I want to buy a Mazdaspeed full body kit however I have some questions about the everyday practicality.

First, I plan to lower my car just slightly (under 1" lower) with the Tein Basic Coilovers. I am running on 18x8 wheels and stock tires.

My questions to current Mazdaspeed bodykit owners are:
- Have you had any problems with scraping on a regular basis, curbs, speedbumps, automatic carwashes, etc?

- What size wheels do you have and have you lowered the car any?

- What is your clearance from ground to bottom of front bumper (if you have the time can you measure?).

I would appreciate any input.


Thanks,
teebee

I have 19's. I have tein s springs front 1.4 and rear .7 I have about 4" clearance from front to side.

I'm not sure if you're looking for replica kit owners, but I'll answer anyway.

I've got the front & sides. I've hit the front twice, both times the 2nd day after it was installed. I haven't had a problem since then, but I am very careful on the steep dips and try to always enter problem areas at an angle. Regular speed bumps don't seem to be an issue.

My wheels are 18x8.5 and I have not lowered the car any. If I lower, I'll aim for 1/2" - 1", but I don't think I could go much lower than that safely.

I haven't measured the ground clearance, but I'll measure when I can and post.

Hope it helps.

with 19's, a 1-1 1/2 inch drop and the kit you'd end up fine

As promised: I've got about a 6" clearance.

mskit + tein s + stock wheels

you definitely need to be more aware of the clearance up front. i've only scraped the bottom a few times. take driveways at an angle and go slow (ie crawl, especially going down them). on higher speed bumps the skirt gets pretty close (so far no scraping).

also, watch out for parking blocks

bottomline...its worth it

OK here's another question (at the risk of sounding stupid). For those who have the MS kit or another aftermarket kit installed, what did you do with your existing body pieces (i.e. appearance package + spoiler)?

i donated mine to goodwill

I got my kit because I wrecked and my front bumper & appearance pkg were a total loss. Since I got the replica, I saved money and used that for the side skirts. I sold the side aero flares to a member on the board. I'll probably sell my OEM spoiler for the MS Spoiler in the not too distant future.

Thanks for all the answers.

Hi Everyone,

What's the replica kit you are refering to? Is it MS kit but made by other manufacturers or it looks different?

Wow, thread necromancy!

But since it is alive again, I might as well ask a question: Is it viable to get the Mazdaspeed kit installed by a dealer, or they just going to totally overcharge you?

I got my kit because I wrecked and my front bumper & appearance pkg were a total loss. Since I got the replica, I saved money and used that for the side skirts. I sold the side aero flares to a member on the board. I'll probably sell my OEM spoiler for the MS Spoiler in the not too distant future.

Thats smart, i would get the OEM MS front bumper so its factory, and just get a replica sides and rear to match, save some money that way.

you can get the rear and sides here for less and they come primered and fit pretty good.

http://body-kit.com/maz_rx8_03_06.html

anyone know where to get a good deal on the MS front factory? not aftermarket.

Wow, thread necromancy!

But since it is alive again, I might as well ask a question: Is it viable to get the Mazdaspeed kit installed by a dealer, or they just going to totally overcharge you?

the front you can install diy with hand tools/:)