Traded my 2018 S3 for a 2019 Miata RF Grand Touring this week.

[Elysian]

Traded my S3 in today. Nearly a straight trade, but my S3 had 45k miles and was a 2018, this is a 2019 with 7k miles. Absolutely love this car. I've been thinking of taking advantage of the sellers market for a bit now, and I absolutely love the S3 and will miss the extra 100hp, but this thing is absolutely wild. Love everything about the way it drives, the hard top, etc. It's also very much like my S3 inside, including having a control knob for Android Auto, and very much feel right at home in it. Helps I've lost some weight too, the car fits me like a glove.

The best part? My wife said do it!

Went on a drive with Tejas Miata Club this morning, hit up the notoriously twisty Lime Creek Rd, and got to feel the car out a lot more. Had a great drive.

I purchased a spare set of wheels today from another member of the local autocross group, will be wrapping them with Bridgestone Potenza RE71R's next Friday. First autocross event is Sunday, the 20th. Cannot wait.

[roguetoaster]

It's nice that the price on the RFs came down from the 40 something I think they were when first launched. It should be a solid car for a good long time, and when you do sell, it will be to an enthusiast (or a dealer).

[Elysian]

It's nice that the price on the RFs came down from the 40 something I think they were when first launched. It should be a solid car for a good long time, and when you do sell, it will be to an enthusiast (or a dealer).

Honestly, don't see myself ever selling this, the RF was a bit of a dream car for me when it launched and it's lived up to every expectation already. I may give it more power down the line, but I'm also going to enjoy it stock (besides maybe a sway bar so I still qualify for C Street autocross class) for quite some time.

[Elysian]

Washed and ceramic waxed the car today using Turtle Wax ceramic wax. What a beauty.

[roguetoaster]

The only thing wrong in the pictures is that the car does not have a home away from the elements, which it needs if it's a forever car.

[Elysian]

The only thing wrong in the pictures is that the car does not have a home away from the elements, which it needs if it's a forever car.

My E30 V8 build is taking up any home it could have.

[DEV0 E30]

Very nice!

Thinking about a daily and a new RF is a contender. It's not as practical (obviously) but I'm still split on what is next.

[Elysian]

Very nice!

Thinking about a daily and a new RF is a contender. It's not as practical (obviously) but I'm still split on what is next.

If you drive one you won't be able to walk away. If you do get one, try to make sure it's got a limited slip diff. My 2019 didn't have that option, so I ordered an OEM unit, as well as the OEM strut tower bar from the GT-S package.

[Elysian]

This car has some interesting cupholders. They're removeable, and there are different locations in the car that they can be plugged into. They're a little flimsy, so I've resolved to not have any cups without secure lids in the car. Here's a pic of the cupholders behind the arm rest:



And here's the one on the dash:



There's not much of a spot to place a phone in the dash, and the one spot that is there is too shallow for my OnePlus 8T, and also gets way too hot from transmission/exhaust heat, which overheats my phone, so I 3d printed a tray that plugs into the dashboard cupholder. Pic:



Printed on my Prusa i3 MK3S with a 0.6mm nozzle, I decided to push the machine on this print and went with 0.45mm layer heights, shaving the print time from nearly 13hrs to 10hrs. The only problem with those settings is the cracking you can see on the sides in the middle, but I like this tray enough I may go ahead and finish sand it, fill the cracks with superglue, and paint it. This piece is printed in ASA.

[DEV0 E30]

Good stuff.

Oh I know if I drive one I'd want one, I'm trying to be a little bit practical too if I spend the big monies (anything over $10k) for me.

I'm having many a crisis on possibilities.

[Elysian]

Installed my dual dash cam today, though won't mount the front windshield cam till tomorrow after I get the UV film installed on the front windshield.



Also mounted my track wheels. These are wrapped in Bridgestone RE71R's, 215/45R17.



Love how it looks with black wheels, they really work for the color.

Here's a quick video of some turns I took after putting the tires on. The grip on them is unreal, I wouldn't be surprised if I lift a tire before I lose traction.

https://youtu.be/KsKRqHmsHzU

[Northern]

Even with stock tires, these cars are hilariously well planted.

I wish they made a lighter/coupe version with another 2-3" of headroom.

[Elysian]

Winding down from the first autocross event, had no idea how the car would be going in, but learned a lot. Went faster every run but I think the 4th one. Only got 5 runs unfortunately, and completely spaced turning traction control off the entire day. Still had fun, but have a lot to learn about the car. Still feel like I did okay for only having driven the car the last week and a half. The RE71R's are absolutely brilliant.

Pic:



The course was really frustrating, and after the event I checked how many DNF's there were, turned out there were 60 runs that didn't finish. Just bad course design, IMO.

Here's my map of the course, tracked it using Google Fit:



Was 0.41mi. Here's my fastest run. I lost it on the last turn, but still had some good moments. Trying to get used to driving 10 and 2.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHQp...annel=AdamBath

I had two instructors ride with me on my 2nd and 3rd run, got some pointers that helped me run faster. I placed 11th in Novice class, out of 45 entrants.

Even with stock tires, these cars are hilariously well planted.

I wish they made a lighter/coupe version with another 2-3" of headroom.

Yeah, they aren't great if you're tall. I feel like I'm about max height at 5'-9"/175cm. There is a company that makes replacement mounts for the seats that lower the seat about 1"/25.4mm, but that would still be a tight fit for someone taller than 6'/183cm.

[Northern]

My friend who owns one of these is 6'1 or 6'2, I'll tell him to look for those seat mounts haha.
I'm 6'3 and when he first closed the roof it smacked me on the head, but after 10 minutes or so I sank into the seat enough that I cleared, but there's no way I could use a helmet with the roof up.

[Elysian]

My friend who owns one of these is 6'1 or 6'2, I'll tell him to look for those seat mounts haha.
I'm 6'3 and when he first closed the roof it smacked me on the head, but after 10 minutes or so I sank into the seat enough that I cleared, but there's no way I could use a helmet with the roof up.

These are the ones I saw:

https://pacomotorsports.com/product/nd-miata-seat-lowering-brackets/

The only downside is I believe they remove the sliders, so the seat has to be installed in the correct position and then it's stuck there. The seat back can still flip forward of course.