What have you done to your Miata today?
- Thread starter Antoine
- Start date
princess peach
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- '92 Miata, '06 MS6
So far the DZ101s are performing pretty well in the dry, but this time the reviews were pretty accurate. Car was a bit squirmy in the rain, tires have under 1k miles... gonna have to be careful...
Ordered a pair of wheel hubs from FM with their digital angle gauge and a set of 14mm 5-lug hub plates that I believe I can easily adapt to do 12mm 5-lug hubs as well.
The AMSoil transmission oil is starting to make a difference in shifting, most noticeably at lower temperatures where it's better than RedLine. I think it's still making improvements though, will update again later. I am doing a longer drive this weekend, so everything should be up to temp for a long time.
The AMSoil transmission oil is starting to make a difference in shifting, most noticeably at lower temperatures where it's better than RedLine. I think it's still making improvements though, will update again later. I am doing a longer drive this weekend, so everything should be up to temp for a long time.
having 1 set seems a bit silly. You need the car level with its weight on the suspension. So you'd want 4 of them, or it's going to be a huge hassle getting the other axle level. I like them in concept, but the utility's just not there for me for that kind of cash outlay. You can't set your steering straight with them, nor can you set your thrust angle (because your reference for 1 wheel is your other wheel, not the centerline of the chassis). You can do the same work with some cheapo toe plates, and do better work with some jackstands and fishing line (shrug). They'll help making camber / caster changes, but so does a $40 set of wheel stands and some MDF...
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- 92 & 16 Meyatas
she's on the road!!! but in the shop today getting all new fluids, brakes, ss brake lines, oil return check valve and some other minor mechanical love! can't wait for tonight!(alright)
having 1 set seems a bit silly. You need the car level with its weight on the suspension. So you'd want 4 of them, or it's going to be a huge hassle getting the other axle level. I like them in concept, but the utility's just not there for me for that kind of cash outlay. You can't set your steering straight with them, nor can you set your thrust angle (because your reference for 1 wheel is your other wheel, not the centerline of the chassis). You can do the same work with some cheapo toe plates, and do better work with some jackstands and fishing line (shrug). They'll help making camber / caster changes, but so does a $40 set of wheel stands and some MDF...
One of these days I'm going to do my own alignment using that method.
But I agree with you it'd be better to have 4 versus 2.The kit comes with a thrust angle gauge that is supposed to be setup to the centerline of the chassis via some paint markings.
The hub stands put the hub center 15in off the ground. My tires (225/45-15, 205/50-15, and 195/55-15) all have a radius of about ~11.5in. Conveniently that's one 4x4 thickness away from 15in, so I am not worried about leveling things being very hard. Besides, to get a good alignment I'll have to be shimming up the floor anyway.
The hubs also allow really nice access to the adjustment bolts and suspension bolts that need to be tightened with weight on them (lower shock bolts). Saves the hassle of: make adjustment, crawl out from under the car, read adjustment, crawl under the car, make adjustment... etc.
Pricing it out (and considering that my time is worth something) I figured:
Iron Canyon thrust angle kit: $180, Longacre bubble camber/caster gauge: $150, total: $330. Then a set of wheel dollies... getting awfully close to $400.
I really like how the set is somewhat universal. I have 3-4 friends who've promised a chunk of money to be able to use them, which made the financial decision easy. Plus I can use 5-lug plates to do alignments on my MS3, my GFs Civic, my Lemon's teams three MK2 MR2s... etc.
One of these days I'm going to do my own alignment using that method.
Camber / Caster bubble gauge, wheel adapter and either a string "system" or some jackstands and fishing line + a measuring tape is all you need... and you pretty much need most of those things for the FM stands as well.
Huh? Of that list you need a measuring tape in addition to the FM kit. Also an angle finder, which will be useful for other things beyond alignments.
It would be nice if it were cheaper of course. Though the ball-transfers used on it (a good way to do it IMPO) account for something like $100-120 of the cost, plus alloy steel stock, laser cutting, bending, welding, powercoating, Q&A... it's quite reasonable considering what goes into making them, especially being made in the USA (I assume). The next best option I found for hub stands was $900 for 4 that had similar capabilities, but can't do toe as well as the FM hubs can and don't slide as easily during suspension adjustments. I couldn't find a less expensive solution that wasn't very time-intensive. I've done string alignments, and one can definitely get good results with them, but they take a long time and I'd still need to get a caster/camber gauge and wheel adapter.
http://www.bbxracing.com/ (next cheapest hub stand kit I found, does not include camber/caster gauge)
I'm not trying to be a dick, just conveying part of my decision process in picking the FM stands.
I too am not trying to be a dick, just giving my opinion (shrug)
I'm also not saying the price is unreasonable for what they are, just that you can get the same results spending a fraction. You'll lose a small amount of access, but it'll get the job done, is all.
I'm also not saying the price is unreasonable for what they are, just that you can get the same results spending a fraction. You'll lose a small amount of access, but it'll get the job done, is all.
ugghh redline blows when stuff is cold. Heard decent things about AMSoil but thus far out of everything i have tried (redline, RP, mobile1, ect) GM synchromesh absolutely blows them all away. Its the only fluid i have used that cures transmission grinds as well. Best of all it shifts butter smooth even when freezing cold.
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- 92 & 16 Meyatas
so today we got, oil return check valve, oil change, ss brake lines, new pads and rotors, tomorrow, new brake fluid and alignment...skipping the coolant flush, realized today we changed out the timing belt and water pump last yr.
This man knows what he is talking about..... I would take his advice with some serious thought.
This. End of story. No questions asked.
But that weekend is a bit a ways away? If so, you can save up until then..... So now it isn't such an expensive weekend, right?
He does, and I do. However, he's not the only one around here who has/does align race cars manually with string, and it doesn't mean we always reach the same conclusion given our different situations.
aMaff's (and initially, my) main reservation about the hub stands was the cost. But like I said before, I have 3 friends on board for using them. 3x$80 being chipped in takes a big chunk out of that purchase price and makes the decision pretty easy.
That is a remarkably absolute and uninformed statement to make. GM Sychromesh is a very thin transmission transmission oil, it appears to be 5w30 or 10W30 engine oil with some friction additives in it. The low cold-temperature viscosity is why it feels so smooth at lower temperatures and some friction modifiers make it perform better in a transmission than regular engine oil, which some cars specify.
I picked AMSoil 75W-90 for several reasons: my Miata is rarely driven below 50F, this last week being about the only time it will be driven in such cold weather this year. I have a turbocharged engine with probably 2x or more the power of a stock 1.6L with big sticky tires, so the high pressure additives and high temperature protection offered by 75W90 oils are important. I have a 6-puck clutch and auto-x my Miata, so the shock-load protection of AMSoil 75W90 is also beneficial. AMSoil75W90 is fully synthetic, indicating that it will last longer than the semi-synthetic GM synchromesh oil, especially under high temperature and high load use. I did a lot of research on this before picking AMSoil, it is rated as about the best 75W90 transmission oil by many Miata owners who have tried all of the big names (RedLine, Mobil, FoMoCo, etc). I considered sychromesh oils in various flavors, but decided against them for the aforementioned reasons.
As with the FM stands, cost is always a concern. Fortunately a friend of mine is an AMSoil dealer and I can get AMSoil products drop-shipped to me for wholesale cost, a fraction of RedLine MTL or FoMoCo MTL.
My point is that synchromesh might work for some people, but it is not the best answer for everyone 'end of story, no questions asked.'
