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“Thunder” – a big turbo and 405rwhp

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Old 07-24-2011, 05:09 PM
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Default “Thunder” – a big turbo and 405rwhp

I realized the other day that this car has never really had a proper build thread. This thread will be a little bit unconventional though, as the car is more or less finished and I am on the cusp of parting it out (long story short, I’ve decided I only need one turbo Miata and I’m a whole lot more emotionally attached to my green ‘95).

I bought this car in May of 2010 more or less the way it sits now. I’ve replaced a few things along the way – upgraded from MSD coils to the OEM GM LS2 truck coils, put in a new Walbro 255LPH HP fuel pump, and spent $1500 getting the car tuned at Balanced Performance.

Before anybody points out the obvious, the 6ULs weren’t intended to be the ultimate wheel solution for the car. I’ve also got a set of 16x8 ESMs with a +15 offset that filled out the flares a bit better. I was just about to order a set of custom made Spinwerks when I decided to part out the car.

Here is an overview of the build with pics:

Engine Block
Wiseco 9:1 pistons
Carillo H beam rods
ARP main studs
01+ modified main cap girdle/ MBSP
ISC Racing baffled oil pan
ISC Racing crank scraper
Nismo GTR engine mounts

Head
Integral Racing Cams - 272 degree, head clearanced for additional lift
Balanced/ bullnosed, and fully polished crank
BEGi Intake Manifold
ARP head studs
Flyin Miata stainless valves
Flyin Miata springs
ATI damper pulley
01+ oil pump, shimmed for 75psi max pressure at motor
Boundary Engineering billet oil pump gears
OEM Protege head gasket


Engine Management
Hydra Nemeis ECU v2.6

Turbo
Garrett 3071 twin scroll turbo
BEGi cast manifold
Tial 38mm wastegate
BEGi separated gases downpipe; V banded and heat wrapped
Intercooler and piping
Synapse BOV
BEGi turbo hard lines/ distribution block

Boost Control
AEM Truboost

Fuel
RC 750 injectors
Walbro 255LPH HP Fuel Pump

Ignition
GM LS2 Truck Coils
MSD Plug Wires

Exhaust
BEGi full 3"exhaust, no cats; heat wrapped to the exhaust tip

Lubrication
Accumsump 3 qt oil reservoir
Dual Earls 6"x8" oil coolers
Remote oil filter housing

Suspension
Tein Monoflex coilovers – revalved; 14kg front, 10kg rear
Racing Beat 1.25" front bar, 5/8" rear bar, end links, braces/mounts
Cobalt 3 point strut tower brace
Mazda competition bushings

Brakes
Goodwin racing big brake kit, DBA 2 piece rotors

Body
Garage vary front lip
Fender flares
Aluminum hood with vents
Hardtop with roof mounted vortex generators
PPF brace (Goodwin Racing)
FM Frame Rails and Butterfly brace

Safety
Hard Dog cage
G Force Harnesses

Cooling
Springfield Dyno radiator
Bell coolant reroute
6x8" power steering cooler

Interior
Ultra shield full containment seat
Momo steering wheel; locking quick release hub

Aero
APR GTC 200 wing
Vortex generators mounted on the roof

Gauges
Traqmate system with display
Autometer fuel pressure
Autometer oil pressure
Autometer oil temp
Autometer coolant temp
Autometer wideband O2

Transmission
Quaife gearbox – wide ratio 5 speed (new, uninstalled)
ACT Prolite flywheel
ACT Xtreme clutch, 6 puck sprung disc
Torsen with 3.9 ring gear and Mazda Comp diff bushings

Wheels/ Tires
949 Racing 6ULs – Gen 1
225/45/15 Hankook RS2s

ESM 16x8 wheels +15 offset
Toyo R888 245/45/16

Misc
Traqmate
2.3L AFFF fire suppression system
Cool shirt 12qt clubman system

Now, for some pictures:
























Last edited by nickt93; 07-29-2011 at 05:17 PM.
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Old 07-24-2011, 05:10 PM
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GM LS2 Truck coils with a custom made bracket:


Garrett 3071 with anti-surge compressor housing






Hydra Nemesis EMS v2.6





AERO




Rooftop Mounted Vortex Generators




Rear diffuser


Garage Vary Front Lip
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Old 07-24-2011, 05:10 PM
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COOLING



EXHAUST










SAFETY

Fire supression system with cabin-mounted actuator






SUSPENSION





PPF brace



Fuel

Last edited by nickt93; 07-24-2011 at 05:22 PM.
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Old 07-24-2011, 05:11 PM
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GAUGES








LUBRICATION







Oil coolers mounted in each wheel well






INTERIOR









Elise seat


Hood vents


The whole family



And more pictures here: https://picasaweb.google.com/nickt93...taTurboThunder

Last edited by nickt93; 07-25-2011 at 11:32 AM.
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Old 07-24-2011, 05:33 PM
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Holy ****! You're trying to get rid of it? Very nice. It would take the jaws of life to pry me away from something like that.
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Old 07-24-2011, 05:35 PM
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Since I saw your thread way back when you bought it I always wondered about the full breakdown on the mods to this car. Very nice indeed.
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Old 07-24-2011, 05:40 PM
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That's insanity. Do you think the ppf brace made a significant difference? And how much work was it to use those motor mounts
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Old 07-24-2011, 05:44 PM
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Very well done. What intake manifold is that?
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Old 07-24-2011, 06:55 PM
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Good Lord, I just drooled all over my keyboard! That's just freaking awesome! Thunder is an understatement.
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Old 07-24-2011, 07:02 PM
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Thanks guys - it really is an insane car. After I picked it up from getting it tuned at Balanced Performance it was f-ing scary to drive...ridiculously fast.

Originally Posted by mx5autoxer
Holy ****! You're trying to get rid of it? Very nice. It would take the jaws of life to pry me away from something like that.
I thought it would take the jaws of life to pry me away, but instead all it took was an LSX swapped IS300.

Originally Posted by thegrapist

That's insanity. Do you think the ppf brace made a significant difference?
The car is stiff as hell, but it's hard to say how much is attributable to the PPF brace - with the cage, frame rails, etc. it's hard to isolate and I never drove the car before the PPF brace. I'll get back to you once I put the PPF brace on my 95.

Originally Posted by thirdgen
What intake manifold is that?
It's a BEGi. They've stopped making this version I believe - the one they sell currently looks different.
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Old 07-24-2011, 08:39 PM
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Judging from your baller town home, get some ******* Xidas on that thing.

Badass car BTW.
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Old 07-24-2011, 08:59 PM
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I remember seeing the for sale thread.

Baus
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Old 07-24-2011, 10:18 PM
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If you're totally parting out, I would really love your cams. Trust me I will put them to good use. Alternative would be a head trade--- I have the same valve train but the head is pnp'd.
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Old 07-24-2011, 10:47 PM
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Originally Posted by hustler
Judging from your baller town home, get some ******* Xidas on that thing.

Badass car BTW.
Nick's house is definitely not a townhome.

Sucks to hear that you've made the decision to part it out, but I'm sure the 95' will get some love out of it.
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Old 07-25-2011, 08:59 AM
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I'd throw it up on eBay to see if you can get what you want for it before parting. Might be worth your effort and a lot less work than parting.
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Old 07-25-2011, 10:06 AM
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Originally Posted by Doppelgänger
Sucks to hear that you've made the decision to part it out, but I'm sure the 95' will get some love out of it.
Yeah man, it was a tough decision, but after a year of blood sweat and tears and never getting the car to run perfectly I'm kind of at my wit's end. You are right though - there will be plenty of upgrades for the '95 out of the whole deal.

BTW, haven't seen you in a while. Hope all is well man. I'll be at the August C&O in a few weeks if you are around.

Originally Posted by m2cupcar
I'd throw it up on eBay to see if you can get what you want for it before parting. Might be worth your effort and a lot less work than parting.
I'm all about less work, but there's two main reasons I decided against trying to sell the car whole:

- The history of other high HP Miata sales (or lack thereof) in the past year. This car, Robino's, etc all sat for weeks/ months and ended up selling for a fraction of their build cost. Did Matt Andrews' car ever sell? Tough market for highly modified Miatas.

- I'm planning to take a bunch of parts from this car for my '95. At the moment, I'm planning to take the Wilwood brakes, Traqmate, BEGi intake manifold, APR wing, oil coolers, and Accusump. I'll also swap the Tein monos for the JIC Magics on my '95.

The part out shouldn't be too much trouble - I think I already have a buyer for the head, and I'll post up in the classifieds here once I pull everything else. I'm going to see if there is any interest in the chassis as a roller: body with hardtop, vented hood, full rollcage, GV front lip, full Mazda Comp bushing set, etc. Would make a great start for a turbo build or a V8 swap.
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Old 07-25-2011, 10:45 AM
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You gave me some very good ideas, sir!

Thanks for the pics!


Does this bottom end use a MBSP? When you part it out, let me know about the bottom end! I will pay for shipping.

Matt
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Old 07-27-2011, 12:28 PM
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Originally Posted by shlammed
Does this bottom end use a MBSP? When you part it out, let me know about the bottom end! Matt
It does indeed have a MBSP - I accidentally listed that under the head in the first post, but have since moved it to the block section.

I should be pulling the motor in the next few weeks - I'll let you know once I do.
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Old 07-27-2011, 01:15 PM
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Whoa, where is the part out thread? And if you'd sell the car whole, PM me.

EDIT: Just re-read. Let me know about the chassis either way.

Last edited by dgmorr; 07-27-2011 at 01:29 PM.
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Old 07-27-2011, 01:29 PM
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I was going to ask you about the reliability of your s4 manifold, but that definitely isnt an s4 manifold in the picture.
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