Looking to buy one of these maybe if my 530 sells (anyone want a big V8 barge?) and just wondering about true performance figures? I don’t trust official stats or Parkers too much.
What 0-60 times are people posting with a stock car?
Mike.
In all these years, I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone post their 0-60 time.
Not very surprising when you consider how few people have the means to measure it accurately. People do post dyno results (which tend to match the manufacturer’s figures fairly closely) and a few post quarter mile times (though I can’t remember any numbers).
MX-5s aren’t particularly fast cars - they’re not intended to be - but their handling is a joy. I’d recommend you try to get a drive in one and decide if it’s what you want that way. Plenty of modern, mainstream turbodiesels will out-accelerate a stock Mk.1 MX-5, but are otherwise uninspiring drives.
Oh aye I’m not expecting it to be mental fast, due to the size it’s going to feel fast anyway. I’d like a car to be on par with a friend’s 325. Which is 192bhp but in a much heavier car, but I’d have thought 130bhp in a 1000kg car should be able to keep up?
Don’t worry I’m not dragging off the traffic lights or anything, just curious.
Mine is consistently around 9.2 to 60 timed on my wrist watch.
But having said that I’ve recently been looking to replace her with something else prefereably a little more sprightly.
Took a Celica 140 for a drive. Boring and felt way slower.
Then took a Celica 190 for a drive. 0-60 quoted at around 7.something. Boring and felt slower than my 1.8 15 year old roadster.
Then took a 58 plate Cooper S for a drive (turbo charged). Mind blowing. Decided mini was the car to go for but a little older and cheaper. Took a 53 plate Cooper S for a drive (supercharged with 0-60 again around 7.something) and totally boring and again felt a lot slower than mine.
Result - My roadster is here to stay for the forseeable. Forget about the 60 times as from these test drives I think they’re absolute bobbins. Just get one and you’ll never look back.
Have a hunt through MX5Nutz website and also PlanetMX5.
Figures for allsorts of NA SC and Tubbied cars.
Like the '5 so much but want more speed, then FI is the way forward.
I always think that mid acceleration times are far more indicative of a cars true performance, say from 40-80mph (and more relevant on the road).
Also bear in mind that to actually replicate the 0-60 times often seen in magazines, you need to be fairly brutal with your pride and joy, something the mags don’t actually worry about. I tried to do just this with a BMW 540 (complete with 6 speed manual 'box) and destroyed the clutch within three runs - not to be recommended!
I’ve a feeling that your mates 325 will be quicker in a straight line but thats not the point of an MX5: a well driven MX5 will leave a 325 for dead on a twisty road.
Comparing power:weight ratios, a mk1 1.8 mx5 is slightly better than the more powerful 325, 130>120. However although this may prove better at the start, once rolling the 325 will quickly leave the mx5 behind due to the extra power. I’d imagine as this 325 is a 6 pot it would be more useable too, and I doubt it would be left for dead when cornering either really, they handle themselves quite well although perhaps not as well as an mx5 granted.
So get yourself an MX5 and book yourself on a driving experience course.
Then your friend will have trouble keeping up with you (except on the straights).
Claude
Claude, you’ve probably hit the nail on the head there: a day spent with a high performance driving instructor will pay huge dividends in being able to drive faster and more safely. On one of my first track days, I spent ages faffing about with tyre pressures etc and later found that going out with an instructor dropped my lap time by a huge amount. Another one of the advantages of these kind of courses is that you get the space to find out what your car will really do in extreme circumstances which undoubtedly gives you the edge out on the road.