Spec Miata

[lateapex911]

I'm doing a little research, and...
Can anybody point me to a good source of info for spec Miata? Rules? Parts sources? Hot tricks? Best year and options? Hints? A web site maybe?

Thanks!

Also, what do you all think of the potential of a Miata as an ITA car???

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Jake Gulick
ITA 57 RX-7
Northeast Region
[email protected]

[C. Ludwig]

There's a SM website somewhere. Try looking on one of the Texas region websites for a link. I used to frequent the site when I was considering a SM but forgot the address.

Chris

------------------
Chris Ludwig
08 ITS RX7 CenDiv

[Quickshoe]

Jake,

Try:

www.specmiata.com
www.prospecmiata.com
www.mazdaspeedcup.com

Not sure about all the rules for SM, but I think most of the parts have to be sourced from Mazda Comp.

the 90-93 miata is in ITA(2205#), the 94-95 is in ITS(2200#).

The last regional at Laguna Seca (7/20-7/21) had 53 cars in the IT run group. The fastest lap in ITS was a BMW at 1.55.717, ITA 1:58.007 (new record) and SM was 1:58.751. At the Miata race w/CART the top 7 Miatas were faster than the ITS 1.55.717 time. Pole was a 1.49...that's cat back exhaust, tokico shocks tires other than Hoosiers. Looks like the the Miata would be a very competitive car. More probably aren't run in IT because SM exists. Why not build a SM and run it in Nationals, enter it in IT at regionals?

"The last regional at Laguna Seca (7/20-7/21) had 53 cars in the IT run group, SM was 1:58.751. "At the Miata race w/CART the top 7 Miatas were faster than the ITS 1.55.717 time. Pole was a 1.49..."

10 seconds faster, gimme a break, you dont smell something really rotten there?, I know of at least one of those 7 cars from another class and it wasnt legal there either.

until SCCA has a real post race teardown policy I wont bother with any of its spec classes. at least with Improved Touring I know why I got smoked.

[This message has been edited by 7'sRracing (edited August 04, 2002).]

[lateapex911]

Originally posted by 7'sRracing:
[B]
10 seconds faster, gimme a break, you dont smell something really rotten there?, I know of at least one of those 7 cars from another class and it wasnt legal there either.

at least with Improved Touring I know why I got smoked.

B]

Uh .....you do? Fill us in! Was it:

-Bad classing?
-A cam in that car up front?
-He was underweight?
-He ran illegal suspension parts?
-His valves were a tad oversized?
-His compression was statospheric?
(I always chuckle when a guy pulls out because of a blown head gasket, and won't let anyone that happens to have one help him put it back together! I've seen that twice!)
-He was legal, but was still 400 lbs lighter and on the same tires?

But, that said, your point is well taken....there should be no squaking about tighter policing....

On the other hand, did you look at the driver list? A lot of pros...and, are the rules the same between pro and spec?

Anyway, care to name names?



------------------
Jake Gulick
ITA 57 RX-7
Northeast Region
[email protected]

[Quickshoe]

Daryl,

So you think that at a race with that much MONEY and bragging rights at stake that someone is going to get away with some illegal parts that are worth 9 seconds a lap??? Do you have any guess what kind of parts you'd have to hang on your rx7 to make it 9 seconds a lap faster? A street port, slicks and -100lbs. might get you close(EP), but I doubt you'd sneak that by anyone.

I also know that you just recently finished your school, I bet that you get at least 5 seconds a lap faster than you are now, without changing anything on the car. Driver ability will take you a long way.

Your other brother,

Daryl


[This message has been edited by Quickshoe (edited August 04, 2002).]

ok good point D, I should give all the benefit of racing a hard race and congradulate all for thier fine drives. I wasnt there so im not sure what was checked and what wasnt and even with all the illegal goodies mentioned above I still would have been way down in that pack. my point on spec classes is dont make rules you cant or wont enforce, nascar had this down pat 30 years ago. they realized that it wasnt posible in the sat night divisions to check rods at every race so they allowed any rod in the late model division, but compression (gauge), carb (micrometer) and displacment (bubble tester) was easy so thats where they placed limitations and check the top three at every race, across the country, no exceptions. it only takes 10 minutes a car!
no rules(which is what unchecked rules are) or enforcable rules, which would you rather have?



[This message has been edited by 7'sRracing (edited August 05, 2002).]

[dickita15]

Jake
Narrc uses the rules on www.drivenperformance.com. I hope you resist the pull of the dark side, but if you don't I will give you a few hundred for your rx7
dick

[Quickshoe]

Originally posted by 7'sRracing:
no rules(which is what unchecked rules are) or enforcable rules, which would you rather have?

If I am racing against people with smaller budgets than I...no rules, of course! Since that's never been the case I guess I would like enforceable rules. The unenforced rules are not limited to the spec classes, if anything those competitors or more intimately familiar with the cars and what works and what doesn't to notice illegal things.

By the way, I could not find the info, so I didn't quote it earlier. But, I remeber seeing that (after qualifying?) 17 of the 70 cars were found to have modified exhaust downtubes. So at least they were checking something.




[This message has been edited by Quickshoe (edited August 05, 2002).]

lets put ourselves in techs shoes which by the way IS WHERE I WILL BE IN CAL CLUB SOON FOR THOSE LISTENING IN as I have decided to race SFR and work in tech for cal club because i like t-hill, laguna so much.
what should we make the standard post race inspection list for spec miatas to keep the devious in line?

Im going to recommend the following for the top 3 finishers for SM in CSCC.

1..Compression check on all 4 cylinders
2..timing setting check(this finds cams)
3..fuel sample
4..weight bias (illegal lead)
5..intake and exhaust port visual inspection

another list would be suggested for spot checks but im not going there here





[This message has been edited by 7'sRracing (edited August 05, 2002).]

[dickita15]

7's
how does checking timing find cams? what do you look for.
dic

[apr67]

Originally posted by 7'sRracing:

until SCCA has a real post race teardown policy I wont bother with any of its spec classes. at least with Improved Touring I know why I got smoked.

[This message has been edited by 7'sRracing (edited August 04, 2002).]

Why would IT be any better it this respect? Cheaters are cheaters, regardless of wether they cheat in IT or GT.

[94sm]

Originally posted by Quickshoe:
At the Miata race w/CART the top 7 Miatas were faster than the ITS 1.55.717 time. Pole was a 1.49

Correction: the ENTIRE FIELD, all 69 cars that finished, were faster than 1.55.717. Here're the race results:

http://specmiatawest.netfirms.com/MazdaSpe...ay/results2.jpg

And results from this past weekend:
http://specmiatawest.netfirms.com/events/r...ALS080402.shtml

I'm rather surprised at the ITS and ITA time at Seca being that high. Are they correct?

Son

ps - I was there to root on some friends. Car is just a used street car w/ spec suspension slapped on, like so many others. He's never been to Seca before and ran 1:53s. Are you sure the ITA/ITS times/records are correct???

[This message has been edited by 94sm (edited August 06, 2002).]

[Quickshoe]

Originally posted by 94sm:
I'm rather surprised at the ITS and ITA time at Seca being that high. Are they correct?

Here's my source:

www.sfrscca.org/Results/20020721/gr5.htm

I was also surprised by the times. I thought that faster than a 1:50 was very fast for a SM, 1:58 seems really slow for an ITA record. I have limited seat time there but turned a 1:57 or so in a stock Mr2 on Kumhos. Wasn't ever able to get my rx7 quiet enough without killing the HP.

Can someone familiar with the track confirm the track records?


[This message has been edited by Quickshoe (edited August 06, 2002).]

[This message has been edited by Quickshoe (edited August 06, 2002).]

[Silkworm]

Just pulled these from a random event last year, looks like the fastest ITS car was running 1:45s.

http://www.sfrscca.org/Results/20010715/gr5.htm

PaulC

[Quickshoe]

Same event you referenced Paul shows ITA cars at 1.48 with no notation of it being a lap record.

What gives with the website listing the new records at the last regional? Furthermore, why so slow, rain in JULY? Clockwise(joke)?

[p99ro]

So jake would you have to put the seat in the trunk?
Scott 99

[lateapex911]

Originally posted by dickita15:
Jake
Narrc uses the rules on www.drivenperformance.com. I hope you resist the pull of the dark side, but if you don't I will give you a few hundred for your rx7
dick

Well, Dick, I hope I can too! But our future looks bleak here! More cars getting classed that are way fast, no IT7 class availability...a guys got to have a back up plan! (and yes, I know I can get more time out of the car....but I wonder if i will end up a second or two short....)

Nice to know if I decide to toss it in that theres a cuople hun waiting for me! You the man!



------------------
Jake Gulick
ITA 57 RX-7
Northeast Region
[email protected]

get the rest of the ITA RX7 guys in your region to sign a petition for your board of governers to create IT7 to run in the IT group, this is how it was started in every other region. if they say no boycott the races then repetition. entry money talks. it wont work here in so cal because theres no rx7 ITA left except mine and one other.

[This message has been edited by 7'sRracing (edited August 07, 2002).]

[AS-RACER]

Thanks PaulC for rechecking those lap times. I was going to say there is no way that a spec miata would be legal and faster then a well prepared front running ITS car. At Second Creek in Colorado earlier this year my fastest lap time was a second faster then the fastest spec miata and 1.5 seconds faster then the next fastest miata. I drive an ITS RX7 that is a good car but there is still a lot more developing that can be done including a 4:88 rear end rather then the stock 4:10. For those that haven't been to Second Creek it is a handling track (lots of slow turns and a couple of short straights). So the fact that I have a lot more horsepower then the miatas, wasn't that much of a factor. We also had 20 spec miatas at that race.