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As some of you may know, I've been challenging myself to improve my laptimes at Nashville Superspeedway. Previously i drove my 1.6 powered B13 Sentra at the track, and then my current Miata 1.6 which replaced it this spring. I've been really frustrated, as my stopwatch timing using in-car video, suggested that I was running about the same 1:25.xxx laptimes in both cars.
That was really frustrating. The Miata should be a million times faster than the Sentra. Sure, they're both about the same weight, have about the same power, were fitted with the exact same tires, etc. The vocal jerks on miata.net can't be wrong about FWD and horse and buggy suspension, can they?
While we'll probably never know, the solution, of course was to throw more money at the problem. Without having any money to throw at the problem, i looked to the 200x challenges for inspiration. First, I upgraded the ignition to the coil and wires from a dodge neon that i had laying around. Then it was time to address the issues of shock travel. My car is lowered on Flyin' Miata Springs (shameless plug), and without any bumpstops and NA shock mounts, it would bottom out pretty easily. I bought some KYB bumpstops from rock auto for $10 apiece, and installed them along with NB shock hats that i got free as takeoffs when a friend upgraded to coilovers. I took it a step further and replaced the rubber bushings with discs cut from the bumpstops when i trimmed them. The result was fabulous, as the car now sits .5" lower, and has usable shock travel that ends smoothly. To top it all off, I got some used 15" RT615s from a guy who was upgrading for $100.
Took it to the track this past weekend for my birthday, and wow! The car was completely transformed. I went from being the slowest turtle on track, to doing battle with much faster hardware. Notice how nobody is passing me in this photo:
A friend let me borrow his MaxQData, and the clean laps that i got were MUCH faster than they were this spring:
I had a pretty epic battle with a '93 Miata with a Jackson Supercharger. I had him covered in the corners like a Snuggie, and I was shocked to find that my car was keeping up in a straight line at corner exit. Once I shifted into 4th gear he would finally pull away, but i'd be right back on his tail once we got to the twisty bits. Reviewing my data, it turned out that he was holding me up by about 3-4 seconds per lap (average lap was 1:26.xxx until i passed)!
If you've gotten this far, thanks for reading. I hope you feel my enthusiasm for the Miata and my improvements!
