hi_im_sean

iTrader: (3)

my friend mike and i bought this 90 miata, all stock with about 145k on it, a little over a year ago. its sole intention is cheap thrills. cheap is a relative term i guess, thats why we split everything. we run some time trials and non competitive track days, with the occasional autocross and fun commutes. i wanted to turbo it before we even bought it and now im finally getting the parts together.

here are all the mods done so far, i must warn i am a picture *****

frog rails



205/50-15 kuhmo ecsta xs



cars


clutch master cylinder froze up one day






11lb fw



f1 clutch


tranny before


after


about 4k miles later, the tranny gets stuck in 5th gear unless you are going over 70, in which case it only takes the weight of a gorilla to take it out of gear. taking off from 5th gear sucks. i have another tranny i need to install soon.

boss frog clearview maxx and mike, the co owner/driver




some water damage


some majestic mountains


number 7


td04-13t from an 04 wrx $50


it wasnt in horrible shape, but i wanted to rebuild it anyway
















i didnt like wiertechs flange for what im doing






this goofy shape will make sense later


flip side blended to 2.5" round


diverter for divorced downpipe




i couldnt find the 1.5"/38mm wastegate v band peices i wanted so i machined my own








wastegate hole


a little flapper clearancing
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full weld inside with 1/2" beads on the outseide per corky bell. except with a mig and not tig. the wastegate vband is angled and offset to clear the dump tube clamp
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grindling the welds purdy
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i sanded it flat and weled my diverter piece on.
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sitting on top of the turbo
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lightly ported turbo
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i did the turbo inlet as well but dont have a pic at the moment

before
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the ugly marks are from me screwing around with a fille
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after
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i made a "flaring mandrel" and heated up a T and pressed it in to widen the opening to fit the turbo flange.




i have that flange welded up and milled flat but i dont know where the pics of that went. i have a log manifold in process right now, ill post pics of that soon. a megasquirt will be the next thing i want to buy and get it tuned for n/a until i get the rest of the turbo parts. na8 front brakes and power stop pads were also installed recently as we toasted the brakes at the last track day. the plan is to get to 200-220 whp. this will be a slow build.

i might have a track day at the end of the month so i need to swap trannys asap. i also have a FM vmaxx track pack waiting to be installed so that stuff will probably take priority for now.

butters

psyber_0ptix

iTrader: (4)

nice fab skills!

hi_im_sean

iTrader: (3)

i got all the seals replaced in the "new" tranny so i could install it today. it decides to rain all day today so that didnt happen. so instead i made a solid steel shift ****. i wanted to see if a heavier **** would improve shifts. its about twice the weight of the stock ****, and it pushes the boot down more(looks cleaner) unlike the stock ****.







so that only leaves me next weekend to get the tranny replaced, so i probably wont have the suspension done in time for my track day. lame

hi_im_sean

iTrader: (3)

having trouble deciding on whether i should go for the ms3, or if the ms2 is sufficient.
im not running a/c
i want EBC. is it possible to have a boost switch for 2 different boost settings on the same tune? or can you you have 2 different maps and switch between them on the fly. id like to be able to flip a toggle and limit it to wastegate pressure for when the wife wants to drive it or whatever. it would be as simple as wiring switched 12v to the soleniod, im just not sure how the ecu will handle be limited to 6psi at higher rpm when its on a tune for say 12psi. or am i an ignorant dipshit?
i have a netbook i can log with and dont think the sd card is necessary , but is the convenience worth it to those that have used it?
do they larger tables in ms3 make a big differnece
i using an AEM uego if that matters
i want to use map, is the map daddy(2nd sensor) worth it?
im not sure what else to ask regarding the differences.
1990 1.6 for the tl/dr

on a side note ive read a bit here about having to build the **** out of the hot parts to make them survive on the track. any tips on my above work? also on the log mani that is in process?

tranny went in today, should be on the track this weekend. yay

hi_im_sean

iTrader: (3)

no thoughts on the above? *crickets*

after i got the tranny in last week i find out 3rd gear grinds pretty bad at anything over 3000rpm, up or down shifting. i hate craigslist sometimes, was only $100 though. it gets worse as the tranny warms up. i dumped the cheap **** 75-90 and poured in some syncromesh, hoping it would just make this tranny last longer until i can get a rebuild. speaking of which anyone ever dealt with JO motorsports? hes running a good deal for rebuilds
JO Motor Sports

i drove it about 100 miles and did my track day on sunday, which was 10, 20 minute sessions. it was crunching horribly into 3rd gear at 7000rpm shifts. after about the 4rth session the grind completely went away. im curious if the tranny just got hotter than normal, causing a greater change in clearances or some ****, or if the syncromesh had anything to do with it. ive never been a believer in "magic fluids" fixing problems, but what do i know.

i havnt driven it since. im going to tomorrow, and ill see if that grind comes back.

anyway heres some video of an unexciting n/a na



lap 5 with racerender and rearview

dieselmiata

iTrader: (3)

MS2 is sufficient. MS3 is better.

Your fab skills are awesome.

And so is Butters.

Fireindc

iTrader: (13)

Sweet build, looks awesome. Lots of attention to detail here. I'm rocking a ms1, so I'm no help on the ms2/3 debate. All I know at this point, is that if I were personally going to upgrade from a ms1, it would absolutely without a doubt be to a ms3e.

viperormiata

iTrader: (24)

Wicked fab work, man. If you're spending the coin for a new MS, might as well get the 3.

hi_im_sean

iTrader: (3)

thanks for the compliments guys. i suppose for only another $100 i might as well just do the 3.

hi_im_sean

iTrader: (3)

tranny only grinds now when you shift like a dick. treat it right and it stays quiet. good enough for now i guess.

after researching the ms3 some more, i realized for all the outputs it has ready to go that i dont have to build, its worth the $100.

i got sick of not being able to hear the car at all on the track or in general. so i got on summit and bought the cheapest 2" muffler available, which is a walker "sound fx". it happened to be the perfect size as well. this is just to hold me over until turbo, i feel like such a ricer. it sounds surprisingly decent and not loud.

hi_im_sean

iTrader: (3)

started installing vmaxxs and fm sways today



if anyone runs this setup and has the exposed thread under the collar spec for the recommended ride height, that would be cool. i failed at google today it seems

curly

iTrader: (25)

That all varies greatly depending on desired ride height, and the weight of the car+driver. It's really just guess and check. Measure from the pinch welds in the sills, find 949's recommended specs, and start raising and lowering the car. I believe you're supposed to do it with the sways disconnected too.

Go up and down with the lugs on to whatever your drill's highest impact setting is, but in order to fine tune it, you need to torque the lugs and go for a drive to settle the suspension between adjustments to reach your desired ride height.

hi_im_sean

iTrader: (3)

i was afraid id have to do it that way. i was just wondering if anyone with a stock na knew how much thread was exposed for the FM recommended ride height of 12-12.5", from fender lip to center of hub iirc. i hear these springs settle a half inch or so after a few hundred miles. im at 13.5" front right now, but im inclined on my drive way. so im going to drive it a bit before i screw with it and i need to check it on level ground.

Efini~FC3S

iTrader: (4)

I have the regular vmaxx on a basically stock '97 and I have the rears at basically as low as it will go before the collars/perches intefere with drive shafts. Unfortunately, it wasn't really enough to get the 12.5" ride height.

I don't remember on the front (how many threads below collars) but I think I'm at about 12.5" front, 13" rear...

Sorry, I'm not much help, but I do remember on the rear I had to go all they way down until it would be close to touching the DS

hi_im_sean

iTrader: (3)

i have read posts where peolpe were saying the rear collar had to be 2.5" minimum to clear something (driveshafts i guess). my car is a little lighter than yours and i got the track pack, so i may have an the same issue but worse. that would suck. id have to call fm on that. i also recall the nbs being a liitle differnt. for what its worth, the front is at 2" of exposed thread right now, and ive got an inch or so to play with before the collar hits the upper control arm.

hi_im_sean

iTrader: (3)

i pulled the a/c out. some one rigged this setup together and it has never worked that well in arizona summer. and because race car.

a stick welded custom bracket and what i was told by a miata friend is a gm compressor, along with a dyer from a ? with sheet metal screws/hose clamps into L brackets and a universal condenser with more sheet metal brackets . the hoses were nicely made and probably cost a lot of money for a hack **** job. the compressor flare fitting is stripped too so i had to cut a line off. i hate hacked work.








rear v-maxxs going on next. i need to get some steel to make some diy frog arms as those will follow the vmaxxs

hi_im_sean

iTrader: (3)

got a "new in box" 5 point off craigslist yesterday for $20!. i had originally called the guy for a buddy club spec seat he wanted $50 for, but my *** is too big. anyway, its 8 years old so certifications ran out in 2010. but since im not actually racing, i dont need no stinkin certs. in either case for $20 i couldnt pass it up, it waas never mounted. im told deist will re-certify it for $60.



today... i make a gas pedal extension. and i guess ill be making a harness bar soon.


and this is wesly

hi_im_sean

iTrader: (3)

so i got the suspension installed and finally got to drive it and i have to say its awesome. the car is so much more poised and solid now. no more bump steer, no more smacking bump stops on just about everything. i can make lane changes on the freeway and run over the reflectors without shitting my pants. the car just stays so flat now when cornering and braking. for archive- i got 13" front and rear by setting the rears to 2.5" and the front to about 1 3/4" of exposed threads beneath the collars. there is still a little over a 1/4" of adjustment in the rears. ill check them again/readjust in a week or so after i get some more miles on it. ill have a better report when i track it again.

and in other news i was running all of it in my subaru and it decided it would try to blow the end tanks off the intercooler. common subi issue with the lame crimped plastic intercoolers when running moar boost.

hi_im_sean

iTrader: (3)

i got my final ride heights dialed in today. i never had to touch the rears; with 2.5" of exposed thread they have settled to 12 7/8". i had to back the fronts off a bit to get them to around 12.5". so with that done i decided i would make a camber gauge, or more accurately, a bracket to mount a magnetic angle finder that will indicate camber. all 4 corners are way off.

i got
fl- 1.6
fr- 0
rl- 2.4
rr- 1.4

the car has been pulling, i forgot which direction. i didnt have time to set up strings today, but maybe this weekend, and ill attempt my first driveway alignment.

also the right rear wheel bearing started squeaking. so i just decided to replace both sides and got 2 new timken bearings. the recent rear hub failures convinced me to get some new rear hubs as well, still waiting on those.

i machined 2 peices of hex stock to the exact same height with a 60 degree taper on the end, threaded m6x1 in one end m12x1.5 in the other. piece of flat plate, holes 100 mm apart, blah blah blah




painted the cold side my fav color, pulled the alignment pins and reclocked so the oil drain is pointing straight down.

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got another track day coming up on the 10th, its going to be another mad rush to get a bunch of **** done

hi_im_sean

iTrader: (3)

i got both rear hubs and bearings replaced, that was a bitch. my slide hammer wouldnt do **** to the hub. so i ended up just taking the upright off and cutting the dust shield and pounding it out on the vise. bearings came out on the press easy enough. the drivers side looked good, but was dry, all the grease had pushed out. the passenger side looked ok, but was a little grindy in my hand and was even dryer. a few more noises cleared up other than recently developed squeak, which i thought was interesting.

i laid a sting out today and set toe.



went to 0 toe in front, turn in is sooo much better. the rear was at about 3/32" total so i left it alone.

i love southwest cars. bolts came loose nice and easy and adjusted with little effort.



i discovered my camber gauge setup introduced an error, so i just used the machined inside lip on the daisies. the front pass side maxed out to 1.4 degrees. normal? i could easily get the drivers side to 2 degrees, but ended up having to back it off to mach the pass. side. the rear driver side couldnt be adjusted lower than 1.4 degrees, but the top upright bushing is worn on that side, the pass. side is tight.

someone is getting a ****
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