Stressed

I appreciate that obviously I can't generalise, but it's reasons like that which is why I actually avoid main dealers when I can, as having a manufacturer badge on the front isn't a guarantee of quality or even that work is done correctly. It's my fault for using them to supply and fit them, but as I was purchasing the car from them I thought it would be nice to have the car lowered for when I picked it up. When I asked if the geometry had been done, the salesman said "of course sir, we make sure everything is within spec". When I asked for a report I was told that it can't be given to the public lol. I tend to stick with specialists for servicing etc too, as some of them provide a much better service, and it's generally more personal too, as opposed to a main dealer where you give the service desk the keys, and the work gets done and then they give you your keys back. I had a bad experience with a main dealer years ago where I paid for a service but certain items that they said they had changed actually hadn't been changed at all. I obviously can't say that all main dealers are bad, as they're probably not, but I've had more bad experiences with main dealers than good.

Just thought I should update the thread. Just been to wheels in motion to get my geometry and very happy with the result. Joe who dealt with me was very efficient, and answered all my queries. First things first, as expected the bushes front and rear were twisted, by removing the preload the fronts dropped and after Joe measured it, it came up as 335mm all the way round. It's apparently lower than normal and on the edge of what they'd advise but I'm only going to keep them on for maybe 12 months or so, and luckily don't have many speed bumps to contend with. Now the springs that Mazda now supply are designed around the Roadster coupe and are fitted to both soft top and roadster coupe, as opposed to before when they had different parts for soft top and coupe. I set out today to get wheels in motion to supply and fit springs had there been an issue, but after speaking to Joe he simply advised that their springs would simply give less of a drop and the car would sit about 10mm higher so around 345mm all over. He said provided the car at 335mm won't cause me issues with the roads near me that it wasn't necessary for me to change them. I can't fault the service, Joe was polite, helpful and very efficient, and that's the reason I'd rather driver 1hr30 minutes to know that I'm going to get that sort of service and peace of mind that things are done correctly. Rather than go somewhere local 5mins away, pay 40 quid and be left with a mess. Joe used fast road settings for my alignment and I'm not exaggerating when I say that the handling is transformed. Bare in mind that my car went in with twisted bushes, a speedboat rake, camber etc way out and psi all over the place. The car now feels totally different. Thanks to Tony again for the assistance behind the scenes.

Ok I've just measured the front and rear. Rears read around 335mm and front around 360mm Now on the cars where you released the pre loading on the front bushings, were the rears lower than 345mm? I'm just wondering if it could be front bush pre loading on mine and after releasing it, whether the front would lower and cause the rear to raise so everything evens out? Or whether the fact my rears are at 335mm simply means the wrong springs are on my car

Thanks for your comprehensive reply. Can I ask whether Mazda themselves account for the difference in between the hardtop and softtopbwhen buying springs direct for them? When I asked Mazda they simply said they order the springs on registration so it would be impossible to get wrong. Even on the Mazda website it simply shows one part number for 2008 onwards which is 4100-77-779.

Hi I have a mk3.5 mx-5 roadster coupe. A Mazda dealer supplied and fitted a mazda lowering kit. However the front sits much higher than the rear, the rear is extremely low. After research I am reading conflicting information, some people are saying that Mazda supply different springs for the soft top and hard top version, however there appears to only one part number for 2008 onwards mx-5 cars which is 4100-77-779. These are the Mazda (eibach) springs fitted to my vehicle. I'm booked in to wheels in motion tomorrow for a geometry, however if I've got the wrong springs it's going to be pointless. I've also read by Tony (who I'd love to do the geometry on my car due to his expertise) mention that if the suspension is not fitted correctly, it can cause the bushings to bend/twist which can affect ride height. In the thread where he mentioned this after he corrected it the front dropped by 20mm. So as it stands I'm confused as to what's wrong, is it the wrong springs I have, or have they been fitted incorrectly? I don't really have money to waste on a geometry if the springs are wrong. I've contacted Mazda but they are clueless. Thanks for any help