Holy god, this car sounds nuts!

In for some videos of proper automotive abuse.

 

Well school is back in so time working on the Miata is limited. Engineering related classes this semester are Vibrations, Systems Engineering, Failure Analysis.

Speaking of failure analysis any experienced turbo guys want to tell me what happened to this 30$ EFR V-band clamp? i made the assumption that i could tighten and remove this nut like i would any other but evidently i was wrong..


This weekend i tried to track down my oil leaks so i pulled the transmission to gain access to the suspected leaky areas. (side note: Its funny looking back at the first time i pulled a miata trans to replace a clutch. It took all day with help. Now days im doing it in 3.5 hours by myself.)

I found 3 super tiny leaks in the pan itself (if it were only these i wouldn't worry about it they are so small.) but i determined the majority is coming from the lower oil pan gasket. Since the face of the pan was warped some due to thermal shrinking during the welding process so the face of the pan and windage tray don't mate up perfectly. My desperate solution was to clean it up the best i could with starter fluid and then go crazy with some gasket maker. From previous experiences success is hit and miss but i don't have the resources or space to pull the engine and fix it the right way right now. Plans for a new pan / dry sump oil system exist but are further down the road.





Just for kicks i took some pics of the clutch / flywheel / PP. To me it looks like its still in the break in process. Someone might notice something i don't though..

 

awesome build!!! gaining inspiration and motivation to get off my butt and get to work.

 

the sound is amazing

 

Your clutch disc is organic on one side and cerametallic on the other? I've never seen that... . Did you wipe the pp/fw surfaces down before photos?

 

the PP side is carbon/kevlar...

Like the Centreforce Dual Friction disc.

I had one...it slipped when it was cold.

 

what are your current spool times like? at what rpm/ per psi?

 

I'm convinced you swapped in a jet turbine engine based on the sounds of that video. It sounds amazing.

 

You got it. dual friction. I called clutch city online and he helped me sort out what i needed with the requirements i had. 26 spline, X" OD contact surface Y ID contact surface and it turned out to be an old ford ranger clutch. (if my memory serves me correctly). Just so happens that he had a guy call in and request a custom dual friction clutch disk and he never followed through with the purchase. I requested at least 300 ft*lb tq clamping force and he confirmed that with the ACT HD pressure plate this disk i should be good. Engagement is nice and smooth.

**edit because forgot**

and no, i didn't wipe the surfaces. The car sat for at least a week before disassembly which accounts for some of the light surface rust / imprinting.

 

I'll have to look at the datalogs again but for a quick answer i think it was >0psi at 2700rpm and 15 psi by 3400.. something like that. When i get it running again i'll post up. Might be able to make some comparison if you look close in the video. boost gauge is the left of the 3 on the dash.


**edit**

Video is a bad example. I wasn't going WOT and boost control is set up based on throttle position. I think there was ~4 times that it got up to 15psi in the video which means i wasn't giving it >70% throttle most of the time.

 

Ha! I'll get another one with the mic on the floor board or by the master cylinder when i get it back together for more realistic sounds. It does sound pretty epic though .

 

Awesome.

Yarrrrrr

 

Troubleshooting time! Take your best shot.

when i turn the car on it runs and idles as normal but when engine temps get to about 150ish degrees i start to burn oil. after driving around for about 5 minutes once the engine has warmed up it burns clean again. Sometimes it burns a little if the car sits at idle for more than 2 minutes after its been running clean.

I pulled the plugs for the first time after 1000 miles last night and closed the gap to .028" since i was having issues with blowing out spark at 17 psi. plug 3 and 4 had oil and carbon buildup but 1 and 2 were clean.

At this point I'm leaning toward a valve seal / guide leaking in the #3 and 4 cylinders when the engine is under vac. Initially i though the oil seal in the turbo might be leaking and the oil was burning once the egt's got hot enough but since its been doing it at idle when the car is warmed up I've been leaning more toward the guides. I'll post pics of the plugs when i get a chance later tonight.

To test the valve seal maybe try a compression / leak down test?

 

Are you using tail pipe smoke as the oil burning indicator?

Typically bad valve seals or guides will produce smoke under engine vacuum. Are you seeing this? Run the rpms up to 6k in 3rd gear and then let off the gas and looks for smoke on the coast down in gear.

 

Havent noticed smoke though recently i have heard some quiet backfiring at 3k rpm when engine braking.

Plugs 4,3,2,1


mostly happens after idling for a minute but cleans up when driving normally around town or when at cruise.

Blew my t3 turbo flange gasket today so im trying to source one quick locally. Ordered some Resbond 907ts this past week and its worked well on the EGT sensor that kept falling out so hopefully it will work better on the turbo flange bolts too. they keep vibrating loose.

 

I hope you didn't get a composite gasket

 

Glad i went with the pressed stainless one instead.. Here's whats left of it.



Made a temporary oil catch can setup and im thinking i might need to try something else. I keep getting a watery emulsion instead of just oil.



Turbine looks clean though which makes me lean more toward the engine having the oil burning problem.

 

why do you even use a turbo gasket?
EFR only leaks oil if you 'disconnect' the turbine wheel

 

yikes. haven't seen a stamped steel one disintegrate like that before. warped flange?
if the flanges are straight soviet is right: you need no gasket

 

Loose bolts via vibration. Ill inspect but they should be nice and flat.