2006 Mazda MX-5 NC 2.0 Sport
Discussion
Just to add
Initially I ran road tyres on my track day car but it was a big heavy car and it tend to chomp thro tyres (my track driving style at the time tended to load up the fronts a bit more than I do now)
In order to stop killing road tyres I ran several sets of Pirelli P-Zero Corsa Tyres for a couple of years.
Unusual tyre in the they were aysmetrical and handed - ie you had to buy two left tyres and two right tyres
They were bloody great on track and also on dry roads but if it rained on the road they really were a step too far - in the wet after 40mph everything got very very sketchy
They also wore out very quickly (although not as badly as road tyres did) so the additional expense for them wasn't really justifiable
In the end I just bought part worn slicks for a spare set of rims - the slicks lasted longer on track and I could get at least 2 full track days out of a set of part worn slicks and as a bonus my road tyres didn't get hammered so much.
Then I got fed up with loading it up with wheels and tyres and having to change wheels over at the start of a trackday so took it off the road and made it track only (trailering it to events) and left the slicks on it - with set of road tyres in the back for rainy days.
My current track car build (if I ever finish it) will remain a road car (with occasional track usage) and I'll run it on road tyres (sold the tow car)
Initially I ran road tyres on my track day car but it was a big heavy car and it tend to chomp thro tyres (my track driving style at the time tended to load up the fronts a bit more than I do now)
In order to stop killing road tyres I ran several sets of Pirelli P-Zero Corsa Tyres for a couple of years.
Unusual tyre in the they were aysmetrical and handed - ie you had to buy two left tyres and two right tyres
They were bloody great on track and also on dry roads but if it rained on the road they really were a step too far - in the wet after 40mph everything got very very sketchy
They also wore out very quickly (although not as badly as road tyres did) so the additional expense for them wasn't really justifiable
In the end I just bought part worn slicks for a spare set of rims - the slicks lasted longer on track and I could get at least 2 full track days out of a set of part worn slicks and as a bonus my road tyres didn't get hammered so much.
Then I got fed up with loading it up with wheels and tyres and having to change wheels over at the start of a trackday so took it off the road and made it track only (trailering it to events) and left the slicks on it - with set of road tyres in the back for rainy days.
My current track car build (if I ever finish it) will remain a road car (with occasional track usage) and I'll run it on road tyres (sold the tow car)
Thanks for the recommendations. I've decided to get a half-decent set of road tyres, and buy semi-slicks when I get spare wheels next year.
After giving the car a check over before next weekend's track day, I think new tyres are needed now.
Nice little cut there. You can see the cords through it.
A shame, I was going to get one more track day out of them but I'd rather not risk it. Plus I want to see what different tyres would do at the same track as it'll be a good benchmark.
I've gone with Falken ZE310's. I've ran Falkens for years on almost all of my cars and quite like them, though I've never used them on a track. My old tyre garage back in the valleys are a lovely bunch, and I've been with them since owning my first car. They've done a full set of 205/45/17 ZE310's for £297 fitted and balanced; a great price.
Funnily enough, that's not that far off the original ride height.
Interesting tread pattern, almost a cross-climate style.
I've not had time to push these so there's not much I can say. What I will say though is how quiet these are, not because they're a quiet tyre, but because of how loud the Accelera/Maxxis tyres were. Surprising how smooth it sounds now.
I'll report back at the track with how these perform.
After giving the car a check over before next weekend's track day, I think new tyres are needed now.
Nice little cut there. You can see the cords through it.
A shame, I was going to get one more track day out of them but I'd rather not risk it. Plus I want to see what different tyres would do at the same track as it'll be a good benchmark.
I've gone with Falken ZE310's. I've ran Falkens for years on almost all of my cars and quite like them, though I've never used them on a track. My old tyre garage back in the valleys are a lovely bunch, and I've been with them since owning my first car. They've done a full set of 205/45/17 ZE310's for £297 fitted and balanced; a great price.
Funnily enough, that's not that far off the original ride height.
Interesting tread pattern, almost a cross-climate style.
I've not had time to push these so there's not much I can say. What I will say though is how quiet these are, not because they're a quiet tyre, but because of how loud the Accelera/Maxxis tyres were. Surprising how smooth it sounds now.
I'll report back at the track with how these perform.
geraintthomas said:
Unfortunately the track day last weekend was cancelled, but it's now been moved to the 25th September (two weekend's time).
Nothing new to report in the meantime, aside from giving the new tyres a splash of colour for no other reason than curiosity. I don't mind it to be frank.
I actually like that - looks subtleNothing new to report in the meantime, aside from giving the new tyres a splash of colour for no other reason than curiosity. I don't mind it to be frank.
Unless you had a little accident it's nice to see the tyre fitters got the yellow dot in the right place on at least one wheel
I went back to Llandow Circuit on Saturday with Macaulay, owner of the galaxy grey MX-5 from the previous track day. I was keen to get back to improving my driving, exploring the car's capabilities, and also testing out the new Falken FK310's on a circuit.
After raining throughout the night, the track was wet to start.
This soon dried out though with little to no rain for the rest of the day. I think people were a little skeptical to go out, waiting for someone else to dry the track out for them.
And I'm not surprised with some of the kit that showed up.
The business end of an Aerial Atom Cup.
A Westfield sprint car, built for competing in a sprint series.
That photo almost makes it look neat, but it was quite the opposite! I had the luxury of a passenger ride in this out on track, and the pace this thing had was alarming. Was quite an experience, thanks to the kind offer of the owner.
...no I don't know either. It did have a Kawazaki Ninja engine in it which sounded beautiful.
His friend pulled up in an Exige, whose track day was cut short due to delaminating his rear Michelins. A shame, it was great to see out on track.
Then there was a mini, which I didn't manage to photograph the outside due to the fact that this was staring me in the face:
That's a Mini running on meth, as Macaulay managed to spot.
This thing was incredibly loud on the track, as you'll see for yourself later.
And then there was my car.
All clean before the session. It's a good idea to clean it before due to a few reasons, but the main for me is brake dust. If one wheel is getting dirtier than the other, it's a sure sign of a caliper working harder than the other. I could just clean the wheels, but it's me we're talking about.
Macaulay turned up in his MX-5 with his friend and his brother, who rocked up in a £350 Citroen C2 that he'd bought purely as a donor car, but hilariously decided to track it before stripping it. It turned out to be surprisingly capable.
After some banter about his C2 that resembled a Bangladesh taxi which broke down several times (was only a fuse and a loose connector in the end), we set out to do some laps.
Cue Robert Baxter's fantastic photography:
Macaulay, exploring the limits of the stock suspension on his MX-5. I have to say, both his driving and the standard set up of the car are both very capable.
The Exige catching a lovely slide. Note the tyre smoke, and previously mentioned de-lamination...
The Ninja kit-car was a great sight to see out on track; a seriously nimble thing.
Macaulay's brother's C2. You can see what I mean by Bangladesh taxi. It's held together by hopes and dreams, but at least it had a set of coil overs. We didn't know the brand, only that they were red ones... I have to give it to him though, to buy a car for £350 and to have that much fun out on track was brilliant to see. Really chuffed for him.
And of course, that angry Mini with its angry looking driver, cocking its back wheel.
The one thing that bothered me was the amount of roll in my car. The stiffer springs aren't enough to cure the roll. It's not a high car as you've seen, but even so look at the amount of roll in the corners:
Compare that to another MX-5 that was there on the day, that had RX-8 yellow dot anti-roll bars fitted:
Very little roll.
The result of my body roll and sliding antics was tyre degradation on the outside wall, rounding off the tyre due to the stress.
Before:
After:
I need to eliminate as much roll as possible. Of course, stiff shocks would sort it, but some RX-8 ARB's would be a very cheap and effective aid in the meantime. After scouring the internet, Macaulay found an RX-8 breaker that had two yellow-dot sets left for £80 posted, so both of us purchased the sets from him the moment we realised he had them.
In the meantime, I managed to edit a few moments from a helmet mounted GoPro, so if you want to have a little look at some POV fun with slides, yellow flags and a terrifying Mini, feel free to check it out:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWC2twmJDgE
I'll update you all when the ARB's arrive!
After raining throughout the night, the track was wet to start.
This soon dried out though with little to no rain for the rest of the day. I think people were a little skeptical to go out, waiting for someone else to dry the track out for them.
And I'm not surprised with some of the kit that showed up.
The business end of an Aerial Atom Cup.
A Westfield sprint car, built for competing in a sprint series.
That photo almost makes it look neat, but it was quite the opposite! I had the luxury of a passenger ride in this out on track, and the pace this thing had was alarming. Was quite an experience, thanks to the kind offer of the owner.
...no I don't know either. It did have a Kawazaki Ninja engine in it which sounded beautiful.
His friend pulled up in an Exige, whose track day was cut short due to delaminating his rear Michelins. A shame, it was great to see out on track.
Then there was a mini, which I didn't manage to photograph the outside due to the fact that this was staring me in the face:
That's a Mini running on meth, as Macaulay managed to spot.
This thing was incredibly loud on the track, as you'll see for yourself later.
And then there was my car.
All clean before the session. It's a good idea to clean it before due to a few reasons, but the main for me is brake dust. If one wheel is getting dirtier than the other, it's a sure sign of a caliper working harder than the other. I could just clean the wheels, but it's me we're talking about.
Macaulay turned up in his MX-5 with his friend and his brother, who rocked up in a £350 Citroen C2 that he'd bought purely as a donor car, but hilariously decided to track it before stripping it. It turned out to be surprisingly capable.
After some banter about his C2 that resembled a Bangladesh taxi which broke down several times (was only a fuse and a loose connector in the end), we set out to do some laps.
Cue Robert Baxter's fantastic photography:
Macaulay, exploring the limits of the stock suspension on his MX-5. I have to say, both his driving and the standard set up of the car are both very capable.
The Exige catching a lovely slide. Note the tyre smoke, and previously mentioned de-lamination...
The Ninja kit-car was a great sight to see out on track; a seriously nimble thing.
Macaulay's brother's C2. You can see what I mean by Bangladesh taxi. It's held together by hopes and dreams, but at least it had a set of coil overs. We didn't know the brand, only that they were red ones... I have to give it to him though, to buy a car for £350 and to have that much fun out on track was brilliant to see. Really chuffed for him.
And of course, that angry Mini with its angry looking driver, cocking its back wheel.
The one thing that bothered me was the amount of roll in my car. The stiffer springs aren't enough to cure the roll. It's not a high car as you've seen, but even so look at the amount of roll in the corners:
Compare that to another MX-5 that was there on the day, that had RX-8 yellow dot anti-roll bars fitted:
Very little roll.
The result of my body roll and sliding antics was tyre degradation on the outside wall, rounding off the tyre due to the stress.
Before:
After:
I need to eliminate as much roll as possible. Of course, stiff shocks would sort it, but some RX-8 ARB's would be a very cheap and effective aid in the meantime. After scouring the internet, Macaulay found an RX-8 breaker that had two yellow-dot sets left for £80 posted, so both of us purchased the sets from him the moment we realised he had them.
In the meantime, I managed to edit a few moments from a helmet mounted GoPro, so if you want to have a little look at some POV fun with slides, yellow flags and a terrifying Mini, feel free to check it out:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWC2twmJDgE
I'll update you all when the ARB's arrive!
Edited by geraintthomas on Tuesday 28th September 00:09
Edited by geraintthomas on Wednesday 29th September 09:12
geraintthomas said:
The result of my body roll and sliding antics was tyre degradation on the outside wall, rounding off the tyre due to the stress.
Before:
After:
I need to eliminate as much roll as possible. Of course, stiff shocks would sort it, but some RX-8 ARB's would be a very cheap and effective aid in the meantime. After scouring the internet, Macaulay found an RX-8 breaker that had two yellow-dot sets left for £80 posted, so both of us purchased the sets from him the moment we realised he had them.
Sorry - I don't think that's all down to roll stiffness - more a combination of less than optimal inflation pressures and leaning on the fronts far more than you shouldBefore:
After:
I need to eliminate as much roll as possible. Of course, stiff shocks would sort it, but some RX-8 ARB's would be a very cheap and effective aid in the meantime. After scouring the internet, Macaulay found an RX-8 breaker that had two yellow-dot sets left for £80 posted, so both of us purchased the sets from him the moment we realised he had them.
I'll watch the in car and see if I change my mind
Tyre pressures were 32psi throughout the day, so no it wasn't that. I was indeed leaning on the fronts too hard at times, so I'm happy to put it down to that. To add, the steering wheel was jerking more than it normally does when hitting ruts and bumps in the road on the way to the circuit, so an alignment is most likely needed too. I could do with a touch of negative camber as mine is stock alignment.
You're right with leaning too much on the fronts, but with that excessive roll and alignment making matters worse, rather than PSI.
You're right with leaning too much on the fronts, but with that excessive roll and alignment making matters worse, rather than PSI.
geraintthomas said:
Tyre pressures were 32psi throughout the day, so no it wasn't that. I was indeed leaning on the fronts too hard at times, so I'm happy to put it down to that. To add, the steering wheel was jerking more than it normally does when hitting ruts and bumps in the road on the way to the circuit, so an alignment is most likely needed too. I could do with a touch of negative camber as mine is stock alignment.
You're right with leaning too much on the fronts, but with that excessive roll and alignment making matters worse, rather than PSI.
I've run as little as 26 psi (hot pressure - cold was more like 14psi) on a 1250 kg car with a boat anchor 350 kg 6 pot over the front tyres and lent on the tyres in long sweepers and not seen sidewalls scrubbed like that You're right with leaning too much on the fronts, but with that excessive roll and alignment making matters worse, rather than PSI.
We'll agree on the leaning bit but even if you reduce the roll and improve the alignment/camber you'll still kill tyres if you lean on them as hard as that
Introducing some more negative camber definitely helps with outer edge wear, I chewed the outer edges of a few tyres before I moved away from a ‘factory’ alignment.
If the pressures are correct I’d guess they’re possibly rolling over due to a relatively soft sidewall on the Kumhos?
Looks like another fun day, I’d definitely like to go back to Llandow at some point next year.
If the pressures are correct I’d guess they’re possibly rolling over due to a relatively soft sidewall on the Kumhos?
Looks like another fun day, I’d definitely like to go back to Llandow at some point next year.
B'stard Child said:
I've run as little as 26 psi (hot pressure - cold was more like 14psi) on a 1250 kg car with a boat anchor 350 kg 6 pot over the front tyres and lent on the tyres in long sweepers and not seen sidewalls scrubbed like that
We'll agree on the leaning bit but even if you reduce the roll and improve the alignment/camber you'll still kill tyres if you lean on them as hard as that
You're probably right, and it's good to hear that about the pressures. It's quite difficult to not push hard on them because the car is capable of it, but the result isn't great for the tyres. I'll be purchasing semi-slick tyres before the next track day and will have the arb's and alignment to go with, so it'll all help (along with me taking it a little easier, rather than driving like an arse).We'll agree on the leaning bit but even if you reduce the roll and improve the alignment/camber you'll still kill tyres if you lean on them as hard as that
Accelebrate said:
Introducing some more negative camber definitely helps with outer edge wear, I chewed the outer edges of a few tyres before I moved away from a ‘factory’ alignment.
If the pressures are correct I’d guess they’re possibly rolling over due to a relatively soft sidewall on the Kumhos?
Looks like another fun day, I’d definitely like to go back to Llandow at some point next year.
Ah you mean the Falkens! They're definitely soft, I didn't have this much wear on the previous set of tyres and they were budgets too. Then again I had a bit more slidey fun this time round so that would have added to the wear. Even though they felt good, I'd be reluctant to do another track day on them. I'll keep them for the road.If the pressures are correct I’d guess they’re possibly rolling over due to a relatively soft sidewall on the Kumhos?
Looks like another fun day, I’d definitely like to go back to Llandow at some point next year.
The rest of the car was great though, didn't miss a beat as usual. Oil hasn't moved, brakes are still solid and it drove home rattle free afterwards. If anyone's after a cheap track car, I couldn't recommend anything better. But that's also because it's my only track car...
geraintthomas said:
Ah you mean the Falkens!
Sorry, mixing up my tyre brands at 7am 
The road tyres that came with my car looked like this on the front after a couple of track days on a standard alignment. There was plenty of tread on the rest of the tyre...
As BC mentions driving style undoubtedly comes into it too. I've definitely become gentler on tyres over time. Slow in, fast out if you will. Partially because it's nearly always quicker, but also because buying a set of tyres per trackday is no fun.
Edited by Accelebrate on Tuesday 28th September 10:06
Accelebrate said:
Sorry, mixing up my tyre brands at 7am
The road tyres that came with my car looked like this on the front after a couple of track days on a standard alignment. There was plenty of tread on the rest of the tyre...
As BC mentions driving style undoubtedly comes into it too. I've definitely become gentler on tyres over time. Slow in, fast out if you will. Partially because it's nearly always quicker, but also because buying a set of tyres per trackday is no fun.
Wow. That's exactly why I want to have some more negative camber dialled in to help the contact patch of the tyre, rather than it leaning on the outer edge. With that and going a little easier on them, it should be far better next time round.The road tyres that came with my car looked like this on the front after a couple of track days on a standard alignment. There was plenty of tread on the rest of the tyre...
As BC mentions driving style undoubtedly comes into it too. I've definitely become gentler on tyres over time. Slow in, fast out if you will. Partially because it's nearly always quicker, but also because buying a set of tyres per trackday is no fun.
Edited by Accelebrate on Tuesday 28th September 10:06
Bowen86 said:
Llandow is notorious for pealing tyres. Not only is it a short sharp track, the surface is like sandpaper. That said, great little track on my doorstep.
I've heard this from quite a few people actually. It's so heavy on the front left so it's unsurprising the wear it's caused.
I had this parcel knock my door asking "Do you have a minute to talk about stiffness?"
In all seriousness, they arrived pretty quickly. £80 delivered and they were taken off the car and posted the same day of purchase.
Yellow-dot goodness. I'll fit them when I get a spare afternoon.
I've also bought another MX-5.
I had to. It was going used on Ebay, and you can't really buy NC's as models new. They're very rare in the UK at least, so as soon as I saw this I jumped on it. It's also a NC1 Sport with the sport alloys and strut brace, which is some lovely attention to detail.
Even the underside is pretty accurate. Madness.
Anyway, the fun plan is - you guessed it - to turn it into my actual car. Re-spray it black (it all comes apart), anthracite alloys, decals on the doors, etc. I'll even go as far as 3D printing a duck tail spoiler, diffuser, and also a right hand drive dashboard from a 3D model (the dash comes out easily).
It'll be a fun little project that I can tweak and change to mirror the actual car over the years. Who knows where it'll end up.
So far, the model has been stripped into parts.
The body is now black and the wheels anthracite (with quite literally the same spray I've used on the real one)
The one issue I have is that the dashboard is LHD and not RHD, so I took a low-res LiDAR scan of the real thing and modelled a new one over the top, just so I could get the correct dimensions
This was then 3D printed
Which fits perfectly into the car
I'll spray it black and will swap over the gauge sticker.
While I was at it, I decided to model the other bits that the car has extra including the diffuser
And the rear spoiler
I'll let you know when they've been printed and fitted. A bit over the top, but it's all fun!
The body is now black and the wheels anthracite (with quite literally the same spray I've used on the real one)
The one issue I have is that the dashboard is LHD and not RHD, so I took a low-res LiDAR scan of the real thing and modelled a new one over the top, just so I could get the correct dimensions
This was then 3D printed
Which fits perfectly into the car
I'll spray it black and will swap over the gauge sticker.
While I was at it, I decided to model the other bits that the car has extra including the diffuser
And the rear spoiler
I'll let you know when they've been printed and fitted. A bit over the top, but it's all fun!
That scan thing is pretty cool. I guess it would be a nightmare to model it just by measurements and angles. On a similar theme, I'm trying to restore a Tamiya monster truck to original condition, but some of the parts are all scratched up and no new ones available, I was wondering whether I could, with the help of my machinist brother, model them in CAD and get them 3d printed (or maybe even by a 3d printer to do it myself). But they're just simple roll bars and spot lights, to do an entire dash would be horrendous.
On 1:1 Mx5 topic, I think I'll be reading back through this and Accelebates thread soon. Our 07 Sport passed its Mot today, and is with the Mrs due with our 2nd baby around Xmas, it's time to get her a little hatchback, so the 5 will be retired to the garage for sunny day duties and maybe the odd track day. First job is refurb wheels and get some decent tryes, then probably on to suspension and exhaust.
On 1:1 Mx5 topic, I think I'll be reading back through this and Accelebates thread soon. Our 07 Sport passed its Mot today, and is with the Mrs due with our 2nd baby around Xmas, it's time to get her a little hatchback, so the 5 will be retired to the garage for sunny day duties and maybe the odd track day. First job is refurb wheels and get some decent tryes, then probably on to suspension and exhaust.
gazzarose said:
That scan thing is pretty cool. I guess it would be a nightmare to model it just by measurements and angles. On a similar theme, I'm trying to restore a Tamiya monster truck to original condition, but some of the parts are all scratched up and no new ones available, I was wondering whether I could, with the help of my machinist brother, model them in CAD and get them 3d printed (or maybe even by a 3d printer to do it myself). But they're just simple roll bars and spot lights, to do an entire dash would be horrendous.
On 1:1 Mx5 topic, I think I'll be reading back through this and Accelebates thread soon. Our 07 Sport passed its Mot today, and is with the Mrs due with our 2nd baby around Xmas, it's time to get her a little hatchback, so the 5 will be retired to the garage for sunny day duties and maybe the odd track day. First job is refurb wheels and get some decent tryes, then probably on to suspension and exhaust.
It would have been horrible to measure without it. It goes to show how accurate the proportions are of the toy though.On 1:1 Mx5 topic, I think I'll be reading back through this and Accelebates thread soon. Our 07 Sport passed its Mot today, and is with the Mrs due with our 2nd baby around Xmas, it's time to get her a little hatchback, so the 5 will be retired to the garage for sunny day duties and maybe the odd track day. First job is refurb wheels and get some decent tryes, then probably on to suspension and exhaust.
The new interior fit beautifully:
Good choices with the mx-5 too.
Since Llandow, my front left tyre has been pretty bad on the edges as shown above. The garage said it would pass the MOT, but would be worried about what the insurance or police would say about it if I had a bump, so has advised to change it.
The front right is 7mm; new is 8mm, so it's lost 1mm from 1 track day. Not terrible and pretty much expected. It also means that I can put a single tyre on the front left as the difference is only 1mm.
Not the best condition...
Amazing how much lateral force was on the tread.
Either way, a new ZE310 is on. I'm in a conundrum whether to get semi-slicks or not. They would be better on track, but for the amount of track days I'd do on them, plus the hassle of switching tyres over, and also not using them on wet days, I'm not sure they'd be worth the money. I may keep these and put them on a nicer rim, and if I change my mind, I'll have these current wheels spare to mount them.
I've not got round to fitting the RX-8 ARB's yet, but while the garage was changing the wheel I took a close look at my shocks.
Nothing out of the ordinary, but I changed my other half's Mazda 2 shocks the other day and noticed there's a rubber gasket between the spring and the shock. I'm wondering if there should be one here, too?
The front right is 7mm; new is 8mm, so it's lost 1mm from 1 track day. Not terrible and pretty much expected. It also means that I can put a single tyre on the front left as the difference is only 1mm.
Not the best condition...
Amazing how much lateral force was on the tread.
Either way, a new ZE310 is on. I'm in a conundrum whether to get semi-slicks or not. They would be better on track, but for the amount of track days I'd do on them, plus the hassle of switching tyres over, and also not using them on wet days, I'm not sure they'd be worth the money. I may keep these and put them on a nicer rim, and if I change my mind, I'll have these current wheels spare to mount them.
I've not got round to fitting the RX-8 ARB's yet, but while the garage was changing the wheel I took a close look at my shocks.
Nothing out of the ordinary, but I changed my other half's Mazda 2 shocks the other day and noticed there's a rubber gasket between the spring and the shock. I'm wondering if there should be one here, too?
There is almost always a rubber spring perch just to prevent metal on metal wear and the associated rust, as well as nvh. Maybe the mx5 doesn't have them, but it would be unusual. A quick glance at a assembly drawing should provide the answer!
Surprised you got ride of that tyre, loads of tread left and the wear would even out after a few months driving I'm sure. Tyre shoulders always get knackered on track days.
Surprised you got ride of that tyre, loads of tread left and the wear would even out after a few months driving I'm sure. Tyre shoulders always get knackered on track days.
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