It’s 9:30pm and I just got back from a ride with my top down. My
thermometer says it’s 62 degrees F. outside. I came really close to
putting the top up before leaving my house. It was pretty cold and I
had my hands in front of the heater vents the whole trip. Is 62 deg.
cold or am I just a whimp? (live in S. Cal). What was the coldest temp
someone rode with the top down. I want to hear some lowest-temp
stories!
-James
–
"Kill a psychic… They’ll be expecting you"
-James
> It’s 9:30pm and I just got back from a ride with my top down. My
> thermometer says it’s 62 degrees F. outside. I came really close to
> putting the top up before leaving my house. It was pretty cold and I
> had my hands in front of the heater vents the whole trip. Is 62 deg.
> cold or am I just a whimp? (live in S. Cal). What was the coldest temp
> someone rode with the top down. I want to hear some lowest-temp
> stories!
> -James
I typically put the top down around 40 degrees F. for city driving, 50F
for highway (though that does get chilly after a while). The coldest was
about 32F and snowing (I had to do it at least once!)…
-alex-
In article <3515F4D3.3…@ix.netcom.com>, James <jhedj…@ix.netcom.com> wrote:
>It’s 9:30pm and I just got back from a ride with my top down. My
>thermometer says it’s 62 degrees F. outside. I came really close to
>putting the top up before leaving my house. It was pretty cold and I
>had my hands in front of the heater vents the whole trip. Is 62 deg.
>cold or am I just a whimp? (live in S. Cal). What was the coldest temp
>someone rode with the top down. I want to hear some lowest-temp
>stories!
Wimp! WIMP!! WIMPWIMPWIMP!!! :-)
When it hit 45 today, I washed the Miata. It had reached 49 (but no sun)
when we put the top down and went for a 1.5 hour drive in the country,
speeds up to 80 mph. Forgot to put in the "windblocker" (a sheet of
cardboard that fills the space between the seatbacks) and the windows were
down. Heater on high, blower on 1 (2 on the highway), set to hi-lo with
the eyeballs aimed at my hands. Mesh ballcap, Polartec 300 jacket, no
gloves. Not the least bit chilly except when stopped; then, the 15 mph
crosswind was a little nippy.
With the ‘blocker, we’re fine down to 40, but I usually wear a down jacket
for its additional wind protection when resting my left elbow on the
windowsill. Below 40, I need gloves and something to cover my ears (wool
watchcap). Remember, raising or dropping the top below 40 is a no-no,
because the vinyl gets brittle and might crack. Driving is OK, though.
Unfortunately, I didn’t get the chance this past winter to drive top-down
in the snow–I was either too busy working, or there wasn’t enough snow,
just messy slush from all the salt.
FWIW, at 62 I don’t need the heater or a jacket at all and usually forego
the cap, and if it’s sunny I’ll roll up my sleeves or wear a polo shirt.
But I’m not a *serious* cold-weather driver. Let’s hear from some Canajuns.
–
—
Lanny Chambers (la…@derived.com) St. Louis, USA
Visit the Hummingbird Page: <http://www.derived.com/hummers/>
James <jhedj…@ix.netcom.com> ran naked thru the streets screaming:
> It’s 9:30pm and I just got back from a ride with my top down. My
> thermometer says it’s 62 degrees F. outside. I came really close to
> putting the top up before leaving my house. It was pretty cold and I
> had my hands in front of the heater vents the whole trip. Is 62 deg.
> cold or am I just a whimp? (live in S. Cal). What was the coldest temp
> someone rode with the top down. I want to hear some lowest-temp
> stories!
If you’re dressed right and wearing gloves, nothing beats a drive in
the snow. And in Southern Cal, the best drives are the winter nights
on Mulholland… usually in the 40′s or even high 30′s.
To send me e-mail via a reply to this message, remove the anti-spam * from my address.
*********************************
gpoll…@flash.net
http://www.flash.net/~gpollak
*********************************
I just couldn’t resist.
It was 33 this morning.
And sunny.
Not that this is the lowest temp or anything, but just about average for the
winter months. I’ve had the top down for most of the winter.. Gotta enjoy
it, don’t we?
Aaron
97 M
- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -
>> It’s 9:30pm and I just got back from a ride with my top down. My
>> thermometer says it’s 62 degrees F. outside. I came really close to
>> putting the top up before leaving my house. It was pretty cold and I
>> had my hands in front of the heater vents the whole trip. Is 62 deg.
>> cold or am I just a whimp? (live in S. Cal). What was the coldest temp
>> someone rode with the top down. I want to hear some lowest-temp
>> stories!
James, face it, you’re a wimp. Five degrees Celcius (around 40F) is the
limits to which Mazda places on raising and lowering the soft-top. Below
that, you can crack it, especially the rear window.
The coldest I’ve driven the car, without hard-top, and the soft-top stored
was two years ago on our club’s Polar Bear Run on New Year’s Day. It was
a clear, sunny, windy day at -19C (-2F). We were out for half an hour.
When I ice dice the car (Solo I on local ice racing track), I have the hard-
top off too, as I don’t fit well wearing a helmut, and it’s pretty cold then
too, as at the end of the straight, you’re travelling upwards of 70mph.
As to your southern California weather tollerance…just look around in winter
at the crazies wearing shorts and tee-shirts when typical Califorians are
wearing fur coats…they’re from Canada!
Regards,
Richard Dekker, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, M-CLUB #90, MCofA #41997
Founder & President, Wild Rose Chapter – Miata Club of America
1990 MX-5 Miata – Mariner Blue with double white stripes & GReddy turbo
Team 1:1, 1:10, 1:18, 1:24, 1:60, & 1:87 Miatas
How about -15c? We had a fundraiser for charity last Christmas here at a
dealership I was working at. As part of it we went out driving in the
convertibles dressed as Santa and the elves. Needless to say even with El
Nino the day we scheduled to do this it would have to be absolutely
freezing. I did enjoy it though but then I am a bit of a nut. I often
drive with the sunroof atleast partially open on my MX6 on cold winter days
because I like fresh air. I would consider 60f with the top down to be
absolutely balmy
Judy
James,
Consider yourself lucky to be driving in 62 degree weather. Some of us put the
car in storage for the winter.
Steve
I went out in mine with the top down on Christmas day last year. It was
bloody freezing, and there was some ice patches on the road. Wouldn’t
recommend it! However, if you keep the speed down it’s ok.
Alastair
This is no low-temp story (I do live in AZ!), but I drive from Sierra
Vista to Tucson (about 70 miles) three times a week at 5-6AM. Typically it
is in the 40s…top is always down, gloves, sweater, pea-cap, and a great
REI jacket. The sunrise is spectacular.
W. Jake
90Red
Sierra Vista, AZ
On Sun, 22 Mar 1998, James wrote:
> It’s 9:30pm and I just got back from a ride with my top down. My
> thermometer says it’s 62 degrees F. outside. I came really close to
> putting the top up before leaving my house. It was pretty cold and I
> had my hands in front of the heater vents the whole trip. Is 62 deg.
> cold or am I just a whimp? (live in S. Cal). What was the coldest temp
> someone rode with the top down. I want to hear some lowest-temp
> stories!
> -James
> —
> "Kill a psychic… They’ll be expecting you"
> -James
———————————————————
Department of Psychology Department of Psychology
University of Arizona University of Arizona
Tucson, AZ 85721 Sierra Vista, AZ 85635
520 626-4825 office 520 458-8278 x134 office
520 621-9306 FAX 520 626-2492 FAX
———————————————————-
The truth of a knowledge claim is not determined by the strength
of belief held by the individual putting forth the claim.
(Stanovich 1993)
Lanny Chambers wrote:
> But I’m not a *serious* cold-weather driver. Let’s hear from some Canajuns.
The local radio station here in Ottawa sometimes has these "What will you do
for such and such?" competitions. Although I never actually DID this, I was
tempted (oh so tempted) to offer to take the morning DJ on a ride topless
around town when it was below -20C (around -5F).
Of course, that would have required letting the car warm up in a heated
parking garage so the vinyl window wouldn’t crack.
That being said, one nice day in Feb, we were blessed with a fully sunny day
and the temp was around 45F. Top down with hood up at 60mph caused me to get
some stares. Once I reached town, the hood came off and the drive was much
more pleasant.
Got 8" of new snow over the weekend. Darn!
DAvid
’90 White
James wrote:
> It’s 9:30pm and I just got back from a ride with my top down. My
> thermometer says it’s 62 degrees F. outside. I came really close to
> putting the top up before leaving my house. It was pretty cold and I
> had my hands in front of the heater vents the whole trip. Is 62 deg.
> cold or am I just a whimp?
Wimp!
Nine days ago (a Saturday), I gave my wife a ’90 Miata
(white with blue stripes) for her birthday. We spent the day driving
around with the top down. Mostly in town, true. Maximum speed we
hit was probably around 60mph. Minimum temperature we were driving in
was probably about 35F.
And we were warm! ;-P
..Giri
–
e-mail: giyengar "at" ford "dot" com
In article <3515F4D3.3…@ix.netcom.com>, James <jhedj…@ix.netcom.com>
writes
>It’s 9:30pm and I just got back from a ride with my top down. My
>thermometer says it’s 62 degrees F. outside. I came really close to
>putting the top up before leaving my house. It was pretty cold and I
>had my hands in front of the heater vents the whole trip. Is 62 deg.
>cold or am I just a whimp? (live in S. Cal). What was the coldest temp
>someone rode with the top down. I want to hear some lowest-temp
>stories!
>-James
62°F cold! You must really be a wimp. 62°F is a fine summer day here
in the UK and I would have the hood down long before it got that hot,
providing it was dry of course.
Although I have driven below freezing with the hood down on many
occassions we don’t really get severe winters here, so I expect one or
two of your mid-west countrymen or Canadian neighbours are likely to
come up with lower figures.
Providing the sun is out, the heater is up and you are dressed for it –
gloves, scarf and leather jacket – the Miata is still great fun,
possibly even more fun, at sub-zero celcius. You certainly get plenty
of odd looks from passers bye who don’t realise you are as warm as toast
in that setup.
—
Kennedy
Yes, Socrates himself is particularly missed;
A lovely little thinker, but a bugger when he’s pissed.
Python Philosophers (replace ‘nospam’ with ‘kennedym’ when replying)
Last week my wife and I took an afternoon spin in the country in our new
99 beauty. We live in the Seattle area and the temperature was in the
low 50′s. I had the top down and the heater on. It was actually toasty
in the car and I had to turn the heat down.
- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -
a…@bluejay.creighton.edu wrote:
> > It’s 9:30pm and I just got back from a ride with my top down. My
> > thermometer says it’s 62 degrees F. outside. I came really close to
> > putting the top up before leaving my house. It was pretty cold and I
> > had my hands in front of the heater vents the whole trip. Is 62 deg.
> > cold or am I just a whimp? (live in S. Cal). What was the coldest temp
> > someone rode with the top down. I want to hear some lowest-temp
> > stories!
> > -James
> I typically put the top down around 40 degrees F. for city driving, 50F
> for highway (though that does get chilly after a while). The coldest was
> about 32F and snowing (I had to do it at least once!)…
> -alex-
O.K., guess I AM a wimp. I never really thought of wearing gloves
though. My hands stay warm thanks to the eyeball vents. It’s the back
of my head that gets cold (dont have windblocker). If I wore a baseball
cap, I’d look too much like a jock-prick. If I wore a beanie, I’d look
like a lot of the gangsters around here and I might get shot. Also,
they say if you wear hats too often, you’ll lose your hair. I cant let
that happen at 25. Oh well, summer’s practically here anyways – my
digital thermometer says it’s 80.6 degrees F (in the shade)…. Hope my
face doesn’t get too sunburned during the 45 minute commute to school!
-James
It isn’t too cold. Ever.
As has been mentioned, the top gets brittle when it gets cold, so you
definitely have to be careful when you put it down…
James wrote:
> It’s 9:30pm and I just got back from a ride with my top down. My
> thermometer says it’s 62 degrees F. outside. I came really close to
> putting the top up before leaving my house. It was pretty cold and I
> had my hands in front of the heater vents the whole trip. Is 62 deg.
> cold or am I just a whimp?
I think "woos" is the technical term! ;^>
No wonder when I was in Houston last January, I was shocked to see every
single convertible top-up–Miatas, MGs, Triumphs, Fiats, etc.–despite
the fact that it was 85F/60F most of the time I was there.
> What was the coldest temp
> someone rode with the top down. I want to hear some lowest-temp
> stories!
If it’s dry and sunny, I’ll think nothing of driving to work top-down if
it’s above 30 F (15 minutes on the freeway). (Old trite joke–"Yeah, my
girlfriend doens’t think much of it either.") If I’m taking a longer
freeway trip, or if it’s grey and damp (like it has been this winter in
NJ), it’s gotta be at least 50 F or the top stays up. If my gf is in
the car, more like 60 F or above, although she’ll indulge me in the
early spring on a very nice day. Today was the first day in a couple of
months that I would consider top-down to work (32 and sunny at drive
time), but unfortunately I had to take the Integra to work.
Tomorrow….
Eric Lucas
I agree with you that the back of the hands is the problem area, a pair of
gloves will cure that. As for the hat, well, you might not need one with
the gloves on. However, the appropriate hat might be a wool English style
cap with a bill (can’t think of the name — it’s what Jackie Stewart used
to wear).
Good luck!
Geoffrey
- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -
James wrote:
> O.K., guess I AM a wimp. I never really thought of wearing gloves
> though. My hands stay warm thanks to the eyeball vents. It’s the back
> of my head that gets cold (dont have windblocker). If I wore a baseball
> cap, I’d look too much like a jock-prick. If I wore a beanie, I’d look
> like a lot of the gangsters around here and I might get shot. Also,
> they say if you wear hats too often, you’ll lose your hair. I cant let
> that happen at 25. Oh well, summer’s practically here anyways – my
> digital thermometer says it’s 80.6 degrees F (in the shade)…. Hope my
> face doesn’t get too sunburned during the 45 minute commute to school!
> -James
My rule of thumb is down to 40 degrees when the sun is shining and down to
50 degrees without the sun. I love nighttime with the top down. I wear a
good windbreaker, a fur-lined Russian style hat (with flaps that can pull
down over the ears) and motorcycle gauntlet type gloves. That plus the heat
going generally keeps me warm enough.
- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -
James wrote:
> It’s 9:30pm and I just got back from a ride with my top down. My
> thermometer says it’s 62 degrees F. outside. I came really close to
> putting the top up before leaving my house. It was pretty cold and I
> had my hands in front of the heater vents the whole trip. Is 62 deg.
> cold or am I just a whimp? (live in S. Cal). What was the coldest temp
> someone rode with the top down. I want to hear some lowest-temp
> stories!
> -James
> —
> "Kill a psychic… They’ll be expecting you"
> -James
On a related topic, I also discovered by accident that driving with the top
down in the rain is no problem – as long as you keep moving. I was driving
a long distance on the freeway and a day when rain kept coming out of
nowhere for a few minutes, then I’d be back in the sun. The windshield
created an airflow that kept any rain from getting in the passenger
compartment, and at some points it was really pouring. Of course, if I had
to stop, I would have been in trouble. As it was, I got many great stares
but kept perfectly dry and comfortable.
- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -
James wrote:
> It’s 9:30pm and I just got back from a ride with my top down. My
> thermometer says it’s 62 degrees F. outside. I came really close to
> putting the top up before leaving my house. It was pretty cold and I
> had my hands in front of the heater vents the whole trip. Is 62 deg.
> cold or am I just a whimp? (live in S. Cal). What was the coldest temp
> someone rode with the top down. I want to hear some lowest-temp
> stories!
> -James
> —
> "Kill a psychic… They’ll be expecting you"
> -James
Hello from sunny Nova Scotia, Canada (That is on the east coast). I couldn’t
help but notice the thread on driving in the cold. I just purchased a 1996
Green Miata. The weekend after I purchased it (I took the Friday off) It was
14 degrees Fahrenheit not including a wind-chill. I had a blast for about 20
minutes. (Warmed the car up in a garage first – to protect the window) If it
was 62 degrees here I would take another day off to go cruising – great
weather.
Ian James
James wrote:
> O.K., guess I AM a wimp. Oh well, summer’s practically here anyways – my
> digital thermometer says it’s 80.6 degrees F (in the shade)…. Hope my
> face doesn’t get too sunburned during the 45 minute commute to school!
> -James
That’s it.
STOP IT! STOP IT! STOP IT!
I’m sick an tired of hearing about 70+ degrees F. This morning it was down to
15F. *I’m* still in the midst of winter. Can you guys please not post
weather reports. It makes me depressed.
Oh well, it’s the price of being a "Canajun". I’ll live vicariously through
you guys for a while. How about that?
"The joy is in the ride"
David
’90 White
> It isn’t too cold. Ever.
Exactly! The measure of "should the top go up" is more
precipitation-based… eg, "will I get wet at 25-55 mph?" The real
problem here is that the car, for some, is a coupe w/ optionally
removable top, rather than a roadster w/ optionally installable hood.
> As has been mentioned, the top gets brittle when it gets cold, so you
> definitely have to be careful when you put it down…
Which is why the tonneau is so wonderful- the top can stay down for
weeks at a time (just park uphill).
—
Austin David — http://havoc.gtf.gatech.edu/austin/
Austin @ Modus Operandi.com – Modus Operandi Labs
Knowledge Solutions for Business — http://www.ModusOperandi.com
Well, I’m from Wisconsin , and I’m one of the fur-coat types. There’s a
reason why I left.
I’ve actually found that a denim jacket and cotton gardener’s gloves
work fine most of the time.
- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -
<dek…@freenet.edmonton.ab.ca> wrote:
> James, face it, you’re a wimp. Five degrees Celcius (around 40F) is the
> limits to which Mazda places on raising and lowering the soft-top. Below
> that, you can crack it, especially the rear window.
> The coldest I’ve driven the car, without hard-top, and the soft-top stored
> was two years ago on our club’s Polar Bear Run on New Year’s Day. It was
> a clear, sunny, windy day at -19C (-2F). We were out for half an hour.
> When I ice dice the car (Solo I on local ice racing track), I have the hard-
> top off too, as I don’t fit well wearing a helmut, and it’s pretty cold then
> too, as at the end of the straight, you’re travelling upwards of 70mph.
> As to your southern California weather tollerance…just look around in winter
> at the crazies wearing shorts and tee-shirts when typical Califorians are
> wearing fur coats…they’re from Canada!
> Regards,
> Richard Dekker, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, M-CLUB #90, MCofA #41997
> Founder & President, Wild Rose Chapter – Miata Club of America
> 1990 MX-5 Miata – Mariner Blue with double white stripes & GReddy turbo
> Team 1:1, 1:10, 1:18, 1:24, 1:60, & 1:87 Miatas
–
Owen Strawn
In article <35174BD8.A1752…@neworld.net>, Mark Cutler
<cut…@neworld.net> writes
>On a related topic, I also discovered by accident that driving with the top
>down in the rain is no problem – as long as you keep moving. I was driving
>a long distance on the freeway and a day when rain kept coming out of
>nowhere for a few minutes, then I’d be back in the sun. The windshield
>created an airflow that kept any rain from getting in the passenger
>compartment, and at some points it was really pouring. Of course, if I had
>to stop, I would have been in trouble. As it was, I got many great stares
>but kept perfectly dry and comfortable.
Yep, I’ve done that a lot too – you don’t get much choice here in
England!
On a similar theme, two summers back I was driving home along a little
country lane with trees overhanging the road doing about 45mph when I
got hit smack in the middle of the forehead by a falling acorn!
Dunno’ if it was a jealous squirrel, though.
—
Kennedy
Yes, Socrates himself is particularly missed;
A lovely little thinker, but a bugger when he’s pissed.
Python Philosophers (replace ‘nospam’ with ‘kennedym’ when replying)