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180-185 would be nice but like everything else there's always trade offs.
No doubt Mazda would like to give us as many HP as possible in the Miata from an engine they can share with other models without sacrificing reliability and/or incurring large model specific development/manufacturing costs. I think they do a pretty good job with an affordable mass market car. And there are many aftermarket power boosting options for those so inclined.
Years ago I had a Fiat 124 Spider and now have a Miata, I'd say the Miata is everything the Spider should have been, especially for us gray beards who don't enjoy lying under vehicles wrench in hand as much as we used to.
If it makes you feel any better, you'll be able to get the new Miata re-badged as a Fiat (or maybe an Alfa), not unlike the Toyobaru twins.
I've had a lot of cheap (if not maybe all that legal) thrills on motorcycles and have pretty much resigned myself to not being able to afford four wheels with similar performance and/or maintenance/repair issues I'm willing to deal with. Wonky knees as well as a lack of places to ride conspire to keep me off dirt bikes.
Sure there are better track cars than Miatas and no doubt better street cars too but I have to give Mazda for the Miata's giggles to $$$ ratio.
I swear i spend an hour in the garage for every hour I ride that KTM. And it's not that it's not reliable, it's just that light weight racing dirt bikes are maintenance intensive.
Shifter karts offer great bang for the buck.... but they use dirt bike engines which need frequent rebuilds. They are also pretty hard on an aging body and track fees and tires add up.
I'm a huge fan of racing simulators. So accessible and relatively cheap. 3D monitors and/or a VR headset and a good force feedback wheel make things pretty immersive. iRacing has laser scans of most tracks and they are even doing the 14 mile nurburgring sometime soon.
Miata's are great, but as I said, it's all the other knobs that don't want to be passed that make it more frustration than fun. If you live somewhere with empty roads, then it's not a problem.
The thing is, how many people are actually buying this car to take it to the track or on a twisty road on a sunday?
The Miata could well be the most tracked/raced car on Earth. That's part of its core mission.
Let's not forget the Miata is a gas hog by today's standards for its size and engine displacement, and they may not be able to get away with that any more with looming ridiculous fuel economy mandates bearing down on the industry. Being down on HP and up on torque seems OK to me if that's what it takes to make significant MPG gains, particularly given its weight loss. HP keeps you going... torque GETS you going.
Location: By the sea, by the sea, by the beautiful sea
68,342 posts, read 54,462,599 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Colorado^
I swear i spend an hour in the garage for every hour I ride that KTM. And it's not that it's not reliable, it's just that light weight racing dirt bikes are maintenance intensive.
Shifter karts offer great bang for the buck.... but they use dirt bike engines which need frequent rebuilds. They are also pretty hard on an aging body and track fees and tires add up.
Yeah, I used to really enjoy wrenching, not so much anymore, now my aging body just wants to change fluids, filters, maybe do a valve adjustment and crank 'er up and go.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Colorado^
I'm a huge fan of racing simulators. So accessible and relatively cheap. 3D monitors and/or a VR headset and a good force feedback wheel make things pretty immersive. iRacing has laser scans of most tracks and they are even doing the 14 mile nurburgring sometime soon.
I haven't had the opportunity to try one, do any home use versions have the ability to simulate Gs like tightening belts under braking or pressing into your back under acceleration? I've always enjoyed the sensation of pulling Gs in cars, airplanes, and on motorcycles. I wish someone would build a 2 seat Top Fuel car, that would be an experience. Or a simulator that replicated a CAT shot off a carrier deck and the trapped landing to follow. As it is I know my bucket list, much to the detriment of my credit balance, is going to require me to visit someone selling time in an L-39 Czech jet trainer.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Colorado^
Miata's are great, but as I said, it's all the other knobs that don't want to be passed that make it more frustration than fun. If you live somewhere with empty roads, then it's not a problem.
Unfortunately I no longer live where it's easy to find roads that look like a roller coaster which has kept me from getting another street bike but the plus side is I can pretty easily find lightly trafficked back roads which on a sunny afternoon with the top down and good tunes in the CD player can make for a very pleasant afternoon for little cost/effort.
Location: By the sea, by the sea, by the beautiful sea
68,342 posts, read 54,462,599 times
Reputation: 40756
Quote:
Originally Posted by Drover
The Miata could well be the most tracked/raced car on Earth. That's part of its core mission.
Let's not forget the Miata is a gas hog by today's standards for its size and engine displacement, and they may not be able to get away with that any more with looming ridiculous fuel economy mandates bearing down on the industry. Being down on HP and up on torque seems OK to me if that's what it takes to make significant MPG gains, particularly given its weight loss. HP keeps you going... torque GETS you going.
I used to own a HONDA inline 6 cylinder CBX motorcycle with six carbs. I found the lower the fuel mileage on a ride the more fun I'd probably had
I haven't had the opportunity to try one, do any home use versions have the ability to simulate Gs like tightening belts under braking or pressing into your back under acceleration? I've always enjoyed the sensation of pulling Gs in cars, airplanes, and on motorcycles. I wish someone would build a 2 seat Top Fuel car, that would be an experience. Or a simulator that replicated a CAT shot off a carrier deck and the trapped landing to follow. As it is I know my bucket list, much to the detriment of my credit balance, is going to require me to visit someone selling time in an L-39 Czech jet trainer.
There's a lot of options for motion simulators, but all of them are limited to less than 1G of force (sustained). Honestly, I don't really miss the g-forces as I get enough of them from the dirt bike. I'm barely able to wrestle with the force feedback wheel after riding
The Miatas forte is about going around corners,it does this quite well, Having a Miata for 10 years i never felt it needed more power as it could go around corners like it was on rails and would give most cars with twice the power a run for their money, if people really want more power from a stock Miata theres plenty of after market stuff that will achieve your desired hp requirements.
One memorable day back in April 0f 07, 6am the road is all mine.
The thing is, how many people are actually buying this car to take it to the track or on a twisty road on a sunday?
The majority of Miata buyers want a fun DD or wknd car. Many wont even push it to its handling limits but many would like to have more power for the open road.
So get a v6 Mustang, no biggie.
It's not a single-car universe. By the way, I wouldn't put too much stock in a rumor mill advertising company. Just for example, it's not going to produce what the 2.0 does in the Mazda3 and require premium fuel.
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