They are indeed an outstanding race car. I run an NC Version in MX5 Supercup competition here in the UK. How I describe the feel of the road is "when you drive over a coin, you can tell if its heads or tails".
Great description. The NC MX-5 have been largely overlooked here in the states, but a few recent series have begun adopting them as great forgotten bargains. Glad to see them finally getting the attention they deserve.
@Grassrootsmotorsports Here in the UK they are possibly the most popular and competitive series in Club Motorsport. 40+ grids, star studded driver lineups. All down to the quality of the racing, the cars performance and "bang for buck". I've diced with an LMP2 LeMans winner, The Stig and this season a British Touring Car champ has joined the grid.
Thanks for sharing this content with us. I find it always education. Coming from high- performance track cars seeing how great a lightweight agile Mx-5 can be just as much fun if not even more.
Having once made the upgrade from racing modified lightweight sport bikes to racing a Honda RS125 I totally get how much better a purpose-built machine can be. But for an old guy who will never enter the MX5 Cup series, I’d rather have a car that I can drive to the track and hopefully drive home in. A new CTR with $10K of upgrades for the track would probably increase the lap time gap by another second while still costing little more than half as much as the MX5 Cup car.
As much as I hate Miata’s, these Cup cars are a WHOLE other level. The lap times these things out down are fucking insane. Completely different car. I actually want one lol
Yeah it's kind of a momentum killer but the chassis is so forgiving it really lets you get away with these kind of dirt bike antics without ever getting scary.
If only Mazda make a real coupe version of the ND Miata, that way you can have an ND that has a stiff chassis and be streetable without a full roll cage getting in the way.
Yeah but you have REALLY soft hands, so it makes up for it :) One of the rhythm things that took some getting used to was the downshift blip. It kinda-sorta wanted like half a blip on the downshifts, but not as full a blip as I'd be giving it with a regular 6MT heel-toe downshift. Just a real gentle touch. That would have taken a few more laps to get used to with a right foot brake. Was that just a peculiarity of the demo car, or do you sneak a little heel-toe onto the throttle for downshifts?
Sure. So, in a car like this you really need to manage friction at the tire contact patches to maintain momentum. The tire can produce a lot of lateral bite, but they also give you a lot of slip angle to play with before they fully break traction. But then you're operating at those high slip angles, meaning the tire is sliding across the road surface but still maintaining directional stability, that friction you are producing in sideways force is also a drag on thrust. So, in other words, if you use 100% of the tire's grip for lateral force, you're fine. But the tire is also friendly enough to allow you to use 105% of its capability without becoming unstable. But that additional capacity you're using just becomes friction that restricts the car's ability to accelerate. With a more powerful car, sometimes you can drive around these tendencies. You have enough thrust to overcome the additional, unneeded friction you are producing by not being precise enough. But in a low horsepower car, too much steering input can just produce friction that works against the engine.
@@GrassrootsmotorsportsI’ve experienced this in this track but don’t have enough time to think here. In gran turismo is more noticeable to me when driving slow cars cause I’m not trying to save the car from a real crash, so I can experiment and take notes too
Are you talking about the telemetry? The line plots are literally the best way to present this kind of data, especially if you're going to be analyzing throttle and brake inputs. Doesn't matter if you're simracing or on the pitwall of an F1 team. It allows you to see instantly, based on the geometry of the lines alone what's going on. You're literally out doing track days, right, based on your profile picture; time to level up my guy.
Aww. We love the little squiggles. It's amazing how much insight you can get into the characteristics of a car just by looking at a few squiggly lines. Maybe we can throw some CGI orcs or spaceships in there, though. Jazz it up a bit.
@@opmike343there is better more clear ways to show data than this man, hard to take the overweight guy serious as it is, he could be a lot faster if he just skipped dinner..
@@gigi9467 - the "dumb lil" lines provide you with more comprehensive data regarding engine RPM, brake pressure, and delta times. I wouldn't suggest dismissing them.
One of my favorite projects in my career! MX5 Cup is the closest and most exciting racing most people has ever seen.
They are indeed an outstanding race car. I run an NC Version in MX5 Supercup competition here in the UK. How I describe the feel of the road is "when you drive over a coin, you can tell if its heads or tails".
Great description. The NC MX-5 have been largely overlooked here in the states, but a few recent series have begun adopting them as great forgotten bargains. Glad to see them finally getting the attention they deserve.
@Grassrootsmotorsports Here in the UK they are possibly the most popular and competitive series in Club Motorsport. 40+ grids, star studded driver lineups. All down to the quality of the racing, the cars performance and "bang for buck".
I've diced with an LMP2 LeMans winner, The Stig and this season a British Touring Car champ has joined the grid.
We watch all sorts of racing and the MX5 Cup series is absolutely the best! Like John Hindhaugh says, it’s not racing you watch sitting down.
Can you explain more about the setup and mods to the car? You seem to assume your viewers already know everything about the car
Thanks for sharing this content with us.
I find it always education.
Coming from high- performance track cars seeing how great a lightweight agile Mx-5 can be just as much fun if not even more.
Having once made the upgrade from racing modified lightweight sport bikes to racing a Honda RS125 I totally get how much better a purpose-built machine can be. But for an old guy who will never enter the MX5 Cup series, I’d rather have a car that I can drive to the track and hopefully drive home in. A new CTR with $10K of upgrades for the track would probably increase the lap time gap by another second while still costing little more than half as much as the MX5 Cup car.
to answer the question......"YES, they have..."..cheers
My car, my track. Probably this will be my favorite video
As much as I hate Miata’s, these Cup cars are a WHOLE other level. The lap times these things out down are fucking insane. Completely different car. I actually want one lol
Hi. What lateral acceleration values were you able to get?
If I didn’t need the clutch I would rock that left foot breaking definitely
2:25 damn! That’s what I’m talking about. Pedal turn instead of wheel turn
Yeah it's kind of a momentum killer but the chassis is so forgiving it really lets you get away with these kind of dirt bike antics without ever getting scary.
You have my full attention..
How do I join MX5 Cup? Can you join as non US citizen ?
If only Mazda make a real coupe version of the ND Miata, that way you can have an ND that has a stiff chassis and be streetable without a full roll cage getting in the way.
Geez I dunno. Let me run one for a race and I'll tell ya.😊
Cool car. Where can I buy one and what does it cost?
flisperformance.com is the approved homologation builder for MX-5 Cup cars. Track-ready cars start right around $100,000.
@@Grassrootsmotorsports😂😂
I still right foot brake :)
Yeah but you have REALLY soft hands, so it makes up for it :)
One of the rhythm things that took some getting used to was the downshift blip. It kinda-sorta wanted like half a blip on the downshifts, but not as full a blip as I'd be giving it with a regular 6MT heel-toe downshift. Just a real gentle touch. That would have taken a few more laps to get used to with a right foot brake. Was that just a peculiarity of the demo car, or do you sneak a little heel-toe onto the throttle for downshifts?
Can you elaborate on “ grip can overwhelm the horsepower”? Don’t follow.
Sure. So, in a car like this you really need to manage friction at the tire contact patches to maintain momentum. The tire can produce a lot of lateral bite, but they also give you a lot of slip angle to play with before they fully break traction. But then you're operating at those high slip angles, meaning the tire is sliding across the road surface but still maintaining directional stability, that friction you are producing in sideways force is also a drag on thrust. So, in other words, if you use 100% of the tire's grip for lateral force, you're fine. But the tire is also friendly enough to allow you to use 105% of its capability without becoming unstable. But that additional capacity you're using just becomes friction that restricts the car's ability to accelerate.
With a more powerful car, sometimes you can drive around these tendencies. You have enough thrust to overcome the additional, unneeded friction you are producing by not being precise enough. But in a low horsepower car, too much steering input can just produce friction that works against the engine.
Think of it like kart racing. It’s a momentum game. Ace your entry speed, nail the ideal line and shoot out of the corners.
@@GrassrootsmotorsportsI’ve experienced this in this track but don’t have enough time to think here. In gran turismo is more noticeable to me when driving slow cars cause I’m not trying to save the car from a real crash, so I can experiment and take notes too
@@JJPelszynskiI wish I was better at karting. When there are no experts at the karting track I’m always first
Geez man if ur gonna geek out on data please make it a better set up these dumb lil lines are ridiculous for 2024!
Are you talking about the telemetry? The line plots are literally the best way to present this kind of data, especially if you're going to be analyzing throttle and brake inputs. Doesn't matter if you're simracing or on the pitwall of an F1 team. It allows you to see instantly, based on the geometry of the lines alone what's going on. You're literally out doing track days, right, based on your profile picture; time to level up my guy.
Aww. We love the little squiggles. It's amazing how much insight you can get into the characteristics of a car just by looking at a few squiggly lines. Maybe we can throw some CGI orcs or spaceships in there, though. Jazz it up a bit.
@@Grassrootsmotorsports wouldnt hurt man! Maybe the channel will grow lol
@@opmike343there is better more clear ways to show data than this man, hard to take the overweight guy serious as it is, he could be a lot faster if he just skipped dinner..
@@gigi9467 - the "dumb lil" lines provide you with more comprehensive data regarding engine RPM, brake pressure, and delta times. I wouldn't suggest dismissing them.