15x7 or 16x8???

[NitroDann]

Whether rotas are saught after or not we wont know for a while however josh's point still stands true, history has shown and it always repeats.

Dann

[Hjt]

My parts is legit, all genuine, all a waste of money cause I still drive a girls car.

I don't care what people think. Do what you want OP, don't do what others want.

[Lokiel]

Oh you are an engineer, I am oh so proud of you. Just give me a minute to put a towel on the floor so I can get on mg knees and bow at your feet.
:

No need to do that "Mate", but it is good to know that someone else beside Mum & Dad are proud of me!

Back on topic though, OP, please listen to advice, it'll save you $$$ but at the end of the day, it's YOUR car and that's what's great about MX5s, you can make them your own, there's plenty of "modz" out there, just don't forsake driveabiliy along the way.

[mazmad]

Some people build them for speed, some build them for looks. I.M.O. Its all good.

Think I just found my new signature.

[erecsean]

thank you very much for replying guys. i have now decided to go for 15's. most likely 15x7 on the fronts and 15x8 on the rears.

???

Please either:

1. Do some more research (you DON't want staggered rims on an MX5 and 15x7's will be lighter than 15x8s which you don't really need unless you've got a decent amount of power or intend to do some serious track work), or

2. Join clubroadster.com to learn how to really screw up the handling of your car.

First of all i appreciate your reply, again, i would like to say that I DO NOT INTEND TO TRACK MY CAR AT ALL. I am more into the stance look. It is my daily car and it will stay as my daily.

[erecsean]

judging by OP's other threads (raceland coilovers etc) he is definitely not interested in doing any research or improving his mx5, its all about the "stance". This is quite sad, but seems to be happening to many mx5's recently.

If he is only interested in aesthetics im not sure why he wants a staggered set up, you get more dish with an 8" in the front aswell as the back.

(I personally have a staggered set up of 7/8. Not ideal, but you cant be too picky when buying 2nd hand rims.)

Thank u for rwplying, Like i said at the start, i am NEW to this. I HAVE NO INTENTIONS ON TRACKING MY MX5 because its my daily. Im not into any performance upgrades as i do not earn enough to do so. I did ask about the raceland coilovers because i have never heard of them and was wondering if anyone had any experience with them. So please there is no need to get upset cause im not upgrading my mx5 performance wise.

[mazmad]

Just do what you want to do (providing its safe and legal ) as the wise man said:

"Some people build them for speed, some build them for looks. I.M.O. Its all good."

[emily_mx5]

yeah but why is it "track or nothing" ?
you don't have plans to track it, thats fine, a lot of people don't, but there is still heaps you can do to the car. Just because its your daily it doesn't mean it should be terribly set up.

And its not exactly cheap either, wide low offset rims will be at least $600, then you need 4 tyres at least $400, then you need either coil overs/lowered springs/cut springs, that can be free if you cut your springs, $200 if you buy springs 2nd hand and $600 is about minimum you pick 2nd hand coil overs up for.
Then you need your guards rolled and pulled, and an alignment to dial in lots of negative camber, to fit et0 wheels under your guards. probably $250+

All we are trying to say is do some research before posting questions or doing mods. There is a lot of info on the internet.

[mazmad]

Emily IMO he is going about it the right way - hopefully this community here is pretty well informed, there is a lot of rubbish out there on the internet. Agreed though, these things cost money and whatever the end goal, you want to do it right, which the OP is trying to do but looking for input.

[emily_mx5]

sorry, i meant to say that going about the stance route, even in the cheapest dogiest way (cutting springs/rolling guards with baseball bat etc) its still going to cost in the thousands! OP has mentioned not a lot of cash right now, so i just wanted to inform of the associated costs.

[Lokiel]

thank you very much for replying guys. i have now decided to go for 15's. most likely 15x7 on the fronts and 15x8 on the rears.

???

Please either:

1. Do some more research (you DON't want staggered rims on an MX5 and 15x7's will be lighter than 15x8s which you don't really need unless you've got a decent amount of power or intend to do some serious track work), or

2. Join clubroadster.com to learn how to really screw up the handling of your car.

First of all i appreciate your reply, again, i would like to say that I DO NOT INTEND TO TRACK MY CAR AT ALL. I am more into the stance look. It is my daily car and it will stay as my daily.

You've taken my comments in the spirit they were intended (ie. genuine advice) but please have a read through charlie_91's build thread for an interesting read if nothing else.

Charlie's build started off as a "hard-parkin'" build and IMO, the car was almost un-driveable because it was so low (my car is quite low and it's something I'm always aware of when approaching speed bumps or steep driveways).

The build morphed into a dedicated track build once he'd gotten a taste of driving the car properly, as opposed to car parks, and he genuinely produced one of the best track MX5s in the country/world (at great co$t).

These were 2 extremes of the spectrum, but at the end of the day he parted it out because he needed a DD car.


Don't dismiss the idea of doing track work, it's a lot of fun, you'll learn to become a MUCH better driver and will appreciate your car's abilities even more.


You have one of the world's best handling cars.
It's underpowered (don't add unnecessary weight).
Choose your "modz" sensibly and it will be "shedloads" more fun to drive than almost any car 5x its price.

[Mr nanotech]

Then you need your guards rolled and pulled, and an alignment to dial in lots of negative camber, to fit et0 wheels under your guards. probably $250+

Really... $250+? I don't know where you got for wheel alignments but I've never paid more than $75 maximum and thats for a spot on job. Guard rolling shouldn't cost you more than a six pack, there are hundreds of this people one this forum who own them and are willing to help others for a few beers. All he would need to do is put a thread up asking to borrow a heatgun and guard roller, or even get one of the forum members locally to do it for him.
Fitting 8" et0 isn't really that hard to be honest. Just need 195/45 tyres, decent roll and small pull, take out fender liners and lower the car a lot to get get more natural camber before a wheel alignment so you can either clean up unnecessary negative camber or add a little more. We don't even need camber kits for our cars so it's pretty reasonable.
So he could do this on the cheap if he wanted to. I've seen ku31 in 195/45/15 as low as $100 a corner online, he could get (deep breath...) Rota's or Steelies (may have just died inside saying that) for cheap low offset wheels in 15x8 +0 so he has at least a 3-4" lip as a lot of young guys seem to want. Steelies will net you $80 a corner and gumtree is awesome for finding dirt cheap 4x100 wheels right now.
So it's not really that expensive at the end of the day. As for coilovers, check out ebay and forums for a good deal. This is the part I would spend money on though, if you buy cheap ones, you will get a horrible bumpy ride and it's going to make you hate your car. THe benefit to coilovers is that if you decide you want to change direction with the car down the line, you can always wind them up and raise the car etc..
If the car is just a car he wants to roll to work with and have the top down occasionally, maybe handling isn't a priority. I'm just going to throw this out there for you guys, WHAT IF HE ALREADY HAS AN AWESOME HANDLING CAR??????? He could have two mx5's for any of you guys know.

I will admit, this is not something I'd do to my car and not something I have done either, but it's doable and it's easy and cheap. I just don't understand why there is always this panic from everyone urging people not to appreciate their cars in their own way. Even the ones who help seem to turn their nose up and lay judgement.

I hope this gives you some help buddy.

[emily_mx5]

well yeah, around $75 for alignment and around $175 for rolling, if you're paying someone to do it. I had a friend do mine for nothing, but just factoring in costs.

[charlie_91]

You've taken my comments in the spirit they were intended (ie. genuine advice) but please have a read through charlie_91's build thread for an interesting read if nothing else.
Charlie's build started off as a "hard-parkin'" build and IMO, the car was almost un-driveable because it was so low (my car is quite low and it's something I'm always aware of when approaching speed bumps or steep driveways).
The build morphed into a dedicated track build once he'd gotten a taste of driving the car properly, as opposed to car parks, and he genuinely produced one of the best track MX5s in the country/world (at great co$t).
These were 2 extremes of the spectrum, but at the end of the day he parted it out because he needed a DD car.

Thought id chime in on this.. No i did not part my car out for a daily driver. i have a perfectly good daily driver. Isnt the part about owning cars is to enjoy them and do what ever makes u happy not what some other twat thinks is the right way ? i loved the look of low mx5s hence why i went down that route.. I only got into track because it was something different.. it was a differnt way to enjoy the car. but with that it was very costly.

If i ever do an mx again i know for damn sure it aint gonna be no circuit racer. Its gonna be railed, on wide wheels and front lip. Nothing else. but just for u ill stretch the ƒü¢k out of my tires ;)

I parted out simply because it was to much.. and at the end of the day i had achieved what i set out to and that was to go sub 60 at lakeside.. build a 330+ rwhp mx and just have some fun in it. My new car is like the mx on a smaller scale.. Same sort of engine and drive train mods but no way need the exterior mods which is what i wanted. Something that was legal apart from the height and was fun to drive.



Its probably about 20mm off the ground at the bash plate/swaybar. Best thing is it drives awesome. rides awesome, i can have fun with it and it looks cool Just my 2c on the whole modifying argument.

[erecsean]

Yes, i am going more for the stance look. But not fully low where it could barely reverse out from my driveway. Just low enough for the guards to sit on top of the tires. As again i would like to say that i have no intentions on tracking my car. Maybe further down the line when i have a full time steady job, but for now, working 1-2 shifts a week and also doing uni full time, i would not be able to afford to do any performance mods to my mx5. Hate all u want if you guys are thinking im ruining one of the most best handling cars. Because why would i need the car to handle like a track car when all i do is drive to and from uni and work? Also the main reason i started this thread was to get opinions. Not to get judged. Most of you guys could upgrade your car performance wise because most of you probably already have a full time and stable job. I would like to get my car go faster, but not for another couple of years. However, i do have some money saved up and i have decided to look for a new set of wheels and also possibly coilovers after that. I do appreciate for letting me know that it will ruin my cars handling, but how bad could it be for me to drive it on normal roads everyday? I dont think it is going to effect that much.

Cheers.