Shoot, I'm pretty sure the wife will blow a gasket if I start another car project before I finish rebuilding our deck anyway. I know what it's like to have a hundred projects going at once.

So are you currently at 4.75? If so that's fairly high, and yes a ~4" will help in the rear, but that's really low. You most likely have bent control arms in the front. That plus lower ride height will help. But those bent control arms are also usually tracked cars afaik.

Ordered a set of camber bolts & ELBJ's from 949. Let's see if we can get this alignment fixed up. It feels like butt.

Yep. 4.5 front, 4.75 rear. I think I'll drop it .25 to try & get .3* more rear camber, and the ELBJ's should get me the extra 1* front camber I'm after. I wouldn't be surprised if something is bent. Judging by the condition of my frame rails & pinch welds, it looks like the PO decided to go dorifto over some hinkelsteins.

I'd get new lower control arms with the extended ball joints then. Or not. Either way don't sacrifice ride height for a little camber.

Swapped in ELBJ's & new eccentrics in the front. I still need to swap out the rear eccentrics. The vertical bolt attaching the ball joint to the control arm was jacked up on both sides: one was striped, and the other was completely loose. Not sure how that would affect alignment geometry, but it couldn't be good.

For anyone who has run both the 949 street and dual duty alignments, do you recommend one over the other for DD on meh tires? I'm only running 195/50 all seasons on 15x7's, which makes me think the dual duty would be overkill.

Went to replace the rear eccentric bolts, and it looks like I've spring a leak in my differential. Half shaft gaskets are only 2k miles old. Oh well.

https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...361f80112b.jpg

Still playing the alignment game. After new eccentric bolts and ELBJ'S, I have an entirely different weird alignment:

Front camber -3*
Front caster 4.5*
Front toe 1/8"

Rear camber -1.4*
Rear toe 1/8"

I'm running at 4.5" front/4.75" rear, with a 1"RB bar in the front & 12mm OEM bar in the rear.

The shop says they can't get the front camber any more positive, or the rear any more negative.

Aside from eating my front tires for breakfast, what can I expect from running such a large difference in camber front to rear?

I hate having to throw money at the problem, but I'm starting to think the only way to get my front and rear camber where I want them is to buy adjustable rear upper control arms, and raise the ride height an inch.

Risky snap oversteer.

Should have bought two of these for suspension work years ago...

https://www.amazon.com/uxcell%C2%AE-.../dp/B00857SKZ2

You're going to eat your front tires from the toe, not the camber. Zero it out

I got a set of Paco adjustable RUCA's, and I've been fiddling around with my alignment a bit more. As of right now, I'm at about -2.9* camber front, -2.57* rear. Ride height is about 5" front with .25" rake.

That's very good. What's the toe with those settings?

Good question. I haven't zeroed it back out for a couple weeks. Maybe I'll have some time today weather permitting.

OK, I finally got some time into the miata today. First, I fiddled with my alignment. Here's where it's at now:
Front toe: 0
Front camber -2.78*
Caster: 4.5* (maybe- haven't checked it since last alignment)
Rear total toe: in 1/8"
Rear camber: -2.5*

I also did some vanity projects: I put on an OEM R package style front air dam, a shorty antenna, and new leather boots for shifter & ebrake. I refinished the original wood Nardi furniture and put it back on.

https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...e70e3c8397.jpg


Last but not least, I plumbed my crank case breathers with A/O separators in preparation for turbo. I added an extra check valve in line with the OEM PCV valve. It looks Frankensteined mostly because it is. If it works well, & the routing works out, I'll make it more permanent.

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...32a73919bc.jpg

Oil captured after about a month
https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...4b6a4441af.jpg

Also did a couple maintenance items today. The starter motor was starting to sound horrible, so I switched to a new NB style starter.

I also scored two good door actuator assemblies, greased them up with Honda grease, and ditched my old slow actuators. Like frogs in a dynamite pond.

Double post

I decided to take the plunge and swap my perfectly good head for a VICS/VVT setup. I've ordered all the parts I need except for... let's see... a tap for mounting the crank sensor on the oil pump, and a pull up resistor for the RPM signal in my DIYPNP. I'll be controlling the VVT with the standalone box. I'm also going to LS2 truck coils when I make the swap.

I would highly suggest just selling the DIYPNP and getting a MS3X instead. It probably won't be to much more then the VVT tuner after you factor in the cost of that box, but will have a ton of nice features and tuneabilty over the MS2/VVT tuner combo.

I agree, pretty much why I sold my old MS2.

Someone will pay you the cost of a new ms3x kit for your DIYPNP. Then all you need is an ecu connector, I think everything but the 2001+ are pretty easy to order for less than $30.

I understand the stand alone + ms2 is a clunky option, but I already ordered the VVT box. The thought of trying to sort out another home made ECU at the same time as the engine bay rewire seemed risky. I'm considering the jump straight to 3pro when I have a little coin.

Aaaagh! You guys are right. I'm calling this morning to see if I can upgrade my order to the PNP pro3. Maybe they'll even throw in some popsicle sticks so I can make my family some Xmas presents too...

This is the correct thing to do. You have made a good choice. Shoot me an email once you get it in and I can share 2 of my tunes for you. I have 2 94's running VVT motors, and have a good starting point for lots of things.

Awesome. That will be a big help.

Since I'm adding LS2 coils and the PNP pro at the same time, I'm wondering if I should wire the coil harness to add sequential spark. Seems like a pretty simple change to make?

I will try to look the next night or two how I wired my LS coils for sequential. I believe I ended up using one of the tach wires for one coil, then ran a separate wire for the other coil, or maybe I routed it through one of the egr wires.

OK, MSPNP-PRO purchased. I also picked up a set of supertech valve seals & a set of ARP head studs. I know the factory studs aren't TTF, but the prospect of never again having to worry about how crusty the block threads are was too tempting.

Started tearing into my junkyard VVT head. Torx fasteners on the actuator plate came right out, so that was nice.

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...a4d84c7a3e.jpg


I'm not sure how smooth the head deck needs to be. I'm working to clean it up, but I don't know if this degree of light surface scratching is a concern. I basically just used a plastic scraper and a razor to lift remnants of the old MLS gasket coating. The head checks out as flush down to .0015" with a .001" accurate straight edge at every point on the head I could get a measurement. Obviously I have a bunch more work to do regardless of whether i get the head decked or not .

https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...e7a9177111.jpg

What's it cost to put the right surface on it? Mine were either $40 or $60 bucks, and it was for a composite gasket too.

Have it decked, it's not flat enough nor the right surface finish for a MLS gasket any other way. I'd just have them skim it flat, no more than necessary.

So I just pulled a good solid bonehead move. I tipped the head over after pulling cams & spilled out about half a dozen lifters. Now I figure I can measure valve clearances & get a good estimate of what goes where, but... I always hear bad things about mixing used lifters. What should i do?

Get new lifters or mixed used lifters. What else could you possibly do other than that?

Right. I guess my question is whether i need to buy new lifters now that I've mixed them up, or if it's not a big enough deal to justify the purchase.

How many miles on the lifters and how do they look?

Unknown miles. I'll take some pics when I get home.

All pics of the same lifter in different light & different angles. They all look about the same.

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...105fd8d41c.jpg
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...da9a6047f0.jpg
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...df23cd578c.jpg
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...031af836a7.jpg
https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...730fc14c62.jpg

I would run them if you are on a budget. If you going full baller then replace them. I bet you will be ok. Maybe mic them just in case.

Turbo kitteh approves of VICS manifold.

https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...5df1222d23.jpg

Good things happening here...

I got the handy VVT refurb kit from Miata Roadster. I've replaced everything except the o-rings that go inside the actuator. I hear nothing but mixed results when people crack open the actuator. If anyone has a recommendation either way, I'm all ears.

https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...dadc3d5f1f.jpg

Pulled & cleaned the intake side valve train last night. I'll do the exhaust side tonight. I used this compressor tool Greg recommended on TCPC:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B009G...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I found a local shop that charges $70 for a low RA head decking for MLS HG heads. Same day pickup FTW.

If you don't loose any parts in the gear (I think that's what you mean by actuator), and take plenty of photos, taking it apart is very easy. That being said I've hardly ever seen one leak from the big o-rings. Or the little ones for that matter. But you can take the bolts out one at a time without any disassembly.

Thanks for the feedback. What kind of torque value do you aim for on the four bolts with O-rings?

I hand lapped all the valves last night. It's tedious but rewarding. All the seats look really good now. Next up, water checking how well they're sealing.

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...20c48d0671.jpg

Got the head decked, and all the valves/springs/keepers installed. The plastic bag trick for installing keepers is the jam. All valves passed leak test. I'm just waiting on a couple shims to finish putting it all back together.

Christmas came early! I has churbo.

https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...20d738ec70.jpg

WootWoot!

Your manifold and mid pipe are on the way. Your down pipe and axle back are sitting on my garage floor with 4 or 5 other setups waiting to go out as soon as I get boxes in.

:yippee:

Commmooonnnnn boxes....

Freeze plugged the front coolant neck. I sealed it with aviation form-a-gasket. I think I'll repurpose my coolant neck block off plate here to hold the plug in place.

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...58d4c049de.jpg

They got done yesterday. Trying to find a truck to borrow so I can go pick them up today.

Manifold & MP arrived today. Kitteh approves.

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...25f400aa20.jpg

I think Lars slipped some catnip in the box...

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...75eb327e62.jpg

Opened up the WG today. Here's the original port. The ID is 17.6mm, and the OD of the flapper is 29mm, although the flapper lip has a slight fillet to it. Other builds have had success with increasing the ID by 5mm. Here you can see my marks for the OD of the flapper and my target WG hole centered under the flapper (the existing WG hole is offset under the flapper). I used the aluminum bung that DIY sells with their IAT kit as my template for the WG hole I wanted to make. It has an OD of 23mm and a small chamfer, which made for a pretty ideal template for my target ID of 22.6mm.
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...96ebb4c66d.jpg

Here's the finished product:

I managed to measure all my lifter shims before I lapped my valves in. I double checked my clearances last night, and they're all whack now. Thems was some dirty valve seats. Live and learn. Nothing like buying stuff twice.

F%@K! can't believe I missed out on this deal. If sale falls thorough. I'm interested.

...potato.

Ms2
 

..

Mobile is being weird. Posted in another thread and showed up here?

I mean you can always send me an email and get in on a sweet MKTurbo setup. It just won't be as good as a deal since the group buy is over.

Ms2
 

...

... Still nope. But here's a picture for you.

https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...76685c1647.jpg