MP3 vs. Miata

dolphin said:
Ok, I have all three, a Miata, an MP3 and MSP. Either of the Proteges actually have more grip than the Miata. In acceleration, my 6 speed Miata falls between the MP3 and MSP. The Miata brakes seem to be slightly better than the Protege. The lack of ABS hurts the MP3 in some situations. Either Protege transitions as well as the Miata, which is amazing. The Miatas advantages are that the power it does have it can get to the ground more often coming off a turn and it is narrower. Of the two Protg versions I think the MP3 actually handles better than the MSP but the lack of a LSD hurts it off the corner. Either version of the Protege is obviously more practical and flexible than the Miata.


I disagree. I used to have a Protege with some mods and it wasn't even close to what my stock Miata could do in the handling department. Also you're trying to tell me that 2700+lbs changes directions just as easy as 2200? Yeah ok. I do canyon runs a few times a week every week and have been for the last 3 years. The Protege needs serious serious mods to even come close to a stock Miata in the corners. Natey can tell you all about how much he spent on his P5 only to realize his stock Miata was still faster and easier to turn.
 
KpaBap,
In sum total a Miata is quicker through an autocross course because it no faults, it is narrower and can get to the power sooner. That is why SCCA has the Miata in CS and the MSP in DS. We timed both my Miata and the MSP, on OEM tires, through some individual elements, including a second gear slalom and a sweeping 45 MPH turn. The MSP was faster through both but the Miata was faster through the overall course.

We timed the slalom from the first pylon to the last pylon to eliminate the entry and the exit so that it reflected only the transitions. So yes, the 2700+ lbs Protege changes direction as fast or faster than my 2300 lbs Miata. I think if we had moved the timing points to include the entry and exit, the results might have been different but we wanted to time only the time through the slalom itself. We also timed my MSP and 10AE Miata through an 1/8 mile drag and the MSP was faster there as well.
 
dolphin said:
KpaBap,
In sum total a Miata is quicker through an autocross course because it no faults, it is narrower and can get to the power sooner. That is why SCCA has the Miata in CS and the MSP in DS. We timed both my Miata and the MSP, on OEM tires, through some individual elements, including a second gear slalom and a sweeping 45 MPH turn. The MSP was faster through both but the Miata was faster through the overall course.

We timed the slalom from the first pylon to the last pylon to eliminate the entry and the exit so that it reflected only the transitions. So yes, the 2700+ lbs Protege changes direction as fast or faster than my 2300 lbs Miata. I think if we had moved the timing points to include the entry and exit, the results might have been different but we wanted to time only the time through the slalom itself. We also timed my MSP and 10AE Miata through an 1/8 mile drag and the MSP was faster there as well.


I have no doubts that the MSP with its 215/45/17 somewhat sticky tires would have more grip than a stock 10AE which rocks the 195/50/15 all-season Turanzas. Also big surprise at the 1/8, I mean the miata puts down ~110 at the wheels and the MSP ~155. BUT, my point is, on a local favorite 7.8 mile long stretch of mountanious road, I've been able to cover it in 6 min 41 seconds in the Miata and just barely over 7:30 in the Protege. That is not a small difference.

It's even more glaring when you look at the average speeds: ~70mph for the Miata and ~62.4 for the protege.

[/rant]
 
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Not to burst any bubbles, but it is difficult with the equipment that most of us have to compare mountainous roads to a timed track or autox course. There are a lot more variables involved on a mountainous road than on a track or autox course. The mountainous roads will differ almost everytime with a rookie/novice driver mainly because you may enter turns differently you could hit the apex differently etc. Especially when on a long stretch of winding road like the one you mentioned which is 7.8 miles long. I'd take timed more accurately measured data over ballparked/guesstimated data. Just my .02 cents though. Good topic here seeing as how I love both of these cars.
 
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i own an msp and have driven around 5 miata ranging from a 90 to a 2002 6-speed. the MSP cannot be used as a comparison since its obvious advantage (turbo) makes it an uneven comparison, but handling wise I can tell you that few rookie drivers could actually put either car to its real limits, so unless you are an experienced driver who doesnt need to worry about writing the car off, then i dont think we can accurately compare them at their limits. from my experience with the two, I had a much easier time throwing around a protege compard to a miata, however i have very litle experience with RWD cars.(driven maybe 9, owned 0) someone who has grown up with rwd im sure could do alot more with the miata than i could. i find that in my msp the "limits" of the car are defined and I am able to adhere to them. in the miata the "limits" seemed to close to disaster than I could afford, so i was always a bit reluctant to give it 100%. On a side note, I would trade my spicy msp for a 1.8l turbocharged british racing green miata any day of the week. and i may do so soon too :)
 
If you want numbers the following are from the same course on the same day. The Miata was on 225/50-15 Kuuho Victoracers and the MP3 was on old 225/50-15 Yokohama A008Rs II. The best of 4 runs for Miata was 57.2 while the MP3's was 57.5. This was despite a dragstrip start and fair straight in the course.
 

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