what is the hives thoughts on these? Specifically the turboed versions of them? I wrecked my Miata, and looks like you can pick these up for about 10k. How do they compare to a NA Miata, or an s2000? I've heard gripes about the steering feel, any easy fixes? common problems?
Speaking purely as a fanboi and not from an educated standpoint, I think that the Solstice coupe is one of the better looking cars to come out of Detroit in recent years. My understanding is that they lack the Miata's precision, and are far more blunt than a S2000, but have more grunt than the MX-5.
Decent build thread here: https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/build-projects-and-project-cars/project-solstice-07-gxp-build/74947/page1/
We have an 09 Gxp coupe we bought new and like it a lot. Really don't have much to report though since we only have 9k miles on it. It's been reliable and I love the looks of the coupe, with is why we traded our 07 vert in on it.
They can be very fast. They can fit tons of tire and make great power.
Day to day they are annoying compared to a Miata & S2K. The top takes up pretty much the whole trunk, and is a total pain to put up and down, which is a pretty big deal for a convertible.
The S2K top is a lot better, and it still stinks compared to a Miata.
I have an 06 NA vert and love it, however the interior is pretty low rent and there is no storage space with the top down. It is much more heavy duty than a Miata and it feels like it. With the Z0K suspension it handles quite well while still being comfortable and even the NA has some grunt with just a couple bolt ons. The early models had trouble with the diff whining and leaking, though a recall supposedly solved the leaks. Mine whines a bit, but you are close to sitting on top of it, so it's acceptable to me. It is extremely easy to work on and the front hinged hood makes for great access to the engine bay, though I'm sure the GXP would have quite a bit more plumbing to complicate things.
Oh, and having to snap down the sides of the top every time you open the trunk gets old quick.
the mother in law has a sky redline. off the line it's a tad anemic but once it builds boost it pulls like a tiny little freight train until you tell it to stop. it is a fun little car but i feel very cramped with the top up. i felt more cramped than in the new MX5 at the challenge, but to be fair the top was down on the mazda.
confession though, she is a hairdresser. take that for what you will.
Make sure you fit! At 5'7" and 225lb I can fit in any Miata with no problem. But in a Sky/Solstice I was banging my elbows on everything (console, door, etc.).
Hal wrote: Make sure you fit! At 5'7" and 225lb I can fit in any Miata with no problem. But in a Sky/Solstice I was banging my elbows on everything (console, door, etc.).
I'm 6'2" and 225 and fit fine in the vert but better in the coupe.
Contrarily, I at 6'3" 220 am staring straight at the visors of an NA or NB and fit great in a Solstice/Sky.
there is this one in D.C.s impound lot for sale/auction. Looks very clean, currently at $3,821 bid. https://www.govdeals.com/index.cfm?fa=Main.Item&itemid=6661&acctid=4244
At 5'8" in order to fully depress the clutch the seat had to be so far forward and into the footwell that I couldn't get my two fists between my knees with one on the console and the other on the door. For me that meant that I couldn't get my foot out of the way in order to use the cruise control. It was the deal breaker, not being able to do distance driving in it comfortably.
I'd like one with the Opel front clip
Don't care for how small the interior is. I'm 6'3" and 225lbs and I fit my 1990 Miata just fine but these things I have to cram myself into. Usual GM low-grade interior and the cars always just felt kind of coarse and crude. It's like GM's entire NVH staff was out on vacation when they designed them. Either that or they associated "coarse" as synonomous with "sporty".
That being said, they seem to be fairly reliable as we never see them at the dealership other than recalls and oil changes. Personally I prefer the Sky's styling over the Solstice (And I'm a Pontiac guy). Always wished they had made the Sky a coupe as well, because Darren McNamara's one-off Sky coupe looked amazing
I hate them.
They feel heavy as hell. This is the car that probably feels the heaviest but in reality isn't THAT heavy to me.
The interior is cramped and horrible(5'11 215lbs for reference). I can't lean the seat back enough to get comfortable, and if I go forward any more my knees are in the dash.
The door window switches are awkward as hell to operate, you couldn't make it dumber to use.
The drive line has tons of slack, every time you take off it reminds you of that. Sounds awful in stop and go traffic.
The top is idiotic. Trunk space is awful.
I've never been more disappointed driving something than the first time I drove a non-turbo Solstice.
The turbo cars are quick but still GM build quality and horrible ergonomics.
All my opinion. I know people love them, I don't understand it but to each their own.
flatlander937 wrote: All my opinion. I know people love them, I don't understand it but to each their own.
Yeah, I don't get it either. I wanted to like them and then the first time I drove one I was like "Wow, this is kind of bad". Then after buying my Miata and driving one, it was like "Oh, okay, this is really kind of bad."
NickD wrote:flatlander937 wrote: All my opinion. I know people love them, I don't understand it but to each their own.Yeah, I don't get it either. I wanted to like them and then the first time I drove one I was like "Wow, this is kind of bad". Then after buying my Miata and driving one, it was like "Oh, okay, this is really kind of bad."
I totally agree, I really wanted to love this but didn't like it at all. Cramped interior, shoddy build quality and slack driveline, a no from me.
After driving a 15 year old Miata at an autocross and loving it, there is no comparison. That is until I get behind the wheel of an S2000...
I've had a Miata, driven my dads s2000 a ton. This doesn't sound promising but man do I like the looks of either one of these over the Miata or s2k.
anyone know if there are easy rollbar fixes to get it on the track?
rustysteel wrote:NickD wrote:I totally agree, I really wanted to love this but didn't like it at all. Cramped interior, shoddy build quality and slack driveline, a no from me. After driving a 15 year old Miata at an autocross and loving it, there is no comparison. That is until I get behind the wheel of an S2000...flatlander937 wrote: All my opinion. I know people love them, I don't understand it but to each their own.Yeah, I don't get it either. I wanted to like them and then the first time I drove one I was like "Wow, this is kind of bad". Then after buying my Miata and driving one, it was like "Oh, okay, this is really kind of bad."
Yeah, it was frightening how my 25 year old Miata feels tighter and better put together than an 8 year old car
I will say that at least GM tried to do something different and fun and affordable, so kudos for the effort, but the end result was lacking.
Spend the extra money and get a turbo.
icaneat50eggs wrote: I've had a Miata, driven my dads s2000 a ton. This doesn't sound promising but man do I like the looks of either one of these over the Miata or s2k. anyone know if there are easy rollbar fixes to get it on the track?
No easy rollbar fix. It is possible to custom fab one that meets the rules for most groups and keeps the top operational. You do have to cut some interior panels to make room and it will pretty much require a race seat that puts the seat bottom lower than stock to pass the broomstick test.
From here: Solstice Forum roll bar discussion
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