, we did have a good time, had fun, and visited new places. I am hoping our next trip will have a little more race car content, and a lot less Hurricane content...
Back in the shop today, working on the NC... it was finally time to install the Xidas.
First, I rolled the rear fenders. I don't think it will be necessary with the wheel/tire combo I'm planning on running, but better safe than sorry. I dug the Eastwood roller out and got to it.
Next up was swapping out the shocks/springs. It's pretty easy on an NC, and the Xidas have their own mounts for the rear so nothing needed to be disassembled. Out with the old, in with the new.
The factory tower brace is solid, and needed holes to access the adjusters for the front. I thought I had found the proper center, but I didn't.
At least it's accessible for now so I can make adjustments. I'll be installing an aftermarket brace for easier access (and increased stiffness) when I know what will fit with the upcoming FM turbo kit.
I set the initial ride height, so we'll see if it settles a bit, then I'll get an appointment made for the alignment. Everything feels pretty good, and the Xidas are a huge improvement, even in a quick test drive. The factory shocks are harsh over pavement irregularities, but the superior damping in the Xidas just glides over them, even with almost double the OEM spring rates.
In other news, the NC's new wheels showed up today from FM. 17x8 and only 16lbs... with a careful tire choice I should be able go from 205s on 7s to 225s on 8s and not gain any unsprung weight in the wheel/tire combo.
FM 17x8 w/ Hankook V12 Evo2 in 225/45-17
Stock 17x6 w/ Conti DWS in 205/45-17
So, I actually managed to decrease unsprung weight while going to bigger wheels and tires. They're not only wider, but also almost 3/4" taller which should help a bit with the short gearing when the turbo goes on, though it's not much of a difference. Only ~100rpm at 70mph in top gear.
The new combo fills out the wheel wells better, which IMHO really helps the NC's looks. Being ~1" lower doesn't hurt, either. I also really like the bronze with the Copper Red color. Happy with the results.
I'm finally down to one Interceptor in the shop. My BIL had intended to fly out over the summer and ride his home, but it never happened. Earlier this week, it went on a truck for the trip to WI.
Great write-up, as always.
I'm g;ad your spidey senses served you well "here in hurricane country". I'm pretty close in Oak Ridge TN, and though we suffered no damage, some close neighbors got hammered. Be well.
Just caught up after several months away from the forum.
I bought the same color NC this spring (after selling the boss 302), and I was on the forum to see if there were any Keith posts on the NC turbo kit. (dad's 2006 and my 2008 are both going to be "victims" for the new kits as soon as they come out).
I really like the FM wheels on your car, I've been eyeing the gunmetal ones myself.
(I've done Koni's/progress springs, I want progress sways, and i'm saving myself up to buying the FM wheels after the kit).
In reply to Mad_Ratel :
I very nearly did Konis/FM springs, but decided to splurge because I have every intention that this will be a 'forever' car. I had Progress springs and sways on our previous NC, but the springs sagged badly within about two years, so I switched to FM, and found them to be an improvement. The Progress sways with street springs and Koni shocks are a verynice combo, but I do have to say the damping in the Xidas is superior (as it should be for the price difference!).
I'm also waiting on the FM turbo kit for this car. After talking with Brandon at length about the kit at the last two Summer Camps, I'm convinced it will be perfect for our plans for this NC: capable but comfortable street cruiser. Latest info looks like Q1 2025... I just want to have it installed and have some miles on it before Summer Camp next year.
Rodan said:In reply to Mad_Ratel :
I very nearly did Konis/FM springs, but decided to splurge because I have every intention that this will be a 'forever' car. I had Progress springs and sways on our previous NC, but the springs sagged badly within about two years, so I switched to FM, and found them to be an improvement. The Progress sways with street springs and Koni shocks are a verynice combo, but I do have to say the damping in the Xidas is superior (as it should be for the price difference!).
I'm also waiting on the FM turbo kit for this car. After talking with Brandon at length about the kit at the last two Summer Camps, I'm convinced it will be perfect for our plans for this NC: capable but comfortable street cruiser. Latest info looks like Q1 2025... I just want to have it installed and have some miles on it before Summer Camp next year.
The koni's and springs I got were used, and now you've got me wondering if the body roll and instability I have been feeling is that they were worn out rather than just how it should feel. Dad's 2006 has brand new shocks, and sway bars and it feels absolutely amazing. I've also attributed my weirdness to the fact that I have not had an alignment yet. (just busy with life). I made the rear match"ish" dad's car and left the front stock other than making sure the bushing preload was the same as before. The car had factory stock suspension on it with 109k miles when I bought it. So it was definitely due for replacement.
Dad wants the kit, but wants to just buy from FM the downpipe rather than having to find someone to weld the stock cat to their band clamp. So we shall see. I've got a huge garage expansion i'm designing etc to house the boat/ add a workshop that I am budgeting right now. So the Miata got fresh tires on the factory rims and I have left most of the rest of it alone. It needs a top (2008 car) and I added the Jass seat lowering brackets which made the top closed go from unusable to usable. (I've done 3k miles w/o raising the top except for one rainstorm since buying it.)
Dad bought his 2006 new for my mom when it first came out and it's a sport package that they gave him a huge deal on when they could not sell it after winter set in. I drove it home with the top off in november of 2005. IIRC. It's only got 60k miles on it now. Back to back, my 6 speed "feels" much faster and torquier than his 5 speed. From what we can tell I have a LSD and he does not.
I had a line on the same exhaust as you used earlier this year, but with work travel I never was able to get to the seller before he found someone else to take it.
The NC miata is a hoot to drive, I sold the boss because it was loud enough to attract attention and in order to feel the Spec Cortex suspension work, I had to be doing speeds that would most certainly land me in jail. I do miss the sound though. Turning it on always turned heads.
I started going through the rabbit hole of your threads including the Capri. Dad always wanted one. (we are from South Africa originally and he's always talking about them).
Not much going on with cars the last couple of weeks...
I did get the NC aligned, which was a E36 M3show.
Though I have the hub stands and could do it myself, with the street focus of the NC I figured I'd just spend the $150 and get it professionally aligned. Waiting an hour at a shop is better than crawling around on the shop floor for 3 hours, and I figured a shop alignment would be more precise. Boy, was I wrong...
The alignment took nearly 5 hours... The original tech had to eventually be supplemented by another tech. I had several conversations with the shop owner during the process about how the tech was having a 'hard time' getting the numbers I provided, which were only slightly more aggressive than stock (-1.5* front camber and zero toe, -1.2* rear camber and normal toe in). This is on a 33k mile car that's pristine underneath...
They finally finished and I requested a before/after printout from the alignment machine. They said their machine didn't print, and they spent another 10 minutes having the tech take a picture of the screen and email to the owner so he could print it out. By then I was so frustrated I just paid and drove off. I should have looked at the printout, but more on that later... It's about a 15 minute drive home, and the car immediately felt like it had significant toe out. By the time I got home I could hear a consistent rattle in the right front over bumps.
When I got home, I put the car on the lift and started checking. The rear bolt on the right lower front control arm was loose, the obvious cause of the rattle. I then looked at the alignment numbers... (sorry for the picture of a copy of a picture)
It's amazing to me a tech would call that good and ship it.... Those numbers were before driving home with a loose control arm bolt... nowhere near the numbers I specified, different left to right and toe out. I called the shop and told the owner about the loose bolt, and otherwise shoddy results and he told me to bring it back in the morning and he would have a different tech fix it. I'd already paid for the work, so I took it back the next day and they re-did everything. The numbers were on, according to the screenshots they sent, and the car drives properly. I still need to get it on my lift and check the torque on the bolts...
I was really spoiled having a great local shop to do alignments before we moved and dreaded finding a new shop where we are now. The above shop came recommended from a local car guy, and I have to say I was impressed with the owner, but not the work. And I made that clear to him.
Small job today on the NC, swapping in a wiper stalk from an RX8/Mazda6. For whatever reason, Mazda cheaped out on the NC and gave it a wiper stalk (bottom) that has a non-adjustable intermittent wiper position. The swipe rate is never what you need... The RX8/Mazda6 stalk (top) has an adjustable intermittent setting from 2 sec to ~10 sec and is a direct swap that takes all of 10 minutes. I found one on eBay and swapped them out this morning.
So, the NC is now exactly where our previous NC was before we sold it: wheels/tires, upgraded exhaust, good brake pads/fluid, upgraded suspension and a performance alignment. It's exactly where I want it, with the exception of the FM turbo kit, which is now expected Q1 2025.
Then:
Now:
The NA is loaded and the trailer hooked up for an early start tomorrow... got fresh rubber to try to lay down some good times.
Solid day at the track yesterday. Although I didn't get my lap times where I was hoping, I did set a personal best by 3.7 seconds over pre-K swap. Also won my TT class again, though this time there were only three of us.
The weather was just about perfect, though it was cold in the morning and everyone was having trouble finding grip in the first session. I ended up going 4 off at the end of the main straight, and that cut my session short. I was having some difficulty finding new braking points, and just couldn't get the car stopped and didn't want to take a chance at going off sideways once I got in the marbles. Eventually I figured it out, and my times started dropping. I set my best lap in the first TT session, which was a pretty good time to do it. My closest competition was an S550 Mustang on slicks (I'm still trying to figure out how he got in my class... should have been the next class up), but I had a second on him after the first TT session. He went out in the next HPDE group and fragged his clutch so he didn't make it back for the second TT session.
I was on a run to better my lap time in the second TT session, but had another 'newb' that jumped the line in grid ruin my lap. I thought I gave him plenty of room, but caught him on the third lap (where my tires usually give me the best lap) and he decided to come to a near stop and then point me by mid corner after I already had to slow. I caught him after the session and we talked a bit about TT etiquette... it was his first time, and he thought they were just 'extra laps', not realizing it was a competition session. Later, I talked with the organizers about having a quick TT meeting after the driver's meeting since we're starting to get more new people that don't know what to do. Hopefully that will happen...
His car was pretty cool though, a JDM Toyota Chaser, and he was classed in my class, though a few seconds slower. I did think the giant fireballs on shifts were a little much...
Anyway, I was frustrated, and I knew I had the class win in-hand, so I pulled off early and called it a day.
Best lap video...
More to come after I get into the data...
Working through the data now... at first glance I was under driving a couple of corners, but the data comparison isn't 100% apples to apples: cell phone app (RaceChrono) vs. AiM. The data corresponds to how I felt about a couple of corners, so I believe it. Car definitely had 1:50s in it.
Temps and pressures were good throughout the day, though with ambient temps in the mid-high 70s that's expected. Car continues to run at 188-190* CLT on track.
Yesterday, I put the car up on the lift and gave it a good going over. It seems that everything has taken a 'set' at this point, and I didn't find any loose nuts/bolts. I did discover it was weeping from the upper radiator hose at the radiator. Hose clamp looked dodgy so I replaced it with a new one. Something to keep an eye on.
Overall, I'm super pleased with how the car is working, now that the teething issues seem to have been sorted. It's fast, and fun to drive.... ~200 hp really makes a Miata what it should have been.
Another minor gripe about AiM: a camera as expensive as a SmartyCam GP should have better video quality. Also, fiddling with all the camera settings shouldn't require both a computer and the on-screen menus. Everything should be configurable when a computer is connected. Finally, it seems that the camera requires the on-board battery to be charged for stable recording. This battery should charge automatically when the power supply is energized, a 110V wall wart charger shouldn't be the only way to charge it. Overall the AiM stuff is really good... there's just a few things that make you think WTF were the engineers thinking??!
Another part of the ongoing inspection process... washing wheels/tires. I try to get the brake dust off after an event to keep the wheels looking somewhat decent, but had to wait a few days for warmer weather. It also gives me an opportunity to inspect the wheels for cracks. I'm not too much of a curb smasher, but wheels are consumables...
And added something new to the property maintenance fleet... this thing is a beast!
Back when we first went to full harnesses with the NA, I had to figure out which head/neck restraint to use. Without any race shops within multiple hours' drive, I had no way to check things out before ordering. I was really put off by Simpson's pricing on the 'real' HANS, and we ended up with the Zamp 6A which were about 1/2 the price.
The Zamps we originially bought expired last month, so it was time for a rehab/replacement. Although we never had any issues with the Zamp (and thankfully never had to 'test' them), I did feel they limited head rotation more than necessary when adjusted per the instructions. This made it difficult to see around the car, especially in the pits, or when joining a hot track if the angles weren't favorable.
I decided to bite the bullet, and try a 'genuine' HANS III from Simpson, though it still irks me a bit what these cost considering it's basically a piece of molded plastic with some padding and a strap. I know, I know... lawyers.
The first thing that was apparent, is that the HANS has a much narrower neck opening, contacting my neck on both sides when putting it on, though the opening is larger when in place, so it doesn't touch once on. My neck is a little over 17", and the large size is supposed to fit up to 20". It won't fit over my head, so it has to slide on from the back. With the Zamp, I was able to leave it attached to the helmet and don them together, but the HANS has to be put on as a separate step.
The good news is that the HANS allows significantly more head rotation, so it's much easier to look around the car when necessary. I also like that the HANS has more surface area under the harness, so that should provide better stability in a crash. I hope we never find out.
All in all, I have to say the HANS is superior, mostly because of the improved range of motion and resulting improvement in visibility. That said, I still think the ZAMP is a good value, and if the strap was adjusted out, would provide similar range of motion to the HANS, although it would not be in accordance with the instructions. The HANS strap is not adjustable.
Anyway, just thought I'd share the experience since these devices are a big investment, but a necessary one if you're using a race seat/harness.
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