NB8A vs NB8B

[Boags]

nothing to stop him putting those lovely 8A rims on his 8B though Gerard

well there might be actually... i'm not sure they would clear the bigger brakes ? ?

Some 15s fit... I hope so anyway; cause I've got a set of Starcorp Racing Lites to go on with Track rubber.

[sliq]

hrmm.. i'd say go for the NB8B.. in terms of it looks, its more organic, very curvy..

only thing i'm not so fond of is always having to change the gears every 2 seconds because it's a six speed. i'd appreciate the gearbox more if i took it down to the track

and don't forget those lovely 16\" alloys, foglights (as aforementioned), white face dials for the odo speedo tacho etc., CUP HOLDERS.. all those little perks make it worthwhile

[Boags]

Would anyone in Sydney be willing to inspect and test drive a few cars for me this weekend. One seller has said he is available on Saturday morning, so I will try and organise the second one for Saturday morning as well; so that I don't take up too much of your time.

Please PM for the suburbs and contact details if you are willing. I'm sure a nice little prezzie will make it's way to the volunteer sometime...

Thanks in advance.

Boags

[Alex]

There are some other minor detail things on the NB8B, too, almost too trivial to mention (and most of which I forget!). Okay, one is the odometer. The A has one of those rotating-wheel things; well, welcome to the third millennium, Mazda, where we have LCDs -- and that's what the B uses for an odo, a backlit LCD.

are you sure about that??

I would go the B
6 speed gearbox, ABS brakes, projector headlights, better looking rear lights, fog lights, better seats, SVT, 16" wheels, factory front strut brace and bigger brakes

[timetorelax]

There are some other minor detail things on the NB8B, too, almost too trivial to mention (and most of which I forget!). Okay, one is the odometer. The A has one of those rotating-wheel things; well, welcome to the third millennium, Mazda, where we have LCDs -- and that's what the B uses for an odo, a backlit LCD.

I have an NB8A at it has a backlit LCD odometer.

Anyway, I would still choose a NB8B for all the extra goodies. My younger brother bought a NB8B at the sametime I got my NB8A and even though I love mine, I secretly love his a little more

[TieNN89]

Okay, one is the odometer. The A has one of those rotating-wheel things; well, welcome to the third millennium, Mazda, where we have LCDs -- and that's what the B uses for an odo, a backlit LCD.

are you sure? mines lcd oh and its backlit too

[NMX516]

Whoops... of course I could be wrong! A long time since I did the comparison...

Sorry to say mate, but I think you are

[PUR157]

An off topic but serious suggestion here...
Would it help making a topic like this a sticky? (nothing personal to you here boags)

But just a sticky at the top of the thread detailing the relative merits each (NA, NB, NC, Un Zud etc. ) possess over each other
It would save the posters a little effort, and create something abit more rigorous?

Back on topic
If no one offers Boags, I would love to help out!
Not too sure I would be the one with the best expertise in this area so just keep me in mind as a last resort

[StanTheMan]

Yea here we go.... it will get taken over by SP V SE.....

apart from that. Great idea.

[Caffeine]

I would go the B
6 speed gearbox, ABS brakes, projector headlights, better looking rear lights, fog lights, better seats, SVT, 16" wheels, factory front strut brace and bigger brakes

plus coil on plug ignition (so magnecors are 1/2 the price of NB8A ones),, better stereo, white faced instruments, remote boot release, boot lights on 2002 model year (reverse lights come on when the boot opens), low fuel light on 2002 model year, usable cupholders, redesigned centre console that holds 6 CD's and rpm sensitive power steering (assistance decreases with more RPM)

However, on the down side, you do miss out on the little fuse puller tool that lives inside the fusebox lid...

[Caffeine]

nothing to stop him putting those lovely 8A rims on his 8B though Gerard

well there might be actually... i'm not sure they would clear the bigger brakes ? ?

They clear the fronts.

The rears are actually slightly larger so I'm not sure about them...

[GS]

I would go the B
6 speed gearbox, ABS brakes, projector headlights, better looking rear lights, fog lights, better seats, SVT, 16" wheels, factory front strut brace and bigger brakes

plus coil on plug ignition (so magnecors are 1/2 the price of NB8A ones),, better stereo, white faced instruments, remote boot release, boot lights on 2002 model year (reverse lights come on when the boot opens), low fuel light on 2002 model year, usable cupholders, redesigned centre console that holds 6 CD's and rpm sensitive power steering (assistance decreases with more RPM)

However, on the down side, you do miss out on the little fuse puller tool that lives inside the fusebox lid...

I thought just my 89 NA6 missed out on a low fuel light. I didnt realise it took Mazda another 13 years of development to add this "luxury" feature

[wun911]

I have an NB8B and I like it but...

I dont use the foglights much (if you crack one it cots a lot)

I like the light weight 15\" wheels 'concept' (cheap rubber $135 vs $200 for RE001, and not to mention less weight)

Seats are seats its not like NB8B are bucket seats made of CF.

6spd can be both a pain and a joy. (Can be a pain in traffic, difficult for nubes on track, although nice to have on freeway).

With 80,000 km, the 100,000km service will cost you $$ if you do it at mazda.

To be honest from a distance cant tell the diffrence between the rear lights.

The king of GB can turn the inside of the NB8A to an NB8B in a cost effective manner

[Caffeine]

Seats are seats its not like NB8B are bucket seats made of CF.

6spd can be both a pain and a joy. (Can be a pain in traffic, difficult for nubes on track, although nice to have on freeway).

No, the seats on the NB8A suck, the seats on the NB8B are far more supportive.

And why is the 6 speed a pain in traffic?

[Okibi]

NB8B seats are better for us tall people although the seat cushion height is a little higher than on the NB8A.