Do you have a backup car? Expecting it to be just a weekend project and for nothing to go wrong almost guarantees that something will go wrong.

 

Yeah, I have backups. But I'm an optimist if you haven't noticed, lol.

 

This "kit" is possible to use, but comes at a HUGE disclaimer.

I didn't know better when I bought my turbo setup and ended up buying this "kit" from an older guy who never installed it on his Miata. I quickly figured out why- it was missing an alarming amount of the important required pieces- J pipe, oil and coolant unions, banjo bolts for coolant, barbed fittings, vacuum hose, etc. He didn't feel like finding out what threads were necessary or what bolts were important. On the positive side, the seller had a name brand intercooler and piping that came with the sale. Another negative is that the oil and coolant drains are not correct in regards to flow, so I had to reclock the turbo orientation and build a new wastegate bracket. I also made relief cuts in the manifold like folks do with the Greddy kit in order to prevent the welds from breaking. The downpipe will fir the engine bay very well, but will not reach your stock exhaust. You will be making a trip to the exhaust shop. The lowermost downpipe bolt is a bitch to get in and you'll never make it work. I bought a stud, worked it in to the housing, and got a nut onto it using a wrench that had to be cut and welded just to get access to it (talk about lost time). It still leaks slightly, but not annoyingly so.

Though I purchased the "kit" for little money, there are many parts that I did not (and would never) skimp on. As most are suggesting here, engine management is paramount. I purchased the necessary supporting mods- Wideband, Megasquirt PNP, IAT conversion, FM TB pipe for IAT sensor and BOV, injectors, MBC, and an upgraded clutch, etc and installed them little by little and learned how to use them. Shortly after finishing, I had the engine professionally tuned. It puts down 164 at 8 lbs.

Anyway, I spent very little on the hard parts of the kit and built it little by little until I was ready to install it over a weekend, but spent A TON of time researching the little hardware parts that I needed. Unless you have a perfect kit, do not expect a weekend to have your loose ends tied up. Expect 2 weekends, or work on the car for 4-5 days straight.

If I had to do this again (and I will if the engine ever blows) I'd purchase the FM kit and aforementioned supporting mods and be done with it. The time pent cobbling together the extra pieces was extra time I could have been working on the car. Thankfully I had enough sense to collect every missing piece little by little, but the closer I got to having everything I needed to start the build (I didn't start tearing down the car until the last piece was in the mail) the more I wanted to get it done.

In conclusion, having everything in front of you ready to go in a proper kit from Flyin' Miata and knowing it is going to be right is worth the premium price.

For now, I'll keep beating the **** out of the turbo and engine (it has 170k on it, and 165 when FI was added) and racing it until one or the other gives up. Then I'll spring for the big boy toys.

 

haha aint that the truth

Here I have a whole MOUNTAIN of quality parts, everything from Ms3x to two different F/I setups, exhausts, you name it, and somehow my current "weekend" install and tune of the coldside mp62 e85 setup has thus far gone on for 3 weeks.

 

Frapjap, I hear ya! I spent a lot of time researching this turbo stuff some years ago... but man does it take a lot of time. Thats why I'm hoping to get the important stuff (turbo, manifold, DP, ECU) out of the way with good stuff I know will work from BEGI and MS.

Does the BEGI starter kit come with oil lines?

 

No the starter kit is just the mani, downpipe, and turbo plus mounting hardware for said items. Thats why its a starter kit. If you want all the lines and everything you could buy their Shanghai-S which is about 500 or so more. If you do buy the starter kit, plan on making a trip to an auto parts store at least ten times

 

I did my kit in a weekend and opened the wastegate, then installed the standalone in a weekend and got that done.

 

Thats actually a great idea!

Alright, so if it has no lines or anything then I will order some of the stainless steel eBay lines. We can at least agree that those aren't total crap, right?

 

Well no you still need to get oil and coolant to the turbo however it will be able to get you to work and back as long as baby it since you dont want to spool the bitch while running on stock fuel/ignition.

 

Hahah, sorry, I was responding to the post above your separately. I'm not THAT stupid! :P

 

You can also just install the turbine housing and make a block off plate.
It's ghetto but I thought about it when my turbine wheel exploded and I drove without it for 1.5 months

 

Are there any good (or I should say "proven") chinese turbo's that bolt right up to FM's DP/Manifold kit?
Flyin' Miata : Turbochargers : Parts and upgrades : DIY turbo manifold/outlet/downpipe

If I could bag one for under $200 then it would be a better and cheaper setup than BEGI's starter kit. Plus then I don't have to worry about BEGI being.... well... BEGI.

 

Just remember you have to buy all the turbo fittings, oil drain bung, etc.. May be little stuff but it adds up quick

 

You can buy the oil and water lines all from begi i think they are like 20something bucks. You'll also need to buy the fittings for the oil pressure sensor though.

 

Uhhh.... what oil pressure sensor? I didn't know that got messed with

 

You tap oil from where the oil pressure sensor is, so you have to get a fitting that will allow the tap and oil pressure sensor.

I only read the 2 posts before me so this may or may not be what he is referring too.

 

Oh. Alright well I didn't know that, thanks!

 

Yes that is what i was referring to. You can of course do a sandwich thing for the filter but thats more expensive.

 

Hey, I thought this was the old computer nostalgia thread.

 

Is there somewhere that sells braided kits like this as well?


That would be this thread:
https://www.miataturbo.net/diy-turbo...n-73794/page3/