Found out that the Sport Tech models are fitted with Blistein dampers. Would these be making the difference that was mentioned? My knowledge isnt great on dampers of any sort...

 

The damper makes a huge impact on how a car "feel".

A Bilstein damper will certainly change how a car feel, but it will also depends on the suspension that is on your car currently

Jerrick

 

Thanks, on mine I have the standard black dampers that came with the car. I was quick to change to Eibach springs as the standard ones were awful!
So current set up is standard shocks with Eibach 30mm sports springs with fast road geometry set up. Overall feels more sporty but bumpier and rolls more.

Id imagine the newer model had similar set up but with Blistein Mazda shocks, Im wondering if its those that are making the difference.

 

I also changed the springs on my 2007 PRHT for lowered ones. To be honest it was bloody awful, felt very pogo like and harsh. Something to do with shortening the length of the damper and it's effective travel. (Somebody with more knowlecge than me please correct me)

I cured my pogo car by fitting proper coilover suspension units - job done. ;0)

 

I was say mines tolerable - i think the trade off with comfort for a car that actually handled like a sports car was worth it. Its is quite smooth on the motorwar however. I did like how the NC3 didnt seem bothered by road imperfections - at the same time though it did feel a bit more disconnected.

Im guessing the perfect set up would be lowered springs, blistein dampers and a full geo. Unfortunately never having driving NA or NB MX5s I cant say how they drive but im guessing its more along the lines of my car...Quite grippy and responsive, albeit with a bit of body roll still?

 

I would agree with the above, I wonder whether uprating the ARBs ie RX8 might help.

 

ARB does reduce body roll while keeping suspension compliant.

But on there are other draw back also...

The suspension system as a whole on a car is a list of compromise.

You gain better focus on something, and lose focus on other things.

This is where adjustable damper comes in handy because it allows the driver to tune the suspension to their preference.

And this preference will be different from driver to driver, from road to road…

Either way, if you feel the suspension isn't as planted as the Bilstein setup, I would say there is a high possibility that the damper made the difference in how the car feel, follow by tyres.

Jerrick

 

That may help too i think. I think the overall more cost effective way would be to upgrade to Blisteins at some point. Im quite happy now I have my car behaving like something that resembles a sports car over the crashy mess it was before. The NC chassis seems that have great potential and think it is worth investing in.

Would you also say BF Goodrich tyres are suitable for this car - I chose them for the reviews they got but was recommended recently other makes like Toyo's ect.

Hope I dont go near any Lotus Elises at any point or ill end up wanting to do even more to the car!

 

Where abouts are you based mate? More than welcome to have a go in mine and see what you think...

Bilstein shocks,
Eibach springs,
I.lmotorsport ARB's,
Fast road geo set up,
OEM Bridgestones.....

I like it alot tbh.

 

Im based in the south east, your set up sounds great.

I think maybe next tyre change I may swap for the Bridgetsones or Toyos as most people have them and seem to get good results. Seriously thinking about upgrading the shocks at some point - damn was hoping for a new exhaust next!

This car is definately a learning curve - happy with my set up for a while but id imagine the shocks will start to let go at some point as the car has done around 72k miles.

For damping Bilsteins seem to be the way to go but im reading good things about Meister Rs - The car is used only for the road - nothing track related.....yet!
The NC3 i drove seemed to be damped nicely on Bilsteins so possibly just stick with them ? Would the car also need another Geo if I installed new shocks? Id most likely go for the Bilstein Sports that are designed to used with lowering springs.

 

Yes mate you would need to do the geo after, the meisters are good too, to be honest changing to 4 billys will cost almost the same as a new set of meisters so i would proburably go for them? Or the bbr koni shock and spring set up?

 

It is also difficult to comment how a suspension feel.

If you are near any other NC owners with MeisterR coilovers, might be worth to see if you can meet up and get a ride / drive.

The good thing for MeisterR coilovers aside from having complete control over the ride height, you also can adjust the damping stiffness.

That mean you can find a setting that YOU like, and you can also change it easily with a twist of a knob.

Jerrick

 

Dont waste your time with the billies, get some meisters

 

Sounds like Meisters are the way to go. Im also concious of how they will affect insurance - would guess the billies would have little or no increase on premiums.
Would it also be best to have the cars geo reset straight after the new dampers have been fitted or will they need to bed in first of all?

 

Sounds like Meisters are the way to go. Im also concious of how they will affect insurance - would guess the billies would have little or no increase on premiums.

It depends on your insurer. My original Mk3 insurance (I forget which company) wanted to charge a lot more for Bilsteins, even though they are OEM fit on some cars.

 

Have been looking into the options.

I feel i wont need the option of adjustable dampers as will literally be for road use and nothing more.

I liked how the NC3 i drove was damped and that was on OEM Bilsteins......however......I have heard that the OEM Billies are not the best to use with lowering springs. I have the 30mm sport kit. Some have complained about it still feeling under damped. I hope to keep the eibach springs so want try and go down the Bilstein route while still maintaining a less jumpy ride.

I also though the NC Sport Venture had the lowered springs too but not sure these are made by Eibach or Mazda?

I have heard that the Bilstein B6 Sport kit are similar to the OEM ones but are better suited to the lowering springs, but will this be a good match and will they likely carry the same ( or similar) amount of smoothness compared to the NC3's ones. Would they still feel under damped and harsh?

 

The sport venture is totally standard suspension wise mate just the billys on standard springs,

The billys cope better with the lowering springs but are not perfect, what i did find strange is that by changing the ARB's it seemes to make a massive impact on how the shock/spring combo seem to feel, almost as if it improved the damper, obviously i know it hasnt but it does seem better

 

Sounds like Meisters are the way to go. Im also concious of how they will affect insurance - would guess the billies would have little or no increase on premiums.
Would it also be best to have the cars geo reset straight after the new dampers have been fitted or will they need to bed in first of all?

It would depend on your insurer.

I use Admiral, and they just ask if the suspension is lowered by over 50mm or under 50mm.

So as far as they are concern, using eibach pro-kit or having a set of Moton 3-way race suspension is the same thing.

Also, adjustable damper isn't really for track use.

What it is used for really is to help dial in the driver preference, because everyone is different.

Most owners (myself included) will set the damper once… and once you get to a setting that you like you won't be touching the damping adjuster for a while.

With non-adjustable, you put it on the car and you will make do with what you got out of the box.

With adjustable, at least you can change the stiffness setting to something you prefer; and one person soft may be another person hard, it is all a personal preference.

Jerrick

 

Personally I'd go to a decent alignment centre and discuss with them. An alignment is likely to be £50-100 and can make the world of difference to the car, as can simply adjusting tyre pressures. I'd want you to be sure that you've tweaked what you've already got (at minimal cost) before suggesting that you need to spend £600 plus fitting and alignment costs (realistically another £200 minimum unless you're comfortable fitting yourself or able to get a Nutzer to help you for beer pennies).

No offence to Jerrick, but he's here to sell suspension. (He'll loudly tell me in a moment that what he wants is for people to make the right decision for them that leaves them with a car they're happy with of course, and that's totally okay - but ultimately that's because that's good customer service and that helps him sell more suspension :yes: ). Other Nutzers give excellent feedback on the Meisters and that's entirely okay too; but ultimately unless you've got £6-800 to sling on suspension without thinking about it, I'd go make some tweaks and see if you can't get the improvements you're after without the big expense up front... because even after you've bought the suspension you're still going to need to tweak your alignment to find what works best for you.

(On a side note though, IIRC the hard top assembly doesn't add all that much weight.)

 

^^ so he spends £300+ fitting springs & align, what if he finds like me & others it still bounces all over a bumpy road like a dingy on rough sea???

 

Mmm? Checking alignment would be a good start, and if he wants to try uprated antiroll bars then £50 on eBay will likely net a set even if they can't be found at a local breaker for less.

 

Try fitting the front rx8 231 anti roll bar on a mk3 without proper ramp facilities, not an easy job.
Get it all in bits & find the hangers don't match up, priceless!
If the Droplink bolts are seized at the front another nightmare, one slip & it's grinder or blowy time.
Some of us have been there & bought the t shirt :lol:

 

The alignment was recently adjusted by WIM in Oxfordshire. The car drives and handles fine but all I wish to do is replicate the smoothness and planted feel the newer model had over mine, seeing that the main difference between mine and the newer car was the Blilstein dampers i just figured that was the main reason.

However one thing I did consider though was maybe I had just forgotton how my car drove before it was lowered and that the extra bumpiness over the roads is just something that comes with a lower ride height, however I dont think it would hurt to upgrade the dampers as it is 72k mile car and would imagine the lowering springs would be better suited for a sport damper setup.

While i appreciate the advantages of the Meisters, I can source a set of B6 Bilstein Sport dampers much cheaper so will likely go down that route - Does anyone have any expercience of these fitted with the Eibach 30mm pro kit?

 

First, like I said I want owners to make an informed decision.

To go with MeisterR or not isn't a huge issue in the grand scheme of thing.

I rather have some customer go else where, than to buy MeisterR and say this isn't doing what I need it to do.

I will always try to help, but it is actually a lot LESS work for me if the customer bought what is best for them to begin with.

On to the Bilstein, if that is what you feel it is best that is not a problem at all; after all, cost does play a factor.

As I have said, Bilstein aren't adjustable so it is a case of you get what is out of the box… and if it do what you need then perfect.

Given this, I would suggest getting a ride with other Nutz member if possible… really the only way to tell is to have a feel yourself.

I can also say the OEM Bilstein and the Bilstein B6 will have a different valving… OEM Bilstein from what I know always have certain adjustments made on the manufacturer's request.

To be honest it might even be worth investigating how much a set of Bilstein from Mazda cost?

sometime they can be surprisingly reasonable… most time they are outrageous though.

Hope that help, best of luck.

Jerrick

 

Adam first of all mate grab yourself some cheap rx8 arb's off of ebay, (make sure you get the arb bush bracketts too) and some decent poly bushes for them, and your then looking at about £120 providing the arb links dont snap or have any issues comming off, they are easy to fit the rear will take less than 10 mins with out jacking the car up, u will need to take the undertray and front wheels off to do the front though, and while you were there id make sure that your suspension bushes are not twisted, so many people ive seen lower the NC and bolt all the suspension up tight while its all loose in the air, the issue with that is once the car is on the groud and the wishbones sit at their loaded heigh the bush is twisted limiting movement and changing how the car behaves....