6G Celicas Forums

The Mazdas handle better too, and from my understanding have really stepped it up on interior quality. Not to mention their innovation with the internal combustion engine. There's a lot to like about Mazda at the moment. Oh and I think all of their production is back into Japan after breaking from Ford, at least the models we get anyway. If I had to deal with the real world and 15,000+ miles a year I'd totally get a Mazda 3 hatchback with the manual, nah who am I kidding I'd walk out with a Miata with the GT-S package in Eternal Blue Mica. Though the Mazda 3 hatchback is a nice looking car for the price and the type of vehicle it is.

Exactly, I like my Toyotas but they need to step up their game. If my moms '01 Camry ever craps out, I'm going to try to get her in a Mazda 6.

Get her into the turbo one for whoosh sounds.

I can’t deny that the Mazda’s are better to look at but neither Brigette nor myself would ever trade in a 4Runner for one. Ultimately the choice was hers and she felt that the Rav4 was the only thing she’d like enough to give up the 4Runner for, and even then she was hesitant. She still doubts if she made the right decision but she is loving the Ravioli so far. Although we did just find out that Toyota recently changed their bumper to bumper warranty and it’s like half of what it used to be, so that’s pretty good appeal for literally anything else.

I know that feeling; even though I REALLY want a Miata and I absolutely DESPISE driving the Firebird, I'm still hesitant somewhat on getting rid of it.

https://youtu.be/3qhVrqG61mg Welp I came.

That's cool and all I guess but no thanks, I like older cars for a reason. Being able to afford them aside, it's for simplicity's sake. I like the NB2 cluster as is:

It just screams late 90's, yet happened in the early 00's.

Ughhhhhhhhhhh, I'm so ****ing bored.......... I keep looking at cars even though I already know the Miata is the only car that has what I want that I can afford. I even started looking into the 350Z despite them being heavier than they should be since they're the only RWD coupe in the price range with multi-link or double wishbone front and rear aside from the unicorn manual SC300. Though apparently the 350Z has terrible forward visibility like the 4th gen F-body so oh well. Oh yeah, there's the Solstice and Sky but unless they're the much more expensive turbocharged GXP and Redline variants it doesn't make sense to get one over a Miata. There's the RX-8 quasi coupe, but reliability nightmares aren't needed. I think that covers it unless all of a sudden a 6-speed C4 Corvette is worth what a 6-speed 4th gen is, plenty of automatic C4 though in the price range but ewwww no. Hell I wouldn't mind giving up 50 hp for a '90-91 model(yes I know '89 was first year for the ZF 6-speed, but that interior is so gross) and having the L98 instead of the LT-1. Gaining multi-link rear to go with the double wishbone front as well as losing 100-200 pounds over the Firebird, and most importantly being able to see out of it, more than makes up for the 50 hp deficit I'll hardly notice because I don't use it anyway.

I would seriously consider a C4 Corvette though if a '90-96 6-speed were within budget, the only thing wrong with them is they're a bit heavier than I'd like but there's a good bit of weight reduction to be had rather inexpensively and without ruining the car(well, Corvette and domestic purists would say I'd ruined it but that's ok). Would just have to drive one to see how I like it in comparison to the Miata, but I do seem to not like slinging around anything over 3,000 pounds no matter how good the suspension is. It's hard to describe, but you can just feel the weight of a car like an extension of yourself. How it transitions from side to side and fore to aft, how it dances so to speak. You can feel the forces from those actions on your body, and in a lighter car they're less pronounced. I think that's the best way of describing it.

That and the Corvette DID come in the BEST colour ever:

Black Rose Metallic or:

Dark Purple Metallic

Though the Miata will always have the advantage because of weight and size, but the Corvette can have a larger contact patch since it can run 11" wide wheels front and rear whereas the Miata is limited to 9" wide wheels front and rear. Which even then the Miata will have less weight per inch of contact patch, and then there's the unsprung mass at play which the Miata definitely holds the advantage... See this is my problem, too scientific. Really it'd be on the basis of how important V8 noises are I suppose, since if that's ultimately the end goal then a Corvette would be the better starting point. The voice inside my head and the one from my brother still says Miata though, so who knows.

After more researching and finding reviews on the NB2 Miata and C4 Corvette, and even a few comparisons between them by people that owned both, I've decided Miata it is I suppose. As much as I love the sound of a V8, I guess that's not really a good enough reason for getting a car. Wait a minute, I should've learned that by now... Even though the Corvette would be a lot better than the Firebird, and probably could be just as good of a handler as the Miata by the numbers with an 11" square setup, it'll still be bigger and heavier as well as older and more expensive to maintain just because of parts pricing and quantity although I have no doubts it'd be just as reliable. That and apparently the L98 in stock form wheezes out at 4,500 rpm and makes the LT-1 look like a screamer at 5,600 rpm, so that'd be a point of contention if only a L98 car could be afforded.

Now to figure out what aftermarket wheels I want for the Miata to pass the time. Since that's like an option unlike domestics where it's various o.e. wheels.

M5 Rivet nuts pop RIGHT into the holes the clips resides in so I ordered some M5 bolts and countersunk washers from Wisconsin to be here tuesday, a whopping $15 expense. I decided to skip doing the rears as it's just two bolts and nearly out of sight and it's bolts not absent or cracked clips so there's nothing to fix there so I won't fix what's not broken. Here we go, ricing it up. I'll order the flame stickers next week.

I've told you before and I'll tell you again. V8 Miata is what you need.

Flame decals are so 2001, itasha is where it's at now. Just do your favourite anime, manga, or video game and let the world know what you like to do on the weekends.

The only thing with the V8 Miata is that it adds like 300 pounds doing a LSX and T-56 swap, a TVR Griffith 500 would be ideal but those were only sold in the UK and are expensive anyway. Meh, if I were to swap a Miata it'd probably be for the Mazda/Ford/Jaguar V6 since it gains powers, loses weight, moves the center of gravity back, and reuses the rest of the Miata drivetrain.

Anyhow back in the house of next Tuesday I'm thinking 15x7.5 or 15x8 will be the way to go for the NB2, since those fit without rolling fenders and quarters or without the need of coil-overs like 15x9. That and with 15x9 you're stuck with 225/45-15 which are all race tires or extreme summer tires. I'm leaning more towards 15x7.5 since then 195/50-15 will fit ok, though some say those will fit on 15x8 I'm not sure about that... they'd be really stretched if they did and just no... Then I'll have a nice enough selection of tires between 195/50-15 and 205/50-15. So there's like 4 choices for a 15x7.5:
Konig Dekagram


Konig Hypergram


Konig Freeform


949Racing 6UL


Decisions.

Then there's the Konig Dial In one inch increments, so 15x8:


For whatever it's worth the 7.5" 6UL is 11.2 pounds and the 8" Dial In is 12 pounds and the Hypergram 7.5" is 11.6 pounds. The Dial In and Hypergram are the least expensive, $504 shipped for a set of Hypergram and $516 shipped for Dial In. The 6UL are $600 a set. Though there's also the 8" 6UL that's 11.6 pounds and $640 a set. Of course there's the 15x8 Enkei RPF1 that're 11.2 pounds but $920 a set. Bleh, I'm inclined to say the Hypergram for 7.5" and Dial In for 8" just since they're cheapest and none of them really woo me on looks. Though the Dial In do have a cool three dimensional look to them.

That and most say to go with 8" wide and run 195/50 anyway and that you should only do 7.5" if doing STS classing in autocross. I just don't know about that, but I did find this picture that showed a 195 on an 8" wide wheel and I guess it looks ok:


I just don't want to be screwed on tire selection, and inversely I don't want to buy 7.5" only to realize that 8" would've been fine. Sigh...

Clearly, put 7th gen Celica wheels on it. JK.

you joke, but they'd probably work. they look good on just about anything

Steering wheel too!

true. seen one put into a nissan maxima or something one time. lol

Some y'all's should just buy a 7th gen.

Celica is 5x100 and Miata is 4x100 so wouldn't work, and those are 16's anyway which is what the LS and SE Miatas come with and what I want to remove.

Steering wheel on the other hand, I wish. The one in the Miata is a huge joke for it to be a straight up sports car. It's sad that the Firebird has a more sporting steering wheel than the Miata ever had up until the ND.