Questions from a new owner

Hi,

I just bought a '93 'V-Special' Edition Miata, and had the following
questions:

1) The suspension has been lowered slightly by the previous owner, but I
remember driving a Miata with a stock suspension setup last month, and I
prefer that 'softer' ride. I was wondering if deflating/inflating the tyre
pressure would help here. Can someone suggest an appropriate pressure (in
psi preferably?) Or another way to soften the ride other than altering
suspension?

2) Parking on a steep hill with the handbrake up causes the Miata to make a
horrible screechy noise for a good few seconds. It also has to be pulled
right up, very hard, to get it to stop rolling back. Engaging first or
reverse helps, but its like it wants to roll down! Is this normal, given its
a fairly steep slope?

3) The rear plastic on the softop (to see out of the back) is in terrible
condition and requires replacing. The manufacturerar quotes a sum of about
$500, and I was told doing it from anyone else risks water leakage. Is there
any truth to this, and do the majority of owners use side mirrors rather
than the interior?

Thanks for your help,

M

In article >, "Max" <max> wrote:

> I just bought a '93 'V-Special' Edition Miata, and had the following
> questions:

You're in Hong Kong, right? I'm not familiar with that model, but if
it's like the U.S.-market 1993 LE (black with red interior and BBS
wheels) it has Bilstein shocks, which are a bit harsh.

> 1) The suspension has been lowered slightly by the previous owner, but I
> remember driving a Miata with a stock suspension setup last month, and I
> prefer that 'softer' ride. I was wondering if deflating/inflating the tyre
> pressure would help here. Can someone suggest an appropriate pressure (in
> psi preferably?) Or another way to soften the ride other than altering
> suspension?

No, it's not a good idea to delate the tires to soften the ride. 28-30
psi works well for most Miata owners; don't go softer than 26 psi. Some
tires ride much better than others--the Toyo T-1S is one of the best, as
well as one of the best performing. But lowered Miatas tend to hit the
bumpstops a lot, which produces a jarring ride, and the only solutions
are raising the ride height or fitting stiffer springs.

> 2) Parking on a steep hill with the handbrake up causes the Miata to make a
> horrible screechy noise for a good few seconds. It also has to be pulled
> right up, very hard, to get it to stop rolling back. Engaging first or
> reverse helps, but its like it wants to roll down! Is this normal, given its
> a fairly steep slope?

Not normal. Perhaps the rear brake calipers need to be adjusted. Look in
the miata.net Garage section for instructions.

> 3) The rear plastic on the softop (to see out of the back) is in terrible
> condition and requires replacing. The manufacturerar quotes a sum of about
> $500, and I was told doing it from anyone else risks water leakage. Is there
> any truth to this, and do the majority of owners use side mirrors rather
> than the interior?

Replacing the rear curtain will not cause leaks; it's not a particularly
challenging task, and you could do it yourself. However, for $500 you
could replace the entire top. The cheap solution, if your zipper is
still in good condition, is to visit an auto top or boat upholstery shop
and have a new piece of plastic sewn into the top, without removing the
top from the car.

--
Lanny Chambers, St. Louis, USA
'94C
the alignment page:
http://www.hummingbirds.net/alignment.html

The parking brake need to be adjusted. The adjustment is under a bolt on
each rear wheel hub behind the brake caliper.. www.miata.net has a garage
section that should describe the needed operation.

You will also find niformation detailing various top and rear window
replacements and alternatives.
The reference to leaking is undoubtedly related to a plastic part that
often cracks when removed top replace a top or rear window. Eithe the
plastic part is replaced when it cracks, or it can possibly be sealed with a
non acedic form of RTV. The part referred to is not visible until the nuts
around the bottom rear of the top are removed, and the metal top retainer is
also removed, allowing the bottom of the top to be loose, and not bolted to
the car body. Naturally, all of this is under the rear deck carpet, so the
first step is to remove the cross brace behind the seats, then the carpet.
You will likely need a tool to remove all the plastic buttons holding the
carpet in place. On an older Miata, you can expect several of them to
shatter, requiring replacement. Fortunately, the usual black ones may be
available at a parts store. The other colors are likely to be a dealer order
item. Trussville mazda is a discount dealer with web presence. Again, I'd
refer you to www.miata.net for a list of various vendors.

"Max" <max> wrote in message ...
> Hi,
>
> I just bought a '93 'V-Special' Edition Miata, and had the following
> questions:
>
> 1) The suspension has been lowered slightly by the previous owner, but I
> remember driving a Miata with a stock suspension setup last month, and I
> prefer that 'softer' ride. I was wondering if deflating/inflating the tyre
> pressure would help here. Can someone suggest an appropriate pressure (in
> psi preferably?) Or another way to soften the ride other than altering
> suspension?
>
> 2) Parking on a steep hill with the handbrake up causes the Miata to make
> a
> horrible screechy noise for a good few seconds. It also has to be pulled
> right up, very hard, to get it to stop rolling back. Engaging first or
> reverse helps, but its like it wants to roll down! Is this normal, given
> its
> a fairly steep slope?
>
> 3) The rear plastic on the softop (to see out of the back) is in terrible
> condition and requires replacing. The manufacturerar quotes a sum of about
> $500, and I was told doing it from anyone else risks water leakage. Is
> there
> any truth to this, and do the majority of owners use side mirrors rather
> than the interior?
>
> Thanks for your help,
>
> M
>
>


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"chuckk" > wrote:

>The parking brake need to be adjusted. The adjustment is under a bolt on
>each rear wheel hub behind the brake caliper.. www.miata.net has a garage
>section that should describe the needed operation.
>
>You will also find niformation detailing various top and rear window
>replacements and alternatives.
>The reference to leaking is undoubtedly related to a plastic part that
>often cracks when removed top replace a top or rear window. Eithe the
>plastic part is replaced when it cracks, or it can possibly be sealed with a
>non acedic form of RTV.

This rain rail is going to be impossibly brittle at that age. I
would suggest, if you do not simply want to follow Lanny's suggestion,
to drill out the rivets holding the curtain right where they are and
never further touch the rain rail (plastic gutter) again. You *do not*
have to rivet the curtain back on the rain rail, or even cover the
rivet holes with electrical tape, as some sources claim (like the
Mazda Workshop Manual).

This is the way the upholstery shop that replaced my curtain
did it, and it never leaked in years in Florida. The less you touch
the rain rail, the less the chances of leaking due to damage.

Leon

> The part referred to is not visible until the nuts
>around the bottom rear of the top are removed, and the metal top retainer is
>also removed, allowing the bottom of the top to be loose, and not bolted to
>the car body. Naturally, all of this is under the rear deck carpet, so the
>first step is to remove the cross brace behind the seats, then the carpet.
>You will likely need a tool to remove all the plastic buttons holding the
>carpet in place. On an older Miata, you can expect several of them to
>shatter, requiring replacement. Fortunately, the usual black ones may be
>available at a parts store. The other colors are likely to be a dealer order
>item. Trussville mazda is a discount dealer with web presence. Again, I'd
>refer you to www.miata.net for a list of various vendors.
>
>"Max" <max> wrote in message ...
>> Hi,
>>
>> I just bought a '93 'V-Special' Edition Miata, and had the following
>> questions:
>>
>> 1) The suspension has been lowered slightly by the previous owner, but I
>> remember driving a Miata with a stock suspension setup last month, and I
>> prefer that 'softer' ride. I was wondering if deflating/inflating the tyre
>> pressure would help here. Can someone suggest an appropriate pressure (in
>> psi preferably?) Or another way to soften the ride other than altering
>> suspension?
>>
>> 2) Parking on a steep hill with the handbrake up causes the Miata to make
>> a
>> horrible screechy noise for a good few seconds. It also has to be pulled
>> right up, very hard, to get it to stop rolling back. Engaging first or
>> reverse helps, but its like it wants to roll down! Is this normal, given
>> its
>> a fairly steep slope?
>>
>> 3) The rear plastic on the softop (to see out of the back) is in terrible
>> condition and requires replacing. The manufacturerar quotes a sum of about
>> $500, and I was told doing it from anyone else risks water leakage. Is
>> there
>> any truth to this, and do the majority of owners use side mirrors rather
>> than the interior?
>>
>> Thanks for your help,
>>
>> M
>>
>>
>
>
>---
>Outgoing mail is AVG certified Virus Free.
>Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com).
>Version: 6.0.806 / Virus Database: 548 - Release Date: 12/5/2004
>

--
Leon van Dommelen Bozo, the White 96 Sebring Miata .)
http://www.dommelen.net/miata
EXIT THE INTERSTATES (Jamie Jensen)

chuckk wrote:
> The parking brake need to be adjusted. The adjustment is under a bolt
> on each rear wheel hub behind the brake caliper.. www.miata.net has
> a garage section that should describe the needed operation.

I'd also find it prudent to mention that once it's adjusted, there's no
reason to pull it up as absolutely hard as you can. Just pull the handle up
until it feels firm. I've got a good friend that *insists* on using all his
upper arm strength to pull up the lever, and he's always loosing tension on
the cable.

<snip>

--
tooloud
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