Intro turned build - Humming's '05 Lava Orange
 

Hi all,

I'm new here on MT, but I've been over on the mazda-speed forum for a while. I've got an 05 MSM with 100k miles on the clock. It's a little rough around the edges but I love driving it!

The only major power mods are the intake kit and FMIC and were done by the previous owner. I DD the car, but some day it will be a dedicated track car. The previous owner didn't take super good care, so I've just been slowly working my way through all the maintenance updates. Then I'm planning to get a megasquirt, upgrade the fuel system, and aim for about 230-240hp.

My mazda-speed build thread is here:
Humming's 05 Lava Orange

A few pictures:
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1410584207

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1410584207

thanks!

Thanks for joining, humming!

Welcome Robert, do you have any pictures of your cat(s)?

Hey ozbrock, I've seen you on mazda-speed.com :) Don't follow the comment about the "cats" though. Just asking about the rest of my vehicles? kid-hauler minivan and perpetual project 240Z. hasnt run in 25 years lol. slow progress on that one.

Members here are fond of cats. Cats embrace the turbo spirit found on this forum, and members pray to the kitty Gods in hopes they provide us with sufficient boost to prosper.

If you have pictures of cats we would like to see them.

It took the power of four cats to get me to 107 mph trap speeds in my NB1.

Keith

Oh wow lol. Well I don't have any cats. I'm allergic, but I'll try to uhh... think about kittens when working on my car... lol

My sister is an awesome photographer and snapped some pics for me today.

http://fc03.deviantart.net/fs70/i/20...ug-d8jat4z.jpg

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1424757275

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1424757275

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1424757275

More pics of your sister please.

The previous post is old-school mt.net :) Those are great pics, your sister did well.

haha thanks! I'm not gonna lie, I expect to be trolled on here, but in more of a "search noob, let me google that for you" kind of way. That particular troll felt a little more clubroadster.net like.

Pictures look great.

Thanks! I've been lurking here a bit, but I love your car! Something to aspire to. You own an MSM as well now IIRC.

Yessir, thanks.

I lurk M-S a bit and follow your thread there too :)

lurkers lurkin lurkers... :giggle:

Nice MSM man! Your orange msm is one of the better ones i've seen.

In for more pics of msm, Cats?, Sister? :party: in that order. :drool:

best part of the msm red and orange is when the sun hits it directly and you see all the flakes/pearl in the paint

msm:
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1424791332

cats:
http://fc03.deviantart.net/fs50/f/20...lAnimation.png

sister:
:nono:

:rofl: That'll do haha

You know the photographer was good because of all the compliments on the paint lol. My clear on my hood and spoiler are peeling, but were kept out of the pics. The spoiler was peeling before I got it, the hood started soon after.

I've got a hood vent to install soon. Had some overheating issues last year, and being in Arizona it's always a battle. I'd be hesitant about it, but since my paint on the hood is so bad, I'm not to worried anymore. It would have to get repainted eventually anyways, so it could as easily be some other hood as this one.

I see you joined up as well huh haha

Yeah, I joined a while back but mostly I just read. Any technical questions I usually take to the mazda-speed forum since my MSM is essentially stock with a few basic bolt ons. Once I get an ECU and such I'll be more active on here to the trolls can attack me harder!

Get your car running already!

Don't tell me what to do!!!!😝 I am going to be tuning this Thursday to mess around with it

If I can get to the tuning Paul suggested I will and have him get me running safely, but at the same time I may do the work myself but who knows

Lol, on Saturday on our way to the thing at RC's garage I tried driving behind him on the freeway and I don't think I even lasted a 1/4 mile before I couldn't take it! He's having some issue with his wideband so he's running crazy rich on accident. Seriously though... I couldn't take it.

Haha ya he has been having that problem for a while, he leaves a lovely black smoke cloud when he gets on it.

Another reason why the hard top stays on often

revisited my foamectomy tonight. last time I got rid of the bump underneath, but it didn't really lower me at all. This time I actually removed another inch or so of foam from the bottom side. Feels much lower but the ultimate test will be the broomstick test. Also working on seat mounts to get rid of the sliders and drop another half inch or so.

My bolster near the door was flat from getting in and out, so I added a bit of foam i grabbed from a dumpster at work. Feels much better, but we'll see how it lasts.

http://fc07.deviantart.net/fs70/i/20...ug-d8jt2km.jpg

http://fc00.deviantart.net/fs70/i/20...ug-d8jt2f7.jpg

Seat is going back in on sliders for now but next time I'm at my local metal supply shop I'll pick up some .25 x 2" steel for the seat mounts.

fun things coming... fun things.

also found out I get a discount on garrett turbos through my work that is pretty dang good. excited to use it some day.

So my rear view mirror was droopy and needed adjusting literally every 2-3 minutes while driving, or after going over any sort of bump or pothole, or after hard shifts...

So I set out on a mission to change that. First I waterjet cut and made some fancy things to replace the connector piece:
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1427343441

but that alone did not solve it, though it was much better. It no longer drooped by itself, but still had issues after bumps etc.

so I took the base off, drilled and tapped it, added a cap screw, and now it's great! Excuse the crappy cell phone pic:

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1427343441

Haven't adjusted my rear view mirror in days. It's been miraculous :-)

Oh snap. Water jetting custom parts like a baus. Nice!

When you've got CAD :vash2: :dealwithit: :fael:

If you'd like, I can rename this thread to something of your choice, and move it to the build thread section, if you plan to continue to show us updates.

Did you make a MSM drain pipe replacement? I just bought a new OEM one, I'd be interested to see your price point on those.

Hey curly! Follow all your work on LAZ and oregonmon's cars on CR.net.

Yeah, I'm in the middle of making a bunch of those. I'll send you a PM.

I'd love to have it moved to the build threads section if you don't mind. Thread title "Humming's '05 Lava Orange" or something like that would be great. Thanks!

Mirror was getting droopy, made a thing to fix that a while ago and it worked great, but it was aluminum and bent a bit. New one is smaller and stainless, and has one less bolt, not sure why I thought two would be necessary.

New version:
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1428593212

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1428593212

shiny things installed!:

http://img12.deviantart.net/7513/i/2...ug-d8p5lmk.jpg

I am still debating trimming back more of the support structure underneath. I can always do more, can't do less, so I'll wait on it.

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1428722173

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1428722173

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1428722173

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1428722173

I want!!!

I have hood pins so I can just cut away all that bracing I bet.

Welp... turns out I am slow. Went to my first auto-X with my brother in his stock '03 on saturday and got my butt handed to me. He plays a lot of Forza, which I'm sure helps a little bit at least, but I'm quite embarrassed about how badly I did lol. May 9th is the next one I can make it to, so hopefully I do better at that one. I'll be maximum attack to beat my brother for sure.

how about some road course? im pretty sure ill be at firebird on sunday with proautosports if you want to go.

Don't do stuff on sundays, it's family day. Also, NASA and proautosports are still a bit out of my budget at the moment.

went OCD on my.... power window switches lol.

so I'm screwing around with some interesting possibilities for my center console and in the process I removed my power window switch. Talk about disgusting. I wish I took a before pic, so that you could all vomit on your keyboards...

see the nasty brown stuff? it was coating every surface that was beneath the console. it was sealing the hole unit up and coating the seams, caked up as much as an eighth of an inch in places.
http://img14.deviantart.net/6574/i/2...-d8q8vwm.jpg?2

After several more rounds of scrubbing i finally got it all cleaned up more or less. I didn't bust out the q-tips though. Actually I just got the electronics out, and dropped the rest in hot water with dish soap. the water instantly turned syrup brown. I think the crap was probably soda spills from the PO.
http://img06.deviantart.net/28ba/i/2...-d8q8wc3.jpg?2
http://img03.deviantart.net/c3fc/i/2...-d8q8wl0.jpg?1

Seriously though... so nasty.

Well, had some fun today:

made shiny things look like burny things:
Before:
http://img12.deviantart.net/7513/i/2...ug-d8p5lmk.jpg

after:
http://img07.deviantart.net/5c74/i/2...-d8rx38z.jpg?1

repaired disgusting shifty broken things:
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1430611262

Didn't get an after pic, but its got two new boots and the MR delrin shift bushing. Shift feel is amazing now, and that was just getting it back to stock. Can't imagine what the MR SSK would feel like. When I pulled out the oem shift bushing, all that was left was the bottom 1/8" or so. All that is now in my transmission I guess. I'll flush it sometime this year.

Also made a hood vent for my brother, changed up the design a little bit:
http://img01.deviantart.net/a0ce/i/2...ug-d8rx2wc.jpg

That was just before painting.

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1431237255

test fitting things... the plate above is just a prototype, a nicer waterjet cut version will replace it... with gauges at some point.

Needs more switches. I just recut mine to have a spot for a potentiometer, that way I can have variable launch control :) you need a megasquirt.

I do... but I need suspension moar. :brain:

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1431390471

fun things are a coming :-)

a friend bought this, and it's at my house for me to learn how to use it, and then I'll take it to his shop and teach him. I should have a good month to play with it :-)

First print last night:

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1431617928

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1431617928

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1431617928

re-doing my hood vent and thought I'd give this a try... orange underneath, black on top:
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1432813465
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1432813465
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1432813465

finally got around to drawing up this:
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1432879584
which will go nicely with 2 of these:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/310692690983

and recently water jet cut this:
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1432879584

and I'm gonna make me summa this:
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1432879584

Last one is an intake heat shield for the FM intake that puts the filter in the worst possible spot. I see 40-60 degrees above ambient IAT every day.

Damn man, you are always making something cool! I'm interested to see your results with the fan shroud and SPAL fans. I finally installed my hood louvers last weekend and I'm seeing slightly lower temps but there is still room for improvement at high speeds with AC on. I have Joe's intake on my car and usually see IAT's 10-30 degrees above ambient.

Yeah, I'm working on making Joe's intake for my car. I was gonna take it over for him, but not having a welder, it's hard to do for me right now. Regardless, I'm gonna finish up the one for my car. Just trying to figure out how to handle the pre-compressor portion. Until then, the FM heat shield joeereid made should help me a ton.

I'll post up about the fans/shroud once I finish it. I gotta come up with the cash for the fans themselves, every penny counts when you have 3 kids. :2cents:

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1433090942
tow hook installed, I'll probable take it out and bend it later on when I get a press brake.

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1433090942
new 3d printed shift knob in black.

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1433090942
life without a center console... coming soon.

3d printed knobs are cool, but weighted knobs feel way better.

Honestly, don't notice a difference between my OEM and this one. Never used a "weighted one".


also:
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1433129844

So I have a problem:
On my way home, dealing with my typical overheating issues, I usually end up running the heater by the end of my freeway stint :-(
anyways, so I'm off the freeway driving the 5 or so remaining miles to my house, and all the sudden the stereo starts cutting in and out. Then idle starts dropping, and I can tell the electrical is struggling. I turn off the heater fan because temps are low enough now, and turn off the stereo. I make it home, let the car cool down for an hour or two, come back out, won't start. Battery measures 12.3 volts with meter. Didn't have time to mess with it more, so I pulled it out. and called it a day.

Today I put the battery on a trickle charger for about 4 hours after work. Car started just fine, but lights were dim, etc. I gave it as much electrical load as I could manage(all lights on, etc...) and it was obviously struggling. turned all the load off, then the car off, and then tried to start it again, not enough juice to crank. I pulled the battery, metered at 11.4 volts. Checked fuses, my fog light fuse was blown, but that's probably been that way for forever because my passenger fog light is busted.

So I replaced that fuse, but I doubt that's the issue. The battery terminals are perfectly clean, battery is back on the float charger (not in the car). If it holds a charge, I'm thinking probably the alternator is my next step? Any suggestions otherwise?

I'm on factory ECU, no electrical modifications besides the OEM EBC is pulled and a 50 ohm resistor in it's place, and the water temp gauge has been modified to move more with temp, and the windshield washer pump was relocated to the cowl area.

Thanks everyone.

<p>Whats your voltage on the battery while running</p>

I'll have to check that tomorrow. Should be like 14 volts right?

<p>Probably more than 14.</p>

13.8 charging volts or more is acceptable.

saw your post on FB. just get a rebuild kit and do it yourself? i can help you if needed.

Where can I get a kit? I've been searching with no luck...I was wondering if sean was hi_im_sean, and now I know :-) I've never attempted a rebuild, but I'm not scared to give it a try.

last post in this thread:
MX-5 Miata Forum - alternator rebuild

led me to look up this kit/product/whatever:
3G | Alternator Starter Rebuild Kits

not sure if the guy posting had an NB or not though...

ooh ooh look what I found!!!:
How to: Replace brushes on an NB Hitachi alternator - MX-5 Miata Forum

was just reading that.

i cant find a rebuild kit anywhere for that thing! i found a reg assy in the UK for 30 EU but thats it.

by the way its a hitachi LR180-766. you may have better luck searching for that vs "05 miata alternator".

but i think we need to take a few steps back. did you ever get a running voltage measurement? you need to make sure its the alternator and not something else. also, that write up only covers the brushes. the bearing and reg should be replaced during a "rebuild" as well, and either the brushes or regulator can cause the issue you have. is the positive terminal of the alt easy to access on an msm? measure there and at the batt terminal whiles its running.