babydriver

yo.. about halfway through my voodoo 2 install. being a kit I thought it would be much simpler.. like just bolt on and go.. but there's been a lot of fanagling, hose trimming, and even some grinding.. and i've got a pretty sparse bay with no a/c. I'm taking the install slow and making it as clean as possible. I went with the 2554 because I only want 180hp.. but I want the best 180 hp i can get. I'm not trying to go crazy.. I wasn't really unhappy with how fast a stock miata was. so this should be great for me.

2554, msd retard, AEM wideband,



other details about my car.. 1995 montego, hardtop, koni yellow/FM springs suspension, FM sways, HDHCDD roll bar, lots of weight reduction, FM happy meal, 225/50/15 kumho v710s, MOMO wheel & seat, 5x shifter kit, jet stream TSIs (JK they're $5 autozone trailer lights but you'd be suprised how many people I fool), cut bumper, other random stuff here & there

18psi

iTrader: (76)

Welcome. Good progress and good luck.
FM kit's are about as easy as it gets for install, and everything usually fits no problem and nothing missing........unlike some others

You mention "best 180hp I can have". Then you metion voodoo box and msd retard. Those are polar opposites. Throw them in the trash where they belong and get a proper ecu with wideband if you really want "the best 180hp"

babydriver

well yeah.. I suppose I should have said best 180 with zero turbo knowledge and $3500 hah. I'm learning a ton now and I'll eventually ditch the stock ECU.

Braineack

iTrader: (62)

babydriver, congrats on signing up at the best site on the web!

codrus

Just curious what you had to grind? My experience with the current-gen FM parts is that the grinder hasn't had to come out in a long time (a distinct difference to the BEGI-era parts)

--Ian

Onyxyth

iTrader: (2)

<p>Frame rail lip maybe?</p>

babydriver

i did have to cut/pound the frame out of the way but that was expected.

I actually had to grind one of the bolts on the turbo.. the bolt holding the wastegate bracket was making it so I couldn't tighten the coolant banjo.. so I ground the head down to about 1mm so I could get a wrench on the banjo.. not a huge deal just an annoying thing. I wished they'd put them on before they assembled the turbo.

hose trimming has been the biggest headache though.. seems like nothing lines up. I'm also not a fan of the turbosmart BOV.. why did they make it so every outlet screws off? to accommodate different hose sizes maybe? anyway they kept unscrewing during installation and the rubber gasket is impossible to get back in..

the other problem I had was getting the turbo mounted up.. I have new harder than OEM engine mounts so my engine didn't rock much. just had to unscrew one of the mounts

Onyxyth

iTrader: (2)

<p></p><p>They give you extra hose length so you can cut it to size as needed, I didn't find that to be too much of a headache. Regarding the banjo - yeah I remember that being pretty tight. I ground down a wrench to make it thinner,&nbsp;instead of the bolt.&nbsp;</p><p>Anyway it sounds like you managed everything. Expect more things to not go quite right as you continue to modify. It's par for the course.&nbsp;</p>

codrus

Yeah, the clearances for the various things bolted to the Garrett CHRAs are really tight. You might have been able to solve that problem by reclocking the turbo slightly, but that would have been a lot of backtracking.

As for why the banjos weren't pre-installed, my guess would be that it's because of the optional coolant hard lines.

Sliding the turbo assembly over the exhaust studs takes a bit of doing. It's pretty simple if you have two people -- stick a crowbar between the PS bracket and the block and one person pulls on it while the other puts the manifold on. With just one person I usually unbolt both motor mounts on the bottom and jack the motor up a little bit.

As much pain as it's been, know that it used to be a LOT worse than it is now.

--Ian

babydriver

just an update.. had some serious problems with the voodoo box.. after shipping it to the manufacturer as well as flyin miata.. hooked it up and it still wasn't functioning. FM was cool about it though and refunded the box. I now have a reverant box coming to me and I'm pretty excited. learning all I can in the meantime. can't wait to drive again

Zeddriver

Good luck, I've almost collected all the parts I need. Will start my build soon and curious to see how you make out