MX5 Owners in here....bring your curling tongs

Fitted a Nautilus Air Horn as a replacement to the pathetic oem roadrunner unit. It's an easy fit once the undertray is removed and is really, really loud :)

Also replaced the oem sidelight bulbs with Osram cool white LED bulbs. The left hand side is easier to do than the right, which needed the coolant reservoir unbolting and moving aside a few inches.

The LEDs are much brighter and whiter so hopefully will make the car more visible to other motorists (particularly 4x4 type cars which often seem to start cutting me up then see me just before they move into my lane), plus the horn will alert other road users of my presence.

The horn is really loud :)
 
Duke said:
Yep it’s not a bad price so worth it if close by. It doesn’t beat a proper track but still decent for an airfield. Heading to Bedford in a few weeks as they are cheap being out of season now (£99-120).
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What date are you doing Bedford? Just booked 11th of December,
 
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After I removed the decals, gave it a run around my private land (yes officer) and realised it needs some track time. Parked next to my diesel TT.
 
The only placed that I found that sold the engraved Voodoo knob was knobmeister.com (seriously :p)

It looks nice but its actually lighter than the stock knob, I didn't really rate it to be honest. The lacquer started to lift slightly where the etching with the gear pattern was as well.

The gear knob I eventually got and stuck with was from TWM Performance, a proper stainless steel one, that was superb (much heavier than stock so it made the shift feel even slicker) but the exchange rate makes those silly expensive to import now.
 
Will said:
The only placed that I found that sold the engraved Voodoo knob was knobmeister.com (seriously :p)

It looks nice but its actually lighter than the stock knob, I didn't really rate it to be honest. The lacquer started to lift slightly where the etching with the gear pattern was as well.

The gear knob I eventually got and stuck with was from TWM Performance, a proper stainless steel one, that was superb (much heavier than stock so it made the shift feel even slicker) but the exchange rate makes those silly expensive to import now.
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Thanks for the details, much appreciated and I won't be buying one now!

I see what you mean about the pricing of the TWM. What a shame! I guess I'll be sticking with the stock one until I can find a decent alternative.

I know this is a big question, but was there anything else on your car that in hindsight you probably wouldn't have done? I find your old car a great source of inspiration and many things you did I am considering so would be great to know!

If you cba to details things I don't blame you :p

Thanks again :)
 
Just agreed to buy a hard top off someone, handy for the crap weather... already drive when cold and in light drizzle btw :)
 
Cleisthenes said:
I know this is a big question, but was there anything else on your car that in hindsight you probably wouldn't have done? I find your old car a great source of inspiration and many things you did I am considering so would be great to know!
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Hmm, some easy things to think about, and some harder ones...

Definitely wouldn't have bothered with Meister R suspension or the Konis, buy Ohlins or don't bother IMO.

Wouldn't have had a 3.7kg flywheel (I later later went to a 5.6kg one which was nicer and better suited for use on the roads in heavy traffic etc, the super lightweight one was horrible to drive in traffic).

Wouldn't have ever taken the car to Roddisons motorsport, I'd suggest everyone stick with Blink or BBR :)

BBR's exhaust parts weren't great mind (their manifold is nicely made, but the rest of their systems don't measure up quality/fitment wise, given how much they cost...the Goodwin racing stuff is far nicer IMO if you're spending that much money on an exhaust system for the Mk3 MX5).

Naturally aspirated mods I might not have gone so far as I did either, given the money and the car again to start over. The 'Super 225' ITB kit was great but for the money I'd spent, the basic Corten-Miller supercharger kit wouldn't have been that much more, and would have given a nice 230-250bhp (with more torque everywhere) and would still have potential for further power had you then decided to uprate the fuel system and injectors.

Basically....if I could start again. I'd have gone to Blink/Corten-Miller and stuck their Rotrex supercharger on, and had Ohlins suspensions supplied/fitted by Blink, that combination of parts would be better to drive and faster than my naturally aspirated car was.
 
I like my Meister Rs to be honest, decent ride in the real world when they're dialled right down and then 5 mins later, if that, they're ready for the track at their stiffest.

Love my Rotrex supercharger though, nice bit of kit.

I've got a lightened flywheel I never fitted, I bought it cheap in an MX5 parts sale and then was advised not to fit it to a charged engine.
 
Will said:
Hmm, some easy things to think about, and some harder ones...

Definitely wouldn't have bothered with Meister R suspension or the Konis, buy Ohlins or don't bother IMO.

Wouldn't have had a 3.7kg flywheel (I later later went to a 5.6kg one which was nicer and better suited for use on the roads in heavy traffic etc, the super lightweight one was horrible to drive in traffic).

Wouldn't have ever taken the car to Roddisons motorsport, I'd suggest everyone stick with Blink or BBR :)

BBR's exhaust parts weren't great mind (their manifold is nicely made, but the rest of their systems don't measure up quality/fitment wise, given how much they cost...the Goodwin racing stuff is far nicer IMO if you're spending that much money on an exhaust system for the Mk3 MX5).

Naturally aspirated mods I might not have gone so far as I did either, given the money and the car again to start over. The 'Super 225' ITB kit was great but for the money I'd spent, the basic Corten-Miller supercharger kit wouldn't have been that much more, and would have given a nice 230-250bhp (with more torque everywhere) and would still have potential for further power had you then decided to uprate the fuel system and injectors.

Basically....if I could start again. I'd have gone to Blink/Corten-Miller and stuck their Rotrex supercharger on, and had Ohlins suspensions supplied/fitted by Blink, that combination of parts would be better to drive and faster than my naturally aspirated car was.
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Great info, thanks :)


I'm unlikely to go for coilovers but was planning to go to Wheels in Motion in the new year for their springs and alignment set up. If I do any serious modification it'd likely just be a better exhaust manifold. Great to see what's possible though, you certainly pushed it to the limit!
 
Gave the 5 a good run up the M5 this morning, picked up the hard top then gave it a good wash :) Not an exact match on silver but will only be used in the worst weather months then back off again. The cabin is now a much nicer place to be than having the normal hood up.

Just waiting for some rear spacers to arrive then ready for Bedford Autodrome a week tomorrow.



 
Cleisthenes said:
Great info, thanks :)


I'm unlikely to go for coilovers but was planning to go to Wheels in Motion in the new year for their springs and alignment set up. If I do any serious modification it'd likely just be a better exhaust manifold. Great to see what's possible though, you certainly pushed it to the limit!
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One other thing, don't bother changing the brake lines on the Mk3, people will suggest going for braided lines but unless you go for the ILMotorsport set, then the front one's will never fit properly. The factory lines are attached to the upper wishbone by a small bracket and hardpipe sectionto prevent them from chafing against the wheel and/or end of the anti-roll bars, where as most of the aftermarket kits don't use this bracketry, instead just having a short loop directly between the caliper and the union mounted on the chassis leg. The result is, most of the aftermarket brake lines will eventually start to rub, not desirable! I had to replace my HEL lines because of this design issue. I replaced them with the ILM set up, but am reliably informed that the factory lines have an internal metal braid anyway, so the whole endeavour is pointless!
 
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