epikeddie

Oh...and most Miata "enthusiasts" do their timing belt every 60k miles. I usually like to upgrade to a stronger belt like the Gates Racing Timing Belt.

AlphaOmegaRX8

Well sadly i still havent gone to go check it out yet cause my grandpa is in the hospital and i have school in the mornings so I hardly have any time in between being at the hospital and doing homework. I'm going to try to go sometime next week hopefully.

I actually do like white cars, 1st favorite is black, second being white, and third is a dark grey, like gunmetal grey. and lol about being comfortable with my masculinity haha thats what my friends say that the miata is gay and that i'll look gay driving one (i'm only about 5'6") haha but i could give a rats *** about what people say cause i know what i am and what i am not. But its good to know these cars are reliable and can potentially last a long time.

@epikeddie
thanks for the input, how do you test for compression? I'm still trying to learn all i can about cars. I want to be able to work on my car and do everything myself.

Btw, if the miatas don't have good transmissions, then is it advised that i not learn how to drive manual transmission with the miata? That is essentially my problem. I don't know how to drive it but i want to learn and you have to learn sometime. I watch youtube videos to try to get the hang of it but without any practice its a little hard to get the hang of it. One of my uncles knows how to drive it and thats how i was planning on getting the miata to my house, then spend the afternoons practicing until i get the hang of it. Btw he probably wont let me drive his car and practice with it as he treats the car like a baby lol and i'm sure he doesnt want me grinding his gears and burning up his clutch lol (its a mustang btw)

Thanks for the help

epikeddie

Oh wait.....you don't know how to drive manual? I was talking about relative strength when considering horsepower and torque. I'm sure if you're "learning" on the clutch, you're going to be slipping / burning it.....that's how all of us learned how to drive a manual.

The Miata is a GREAT car to learn on and an even better car to learn how to drive fast. The car is nimble and gives great feedback. Also, it has won more national competitions in a variety of classes over the model's rich history.

If you don't know how to do a compression test, I would hire a mobile mechanic to do it for you. But here's the explanation:

1. Remove the plug wires
2. Disconnect the coil harness from the coil pack. This is the equivalent of disconnecting the ESS in our cars - pretty much meaning.....the engine won't turn over when you crank it.
3. Remove the spark plugs from Cylinders 1, 2, 3, and 4.
4. Attach Compression Tester to the number 1 cynlinder. You will use the same threads that your spark plugs use when attaching the compression tester.
5. Crank the car (I like to do about 6 cycles) and take the reading off the gauge. That's your compression in pounds per square inch on cylinder 1.
6. Repeat Steps 4 and 5 for all 4 cylinders.
7. All four numbers should be relatively close to each other. Don't worry too much about the peak psi numbers. You're mainly looking for consistency across all 4 combustion chambers.

One really low number (particularly happens in cylinder #4 on the Miatas due to poor cooling design from the factory) on any cylinder will indicate major damage in the combustion chamber.

Good luck and feel free to ask more questions about Miatas. I'm always open to share my knowledge about those little cars.

climacus

Miata have great transmission, but the clutch is tricky like the RX-8. Newbies will stall the engine left and right on a test drive. Try bringing a friend to the test drive so you can ditch the salesman.

colnago1331

iTrader: (1)

Eddie:

While your bona fides certainly qualify you to set forth such an opinion, I would disagree with your assessment of miata.net. The OP is replacing a Kia, which I assume is his DD. In light of this I think miata.net is a fine place for him to get information. I, too, like club roadster, however in my experience it seems to me that it's geared more towards people who track their car. I could be wrong on that, though. In the end, though, I think both sites can provide a wealth of knowledge to the OP.

epikeddie

Clubroadster.net is filled with more enthusiasts than track junkies. They have everyone from the drifting crowd to the show crowd. I just suggested it because they are a bit more open to unique ideas than Miata.net.

I'm a fan of an aggressive looking Miata. Miata.net is a bit more conservative that's all.

AlphaOmegaRX8

all right well i didn't get the car :[, i didn't even get a chance to take a look at it. Some unplanned events took place which took away all the time i had and when i last checked on autotrader the listing had been deleted. I will still keep looking for a miata or an eclipse(would prefer an NB miata but whatever better deal i find at this point, even if its not either of these cars) thanks for all the input and the websites, i will keep looking for more information so as to be insightful on what to look for in a used miata

AlphaOmegaRX8

all right so i was looking again at autotrader today to see if they had any more miatas, but when i went to search, i searched all mazda cars.
Now I don't know if this is fake or a typo/error but there is an RX8 posted in my area for $6,950, 44,500 miles, Brilliant Black, Black and Red leather interior moon/sun roof and 6 speed manual. WTF? It says private seller on there but I dunno if its even real or if i should even bother with it given my current situation (Being 19, college student with two part time jobs as an usher and lifeguard). When I bought my rx8 in the future, i had planned to have a rwd beater car(the miata) to learn mt on and to learn how to maintain the car myself. I also planned on keeping the 8 forever! lol so given the amount of miles, what should i do? every time i see an 8 on the road, i feel like its calling my name! suggestions?

AlphaOmegaRX8

alright nvm lol, it was a typo...too good to be true. The guy took the posting off today :/

CarAndDriver

Yeah it seemed a typo or a salvage (to be avoided).