Not worth downgrading in my honest opinion.

GEs aren't as simple to work on as the GD in terms of accessibility as well as you can't shim the factory rear axle at all of you're particular about alignment specifications... Though there is a LOT more storage space and the Navi 5 speed manuals are rare if you can find one (2009 and 2010 MY only).

GKs are a little more practical to service that the GE but the woes of carbon build up worry me personally. In addition to that, I find that it has very poorly padded arm rests (I.E. Thin console pad or hard plastic rest on door panel). With all that said and between those two gens... the GK in my honest opinion is a updated or matured GD and would be the better choice as a daily over the GE.

That's just me though... I'm passively toying with the idea of collecting one of each gen. haha

 

You're probably right. My daughter has a ‘15 and I don’t like it as much. I do like the ‘18+ Sport though. I actually can’t recall ever driving a GE but I like the styling of the sport. I think it’s just the itch to get something new compounded by missing cruise control, an armrest and wanting Apple CarPlay. Two of those things are easy fixes. I need new tires too.

 

i had a 08 sport that looked and handled awesome, but it was the absolute most uncomfortable car I’ve ever driven. No dead pedal, low seats which made the no dead pedal part worse. Armrests were so poorly placed that my elbow landed where the door pull was. Seats were meh.

I drove a 13 and that was a vast improvement. I like the styling, and all. I think the way they designed it in terms of replacing the spark plugs that sometimes loosen, that was ridiculous... I ended up buying a 16 EX a few weeks ago. I don’t know why people complained about the seats, they are far more comfortable than my 08 CRV’s seats. I like everything about it except the LAME armrest. I ended up modding it and attached an aftermarket one. I left the original one, but put the top part of one I bought on it. Now it’s perfect.

the “carbon buildup” is not all that common. And luckily the non turbo 1.5 doesn’t have the gas/oil dilution problem. I asked my brother about the carbon thing people bring up, he said if you drive 1 mile a day, never take it on the highway or are 80 years old and drive 25mph, any car will build up carbon. So I’m not worried about that.

GK is definitely way more refined and it does handle great even with no rear sway bar.

Just my two cents.

 

I had the ones on my 09 GE replaced this summer. No problem as had dealer do it. So far other than normal maintenance this is my first repair.

 

Drove the GD to work today and aired up the tires. It so refreshing to drive it after dallying the CR-Z for weeks at a time and the GD sets in the garage. Heck, in the last year I've put less than 2k miles on it.

Also, on November 28th marked 12 years of owning the GD. Time sure flies!

Zeta dead pedal (now discontinued) and Clazzio seat covers since they feature memory foam in some of them, easy fix.

For my figure (6 foot, 180 lbs and lanky), the driver's armrest is low enough for me to get comfortable as well as the plastic panel is a bit more malleable than that of the GK's... Which doesn't flex at all. Plenty comfy for me even after taking off my Clazzio seat covers. In addition to that, I often forget that I have a Zeta dead pedal unless on a road trip since I usually place my left leg behind my right, semi-crossed while driving or bracing myself to stay in the seat during autocross. Still, to each their own of course.

Coincidentally... I very recently worked on a GK5 that did have carbon build up issues. I can't go into too much detail about it out of respect of the owner's privacy but the findings were indeed intriguing.

I do agree with you though in terms of the seating position improving with the later two generations... Granted in that process the range of adjustablity also increased with each gen as well. Though with that said, I found that the cushioning material for the GE's seats was just too firm and flat for my liking. Didn't see to have much leg support as well as the side bolsters on the seat back were noticeably thinner as well compared to the GD's. Armrests on both the GE and GK could have been done much better but I'll save the rant to not derail this tread. haha

 

Replaced my 6yr old ETX18L battery with a 51r from Costco.
Now I need to order new tires.


edit: Ordered new tires. I was initially going to get summer tires (Kumho Ecsta PS31 or Yokohama Advan Fleva V701) but when I saw the BFG Advantage T/A Sport on sale at Costco yesterday, had to go for it. Out the door for $320 including installation and all that other Costco jazz, i can live with that.

 

Got the tires put on today. I asked for sticky weights and after about 25 minutes I got a call that all my wheels are bent and are taking a lot of weight (they werent all taking a lot of weight, 2 of them did).
They warned me about shaking but I had no issues on my way home and didnt have any issues with the previous set of tires either. We'll see how it goes, maybe it will be time to get rid of the Miata wheels if there are any issues.

edit: Got on the highway and ran the car up to 75mph for a couple minutes, felt great.

 

Went to the junk yard to learn some things.
a) third car in a row has been missing throttle body and V-tec solenoid assembly! Sounds like some future repairs
b) the driver side armrest cover tends to warp and create unsightly gap between itself power window switch bezel. Solution:replace bezel, armrest base and it's cover with the new ones ($$$) or live with it
c) rear wheel cylinders tend to develop crescent shape wear in the bore, resulting in fluid seepage past the piston seal. Flushing brake fluid will not slow this process down. Solution: replace shoes long before the wear limit or replace the cylinder

 

Installed front and rear dash cams.
Finally got around to fixing the wiring job on the map lights. I need to put some bright LED's in the hatch/dome/map.

 

Replaced the engine oil last Friday and took it out for a bit of a drive Sunday to a Porsche club autocross event then visited family afterwards. Roughly put over 100 miles on it that day alone.

I've literally put maybe 2,100 miles on it in the last 14 months; so its a nice change of pace from my usual daily (2016 CR-Z) to take out for a spin. Still need to do a good refresh on the car though.

 

Took the high boost supercharger off. Man this fit is boring now.

 

Why did you remove it? Selling it? Im interested if you are.

 

I removed it for smog. I ended up spending a ridiculous amount of money on oem parts. Being that I didn’t have any of the stock stuff. I’ll be selling the SC along with many other parts, BC coils, J’s racing, jdm, ect. I just don’t have access to sell here yet. 😒

 

Tried chasing down evap leak. P0455 No luck. 😒

 

Nice lift! I wish I could use one for lower control arms swap and passenger side axle seal change at next ATF change.
did you check EVAP purge valve near throttle body ? (should be closed when engine is off)

 

yes, I even changed the purge valve out along with the gas cap. Both OEM.

 

While on the lift take out gas tank protector and inspect canister and vent valve . I'm not jumping onto fuel filler line or fuel pump seal, as leak from there will cause gas smell.

 

Finally decided it's time to put some mods on Fitty. I swore I would have a stock Honda as a DD, but after 9 years, I need a change. Car currently has 140K on the clock, and is still going strong. Replaced the lower control arms, sway bar end links, sway bar bushings, struts all around, brakes etc. two weeks ago. Doing the routine oil change and getting it machine aligned tomorrow. I <3 my GD3!

 

How did you separate ball joints from the steering knuckles?
What brand name of arms did you use?
Any changes in steering after suspension work (pull, steering wheel off center?)

 

A prybar, hammer, two smashed thumbs and a lot of cussing. I use Moog for just about everything. My sway bar bushings are Honda parts. The steering is off, but that's on me for not counting threads. It's going in for alignment today!