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TR6 Mazda Miata ride, everything else TR6

robatc

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I've owned my 1974 TR6 for a few months. I put new tires on it and had a reputable local shop give it a once over and fix the obvious and neglected. It looks great and has been fun to drive. In a perfect world, it would feel better over bumps. I'm not looking for it to corner great so I can push it, just to be more comfortable. I know, I know...it's a 48-year old British sports car.

What could I do (or have done) to really improve the ride? I'd appreciate any suggestions, from minor to serious $$. Not that I'd drop a ton of money towards it, but I don't know suspensions to begin the conversation with my shop.

Thanks.
 

charlie74

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If your alignment is within spec and you go down the route of replacing/upgrading things then poly bushes would be a good place to start. Are your shock absorbers in good condition?
 
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robatc

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Thanks, I don't know what poly bushes are and if and when I take it in, we can evaluate the shock absorbers (and poly bushes). The shop recommended replacing the suspension brackets and mounts.
 

Popeye

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Can you be more specific when you say "it would feel better over bumps"?

Less rattle, less bouncing on the road, ...? Or just more "Miata-like"? (Which to me means quiet and precise.) The TR6 will be more "flexible" than the Miata. I'm neither a Miata nor a TR6 owner (both great cars), but I suspect the TR6 may sound better, may have more low end grunt, but likely will not drive better, no matter what you do.

Generally speaking, replacing all the rubber bits in the suspension is a good idea. The Roadster Factory sells "magic kits" that include all the rubber bits for the front suspension in one kit. Separately they can sell you the rear suspension bits also (but they don't call it a "magic" kit :smile:.) Options are rubber and urethane; the latter being a bit "harsher" but more direct.

Are your shocks leaking? If the rears are lever-style (I'm not sure about the TR6) Apple Hydraulics can rebuild them.

What tires do you have?
 

charlie74

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Not sure why they’d recommend replacing the mounts and brackets unless they are broken and/or repaired poorly…you might want some clarification. Can you post any photos?
 
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robatc

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I had a Miata for 9 years, an early one, 1992. Nobody expects a sports car to ride like a Bentley, but currently any bump feels 'brittle, jarring, sharp' with some rattle, but some of the rattle is just the age of the car. I could probably hunt down each one and silence some of them.

Thanks for the suggestions. I'll file them away when I have the money to move on.
 

trglory

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Don't ever expect a TR6 to ride like a Miata, it is an antiquated design from the 1960s and was set up for spirited, brittle, jarring, sharp handling. After you put modern tires on it (makes all the difference in the world) and attend to possible replacement needs for brakes, shocks and bushings, the car will be safe to drive and that is about all you want to do without pumping a ton of money into it. You will soon find that you enjoy the experience of blokey British style motoring.
 
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robatc

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Thanks all, I can't find the tire brand, but they were new, decent tires I decided on after reading a lot of the web. I'm not expecting a Miata ride as much as moving it that direction 'on the spectrum'. Good points about replacing what I can to make it safe. This discussion helps me know what to ask about and discuss with my shop when we're doing something in that area, like, "if we're replacing the suspension brackets, can we update/upgrade the poly bushes too."
 

malbaby

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IMHO...Your main concern should be with the coil springs.
Your car may be fitted with uprated springs.
Do you know what their current lb/in rating is?
Even with standard rating springs, the car will never ride like a Miata.
 
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robatc

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Good to know re: springs, something to look into. The tires (new) are: 205/70/15 Cooper CSS Ultra Touring. Perhaps over time, if we have an opportunity to replace or modify parts we can tweak it to ride a bit better.
 

glemon

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Sounds like you have a smooth riding tire, that is a good start. Replacing rubber bushings is a good idea. Also checking the shocks, if worn new shocks will make the car ride better, fronts are cheap, rears can be rebuilt.

You are on the right track talking about chasing down rattles shakes. To me those noises make a car seem to ride rough as much or more than seat of the pants feel.

Common causes, suspension rubber worn, exhaust loose, window channels worn, doors not fit right, but the possibilities are kind of endless.

Also putting a layer of sound absorbing insulation between carpet and floors/transmission tunnel can make the car quieter too.

A TR6 won't be a Miata ever, but we'll sorted ones are pretty quiet and smooth for an old sports car.

If you are part of a club or know somebody see if you can ride around in a TR3 for a while, then the TR6 will feel like a Cadillac, it's all about perspective. (No knock on TR3s, love them)
 

Tybalt

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Having TR and NA and NC Miata experience, you will never get a TR series car to behave like a Miata. There's just too much flex in the TR and the greatest of 50s and 60s LBC technology will keep it from acting like a modern car..

If you are looking for performance, then perhaps polyurethane, Delrin or Nylatron would be even better on the bushings, but it doesn't really sound like that is the route you want to reading through the thread. So if you are looking for comfort, or at least what passes for comfort in a TR6, stick with the stock rubber bushings and differential mounts. The one possible exception would be the upper front bushings which could benefit from something harder from a service life perspective. I would highly recommend replacing the trailing arm brackets with the adjustable trailing arm brackets from Richard Good ( > Adjustable Trailing Arm Brackets | Good Parts < ). They make life much easier when it comes time to dialing in rear ride height (depending on springs a spacer may be needed as well) and rear camber. The standard way of setting rear camber is playing mix and match of one, two and three notch brackets with notches oriented up or down, a royal pain that is somewhat removed from the neck. If you have ever been through that exercise, you will probably think it is money well spent. I know I did and others that have bought them that I know felt the same way.

Springs, definitely try to figure out which springs you have, if you have uprated springs, you may want to replace them with standard springs from a comfort standpoint. Part of the problem with the uprated springs is that it is hard to get good information as far as spring rate and spring length go, they generally talk in terms of "xx' % stiffer than stock, but that doesn't provide what you really need to know. Again, Richard good does a nice job of giving spring rates OD, ID and length but here all he offers are performance oriented springs. Dampers are another consideration. If you go adjustable up front along the lines of Spax or Koni, I would advise setting them about one third off full soft initially, bearing in mind you may want to adjust the damping a bit up or down depending on which springs you use. On the rear, you can get Armstrong stuff from the usual suspects or the rebuilt units from Apple Hydraulics, I have had good experiences with stuff from Apple ( > ONE PAIR - Triumph TR4A, TR250, TR6 Rear Armstrong Lever Shock Absorber < ).

Other than adjustable trailing arm brackets and possibly those upper front arm bushings, the one thing I would suggest as an upgrade would be a good set of anti-roll bars. They will do the most to control body roll without going to stiff springs and generally have little cost from a comfort standpoint. I have had the ADDCO bars and while they are priced lower, I thought that the set up for the end links was rather screwy and neither bar is adjustable. I would pony up the extra dollars and get the bars from Richard Good, the rear bar is adjustable so you do some tweaking with roll rate contribution from the rear bar to your preference in the handling department ( > Anti Sway Bar Kits | Good Parts < ). I also think that Revington TR out of the UK has a front bar that would pair well with Richard's rear bar. The reason I don't think in terms of recommending Revington's rear bar set up is that it is designed to work in conjunction with their rear damper conversion kit and that in turn requires welding some reinforcing bits to the frame along with an upper damper mount plate and a modifications to the trailing arms to run tube dampers up the middle of the spring. A very nice set up, but outside the bounds of where many TR6 owners would want to go. See attached pictures for example.
 

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robatc

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Tybalt and others, thank you so much for taking the time for the thought you've put into the suggestions. I'll try to pay it forward if I ever gain enough knowledge to help a newbie.
 
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