Drove a new MX5 today and...

Chris D'Agnolo wrote:
> Christopher,
>
> You're right about the NA seats, they are the best ever fitted to a Miata
> IMHO, of course that is because they were purpose built (sporting) for folks
> about our size. NB's in my opinion, all have lesser (more politically
> correct to fit 'all') seats and again, IMHO, the NC seats are a step in the
> right direction (more sporting). They are firmer, I'd say more heavily
> bolstered than most NB seats and they will laterally hold us narrower dudes
> better. To me, they did seem to lack a bit in lumbar support but I have yet
> to meet a miata seat that I felt had sufficient lumbar. This may be lacking
> intentionally, getting the lumbar height, thickness, shape and firmness
> right may just be asking too much when you have everything from 5'4" women
> to 6' 4" men. Destined to folded towels and the like I guess.
>
> Chris
> 99BBB w/mediocre seats

I hear a lot about people who are well over 6 feet tall being
comfortable in a miata. I guess a lot has to do with girth and torso
versus leg length, but a friend of mine who is 6'5" tall with long legs
was basically unable to drive my 1996 model. His head still barely
cleared the roof, and if he had shorter legs/longer torso at 6'5", then
he would have had to scrunch down to avoid riding with his head pressed
into the top when it was up. He gave an immediate "no way" to ever
owning one.
At nearly 300 pounds, I am sure that the car agreed with him. That would
be a left-side leaner after a few years.

At 5'9" and skinny as a rail, the NA miata feels like it was molded for
me. I liked both the leather seats in the 1996 "M" and the 1991 cloth
seats that are still very comfortable with 141,000 miles of use in my
current car.
I never found sliding around be a problem with the leather seats, though
I think I slightly prefer the cloth ones.

I will have to stop by the dealership and at least sit in one of the new
ones to see how bad they really are. I have sat in cloth and leather
seats of the second generation miata and was happy with them, but never
went on extended trips in one.

Pat

pws > wrote in
:

> I hear a lot about people who are well over 6 feet tall being
> comfortable in a miata. I guess a lot has to do with girth and
> torso versus leg length, but a friend of mine who is 6'5" tall
> with long legs was basically unable to drive my 1996 model. His
> head still barely cleared the roof, and if he had shorter
> legs/longer torso at 6'5", then he would have had to scrunch down
> to avoid riding with his head pressed into the top when it was up.
> He gave an immediate "no way" to ever owning one.
> At nearly 300 pounds, I am sure that the car agreed with him. That
> would be a left-side leaner after a few years.

I'm 6'4" with long legs and a bit overweight, not 300# but not too far
from it.... the 92 fits me just fine, the 2006 doesn't. It's hard to
determine the exact differences. I've never had occasion to sit in any
except my 1992, a very ratty 1991, and the 2006s I checked out.

XS11E wrote:

> I'm 6'4" with long legs and a bit overweight, not 300# but not too far
> from it.... the 92 fits me just fine, the 2006 doesn't. It's hard to
> determine the exact differences. I've never had occasion to sit in any
> except my 1992, a very ratty 1991, and the 2006s I checked out.

I'm glad you don't hold grudges because it sounds like you can pick me
up and wipe the floor with me....:-)

That is excellent that you fit in the 1992. This same large friend did
drive a Prelude for a while, so I guess getting used to it is part of it
as well.
Also, my car miata that he drove had leather seats, which sit the driver
a bit higher than the same seats in cloth unless you modify them.

Thanks for the radio information, it is very helpful.

As far as the "M" edition, it did come with headrest speakers, but so
did most of the NA edition miatas. Mazda did not put them in the second
generation miata seats.
The radio from my "M" edition does have both cassette and cd player. It
also has a cool little led image of a miata that raises and drops the
top when you push a button. I think that it adds a bit of volume to the
headrest speakers when the top is shown as down on the screen.

Does the new miata have side airbags? If so, are they mounted in the
convertible roof or the door?

Thanks again for the radio information, definitely very helpful.

Pat

pws > wrote in
:

> XS11E wrote:
>
>> I'm 6'4" with long legs and a bit overweight, not 300# but not
>> too far from it.... the 92 fits me just fine, the 2006 doesn't.
>> It's hard to determine the exact differences. I've never had
>> occasion to sit in any except my 1992, a very ratty 1991, and the
>> 2006s I checked out.
>
> I'm glad you don't hold grudges because it sounds like you can
> pick me up and wipe the floor with me....:-)

Why would I hold a grudge? I'm sorry you got a bit miffed but the
problem is you and others not realizing that when I started a new
paragraph that indicated (or should have indicated) a new subject. The
opening sentence of the new paragraph was addressed to the OP as was
the entire paragraph because I can't visualize someone swapping engines
in a car w/o Googling, reading miata.net, etc., all of which it
appeared from his/her/it's post was NOT done.

As for wiping the floor with anyone, I don't move very much or very
fast. The Miata comes equipped with handicap plates, remember I got it
because I couldn't ride a motorcycle anymore due to advancing
arthritis.

> That is excellent that you fit in the 1992. This same large friend
> did drive a Prelude for a while, so I guess getting used to it is
> part of it as well.

It fit me well from the beginning as did the ratty 1991 I drove. I had
to become accustomed to not being able to move around as much as I can
in my other car which is a Ford on growth hormones.

> Also, my car miata that he drove had leather seats, which sit the
> driver a bit higher than the same seats in cloth unless you modify
> them.

I've never sat in one with the leather seats so I can't say, the 2006 I
drove was the Touring model which is just about identical equipment to
my 1992, AC, PS, PB, Antilock, Cruise Control, etc but it had cloth
seats.

> Thanks for the radio information, it is very helpful.
>
> As far as the "M" edition, it did come with headrest speakers, but
> so did most of the NA edition miatas. Mazda did not put them in
> the second generation miata seats.
> The radio from my "M" edition does have both cassette and cd
> player. It also has a cool little led image of a miata that raises
> and drops the top when you push a button. I think that it adds a
> bit of volume to the headrest speakers when the top is shown as
> down on the screen.
>
> Does the new miata have side airbags? If so, are they mounted in
> the convertible roof or the door?

Yes. No. They are mounted in the sides of the seats, just below the
headrests which I suspect might be one reason for no headrest speakers.
The dealer said it was a safety thing, the headrest speakers, if
cranked waaaaay up (like, for example, mine always are) can interfer
with hearing an emergency vehicle. I don't believe that but that's
what he said.

> Thanks again for the radio information, definitely very helpful.

Yer welcome, hey, I saw the thing on Ebay!

I'd consider buying it if I could figure out how to live w/o my little
cubby hole under the radio.....

XS11E wrote:

> Why would I hold a grudge? I'm sorry you got a bit miffed but the
> problem is you and others not realizing that when I started a new
> paragraph that indicated (or should have indicated) a new subject. The
> opening sentence of the new paragraph was addressed to the OP as was
> the entire paragraph because I can't visualize someone swapping engines
> in a car w/o Googling, reading miata.net, etc., all of which it
> appeared from his/her/it's post was NOT done.

Not really miffed, text can be a hard way to communicate compared to
talking about things in person. Believe me, I have no hard feelings
towards anyone on this group except for Leon. ;-) (he never takes my bait)

> As for wiping the floor with anyone, I don't move very much or very
> fast. The Miata comes equipped with handicap plates, remember I got it
> because I couldn't ride a motorcycle anymore due to advancing
> arthritis.

Again, purely tongue in cheek, much like my rcent fisticuffs challenge
to Bruce when we disagreed on something that I have already fogotten
about. :-)


> Yer welcome, hey, I saw the thing on Ebay!

Yes, my cd player went out yesterday and the auction for the "M" edition
stereo has 2 days left to go. It is only at $10.50 but has a lot of
people watching it. I hate to end an auction but this one is tempting to
get my tunes going again.

> I'd consider buying it if I could figure out how to live w/o my little
> cubby hole under the radio.....

Heh, check out my other items if you want. I have a few miata items
listed, should have the OEM 15" wheels up in a couple of days. Also, if
you need 50+ pounds of Lego parts, I am your man......;-)

Here is a link to my listings if anyone wishes to take a look. Bid often
and bid high! :-)

http://tinyurl.com/b6c9h

Take care and thanks again,

Pat

On Fri, 10 Feb 2006 05:58:23 GMT, pws > wrote:

>Here is a link to my listings if anyone wishes to take a look. Bid often
>and bid high! :-)
>
>http://tinyurl.com/b6c9h
>
>Take care and thanks again,
>
>Pat

Uh.., I'd like to see what you have, but that link doesn't take me
there. It only takes me to items *I'm* selling. None in this case.
Could you try again?

Tom

pws wrote:

>
>
> Heh, check out my other items if you want. I have a few miata items
> listed, should have the OEM 15" wheels up in a couple of days. Also, if
> you need 50+ pounds of Lego parts, I am your man......;-)
>
> Here is a link to my listings if anyone wishes to take a look. Bid often
> and bid high! :-)
>
> http://tinyurl.com/b6c9h
>
> Take care and thanks again,
>
> Pat

Err..., try this one instead.

http://tinyurl.com/ca9uq

Pat

OH MY GAWD! That's so funny I don't know which joke to make...........

Pat, I thought you were quite the tough guy (even at 5'9", you ain't afraid
of throwing vowels and consonants at anybody) but when I saw the Good House
Keeping mags and the cross stitching mags well..............mixed right in
there with the cam angle sensors and the alternators and such. I just
started chuckling. I think I can make sense of it all but it was a bit of a
shock.

By the way 'Bubba-Rock' do you still have that aunt Jamima rabbit / horse /
fish pancake mold ?

Forgive me,
Chris
99BBB

"pws" > wrote in message
...
> pws wrote:
>
>>
>>
>> Heh, check out my other items if you want. I have a few miata items
>> listed, should have the OEM 15" wheels up in a couple of days. Also, if
>> you need 50+ pounds of Lego parts, I am your man......;-)
>>
>> Here is a link to my listings if anyone wishes to take a look. Bid often
>> and bid high! :-)
>>
>> http://tinyurl.com/b6c9h
>>
>> Take care and thanks again,
>>
>> Pat
>
> Err..., try this one instead.
>
> http://tinyurl.com/ca9uq
>
> Pat

"Why would I hold a grudge? I'm sorry you got a bit miffed but the
problem is you and others not realizing that when I started a new
paragraph that indicated (or should have indicated) a new subject. The
opening sentence of the new paragraph was addressed to the OP as was
the entire paragraph because I can't visualize someone swapping engines
in a car w/o Googling, reading miata.net, etc., all of which it
appeared from his/her/it's post was NOT done."

He just can't give it up can he!
Let it go dude, let it go..........

Chris
99BBB

"XS11E" > wrote in message
...
> pws > wrote in
> :
>
>> XS11E wrote:
>>
>>> I'm 6'4" with long legs and a bit overweight, not 300# but not
>>> too far from it.... the 92 fits me just fine, the 2006 doesn't.
>>> It's hard to determine the exact differences. I've never had
>>> occasion to sit in any except my 1992, a very ratty 1991, and the
>>> 2006s I checked out.
>>
>> I'm glad you don't hold grudges because it sounds like you can
>> pick me up and wipe the floor with me....:-)
>
> Why would I hold a grudge? I'm sorry you got a bit miffed but the
> problem is you and others not realizing that when I started a new
> paragraph that indicated (or should have indicated) a new subject. The
> opening sentence of the new paragraph was addressed to the OP as was
> the entire paragraph because I can't visualize someone swapping engines
> in a car w/o Googling, reading miata.net, etc., all of which it
> appeared from his/her/it's post was NOT done.
>
> As for wiping the floor with anyone, I don't move very much or very
> fast. The Miata comes equipped with handicap plates, remember I got it
> because I couldn't ride a motorcycle anymore due to advancing
> arthritis.
>
>> That is excellent that you fit in the 1992. This same large friend
>> did drive a Prelude for a while, so I guess getting used to it is
>> part of it as well.
>
> It fit me well from the beginning as did the ratty 1991 I drove. I had
> to become accustomed to not being able to move around as much as I can
> in my other car which is a Ford on growth hormones.
>
>> Also, my car miata that he drove had leather seats, which sit the
>> driver a bit higher than the same seats in cloth unless you modify
>> them.
>
> I've never sat in one with the leather seats so I can't say, the 2006 I
> drove was the Touring model which is just about identical equipment to
> my 1992, AC, PS, PB, Antilock, Cruise Control, etc but it had cloth
> seats.
>
>> Thanks for the radio information, it is very helpful.
>>
>> As far as the "M" edition, it did come with headrest speakers, but
>> so did most of the NA edition miatas. Mazda did not put them in
>> the second generation miata seats.
>> The radio from my "M" edition does have both cassette and cd
>> player. It also has a cool little led image of a miata that raises
>> and drops the top when you push a button. I think that it adds a
>> bit of volume to the headrest speakers when the top is shown as
>> down on the screen.
>>
>> Does the new miata have side airbags? If so, are they mounted in
>> the convertible roof or the door?
>
> Yes. No. They are mounted in the sides of the seats, just below the
> headrests which I suspect might be one reason for no headrest speakers.
> The dealer said it was a safety thing, the headrest speakers, if
> cranked waaaaay up (like, for example, mine always are) can interfer
> with hearing an emergency vehicle. I don't believe that but that's
> what he said.
>
>> Thanks again for the radio information, definitely very helpful.
>
> Yer welcome, hey, I saw the thing on Ebay!
>
> I'd consider buying it if I could figure out how to live w/o my little
> cubby hole under the radio.....

Chris D'Agnolo wrote:
> OH MY GAWD! That's so funny I don't know which joke to make...........
>
> Pat, I thought you were quite the tough guy (even at 5'9", you ain't afraid
> of throwing vowels and consonants at anybody) but when I saw the Good House
> Keeping mags and the cross stitching mags well..............mixed right in
> there with the cam angle sensors and the alternators and such. I just
> started chuckling. I think I can make sense of it all but it was a bit of a
> shock.
>
> By the way 'Bubba-Rock' do you still have that aunt Jamima rabbit / horse /
> fish pancake mold ?
>
> Forgive me,
> Chris
> 99BBB

Oh man, that is harsh! No way will I forgive you. Yes, I do in fact
still have the Aunt Jemima pancake mold, you had better bid soon if you
want it. I also still have the fuzzy yarn.

As long as I have been outed, here is one of my next items.

http://image.inkfrog.com/pix/pat/dressform.jpg

I hate to give it up, but I have too much cross-stitch to do to have any
more time for making dresses. ;-)

You don't live that far away, I think a coating of red paint on your
black miata is appropriate payback.......

Pat