Opinions wanted.

What are the strengths vs the weaknesses of both cars, from a performance standpoint, tuning platform and daily driveability and fun factor.

Which would you choose?

Oh, and just FYI, I own both cars, so any performance numbers that are off will be called out immediately

 

If I want to kill my self while losing a race I would chose a miata. Sorry to be so blunt...

 

http://www.itrsport.com

click on reviews.
There is a hugs article "Unlikely Contenders" comparing the ITR to the Miata on the street, auto-x, and track

 

Yo silock,
its rob, i dont know **** about miatas, they're cheaper than ITRs, thats for damn sure.

 

Woohoo, it's Silock from clubSi.

How's the ITR running these days? Also, is the miata 'charged now?

 

its a miata.

 

Is there more to this post? Am I missing something here?

 

Tell u this..from personal experience...ITR with I/h/e and miata with i/h/e i have the type r and my friend has a 2000 miata...i rip his **** off at buttonwillow road coarse....but on auto x he's very hard to catch..it handles like it's on rails those miatas...but on street i own him and get more chicks....so thats 3 out of 4..type -r wins...

 

Reid, nah i think thats it, lol

 

heheh.... well as the former owner of a 96 M Edition Miata i can say they are pretty fun cars, the tuning options i actually think are better for the miata than the type-r's, i know the really crazy turbos can squeeze 359hp out of the car and the tamer 12psi setup are super reliable, some car has like 170,000 turbocharged miles with no problems. Stock though miatas are weak and feel really underpowered which is something i've never felt in regards to my type-r. Also the miata is SMALL, the trunk is a joke. Miata's are a lot more common than type-r's and don't get respect from people into cars, never had anyone ask me what was under the hood in my miata, but then again no one ever stole my super rare type m badges either. Also the owners of miatas who are into clubs and auto-x tend to be A LOT older than type-r owners, either a good or bad thing depending on how old you are yourself. If you want to read anything about miatas just head over to miata.net and you'll find everything you could ever want to know. The type-r is more fun to drive IMHO but the miata is more fun to park(no theft worries). It really depends on what you want in out of the car though, think of the miata as a toy and the type-r as a machine. Also as far as saftey goes you can easily find a spec rollbar to toss into a miata although the functional ones are all ugly as sin and odly enough in accidents due the the ulta small size of the miata it's more likely to bounce off an impact as opposed to crumpling making it supprisingly safe despite its parental stereotype as a "death trap" -rob

 

I own a 2000 ITR and a 1990 Miata.

Acceleration-> ITR
Overall Handling -> Miata

If I had to choose-> ITR

Both cars handle similarily, but the Miata is able to use less brake and can carry more speed in turns. Also, with RWD, the Miata can be pointed with the throttle, somewhat (which I am still learning). But, the ITR is just more powerful.

ITR -> advantages- power and handling
ITR -> disadvantages- little more torque, but no real disadvantage

Miata -> advantages - handling, lightweight, convertible (lots of fun in the summer; my female friends LOVE my little red Miata).
Miata-> disadvantages- needs more power

In most autocrosses, Miata drivers are faster than ITR's

 

I know this was in reference to theft, but that really sounds like an insult in any other situation!

"Wow, that looks like a great car... to park."

And to add something meaningful to the discussion:
Yes, Miatas are apparently really good for turbo-charging. The stock engine is very strong, and there are several turbo kits that you can practically bolt on without any other mods. (all this info from a friend with a Miata).

--
ntt

 

I read an SCC article (yeah i know, but still) about a guy who bolted on a miata turbo kit in like 3 hours. seems pretty quick for going FI on a NA car. could be cool.

 

I'd take the Miata. I'm a sucker for a well balanced RWD convertible.

 

Well all I can say FI Miata blew me away on the road course. Even though he was better driver but with just simple SC and around 280hp he just smoked me in straights I could only catch him in the turns. This was only time I wanted to have SC but still I doubt I could have caught him as his car is just soo much lighter then my R and slides around the corners like it was built for that.

 

hehe probably cuz it was built for that, from the ground up too -rob

 

Andrew: The miata is a more fun to drive car IMO. Also a lot easier to do FI on in my opinion.. overall, I'd take the R though, cause I'm sick of modifying chit so I could just leave the R stock.

 

Just FYI, there are no supercharger kits out currently for a Miata that give 280 hp The highest I've seen is Shiv Pathak's, who got his to about 200 whp, which is by far higher than most are able to get. Most with SCs and the upgrade pulley get about 175 or so.

Dave -- My R is already modded, and being a carnut, I just can't leave well enough alone, so the Miata will be SC'd at some point in the future. I'd like a turbo, but I want to keep the characteristics of the stock engine, only with more power, so I'm going SC. Plus, I'm opening up my own shop with a dyno, so I'll have all the time in the world to tune it

BTW, the Miata wins hands-down the "fun to drive" factor

 

Cosworth -- The R isn't running right now. Well, it IS, but I had to send the mid-pipe back to JUN because the welds came apart. Not great quality control on a $912 exhaust. <----- pissed

R-1303 - I don't need a car to get chicks My gf (soon to be fiancee) has kind of taken care of that, whether that's good or bad remains to be seen

 

I used to have a Miata. They are very different cars. But I'd take the R hands down, even though it's not a convertible, weighs 400 lbs more and isn't RWD.

That's why I want an S2000!


[Modified by SoCal ITR, 6:30 AM 2/12/2002]

 

earlier i would of said that the miata was more fun to drive except i had an older one with the plastic window and in the rain with the top up it is NOT fun to drive and despite how often you try to clean those old plastic windows there is only so much you can do.... btw if you want to keep the original aspects of the engine but still go fi look into the small ball bearing turbos, it only takes the time to get to 1,800 rpm for the full boost to kick in which isn't that bad you can pretend it's vtec -rob

 

Luckily, the newer Miatas have glass rear windows

 

Weren't you trying to sell your ITR for like $38,000? Someone told me you ended up blowing your engine and getting the miata has a replacement...no?

 

It was worth a shot. Idiots are born every minute, and most of them hang out on eBay

The engine did let go because the shop that "tuned", and I use that word VERY loosely, my car turned the timing up too high, unbeknownst to me and there was piston/valve contact. So, for now, I'm back to a fully stock engine. Still trying to sell it, but for a much broader audience at $20k

The Miata was SUPPOSED to be temporary. Too bad I like it more :D

 

You already know I had them both Silock, and my opinions of modding the Miata ....

New, they are (were) both the same price range .......

Miata handles great, has some pep, and is fun to drive. But the ONLY way to make it fast is by FI. My old car, now my Dad's, puts out 155 whp/156 wtorque using the Jackson SC ('94 R Edition), but STILL couldn't hang with my R.

Stock for stock, the Type R is faster, brakes better, has very comparable handling, and more creature comforts. YOU know that the stock stereo in the Miata can barely even be heard at 65 with the top down. And if you are tall (6'-1" here), it can get a little cramped ......