V8 Miata - what do you think of this car?

[Reg]

Hi folks

I am looking for a toy and found this one while browsing:

1990 Mazda MX-5 Miata v8 - City of Toronto Collector Cars For Sale - Kijiji City of Toronto

I have an 85 MR2 that is a good little car and the fellow would consider a trade + cash on above. I have owned a mustang 5.0 many years ago as well as two Miatas. The Miata was a blast to drive in a different way than the stang but did not have that get up and go that I would like. This car seems to have both (allthough the wheels are too bling and would be changed) and I wonder if any of you have been in anything similar.

Please give me your thoughts on this car.
Reg

[aap1966]

V8 MX-5s? Old news.

Bullet Cars: Supercharger Kits & Installation, Performance Parts, and manufacturers of the Bullet V8 Supercar

[carreraken]

or the monster miata....

[Reg]

...but what is your thought about that car specifically. I have seen the Monster Miata sight. Obviously the car is heavier and I wonder if the weight up front would have a clumsy effect on the car.

[TheMentat]

WTF is up with that steering wheel?

[Jeff Higgins]

I think you would be disappointed. They strike me as a modern day Shelby Cobra, albeit a bit more refined. All power and no handling.

I have never driven one, but I did have a chance to play along with one last summer on some local back roads. I was just tooling along in my 911 when this Miata comes out of nowhere and blasts on past me, making a most un-Miata like racket - a very distinctive V-8 bellow. So I gave chase. I damn near rear-ended him going into every corner and, had it been a racetrack, would have had no trouble out braking him and getting around him in any corner. We finally came to a passing zone with two lanes heading our direction, and I had no trouble just driving right on around him. He didn't have a prayer after that, started trying way too hard, and damn near lost it on several occasions. So I just pulled over and let him by, hoping he would quit pushing it.

Anyway, it looked like quite the ill-handling, overpowered little beast. I had the chance to observe both from behind and from in front (a little tougher in the RVM) and came away very much less than impressed. I'm convinced a stock Miata would have had little trouble with it either. Maybe a passable drag car, but not much good for anything else.

[TechnoViking]

Originally Posted by Reg

Please give me your thoughts on this car.
Reg

I think all of the cars that have been completely redesigned in some guy's garage should be considered experiments. If you want a unique project to jack around with, than knock yourself out.

If it were me, I'd just buy the 5.0 Mustang that was designed to hold that engine.

[masraum]

dunno, I think I'd pass unless you are looking for a project.

[David McLaughlin]

I'd love to have a monster Miata. This car doesn't look too bad from the pictures. The steering wheel is an easy swap as is the e-brake handle. The hood is fugly but may look better in person. The engine bay looks half way decent though I'd like to inspect the motor and tranny mounts and welds.

[Tim Walsh]

I'll take one of these:
Flyin' Miata : V8 conversions : turnkeys and tradeins
Who needs an iron lump, when you can get a real performance motor with much less weight.

[pwd72s]

My friend Roger had a monster Miata...about the only thing I recall him saying was that it overheated easily and often.

[porsche4life]

There are lots of cars out there that make that kind of HP stock or mostly stock... Probably much more reliable as well.... Especially in the price range....

[pwd72s]

FWIW, Roger said the monster miata was a gas to drive...but nothing he did (larger aluminum radiator, etc.) would keep the temps at sane levels.

[looneybin]

Originally Posted by Jeff Higgins

I think you would be disappointed. They strike me as a modern day Shelby Cobra, albeit a bit more refined. All power and no handling.

i was more like a modern Sunbeam Tiger

[sammyg2]

When I built my V8 914 I was told it wouldn't handle well, it would be too heavy, it wouldn't be reliable, all sorts of things.

You know what? it was fast. It handled great once I got the suspension dialed in, better than a stock 914 ever did.
It was also reliable.

I say go drive the darned thing and make up your own mind. Don't listen to guesses or hunches.
5 minutes and 5 corners and you should know whether that car is right for you or not.

[trekkor]

One of my track buddies just finished his V-8 powered Miata racecar.
Essentially a Spec Miata with a V-8 at this point. No additional suspension development.

Runs on 225/15's and does sub 1:48's at Infineon.
Do your research.


KT

[McLovin]

I had a similar car - it was a V8 transplant into a small car, 330hp and around 2200 lbs, professionally built and done right.

I had fun with it for several years, esp. during the first year, but eventually got bored with it. No problem with the handling, etc., in fact no problems or real mechanical complaints at all.

I think for me, at the end of the day, the SBC just isn't "me." I think it's a fine engine, it just doesn't have the right feel to me.

And, there is not much use for that much power and acceleration on the street. I have a LOT more fun in my stock old G50 Carrera, where I can actually redline the car every now and then, push it and feel like I'm working it a bit without totally trashing speed and sanity laws. And it just sounds/feels a lot better to me.

As a race car on a track, my car would have been a blast. On the street, it was fun, but it was so limited that it ended getting boring.

[emcon5]

Originally Posted by trekkor

One of my track buddies just finished his V-8 powered Miata racecar.
Essentially a Spec Miata with a V-8 at this point. No additional suspension development.

Runs on 225/15's and does sub 1:48's at Infineon.
Do your research.

You talking about Dean? I saw that beast Saturday, it is pretty impressive.

[Jeff Higgins]

Originally Posted by sammyg2

When I built my V8 914 I was told it wouldn't handle well, it would be too heavy, it wouldn't be reliable, all sorts of things.

You know what? it was fast. It handled great once I got the suspension dialed in, better than a stock 914 ever did.
It was also reliable.

I say go drive the darned thing and make up your own mind. Don't listen to guesses or hunches.
5 minutes and 5 corners and you should know whether that car is right for you or not.

I would build and drive a V-8 914 in a heartbeat. We used to have one up here that was a regular at our DE's. Damn fast little car; well sorted with great brakes and good handling. The difference, though, is all that weight was added to the middle of the car.

[kaisen]

+1 for the LS all-aluminum fuel-injected GM small block.

Why you'd want a carburated iron-block V8 in that car is a mystery.
The LS motors add about 50 pounds to the nose of the Miata, compared to stock NA, and not too different than the factory turbo Mazdaspeed
You also wouldn't need the fugly hood. The LS tucks under the factory hood just fine, with room for a brace.
Visit LS1Tech.com and look at their 'swaps' subforum. Lots of Miatas there getting 500hp