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Coupes & Convertibles Pontiac Solstice Pontiac Solstice vs 2006 Mazda MX-5 Miata
376 messages, Last post on Jan 17, 2008 at 3:20 PM
You are in the Pontiac Solstice Forum. Your Host is claires
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Replying to: frank4cars (Sep 25, 2005 11:17 am) Glad you noticed it. So did Edmund. So now I can toss it away & forget about American cars for rest of my life! I've had it! The first American car my family bought was a Chevette w/ stinky interior vinyl. Now my American-manufactured German-engineered '05 Focus ST w/ American-updated new dashboard that blows out stinky toxic plasticky air so badly I can't even drive it anymore due to nausia & headache! Too bad, it's the best driver's car I've ever had. I'm looking forward to get a RWD car w/ LSD so I can do power oversteer at low speeds. Looks like the Miata is the way to go. As far as the Miata not riding as comfortably as the Solstice... I test drove the base RX-8 auto w/ 16"s, & the ride is even comfier & w/ less abrupt motions than my cousin's '04 325i w/o sport suspension! The parts dept told me that only the springs & sway bars are firmer on the RX-8 w/ 18"s. So I'm pretty sure the RX-8-based Miata w/ the LSD & sport suspension package can be soften down easily w/ spring & sway-bar swap. By the way, I'm going to wait for the future "Miata" hardtop fastback w/ 2.3. Why ruin the chassis rigidty of a handling-specialized car by getting the convertible version? Besides, the Miata is noisy enough to begin with. Unlike the Golf Cabrio w/ one big B-pillar roll bar, most convertibles today got rear roll bars that block the rear visibility width. The future Solstice hardtop also blocked it, anyway, w/ a tapered-down narrow rear glass -- another reason to forget about the Solstice.  & don't expect to easily moduate the throttle of the future supercharged Solstice doing power oversteer. Normally aspirated rules!
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Replying to: creakid1 (Oct 08, 2005 12:35 am) Gee, I forgot the Panoz Esperante and the Saleen S7 Twin Turbo have horrible steering feel.  
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but one Brit magazine recently found the electric steering on the new MX-5 not as feel-ful as the electro-hydraulic steering on the new Mazda5.  The 3-series lost the high level of steering feel after the E36. I'm still keeping my old '90 Mazda Protege LX due to its good steering feel. I'm also a sucker spending a fortune trying to restore a manual-steering '84 Jetta in order to capture that genuine raw feel... My other requirement on the cars I keep is having good ride over rough deep bumps. Is that a lot to ask for? 
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Replying to: creakid1 (Oct 09, 2005 12:46 am) People who is waiting for the coupe MX-5, why don't they just buy a RX-8. That car handles well and can be bought cheap with huge incentives all the time. Personally, I like the look of the RX8 over the MX-5. 007
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Replying to: miata007 (Oct 13, 2005 12:22 pm) Poor gas mileage. Some people do not like the rotary engine. Not sure about the styling, though I must say, it is way different. That's a good thing.... I guess  The car is said to handle great. The RX8 is something for sporting! The Solstice Coupe looks awesome. That will be a real fast selling car. How these will compare to the Mazdas, who knows. So far, what is the tally of wins to loses in car reviews? And which car gets recalled first   Oh heck, they are both good skateboards, Loren
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convertible after my payoff. These 2 are ones that I would consider. I haven't driven either so my opinion is based solely on "sittin' and thinkin' about it." First, I wouldn't buy either of these cars new. I'd shop used and let someone else enjoy the first year depreciation. So, something that I don't think has been mentioned here, the warranty would be a biggy for me. If the Solstice comes with the 3 year/36K mile warranty, but the Miata with the 4 yr/ 50K (which I would assume it does) that would tend to sway me to the Mazda. As far as looks, the Solstice wins it for me. But, the Miata has been out there chugging away a long time and it's nothing to hear of people having upwards of 150K and more on them with little or no repair issues. I guess to say I would buy A over B at this point would be a little premature. If the Solstice can prove reliable and resales not hit the basement floor in 18 months (like Pontiac normally does), it would likely be my choice. At this point, Mazda! |
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http://site.aol.com/autos/article/7.adp although I really like the looks of the Solstice fastback coupe.
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Replying to: miata007 (Oct 13, 2005 12:22 pm) I almost bought one, but I ended up w/ a Focus ST for more drifting opportunities (during trail throttle). Where's the low-rpm thrust from the rotary? I want to power drift the rear end w/ LSD at low speed way way before you reach the cornering limit at speeds way too dangerous off track. So low-end torque rules & saves gas, too!
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Replying to: creakid1 (Oct 14, 2005 11:17 pm) Yes you know the facts, show up with the Mazda and nobody cares. It must suck to be yesterday's news so you need to use the opinion of a (cough cough) unbiased (snicker snicker) Edmunds (bent over laughing) expert. The fact is the Solstice if not so very close to being the Miata's equal blows it so far away with looks and does it right out of the box, you stubborn Mazda flunkies are scared to death. It's gonna get worse for you. And no Edmund's "expert" will save you. Here's the part that really sucks, styling and image matter in this class. The Solstice has such a huge advantage in this category, Mazda just packed up their bags without even trying. Can the regular Joe tell the difference between old and new Mazda or even care? On other hand the Solstice radiates cool. So what if there's no trunk, it's a four wheel Harley. If you worry about groceries in this car, why buy anything in the class. Image trumps everything here boys, Pontiac wins. By a huge margin.
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