Miata Mailing List: February 1994, Message #48
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From: Piet.Ruyssinck@rug.ac.be (Piet Ruyssinck) Subject: miata-poll in AutoGids Date: Fri, 4 Feb 1994 08:04:03 -0500
Hello miateers, Here's (as I promised) the translation of the miata poll article in the 20 january 1994 edition of the bi-weekly Belgian car magazine "De AutoGids" I apologise for my bad English. When just chatting, I can avoid words I'm not sure of. When doing a translation, I can't. Whenever I'm not sure about a particular translation, I'll include the dutch text in curly brackets. I understand that our friend Milton Horst speaks dutch too (he even volunteered to do the translation). Perhaps he might come up with more appropriate translations. So here it goes : GLOBAL SCORE : 8/10 =================== This time - move than ever - the global score must be viewed in perspective. We only seldom encounter a small sports roadster with two seats and entirely directed towards driving pleasure. The bad marks on the back seats (?) are irrelevant. Same goes for the noise damping. The merits of this car show from reading between the lines rather than from the naked figures. THE SUNNY SIDE OF THE STREET ============================ We have found 155 enthousiastic sports lovers to cooperate in this poll on the small Mazda MX-5 Miata. The cars date from 1990 and 1991. They're all identical except for some that have powered steering (chosen as a option by there owners). They're all unique if you were to ask the owners - amongst which we counted 16% of females. HISTHORY AND TECHNOLOGY ======================= The Mazda Miata is an exceptional car in the most literal sense of the word, and should be treated as such. It first appeared at the Chicago exhibit of 1989 where it instantly cause commotion because of its inpired look, remeniscent of the nostalgic sports cars of the sixties. A lot of drivers refer to the legendary Lotus Elan and to the simple and straightforward concept with its 1598cc 16 valves engine in the front with 115 hp at 6500 rpm and 135 Nm at 5500 rpm. This makes the combinatie with short gears interesting. Traction is on the rear wheels. This small two seater (397 cm long) on a 226.5 cm wheelbase has a suspension with four independent wheels, all having a disc breaks. From the beginning, a visco-link, that acts as a slip differential, was offered as an option. Such were the hard-top and powered steering. Only recently, ABS became available. For the moment, we're waiting for the more powerfull 128 hp 1840 cc engine (should be on the Brussels exhibit) and perhaps also for the berlinetta-version of which some picture have appeared in the press and which irresistably (from a 3/4 rear view) brings up memories from the times of the exciting Abarth berlinettas. ROBOT-PORTRAIT ============== The cars : average age : 2 years and 9 months average milometerage : 40907 km yearly average : 15000 km The drivers : driving style : 4% calm 48% normal 48% fast average age : 37 years 35% between 30 and 39 28% between 18 and 29 19% between 40 and 49 16% women participated Their former car : 8% already had a Mazda 10% comes from VW (Golf), followed by Ford, Opel and Peugeot (each with 7 to 8%) for 9% the Miata was their first car, or their first second car. 61% of the households has more than one car CONSUMPTION =========== town ................ 10.2 road ................. 8.7 average .............. 9.4 The miata's consumption can be very dependent on the driving style. An average of 9.4 liters per 100 km is very acceptable (considering 48% fast drivers in the poll) and comparable with what we measured for the 112 hp VW Golf II GTI. RELIABILITY =========== break-down risk per 10000 km ................ 1.58% A 46th place in the 302 polls we've done so far, that's within the best 50. The global average is 3.89% and the average of the best 50 is 1.05%. That's more than acceptable for a small sports car. However, the score could have been a lot better. The list of malfunctions contains seven flat batteries, which is a pitty. One owner points to the alternator and an other one to the theft alarm system. So what's the pitty about ? On a car like the MX-5 (and in the near future on every car perhaps) it is necessary to install a sophisticated alarm system. Whitout it, insurance companies refuse to cover theft. Such systems use battery power. In cars that do only 15000 km a year, often as a second or third car in a household, one can assume that they're left unused for loger periods. By then, the alrm system has drained the battery. Of course, this is a malfuntioning, but is't not really the car's fault. In global, 45% never had any problems 9% (which is below average) signaled trouble with the accesories 8% complained about brakes 8% critisized clutch and gear switching 7% had trouble with engine management (fuel supply, ignition) If it weren't for the theft alarm system, we'd have here, once again, a very reliable Mazda. (We're referring to a recent poll on the 323 GRSi) Without the alarm, the break-down risk would certainly have been below 1%. AFTER SALES SERVICE =================== How do the owners value the after sales service ? ------------------------------------------------- very good ........ 31% good ............. 54% ok ............... 9% reasonable ....... 3% bad .............. 3% weighted index ... 84.61% A weighted index of 85% is dead-normal. Enough for a 93rd place out of 213, or just above the average of 83%. But a lot below the 92% of the best 50. A shame. How's the warranty being applied ? ---------------------------------- loosely (prolonged) ........ 39% normal ..................... 49% strict ..................... 12% weighted index ............. 56.55% With the warranty, we're going downhill even more. Few concession holders are willing to do an effort. On the other hand, there are exceptionally many disputes. By our sample, 43% had to make use of the warranty. The index of 57% is a lot lower than the global average of 61% and definitly below the 75% of the best 50. This gives Mazda a mediocre ranking of 148th out of 235. A shame. What do they think their concession holder ? -------------------------------------------- good ............. 62% normal ........... 33% bad .............. 5% weighted index ... 71.85% Pfff! 67th out of 134. Just like the average of the 134 polls in which we asked this question. Are spare parts available ? --------------------------- no problem .................... 79% after a short wait ............ 21% after a long wait ............. 0% weighted index ................ 93.67% Although we're talking about a rather rare car (something that tends to slow down parts delivery), this is a rather good score wth a ranking of 32nd out of 104 poll of the last four years. Noone hade to wait long, and that made the index rise. SERVICE COSTS (70 centimes) ============= [note by Piet Ruyssinck : a centime is 1/100th of a Belgian Franc, there are about 40 BFr to a US$) Wear-out and replacements ------------------------- Battery : 14% of the owners had theit battery replaced after 22000 km on average. No matter the causes (theft alarm) Mazda could have improved the electric installation right away. Clutch : 1% replaced clutches of 30000 km on average. An accident... Exhaust : 2% of the owners had their exhaust pipes replaced after 23000 km. The cars are too young to draw conclusions. Shock absorbers : One front absorber was replaced after 50000 km and two rear ones after 45000 km on average. Too soon to draw conclusions, but it looks good. Front brakes : 11% replacements after 40000 km on average, which is normal for a sample with 48% fast drivers. Rear brakes : 13% replacements after 43000 km. Front tires : 28% of the owners have already replaced their Bridgestone Potenzas 185/60x14 after 37000 km on average. Could be a bit better. However, one must realize how the cars were used and what compromise was made between wear-out and grip. Soft rubbers wear out more rapidly but give better grip than hard ones. By the way, the same tire was chosen for the Porsche 959. Rear tires : 35% replacements after 37000 km. idem. Cost per kilometer ------------------ Calculation : included : service and repair costs. possible pull-away costs. replacement of parts succepible to wear-out not included : fuel costs taxes and insurance possible platework repairs after an accident tax deduction of the car An average cost of 70ct for a small 1990-91 sportscar is very reasonable despite a few complaints about after sales service and the warranty. Of course, the costs were higher for the 28% of drivers who needed to mount new tires. The 70ct are very close to the 71ct for the Mazda 323 GRSi from 1990, of which the owners' poll appeared in our july 93 issue. We don't go back further than two years in our archives for comparison data. We found the 1989 VW Corrado 16V which cost 72ct in july 1992, while the 1988 and 89 Honda CRX with 130 hp cost 74ct in january 1992. That's an exception, but are such cars comparable ? The 1990 Toyota Celica STi that we covered recently cost its owner only 54ct/km. Those are exceptions. HOW THEY VALUE THEIR CARS ========================= Interpretation of the figures ----------------------------- 9 or more out of 10 indicates that the owners are particularly satisfied with this aspect of their car. 7 to 8.9 indicates average to very high quality. less than 7 reveals a shortcoming. Engine (8.6) ------ The small reliable engine starts without trouble and - despite a few who complain about lack of power - the car gets very good marks. The 1800 would even improve on this aspect of the poll despite its hight weight. cold start ............................. 9.1 cold drive ............................. 8.6 warm start ............................. 9.4 power .................................. 8.2 accelerations .......................... 8.4 {vinnigheid} smoothness ............................. 8.0 {soepelheid} mean : 8.6 Transmission (8.8) ------------ Impeccable. clutch ....................... 8.9 switching gears .............. 8.7 mean : 8.8 Behavior on the road (8.0) -------------------- In a car like this, one doesn't need power steering nor ABS, the real sports lovers say. Yet, it appears that the few who bought the powered steering option are very satisfied with it. The only drawback is the grip on slippery roads, but by some, this is considered as one of the charmes of the car. with without powered steering lightness of steering .................... 7.5 9.1 accuaracy of steering .................... 8.6 8.8 turning cicle ............................ 8.0 8.4 {draaicirkel} straight-on stability .................... 8.3 8.2 sensitivity to sidewinds .......................... 7.1 grip in corners ................................... 8.6 {wegligging in de bochten} traction & grip on slippery road .................. 6.8 brake power ....................................... 7.7 brake graduality .................................. 8.0 {geleidelijkheid van de remwerking} tendency of wheels to lock up ..................... 7.4 {blokkeerneiging van de wielen} mean : 8.0 8.6 COMFORT (6.9) ------- The same story goes for the comfort, an almost blasphemous term in a car remeniscent of the pioneer era. During the the testperiod I had with this car, I noticed one real shortcoming : the bad {ontwaseming -> de-moisture-ing of the windows}. suspension ................................. 6.9 front seats ................................ 7.6 back seats ................................. 4.0 access to backseats ........................ 3.0 damping of mechanical noises ............... 6.8 brack noises ............................... 8.1 wind noises ................................ 6.5 noises from platework, driving, suspension . 7.0 ventilation ................................ 7.8 heating .................................... 8.7 {ontwaseming} .............................. 6.7 rear side view ............................. 5.2 lights ..................................... 7.8 wipers ..................................... 7.7 controls ................................... 8.4 driving position ........................... 8.4 mean : 6.9 Accessories (7.7) {uitrusting} ----------- This wasn't a major issue for Mazda, but the indispensables are present. quality and rubustness of accessories ...... 8.0 finishing .................................. 7.5 mean : 7.7 Platework (7.5) {koetswerk} --------- Lots of veterans signal that this is their first wind- and waterproof convertible and that the hard-top is tight as well, which comes in handy in the winter. The trunk is not large either, and as far as can be said already, the platework resist rust pretty good. waterproofness ....................... 8.1 windproofness ........................ 8.1 quality of the paint ................. 7.6 rust resistance ...................... 8.6 quality of used synthetics ........... 8.5 trunk, accessibility & shape ......... 4.5 mean : 7.5 STRONG POINTS ------------- mentioned % 1st mentioned look .............................. 39% 55% driving pleasure .................. 29% 49% engine performance ................ 12% 29% grip .............................. 9% 28% reliability ....................... 5% 12% miscellaneous ..................... 5% don't know ........................ 1% They're perhaps sports-minded, but they definitely know about easthetics. The owners know what fun driving is on bendy roads and also what is means to drive in the sun and enjoying the looks of their cars during their picknicks. WEAK POINTS ----------- mentioned % 1st mentioned trunk too small .................. 29% 47% not enough space ................. 10% 14% lack of power .................... 8% 16% bad ventilation & {ontwaseming} .. 7% 9% read side view ................... 7% 10% miscellaneous .................... 30% don't know ....................... 10% Interesting, that such a trivial issue appears on top of the list. Seems like the drivers are very objective (and they are), but the question remains whether the trunk really spoils their fun. THEIR MAJOR SUGGESTIONS ----------------------- mentioned % 1st mentioned more engine power ................ 16% 21% more accessories ................. 10% 18% standard powered steering ........ 9% 10% standard ABS ..................... 3% 7% miscellaneous .................... 33% don't know ....................... 30% Note that noone mentions the trunk anymore. People come back to important issues like driving pleasure and the more powerfull engine that Mazda has announced. But will it be powerfull enough to satisfy everyone ? Some dream about the small V6 from the MX-3. IF THEY WERE TO DO IT ALL OVER AGAIN ==================================== Supposing that the owners could do their purchase all over again, knowing what they know now, would they still buy a Mazda Miata ? yes ...................... 85% no ....................... 8% don't know ............... 7% weighted index : 81% So ! We're in the top 50 ! The average weighted index of the best 50 is 84% and the global average is 65%. This gives the Miata a 46th ranking out of 343 cars. And, if they were to change cars today, would they go for the same make ? yes ...................... 30% no ....................... 25% don't know ............... 46% weighted index : 29% Oops ! Talking of a surprise ! An index of 29% is good for a 310th place out of 342 polls, the global average of which was 51%. The average of the best 50 is 75%. How is this possible ? The answer follows. Preferred make for next purchase -------------------------------- named total as 1st named Mazda ...................... 28% 34% BMW ........................ 11% 25% Mercedes ................... 7% 11% Porsche .................... 5% 7% Audi ....................... 5% 7% VW ......................... 3% 5% Alpha Romeo ................ 3% 5% other ...................... 19% don't know ................. 19% It's pretty obvious. The look, the style, the exclusive character of the cars appeals to selection of customers who'd otherwise never have thought of Mazda. It even becomes clearer ... Preferred models ---------------- named total as 1st named Mazda MX-5 Miata ........... 15% 17% BMW-3 ...................... 10% 21% Mazda 626 .................. 4% 6% Mazda Xedos 6 .............. 3% 8% Porsche 911 ................ 3% 6% Mercedes E ................. 3% 5% VW Golf .................... 3% 4% other ...................... 42% don't know ................. 18% Only two other makes are in the running. Even the RX-7 doesn't get named. The BMW-3 get even more votes than the MX-%. Here, status and brand-image play an important role, mized with practical considerations like space and trunk. And this despite the fact that Mazda does have some aces to play with the 626, the Xedos 6 and Xedos 9. For a lot of people the Miata is a car one must have driven once, and that's it. Some would like to keep it as a collector's item. But the Miata itself keeps evolving, to the satisfaction of the amateurs. THE MX-5 COMPARED WITH ITS COMPETITORS ====================================== Mazda MX-5 | Honda CRX 1.6i-16 | | Toyota Celica 1.6 ST-i | | | VW Corrado 16V | | | | Volvo 480 ES | | | | | 10.2 9.4 9.6 11.4 10.3 fuel consumption in town (liters / 100 km) 8.7 7.9 7.9 8.9 7.9 fuel consumption on the road (liters / 100 km) 0.70 0.74 0.54 0.72 0.89 sevice costs over 50000 km (in BFr / km) 8.1 7.7 8.6 7.9 9.0 resistance to rust and quality of paint (mark out of 10) 8.4 8.3 9.0 6.9 8.3 quality of service (mark out of 10) 8.2 9.4 8.3 7.9 7.5 engine power (mark out of 10) 8.0 8.5 8.2 7.7 7.9 engine smoothness (mark out of 10) 7.7 7.9 7.9 8.4 8.6 road qualities (grip, brakes, ...) (mark out of 10) 6.9 7.2 7.5 7.5 8.0 comfort (seats, suspension, ventilation, noise) (mark out of 10) 8.0 8.2 6.7 8.6 8.7 steering (mark out of 10) ,,, (o o) o----------------------oOO--(_)--OOo-----------------------o | Piet RUYSSINCK Piet.Ruyssinck@rug.ac.be | | Department of Data Analysis +32 9 264 4733 | | University of Ghent (RUG) | | Krijgslaan 281, building S9 (ARC), B-9000 Ghent, Belgium | | _ _ | o----oOO--( )--OOo------------------------oOO--( )--OOo----o (o o) (o o) ``` ```