Silver Build

[eyeballs]

A front swaybar will do much more to flatten out handling than the strut tower bar. The strut towers are so close to the firewall on our cars that I just don't see a STB making a huge difference. If you did the TB underbrace and the stut tower bar you might notice improved steering response but I doubt the car would corner any flatter.

And with a silver car...those bezels match the paint, I can't imagine why you'd want to change it. What color are you planning on painting the bezels? Black?

 

[inspekt]

A front swaybar will do much more to flatten out handling than the strut tower bar. The strut towers are so close to the firewall on our cars that I just don't see a STB making a huge difference. If you did the TB underbrace and the stut tower bar you might notice improved steering response but I doubt the car would corner any flatter.

And with a silver car...those bezels match the paint, I can't imagine why you'd want to change it. What color are you planning on painting the bezels? Black?

I have been leaning towards the front bar anyway, so that might be the nudge I need... As for the foglight bezels, I was going to paint them matte black to match the black housing they are in. It's purely for cosmetic reasons, just to clean up/uncomplicate the nose a little. The bezels don't bother me, but when I saw what it looked like after Unzip did it on his a while back, I really liked the effect.

 

[eyeballs]

His car is red though, so it didn't match. Anyways, matte black will look good regardless though if my car was silver I wouldn't bother.

 

[inspekt]

His car is red though, so it didn't match. Anyways, matte black will look good regardless though if my car was silver I wouldn't bother.

I hear ya. Sometimes I just enjoy the hell out of a nitpicky subtle/detail cosmetic project...

 

[716-mazda2]

Do it with plastidip, if you don't like it peel it off.

 

[inspekt]

I just installed the CS cold air duct for the SRI this morning. Easy breezy - it took about 15 total minutes, and really cleans up the appearance of the intake region. I did not need to remove the air filter to install the duct (I did have to wiggle stuff a bit to slide it in there), so I would check that out on your 2s out there before you go to the trouble of removing the filter. On my 2, the duct, once secured, leaves about .75 to 1 inch of distance before the neck of the duct would be contacting the filter + band clamp. Making sure your battery is pushed rearward as far as possible is a good idea. It helps to leave ample room for the battery cables. I'll post impressions on the duct after more driving...

 

[inspekt]

Here is a snap of the cold air duct for the SRI:

And a sunny morning snap of an easier-breathing 2:

 

[inspekt]

Hey everyone, I'll have a host of upgrades finally installed around the end of January after a seriously crazy work-onslaught coming up. I'll be sure to post pics and observations of everything I've got coming up: Re-install of H&R springs and install of Corksport Shocks+Struts, install of rear wheel spacers, install of Corksport front sway bar, install of Corksport exhaust, and I picked up a cargo net (50% off holiday dealer coupon!) that I'll comment on as well. Happy New Year to everyone!
(breakn)

 

[eyeballs]

Nice. Looking forward to hearing your impressions of the adjustable dampers, your car should look wicked with the new stance. The cargo net has been serving me well as a place for the baby stuff (diapers, spare clothes, wipes, trash bag, and umbrella). Its actually more useful than I would have guessed.

I've been demolishing that black front spoiler and rubing the green off the underside of the bumper even on my RB springs...until I can better respect the poorly engineered driveways and speedbumps around here I don't think going any lower is a good idea for me. I just can't seem to get myself to make the detours necessary for bumper preseration. Be careful with the lower ride height (again)!

 

[ngd298]

I've found that approaching driveways and bumps at a 45 degree angle helps keep my bumper from scraping.

 

[eyeballs]

Thanks, but I'm well versed in the techniques of driving low vehicles. A number of driveways around here are impossible to navigate without scraping regardless of angle, I just need to get in the habit of avoiding them entirely. If I can stop scraping on stuff, eventually when I do the next susp upgrade I'd like to go a tad lower.

 

[inspekt]

All the crazy construction is over in my area FINALLY. As for the stance, I'm really excited about getting back to that. Now, all I have to worry about with being lower are certain driveways... AND I'm still having some Spirited Green envy. If only there was a way to change up the color now and then...

 

[scoobs]

I'm thorn between the RB and the Eibach springs now. I was going for the Eibach but the RB make so much more sense for DD, I may have to get the Eibach 1st and get the RB 2nd and sell the one I don t like lol.

I love your choice of wheels + tire size, getting tired of always seeing black wheels everywhere. I start up my build thread soon enough (drinks) Oh yeah, nice color choice, I got the same color.

 

[eyeballs]

I've had the RB's for awhile and I'm still torn between the two. If you care much about aesthetics then go eibach...if you want performance and practicality above all else then go RB. I'd love it if i had just slightly less fender gap, but I just don't know if it would be worth it to loose more ground clearance.

Or you could just get the ksport tarmac rally coilovers that can adjust all the way up to stock ride height if need be.

 

[Font Motorsports]

Did someone say Rota RB's?

 

[scoobs]

I think I ll go with RB 1st and see how it looks. I had RB on my old MX-5 and I loved them.

 

[inspekt]

The RBs are great springs, I think you'll like them a lot. I've been very happy with them.

 

[Ryno666]

RacingBeat's are great! It has the perfect blend of performance plus daily drive ability.

 

[scoobs]

A front swaybar will do much more to flatten out handling than the strut tower bar. The strut towers are so close to the firewall on our cars that I just don't see a STB making a huge difference. If you did the TB underbrace and the stut tower bar you might notice improved steering response but I doubt the car would corner any flatter.

And with a silver car...those bezels match the paint, I can't imagine why you'd want to change it. What color are you planning on painting the bezels? Black?

The fog rings don t match the color, I m doing mine with Plasti-dip. I did that to the MS3 and it was perfect, I need to do it to my wife's MZ2 also. Looks a lot cleaner all black.

 

[scoobs]

The RBs are great springs, I think you'll like them a lot. I've been very happy with them.

Ok I m sold (yippy), I'll be ordering them as soon as I can, wheels and tires will be for next year.
I can t even find a place that sells Eibach for the MZ2 lol, so I'll order these