Apologies if it has been covered but since we're discussing the roof- is it all metal? Metal frame with plastic bits?
Apologies if it has been covered but since we're discussing the roof- is it all metal? Metal frame with plastic bits?
Interesting discussion on the roof. Thanks for the info! For better or worse, TNiA has always been pretty liberal with their convertible rules. Certainly looks like it's not a slam dunk that all organizations would allow an ND RF on track without additional protection, but I'm glad there are places you can play with it at the moment!
maschinenbau said:In reply to Keith Tanner :
Exactly my mentality with this car. I'm not there to win. I need to drive it to work the next day. So what if I don't have the best track pads or stickiest tires, I'll just go slower here or there and still have plenty of fun.
FWIW I think the RF roof is stronger than many think. It has a solid B-pillar integrated into the unibody that the soft-top doesn't have. You can see it when folding the roof. It's no roll-bar, and anything can happen, but it's something.
That B pillar isn't even included in the body structure diagram :) I wouldn't count on it for anything other than controlling wind noise at speed. The document that discusses how the body shell is designed for crash protection doesn't mention it at all - and as expected, the box the "hoops" are mounted to is for side impact protection and nothing about vertical. Basically, it's a convertible with a plastic top bolted to a motorized frame.
For those who are interested, here are the parts of the ND that are made out of ultra high strength steel. Mazda does not distinguish between the RF and the soft top for this diagram.
And in case anyone wants to build an RF shell from parts, here they are.
I do know that the PRHT NCs had more structure in the rear quarter with at least one more skin in the fender. The RF specs show the same panel thickness on the soft top, but there's at least one more spot weld I can spot in the replacement procedure. I think that's all just to support the roof mechanism as it's going to see some new loads when the top is moving.
This is not a "you're wrong" post, I decided to look into those B pillar stumps and just found the rest of this to be interesting.
In reply to maschinenbau :
The brakes on this car is definitely a week point. My wife destroyed a set of hawk street pads in one weekend at Sebring. I just switched over to the Wilwood (Goodwin) bbk with hawk dtc 60. We did 2 days at Barber with no brake fade and only used 1/4 of the pads. A totally different car way later braking.
In reply to maschinenbau :
The factory roll over might work but at 100+ why take a chance. My wife is finally letting me put in the rf roll bar I got from Keith this weekend. Are you still planning to bring your rf to the firm in October?
Yep I'm planning to road trip down, run the Challenge, and do the track day in this car without touching anything except other people's cars.
Forgot to post the mileage photo!
I put the Advanti Storms back on and had the worn 225 Rivals swapped out for 215/45R17 Continental ECS. Not quite as thicc as the 225's, but chonkier than the 205/45's. Definitely lighter than the stock set, with stiffer sidewalls and much more grip, plus I love the way these wheels look against my dark paint. This will be my primary daily/track/autocross do-it-all set, with the stockers in the shed as backup. I went ahead and pushed some Motul 600 through each caliper while I had each wheel off. Ready for the GRM Challenge/FIRM track day!
In reply to maschinenbau :
Beautiful RF and the wheels look sharp. At that angle, with those reflections, it looked like a 4x4 at first glance :)
In reply to fusion66 :
It could certainly use a bit lowering, but I'm very pleased with the stock suspension especially on my commute with rough urban roads. When the Bilsteins wear out I will probably move to Koni yellows, which I hear totally don't lower your car per SCCA C-Street rules (wink wink) yet somehow bless you with more camber and 1/2" emptier fender gaps.
In reply to maschinenbau :
Please don't take my comment the wrong way - I was "seeing" the flat portion of the fender at wheel opening as part of the opening giving a much exaggerated opening size. The car looks great!
In reply to maschinenbau :
Unfortunately for your plan, the strongest feature of a Bilstein is lifespan :) At least the ones on your car are far better than Mazda usually specifies.
Ug. Everytime this thread comes up I have to consider just dumping all my gargabe and buying an ND.
Here we go again.
Robbie (Forum Supporter) said:Ug. Everytime this thread comes up I have to consider just dumping all my gargabe and buying an ND.
Here we go again.
:waves from a little car:
In reply to Robbie (Forum Supporter) :
It really does scratch a lot of itches! You're welcome to take a few runs at the Challenge.
I am liking the tires and wheels, both look and feel. Probably more look than feel, because I am that vain. Markedly improved steering response and ultimate grip at the expense of a slightly stiffer ride, which I am sensitive to due to my commute. As a side note I had cheap knock-off NC Miata TPMS sensors installed in the new wheels and they linked up flawlessly and immediately.
I autocrossed yesterday for the first time since April, and it seems all the casual ND drivers have dropped out over summer, so I was the only Miata with a tire TW rating greater than 200. It's a lame excuse combined with my lack of experience this year, but at least I wasn't the slowest one! On a 70 second course, I was 2 seconds behind an identical car with a pretty serious driver and all the typical CS-winning upgrades that I don't want to live with. And that car was 2 seconds behind an extremely well-prepped S2000. Pretty fun time overall and great weather for it.
The Challenge is 2 weeks away. I am road tripping down with an even taller friend, running in the "GTN" narrow tire over-budget class, then hanging around that Monday for the post-Challenge track day. Friend and I will be co-driving and I'd like to do all of this without working on my Miata. No tires swapping, no brake swapping, just arrive and drive. Two weeks after that is another Sunday morning "quiet session" at Road Atlanta. This is a lot of performance driving for a casual like me, so in preparation for these next few weeks, I installed some hopefully more heat-tolerant brake pads. Certainly not the best brand, but hard to beat at this price. How bad can they be? I mean, they say Track Day right on the box!
I measured all the OEM pads and rotors as a data point. After 11,000 miles and 1 short track session, they are down from 14mm to 11.7mm +/- .5mm. I will bring the OEMs with me just in case. Rotors are also still in great shape at roughly 21.9mm (minimum is 20mm and I presume they are 22mm new).
I transferred the OEM backing plates to these pads. Bedding procedure went well (and smelly!) and I haven't noticed any squealing yet, other than right before bedding. Tons of brake dust from the bedding procedure, but I'll monitor it over the next few weeks of commuting. I will switch back to OEM pads after this month of activities.
This may be a lot of mundane boring details for the more experience track drivers here, but I'm still new to this and want to make sure I'm doing it right.
In reply to maschinenbau :
I have used the PowerStop Track Day Spec pads this season on my NC Miata and they have worked well. Wore out the fronts (30% of original friction material left) with a total of 3828 miles, 400 miles of which were on the track (about 6 hours of track time). They did not fade during 20 minute sessions and got hot enough to create heat checks (micro surface cracks) on the rotors. Yes, they dust a lot but squeal has not been an issue. I replaced them with another set of the same.
For the occasional track warrior I think they are a good option. I hope they serve you well.
Those are very track-capable pads, more of a streetable track pad really. I have Powerstop Track Day PSTs on my Toyobaru, which are more of a trackable street pad, if you find that the Specs are too aggressive, PSTs could be a better option. They are extremely dusty however.
maschinenbau said:I am liking the tires and wheels, both look and feel. Probably more look than feel, because I am that vain. Markedly improved steering response and ultimate grip at the expense of a slightly stiffer ride, which I am sensitive to due to my commute. As a side note I had cheap knock-off NC Miata TPMS sensors installed in the new wheels and they linked up flawlessly and immediately.
I autocrossed yesterday for the first time since April, and it seems all the casual ND drivers have dropped out over summer, so I was the only Miata with a tire TW rating greater than 200. It's a lame excuse combined with my lack of experience this year, but at least I wasn't the slowest one! On a 70 second course, I was 2 seconds behind an identical car with a pretty serious driver and all the typical CS-winning upgrades that I don't want to live with. And that car was 2 seconds behind an extremely well-prepped S2000. Pretty fun time overall and great weather for it.
Let me know the next time you're trying to run and I'll show up. We've met a few times, I run the red Alfa GTV. Finally replaced the daily and picked up an ND, making for the worlds most practical two car garage.
I really like those wheels on that car. I wonder if they would look as good on mine?
I've browsed wheels for mine, but the wine-red roof throws me off from most of the choices. I think I'll be stuck with black, silver, or painting them some color that complements the roof? Maybe have the wheels match the body and calipers match the roof? Not sure.
In reply to Huggs :
I remember you! I've only been out a few times this year. I will miss the next autocross since I'm going to the $2000 Challenge instead. But I think you can still sign up for the Road Atlanta "Shush Sessions" if you're ready to track your ND.
In reply to Mr_Asa :
I love the bright silver contrast on dark paint. You're welcome to try them on. Your wheels are kind of a dark gray, almost black right? Whatever the 100th Anniversary Miatas come with might look good on your car. I think those had the same gunmetal GT wheels mine came with. I'm personally not a fan of dark wheels.
In reply to maschinenbau :
Id probably call them a dark gunmetal. I think they are a stock color? Club package, non Brembo
In reply to maschinenbau :
Just signed up, see you out there
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