Japanese Spec Mazda 121 Funtop in UK

[gtd2000]

[quote="25Horseplay"][quote="mechanicaldj"]
anyone notice the speedometer, MPH! not KM/h

UK spec Kia prides had a speedo/tach that reads in MPH and it goes to 110mph, I just got one for my Festiva!

The UK has always been MPH - the difference over here is that we've always (in the last 30 years anyway!) had dual MPH & KPH speedometers.

If you look at the shot of the the speedo you'll see the MPH (outer) is large and the KPH (inner) is small. Perhaps I need to take a better shot of that?

The speedo that is currently in the car is UK spec as the Japanese version is only in KPH.

[gtd2000]

Also, look on your tyre spec sheet and you'll see the 14" wheels should have 175/60 tyres on them. It's only a 6mm height difference, but it would help a bit with both mechanical advantage and rotational weight.

Karl

Hi Karl
The 175 (AFAIK) refers to the width of the tyre and the 60 refers to the height?

[gtd2000]

"Throttle body fuel injection." That's what my Dodge Aries had! And that's why it looks like a carb to me.

Gtd, these guys know way more than I do about this stuff.


Could you get us a kerb weight on your car?

You wrote:

Her previous cars include:
Mini 1000cc Auto (40mpg ave) pretty slow but could get decent speeds out of it.

Honda Civic 1335cc Auto (40mpg ave) very nippy and could top 100mph no problem at all.

Nissan Sunny 1600cc Auto (35+ mpg ave) very fast for a small car - felt more like a 2000cc engine

Back in the day I had a little Mitsubishi Mirage with a 1250cc engine and it was a flyer! It was only 55bhp!

Something tells me these previous cars were all under 2000 pounds. I bet none had 14" tyres or all the accessories that your present Mazda does.

Get us that actual kerb weight for your particular car and I think you'll have your answer as to the sluggishness problem!

I bet this thing weighs over 2100 pounds. Couple that with 185/60-14s and that spells S-L-O-W. Don't forget that suntop adds air resistance, too, compared with a smooth steel roof.

Karl

I'm not sure what the car weighs but I'd say it would be pretty much the same as a Ford Aspire.

It is a fairly heavy car to push to be honest - which you would certainly not expect !

[Safety Guy]

Gtd, you're right about the tyre numbers.

185/60s are ten mms wider and thus, sixty percent of the increased width gives you a height increase of six mms from the 175/60s.

However, that's a purely mathematical calculation and the real world numbers may be slightly different. Also, as the tyre wears down, the height will go down as well. Same with tyre pressure. Keep at least 30 to 35 psi in them while not exceeding the pressure ratings on the tyre sidewalls. Have you checked tyre pressures on it?

Karl

[gtd2000]

The tyre pressures are normally around 30ish - I think the book suggests 28 though?

I'm thinking about getting my buddy along the road to make me up a section of exhaust pipe that will replace the cat.

I'm also going to see if I can get a set of 155-70-13's from the local breakers yard today.

Oh and I bought a bottle of acetone to add to the petrol

[gtd2000]

Well I bought a pair of wheels (from a Ford Fiesta I think?) with Kumho 155/70-13's on them for the grand price of 10 Pounds ($18.00) with VAT (tax). I'll possibly pick up another pair later this week but it was raining and the front axle was good enough for some preliminary investigation.

I've noticed that the reduced wheel size does actually affect the reported speed of the car.

They have a speed check sign coming into town and I've always been bang on 30MPH with the 14" wheels at an indicated 30MPH on the speedo.

With the 155/70-13's I'm posting at 28MPH...with 30MPH on the speedo

I should get "increased" MPG based on more miles "driven" with the smaller wheels.

So. that's an extra 6% fuel saving at 30MPH by possibly using the same amount of fuel with an over-reporting odometer assuming that the smaller wheels are "out" with the speedo calibration. :roll:

Driving the car appears to be somewhat better but I'm sure this is just the placebo effect. It does not stick to the corners as well with the 155's though!

If the weather is better tomorrow I'll take some pics of the skinny wheels.

[mattswabb]

Here is a tire size calculator, it gives you a difference in mph

http://www.1010tires.com/TireSizeCalculator.asp?action=submit

[gtd2000]

Here is a tire size calculator, it gives you a difference in mph

http://www.1010tires.com/TireSizeCal...?action=submit

Stock Tire - 185/60R14 >Search Tires Tire 1 - 155/70R13 >Search Tires
Section Width: 7.28 in 185 mm
Section Width: 6.10 in 155 mm

Rim Diameter: 14 in 355.6 mm
Rim Diameter: 13 in 330.2 mm

Rim Width Range: 5 - 7 in
Rim Width Range: 4 - 5 in

Overall Diameter: 22.74 in 577.59 mm
Overall Diameter: 21.54 in 547.11 mm

Sidewall Height: 4.37 in 110.99 mm
Sidewall Height: 4.27 in 108.45 mm

Radius: 11.37 in 288.79 mm
Radius: 10.77 in 273.55 mm

Circumference: 71.43 in 1814.3 mm
Circumference: 67.66 in 1718.5 mm

Revs per Mile: 914.6
Revs per Mile: 965.6

Actual Speed: 60 mph 100 km/h
Speedometer1: 63.3 mph 105. km/h

Speedometer Difference: - Speedometer Difference: 5.576% too fast
Diameter Difference: - Diameter Difference: 5.28%


Seems about right from my comparison.

[gtd2000]

I repaired the fuel tank today with my buddy Keith.

I'd be interested to know if it looks like the same unit as the Aspire or earlier 121/Festiva.

I'll post the pics tomorrow

[Safety Guy]

I have several 121 brochures and the suspension looks the same as a Festiva or Aspire. Exactly the same. No Panhard rod, either, like the Rio has.

Can't say if the parts will still interchange, but I think there is a high likelihood of it. The kerb weight is at or below 825 kg/ 1800 pounds. So it isn't as heavy as an Aspire like I had thought it might be.

Karl

[gtd2000]

OK I've uploaded the fuel tank repair pics.

I looked online at the 4 door Aspire fuel tank and it appears to be the same?

[gtd2000]

I forgot to say that I did an O2 sensor test (lambda sensor for the non-US folks..) by disconnecting it. I drove for around 5 miles without any trouble at all, then gradually it was like having no power at all.

So presumably my O2 sensor is working to some extent - I'd like to lean out the mixture and see how that affects performance.

[Safety Guy]

I think the question is "did Mazda and Kia share any design improvements or parts sharing" in their respective "Festiva II" projects.

Mazda designed the Festiva, I think with some input from Ford and possibly Kia (because they were going to building them so they'd have to have a tiny bit of manufacturing input).

How much, if any, input did Mazda have on the Aspire/Avella?

If they did, they would have been privy to such stuff as parts vendor info and anything that could be shared for cost savings.

We need direct info from the manufacturers or someone who lives in a country where both the same year range Kia Avella and Mazda 121 "Bubble" were sold. It would take some junkyard trips or people who could compare cars directly.

Much of what I'm writing here is pure speculation.

However, like I noted, those Bubble suspension drawings look EXACTLY like the Aspire suspension.

All I can say about the Kia Rio ("distant 3rd gen Festiva") is that the rear suspension is almost entirely different, including use of a Panhard rod (track bar). (I speculate that the rear brakes may be the same, though.) Also, the 2000 to 2002 Rios used front brake rotors which had the same part number as automatic Aspires. Pads would probably be the same too. They changed this in '03, however, when they went to exclusive use of the 1.6 engine and dropped the 1.5.

Karl

[gtd2000]

I never knew they made the Kia Avella (Aspire) in RHD :shock:

I just checked out a link on car domain with a "right hooker" in Malta of all places.

Strange that they never imported these into the UK.

http://www.cardomain.com/ride/733856/1

[ChrisDrives121DA]

It should be a B3E engine, shouldn'tīt it?

What does the engine code [cast into the block, ] indicate?
Most 121DB customers opted for the 16V SOHC 72HP instead of the 60hp B3 8V. I never saw a B1 yet [, neither B1 DA nor B1 DB]

I suggest your car having a B3E 16V SOHC as well. They were TBI fed.

Check your fuel filter. I changed mine when my car had acceleration issues.
This is one of the Top 10 121DB problems, here. The other nine things already have been mentioned in this thread.

good luck
-Chris-