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Originally Posted by fduboss302
Have most people who have talked about how amazing the driving feel of the twins driven a Miata? I'm really surprised considering that I actually miss the fun factor of my NB (yes compared to the BRZ).
I needed a more practical daily and it was wrecked so onto the BRZ, no regrets.  Just surprised there's not more Miata leg humping here.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Vracer111
Driven Miata's in an autocross environment and was actually seriously considering getting one, but once the FRS came about the miata went out of my sight without a second thought for several reasons:
1 - Its a convertible (would have gutted the entire convertible system, and permanently installed a rollbar and hardtop - do not like convertibles.)
2 - I'm 6'2"...and the miata would be my only daily-driver vehicle. I can only fit properly in one if a special racing seat is installed in a fixed position - stock seats are not great at all for my ergonomics and a fixed position steering wheel with a fixed position seat is not going to work well for a daily driver. FRS has all kinds of room in comparison...
3. Suspension/chassis - lacking in sharpness/preciseness compared to the FRS, would have required some work to get it near what the FRS is stock...
4. Styling. Miata just can't compete with the FRS at all in this regard....the FRS interior and exterior arrangement/design is much more to my liking. A nimble, precise, and comfortable exotic looking 2 door coupe sportscar is exactly what i wanted.
Miata is a nice handling car, but the chassis characteristics of the FRS are much better to me. People talk about how the miata has a better shifter feel and steering feel; really doesn't mean much to me. I care about how the chassis feels and how precisely I can yaw the car around its point of balance more than shifter/steering wheel feels. As long as the steering wheel and shifter are direct enough with information on whats going on with the car I don't need the extra feels to balance a chassis; a more muted and less 'live' feel in a steering wheel and a stiffer/more positive shifter is actually my preference.
People also rave about the smooth/preciseness of FWD Honda shifters, I've never liked them either, much prefer my Tacomas shifter over any honda FWD shifter - give me a real gearbox, not cables or linkage tubes! The shifter I've liked best was the Hurst Competition + unit in my 4th gen Camaro, super positive and precise long lever with a heavy click feel into each gear...nearly perfect! The chassis dynamics is why I enjoy the FRS more than the miata, and even stock the FRS is not really quick enough in reflexes or rotation for my taste, but its attitude is about there. I also like the longer wheelbase of the FRS and its stability in high speed corners...
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DarkSunrise
^^^
Similar story here. I love the Miata on the street, but compared to an NC Miata (for example) the FR-S has more track-ready stock suspension, arguably better steering (worse feel, but more precise and faster ratio), and much better usability/practicality.
Also agree on looks, but that's subjective so could go either way.
What sealed the deal for me though is that the Miata needs a roll-bar to pass tech inspection at the track. That pretty much eliminates its ability to be a street car for me.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Frost
Even MotorTrend agrees with the above two posts. They say the Twins are more "serious" with the factory suspension and more for the track and racing whereas the Miata is a great daily driver whose suspension is tuned more for the road and less for the track hence the requirement to firm it up once you dedicate it for the track. I've driven the NC Miata and yes, the stock form has a decent amount of roll compared to the Twins. A friend of mine finally gutted the suspension and just then, it felt slightly better than the Twins - that's how good the factory setup is.
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These posts said it already, but to add to the reasons; I love the Miata but i'm just too big to daily drive one. I've tried, twice. Borrowed Friend's NA and NB's and I just couldn't do it. I also don't love the look of the NC (that front end doesn't work for me) and for my purposes, i'm only considering new cars as a daily driver.
That said... for a few months now I have considered building a weekend only Miata and keeping my Mustang. I'd have a good long distance cruiser, a better canyon carver and it's more responsible from a financial perspective. For my size I would need to bolt a seat to the floor but after that it would be great. The point still stands however that I would rather have a BRZ but the great thing is in a couple of years they will still be around.
I didn't mention it because I feel it detracted from the real point which is that the twins are so rare in their driving purity, that others should be hessitant to move on from them.
Quote:
Originally Posted by stock
OP,
Awesome comparitive review of the Mustang and FRS/BRZ. I was nearly going to buy the Camaro or GT and went with the FRS mostly due to my lifetime experince with 4cyl Japanese cars making me happy and the FRS/BRZ being touted as my dream car.
Occasionally (especially in this hotter summer weather...) I have the same experience with lack of torque. I will re read this post every time I think I made a poor choice.
Thanks much. Seriously.
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Thank you very much. I really enjoyed writing it.