andy516

Hi i am Andy i am located here in scottsdale, az i bought my first import about 2 months ago it is a 1990 miata mx-5 convertible. It has 50k miles on rebuilt engine and 75k on transmission recently having problems ( seems like the engine is not connected to the transmission i figured a bad clutch ). i currently work for myself doing basic automotive work and advanced computer graphics design and custom built gaming computers.

thats all about me for now

oh i also go to Glendale community college working on ASE certification then onto UTI.

viperormiata

iTrader: (24)

Welcome to the forum. What are you plans for the car?

andy516

my plans are a lowering kit. vader body kit performance low profile tires and a single turbo. and some engine upgrades maybe have it built up a little some new pistons rings some other stuff.

my biggest worry is the car originally has 210k miles so im kind of not sure what i should do before i drop a turbo into it im shooting for 225hp and i am worried about the known crank nose problem.

but that is basically my plans maybe a few other things...

all of a sudden last week it quit shifting hope its only the clutch i did some research on the car and found that the transmission is still connected to the rear wheels but it is not connected to the engine so taking it in after the first of the year kinda busy before then to work on it...

Nagase

iTrader: (6)

Hi, I'm from that city as well.

However... why a body kit? For that, why a vader body kit?

If it just quit shifting, it's likely the slave cylinder. They go bad regularly. Easy to replace.

curly

iTrader: (25)

What Nagase said. Take your passenger side front wheel off, and have someone press on the clutch while you use a flash light to look at the side of the engine, where it meets with the transmission. You should see the slave cylinder moving out when the clutch is pressed, back in when it's released. Could also be low/no fluid, but that'll most likely be caused by a bad seal in the slave cylinder.

You will upgrade your suspension, not buy a lowering kit. Lowering the car is only a side affect of buying better suspension, not your initial goal. You will also not buy a body kit. You will buy newer, stickier ties, with no bigger than 16" wheels and an appropriate tire width. Again, your initial goal is not low profile tires. Welcome.

Nagase

iTrader: (6)

Do a million searches here.

Sounds like you're pretty new. I'd recommend a turbo kit from BEGI or Flyin Miata with a good ecu. They'll let you know what you need for the performance you want. If you go the DIY route, you'll either learn a lot, or (more likely) give up and curse Miatas before going back to wood screwing body kits to 240SX's.

If you're gonna rice up your car, you will want to go to clubroadster.net. You will be loled at here and be tortured for amusement. Just sayin.

andy516

wow you guys are great cause your right i did some more research on it and yeah. body kits suck and dont do what i want. mainly what i am looking for better handling and trying to get the car up to 150mph. my top right now is 112 it was max rpm in fifth.

and i hate rice car personal hate for them. i do have a loud exhaust but it is a magnaflow it makes the car sound like the 2.4 mustangs more then an import lol

ok so far i got upgraded suspension. high performance tires 16inch, and i wont be doing a diy turbo ill buy a kit or have a good friend of mine install it.

also i was curious about NOS i mean is it worth it or would it cause more harm then good lol.

oh and how would i go about putting a better crank nose? on it or would i just include that in the rebuild? upgrading of the engine.

thanks again you guys seem to really know what your talking about.

andy516

oh and i checked the slave cylinder it is all moving fine. so im back to thinking it is the clutch.

oh last question when lifting the car with a floor jack and jack stands where in gods name do i lift it in the back? i did it where the manual said and it started to bend the metal!!! so any help on that would be cool..

andy516

it shifts fine in and out of gears and i can feel it in gear when i push the car. but it is like it is not getting anything from the engine at all like the engine and trans are not connected. but the trans is diffiniatly connected to the rear tires so i dont know lol

Nagase

iTrader: (6)

You definitely don't want to lift from the boxed in parts under the car. The correct place (or at least where I do) is the pinch weld, at the front and back.

Slave cylinder will move if failed, however you will want to pull back the boot to see if it's leaking in there.

Nitrous won't hurt your car /if used correctly/. Used correctly, it's no different than a turbo, except that it needs to be recharged.

If you're planning to rebuild your engine, I heavily recommend swapping in a 1.8 instead with a good VVT head (controller is still in development, but should be done maybe soon? for megasquirt). This will allow you to use all the best performance parts down the road instead of being stuck on the little old 1.6.

And 150? Top up or down?

andy516

iv done 112 with the top down so hoping to hit 150 the same way. yeah i thought about swapping a 1.8 but i have to ask is it worth it. i dont plan to do any major major work to it just 225-250hp. so would a 1.8 really be worth it for me?

and no i checked its not leaking. is there any way i can tell if it extending and retracting properly and far enough?

Nagase

iTrader: (6)

I think your top speed number is very arbitrary, and that you may very well get there with 225 horsepower, maybe.

Is the 1.8 worth it? Maybe not. If that's really all you ever want, 225 horsepower... probably not. However, if you get to 225 and then you're like... how about 250? How about 275? How about 300? (and remember, that's just a couple PSI away... always) Then you'll eventually wish you went 1.8. Your choice.

Hmm, have you tried adjusting your clutch level to see if you can change the engagement point to where it presses harder on your pressureplate?

Adjusting the Clutch

Is how to do the above.

andy516

thats what is hard to explain it is like there is no clutch at all in or out engaged or dis engaged it is like there is no clue engine running i can sit there and shift all the gears with the clutch out and it does nothing.... it is weird and it is totally messed up how it happened instantly no warning noise or nothing just all of a sudden went out when i was stopped at a red light

Nagase

iTrader: (6)

Hm, have you checked your fluid level? Have you checked to make sure the clutch hydraulic line didn't crack and leak out your fluid? That would cause a sudden loss of clutch.

Also, I would recommend having something/someone press down on the clutch pedal, while you're under the car, so you can see if/how much the clutch fork is moving.

Nagase

iTrader: (6)

Did you actually check to see if the slave is leaking?

andy516

yes i checked everything thats simple lol. no leaking moves perfect smooth and full length.

andy516

is 464.53$ a good price to replace the clutch in my 1990 miata? thats parts labor and turning the flywheel whatever that means... lol

Nagase

iTrader: (6)

Turning means to shave it down to good metal and to rebalance it.

I actually have a clutch/pressureplate with only about 1000 miles on it I could sell, and the install isn't that hard.

andy516

thank you for the information. i got a good deal on a new clutch kit thank you greatly tho.



i need to transport the car after the work is down about 2000 miles * going back home for awhile * can i tow the car on a tow dolly with the rear wheels grounded will that hurt the transmission if i leave it in neutral? ( or should i just drop the drive shaft? and if i do drop the drive shaft will all the fluid leak out?

Nagase

iTrader: (6)

The 463$ seems a bit high to me, but it all depends on where you're going for the work. Could be a great price at an awesome shop, or a terrible price at a terrible shop.

When I moved my car across country, I used a flattow. You could disconnect the driveshaft, but that's a lot of tire wear if you have good tires.