charchri4

Man you want the most kick *** flares on the planet for an NB you have to check out this guy. ClubRoadster.net - View Single Post - post your FLARED MIATAS

Well at least for the front anyway he really needs bigger back ones. I believe they are DIY and I messed around for quite a while on ways to do this on mine but kept coming back to the rounder cobra look as the way I wanted to go. This was a very close 2nd though!

Oh there is also the basic cut and tuck. Check out this page and then a couple of pages later with modding front fenders for areo. I really like the look and this is an amazing build! http://clubroadster.net/vb_forum/89-...thread-17.html

V8droptop

That's pretty cool. I need to review your surgery photos, but I finally can see how you did the fender. WOW. THat's too much for me, though.

Here is one of my thoughts for flares, I found these a while ago. Quoted $295 a set recently.
Full fender NB Flares - Miata Turbo Forum - Turbo Kitten is watching you test compression.
Drive Faster with the MSR Team

**You snuck that in before me ;-) That is a really good look. Fender flares will be the finishing touch, but the Tuckin/Nopro are pretty nice. But the price is ridiculous. I much prefer the 300 vs 1100 price tag.

charchri4

It would be hard pressed to do it more difficult or stupid than I did. I was stuck between a rock and a hard place with it. I wanted them to be part of the car not bolted on but I can't bring myself to spend 900 bucks on 50 dollars worth of fiberglass. So my only viable option was DIY but if I had it to do over again I would have done things very differently. I would have still done it myself but I would have made a plug and a mold and covered the entire fender with a cap. It would have been half the effort and half the weight but also half the strength. Actually after a season of racing and the Alaska trip they will probably crack and fall off and I'll do that anyway!

I like those flares in the link a lot and for 300 bucks it is a very reasonable way to go. There is not many options for an NB yet. On the other hand you could make the same thing for half the cost and in any shape you want easy enough...

V8droptop

My economics teacher once told me, in bushiness, never do something yourself you can pay someone else to do... Which is only half way decent advice, but in the end, its a matter of how much my time is worth, and if I want to finish the project in a timely fashion. I could build a lot of parts for this build, but my time is really really limited. And I'm not set up to do things like this in my shop. If I were making my own fenders, it would be carbon or kevlar I think, and I'd vac bag it. But, so much time, setup, and mess, I'd rather slap some on. I think the $300 is really reasonable. I don't think I could pay 1100 for tuckin 99 flares, though. Not sure what nopro's run.
If you decide to make some awesome flares, however, I'll totally be a customer! I guess, now I'll start thinking about making a mold, but I really don't enjoy fiberglass work much.

charchri4

Ah that's the difference. See I just like tinkering with the car. I'm not much for couch potatoing so from Jan 1 to the end of March it's sim racing and messing with the car that pretty much fill my free time. So basically my time is free because I really enjoy being in the shop and trying new things and more often than not going beyond my capabilities.

WolfGT

OK Jim, it's been a bit and it appears you have had some track time with it in its current setup. How do you feel about the larger/taller tires and wheels? I definitely like the look. The larger tires make it beefier. I was worried that it would look too much like a wagon. But now I know for sure that this is the route I will be going with tires and wheels.

charchri4

I've got about 5000 miles on them in every possible situation you can think of. Rain so hard I could not see the end of the hood. Several runs over 125 mph. Loaded for bear and then some.



I can't say there is anything I don't like about the set up. I get a lot of "I love your wheels" with these old school 5 spoke wheels on the car. I kind of miss the look of it sitting an inch lower but I sure don't miss all the scraping I did with it. And the option is there to go lower with smaller tires for the track.

I put it in a car show on a whim last week and I was the only import there out of about 50 cars. It's amazing to me that at this show and both autocrosses I have run the car is a complete freak show. It draws a bigger crowd than Cobras or a numbers matching mint 70 boss 302 and pretty much nobody around here knows what it the car even is. It's a disaster of clutter and overspray under the hood and up close the body work looks like a kindergartener did it but people still love it. I really like that the big wheels if for no other reason they add one more outrageous element to the over the top insanity of the car.

So yeah it is a keeper and I would for sure do it again. Everything is better about them on the street and the loss in performance on the track doesn't matter to me. I just wish I could run wider tires!

charchri4

Put on the bling and went to a car show last week. LOL!


Left the hardware on for an autocross the next day.



Just dreaming!


The rest are real but the tires in the bottom one are about 6 inches wider courtesy of photoshop.

MLKNR

Got an email from Martin, I asked what he ran on his car.

So I guess a set of 245/50R16 should work just perfect for northern Canadian roads.

charchri4

Whoa hold on there that one is not happening with out a tube frame. 245/45/17s are 25.7 inches tall and no way in H E double tooth picks is he putting that tire under a Miata.

I bet what he really means is 245/40s at 24.7 tall in the front and 255/40s at 25 tall in the back. That would still be very tight and need some BFH work but it would work.

MLKNR

Remember this is with his body kit as well. Possibly with the front fender replacement that salves the issue. I'll check with him on this.

charchri4

Nope you can have the fender completely off and it would not make any difference. If you were to push the clutch pedal all the way to the floor then move up about 3 inches from the bottom of the pedal and put a mark on the floor, that mark is where the tire hits on the other side of the fire wall. You would have to beat that rail back a full inch to fit a 25.7" tire in there. It starts hitting inboard of the arrow about an inch and makes contact for about 4 inches continuing inward. And this shot is after lots of beating and only a 25" tall tire.


As mouthy and opinionated as I am I do try not to come off as a know it all on forums but in this case I have spent too many hours to count researching wheels, tires and fitment. Ride height makes a difference of course but there is nothing short of cutting the fire wall you can do to fit a 25.7" tire in the front of an NA.

Besides look at the photos of Martins cars the back tires look bigger than the front because they are.

MLKNR

Well I'll have to ask him how he did it.

charchri4

I can't wait for the response! Be sure and verify what size the front tires are and what his wheel width and offset is too.

charchri4

Update!

12 months and 10,000 miles after paint and... 2 cracks but both happened in the first 50 miles of driving. No changes after that even with hitting 25 below in a Minnesota winter.


I don't usually drive it in the winter but did get it out at Christmas for a road trip with my son and I managed to put her in the ditch but no real damage...


I've run a dozen autocrosses and lots of romps well over 100


And this is a shot taken over the weekend with the areo on for a track event.


Yeah I could have washed it but the point is the body work still looks like it did a year ago.


I have to say I am as surprised as anyone it has not fallen apart and still sure it will someday but so far I am really happy with it. As stated above it's hard to think of a more difficult way to do flares but I enjoyed the experience and know better for next time!