Miata daily driver: anyone do it? - Page 3

911 in SC · 06-03-2007, 03:32 PM

I agree. My B&T has power steering, and I'm used to it now. However, my A package '92 w/ manual steering felt MUCH better to me.

As far as disconnecting the power steering, I believe you can disconnect it, but ensure the pump still has fluid in it. You don't really want to run any pump dry for any long periods of time.

Later,
Mike

BeerBurner · 06-03-2007, 03:58 PM

I daily drive my '90, and love every minute behind the wheels. It's not the most practical in terms of storage space, comfort and noise, and those are things that keep me from making road trips in it. But from the standpoint of a daily driver runabout, it's a fun little car that can be parked anywhere and uses very little gas. When I've got the snow tires on, I find myself awaiting the snow so that I can go out and drive around.

From a reliability standpoint, mine has been... well... not nearly as good as it should have been. I bought the car with 89k miles on it and records for the past two owners. It was a clean car so I expected it to be really good. During the first 14 months I spend about $4k in repairs, and that's doing all of the work save for the engine after the shortnose crankshaft failed on me. (If you are looking at a '90 or '91, read up on that!) It was mind-numbing that my 944 was a far cheaper car!

But I stayed the course and for the past year and a half or so, the car has been very, very reliable. I now feel that after working out the bugs, my Miata will be good for a long time to come. I also feel that my Miata was the exception and not the rule. I whole-heartedly recommend these cars.

The good news, though, is that I've also learned just how easy it is to work on these cars! I love the fact that I can change the cat-back in 45 minutes, including stopping for beer!

BB.

Tim Walsh · Tim Walsh's Garage

One more note on the Manual vs. Powered steering. The manual rack that comes from the factory is a slower rack than the powered rack, so disconnecting the power steering lines might not give you quite the same feel as a true manual rack. I've driven both in anger and don't really care one way or another personally, but I'm far from a fast driver.

Porsche virgin · 06-04-2007, 07:03 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Tim Walsh
One more note on the Manual vs. Powered steering. The manual rack that comes from the factory is a slower rack than the powered rack, so disconnecting the power steering lines might not give you quite the same feel as a true manual rack.

Bingo.

masraum · 06-04-2007, 07:04 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by dd74
I would think to get that manual feel, all a person has to do is disconnect the power steering mechanism. Or is it much more complicated than that?

If you just disconnect the pump you are in for a rude awakening. You'll look like Popeye in no time. Some people loop the pressure and return line on the rack, even that's not exactly correct. To correctly depower a power rack you have to take the rack apart, remove a seal or two and then put it back together.

The power steering doesn't have quite the feel of a manual rack, but with an aggressive enough alignment and tires it's much better. As stated above, it's also a faster rack than the manual.

I wouldn't really bother getting an R unless you really want light weight and don't want to strip it yourself. You can buy a car that's optioned the way you want and then mod the suspension to be the same as an R or better if you want.

masraum · 06-04-2007, 07:06 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by 911 in SC
It's pretty ironic that you mention the Mk1 and Mk2 VW as a second choice. I owned my 1987 VW Golf for nearly 15 years before selling it to buy a Miata. As much as I loved my VW, the Miata is alot more fun to drive. Not nearly as 'quirky' either. Here she is in her current state:

Sweet ride. The first miata that stood out in my mind was a black and tan early car ('92?) years ago with the mesh BBS wheels. It was a beautiful car.

911 in SC · 06-04-2007, 01:27 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by masraum
Sweet ride. The first miata that stood out in my mind was a black and tan early car ('92?) years ago with the mesh BBS wheels. It was a beautiful car.

Yep, mine is a '92 Black and Tan. It was a heavily-optioned car, which really isn't what I looked for originally. However, like you said, it does have the lightweight BBS wheels, and it has the factory LSD too. I've upgraded the suspension a little with KYB shocks and Flyin' Miata springs, so it handles quite well now. I really love my Miata, although I *really* wish it had room for three...

It's a great daily driver!

onewhippedpuppy · 06-10-2007, 04:40 AM

So a BMW Club friend of mine offered me his Miata daily driver, as he just picked up a CRX Si. 1991, white over black, good condition inside and out. 155k, with timing belt, water pump, cam seal, crank seal, rms, all rubber hoses, clutch/pressure plate, flywheel resurface, and some other misc stuff all done in the last 5k. Basic car, only options are A/C, alloys, and limited slip. Only real flaw is a torn rear window that has been repaired, top is overall ok. He wants $2100 for it. Really, can I go wrong?

BeerBurner · 06-10-2007, 05:00 AM

Check to see if it has the shortnose crankshaft, and if it does make sure it isn't wobbling. Otherwise, I'd likely jump on it. Bonus points for it being a car from a reasonably trusted source versus some random ad in the paper.

Tops in these cars are easy to replace, although they'll be time consuming the first time (took me 9 hours and as many beers... maybe that's why it took so long???).

BB.

onewhippedpuppy · 06-10-2007, 05:07 AM

No, it doesn't have the short nose crank. He said that's why he went with the '91. I know him well, and he takes excellent care of his cars. He had it torn apart all winter working on it. Last time I was over there, he had a stack of parts he had cleaned and painted prior to reinstallation.

onewhippedpuppy · 06-10-2007, 05:09 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by BeerBurner
Tops in these cars are easy to replace, although they'll be time consuming the first time (took me 9 hours and as many beers... maybe that's why it took so long???).

BB.

Glad I'm not the only one that rates jobs this way.

911 in SC · 06-10-2007, 05:26 AM

I think it sounds like a good deal. Miatas are much more expensive in my area of the country, for some reason. Most 'good ones' are bringing $3500 and up. However, if you decide to have someone put the top on, it's not cheap. I was quoted $900, and that's by the guy that has always done my upholstery work.

Since he just bought a CRX Si, I'm curious how long it will be before he wants to buy the Miata back?!?!?! I suppose it does have more storage room though...

Later,
Mike

BeerBurner · 06-10-2007, 06:05 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by onewhippedpuppy
No, it doesn't have the short nose crank. He said that's why he went with the '91. I know him well, and he takes excellent care of his cars. He had it torn apart all winter working on it. Last time I was over there, he had a stack of parts he had cleaned and painted prior to reinstallation.

Early '91s had the shortnose crank as well. Most likely he knows what he's got, but I'm passing this along, just in case.

And yes, I do like to rate my jobs in numbers of beers. I even have a formula:

# Beer Job = I x t +1

Where:

I = Intoxication factor (or how many beers per hour)
T = time in hours

BB.

onewhippedpuppy · 06-10-2007, 06:11 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by 911 in SC

Since he just bought a CRX Si, I'm curious how long it will be before he wants to buy the Miata back?!?!?! I suppose it does have more storage room though...

Later,
Mike

I think he's had the Miata for a while, and tends to suffer from car ADD (like me).

BB, your formula is genius. Can we add in an element for wife nag factor?

I'll double check on the crank, but he told me he specifically bought this one to avoid the short nose crank. He typically knows his stuff.

masraum · 06-10-2007, 08:55 AM

Sounds like a hell of a deal. I'd go for it.

dd74 · 06-10-2007, 12:23 PM

Me too...

BeerBurner · 06-10-2007, 12:28 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by onewhippedpuppy
BB, your formula is genius. Can we add in an element for wife nag factor? I'll double check on the crank, but he told me he specifically bought this one to avoid the short nose crank. He typically knows his stuff.

Nag factor? Nah, that'd involve limits and I just don't do calculus. Feel free to come up with something on your own, tho!

Sounds like he probably got a late '91 so you should be good to go. Still, though, check for pulley wobble because there are many reports of big nose engines suffering from failures, too, mainly from torquing them to shortnose specs.

Not to harp on it or anything, it's just that I ended up replacing an engine four months after buying the car...

BB.

onewhippedpuppy · 06-10-2007, 12:36 PM

Just got back from driving it, I don't think I'll buy it. It was a lot of fun, but I just can't make myself a convertible guy. I just prefer a coupe. If anyone wants a solid Miata for $2k in Wichita, let me know.

dd74 · 06-10-2007, 12:48 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by onewhippedpuppy
Just got back from driving it, I don't think I'll buy it. It was a lot of fun, but I just can't make myself a convertible guy. I just prefer a coupe. If anyone wants a solid Miata for $2k in Wichita, let me know.

Is the car listed somewhere? It'd be nice to at least see photos of it.

onewhippedpuppy · 06-10-2007, 01:17 PM

No, he hasn't advertised it yet. If you're interested, shoot me a PM and I'll give you details. It's a solid driver, has been resprayed, and is dirty. Still, for $2k........