Low key red and tan build
 

This is my second Miata. The first one was a '95 base model. It was a little too much of a fixer upper, and seemed to have pretty bad luck on the whole. I bailed on it. Sold it and bought a low mileage '94 C-package with no plans to go turbo at the time. It didn't take too long before I started collecting parts for a turbo build.

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This was the beater. '95 base model. Wheels got jacked promptly after moving to a new town. Like I said, it was bad luck.


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The replacement. '94 C-package. 56K miles when purchased. It had a rusted out after market muffler and some terrible, press-on wood dash kit. Peeled the dash kit off and installed the original muffler that the guy just happened to have lying around.

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Blurry picture, but with a flex pipe welded on, the original muffler went back in.


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Scored some BBS wheels from a '95 M edition. Came with some S-drives that still had plenty of life. Ready for some club runs.


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Getting close to 60K and the valve cover gasket was leaking. Changed the timing belt, and painted the valve cover.

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Had a dent in the bumper. A little heat and it popped right out.

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Scored some Konis and FM springs. Came with FCM bumpstops too.

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Fresh coat of paint, and some soap and water cleaned them up pretty well.

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Added some FM sways to the mix.

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New ride height looks a little better.


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Time to pack it up for winter.

Current parts on hand to be installed before spring include:

-BEGi-S kit with a Chinese turbo
-MSPNP
-RX7 550cc injectors
-FM Happy Meal clutch and flywheel

All parts were picked up used as I came across a good deal. Planning to add a 3" exhaust, intercooler, garrett turbo, and misc. turbo bits.

Installed the MSPNP today. I fabbed some aluminum brackets to install using the stock mounting studs. Install went well until I found out my craigslist timing light is a dud. Have to wait to finish setting the timing until I can buy/borrow one. It fired up on the first try though. I was impressed with the plug and play. Very easy.

Anyone live in the lehigh valley and want to lend me their timing light??

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I dig your PNP brackets. Looking good. Super clean car for PA.

Thanks. I didn't want to drill any new holes into the car.

Looks like a good start for a nice car. Props on popping out the bumper dent.

Is that your turbo Forester in the first pic?
Did you buy new Koni stockers for the shocks? They look good.

Thanks for the props. I was surprised at how easily the bumper popped back out. No pushing, just heat.

That was my '05 Forester XT. Awesome ride. It recently lost compression and need some major work. It had almost 190k miles, so I ended up getting rid of it and buying a TDI Jetta. Kind of miss the FXT, but I'm enjoying the turbo diesel for now.

I did buy new Koni stickers. Paint was Platikote brand School Bus Yellow. I hear Duplicolor's School Bus Yellow is also a good match.

Well I suppose it's good to hear that it lasted 190k miles. My '07 FSXT has 133k on it and I plan to keep it until it dies.

The Miata / Forester combo is pretty popular on here for some reason. :giggle:

Sick coilovers bro! I always wondered what they'd look like at max ride height.

Your build plan is coming along nicely. I used to live in central PA - Hershey. Though now I'm a little too far to lend my timing light.

It was solid until about 185k. Then, all of a sudden, the shocks, front axles, turbo, and valve train all went within 5000 miles. I did run it pretty hard though.

Thanks. I like that it still looks pretty stock, but handles like an entirely different car. Why this car didn't come like this from the factory puzzles me.

I ended up snagging a light on amazon. Probably ought to have one anyway.

Looks super clean. You're not too far from me, 30-40 mins

Nice, you ever ride with the lehigh valley or delaware valley clubs?

Project update -- pics from recent garage shenanigans:

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1430626358
First chance to get the top down this spring. So glad to say goodbye to the snow. I've got to find somewhere warmer to live.

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Got the FM stage 1 clutch and lightweight flywheel installed. This was a tough job in the driveway with the car on jack stands. I will definitely try to find a lift to use before trying this one again.

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1430626358
A new bung welded into the stock exhaust for the wideband O2. This was definitely worth the time. I ran into some issues getting the settings right in TunerStudio which would have been a nightmare if I were installing the turbo at the same time.

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Blasted and painted some of the tubes and pipes from the used BEGI-s kit that were looking a bit worse for wear. Used rustoleum exhaust paint. Surprisingly tough stuff after curing in the oven. I'm looking forward to seeing how it holds up to the heat.

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This was the straw that broke the camel's back for the chinese turbo that came with my kit. A broken stud that doesn't want to come out. I was already hesitant about using a turbo that I didn't know the history of, and I knew I wanted something that would spool more quickly. Time to find an alternative.

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1430626358
A SR20 T25 is right on point. Small, cheap, and easy to find. This one came from the classified section here.

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1430626358
I finally got a chance to mock everything up. Bought some RX7 studs (part number 9YA921003) and copper locking nuts. The studs had to be trimmed a bit, but what a bargain for inconel studs.

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1430626358
I made a new mount for the wastegate actuator. Fabbing things on the fly is what I love about projects like this.

Also installed some RX8 425cc yellow injectors. I had some 550cc RX7 injectors that needed rebuilding, but I stumbled upon the RX8 set brand new for $135. No brainer.

I've started experimenting with adjusting the AFR tables and using autotune. I'm a bit confused about why there are so many different opinions on the appropriate AFR values. I feel like this should be standard for all miatas, within reason. Am I missing something? Is there a master table that many tuners use, or a good reason for so many differing perspectives?

I'm hoping to complete the initial turbo install in the next couple weeks. It will basically be a BEGI-s kit with a SR20 T25. Low boost. No intercooler. Stock exhaust. I'll build from there.

Nice car

Helps a lot that you apparently have quite a bit of skill in that area. Nice brackets.

Thanks. I've been a welder for about 10 years. I usually weld pipe, but a few little pieces of plate are almost as much fun.

Hey I recognize that clutch and flywheel. ;)

Nice car, hope to meet up on an LVMOC run at some point!

Thanks, Tim. I'll be at the CarBQ next Saturday. Looks like a it may be a pretty decent turn out.

I finally got to the turbo install. I was surprised at how long it took, even with two people we spent all last weekend on it. Then I spent several nights this week finishing everything up. Got it out on the road and everything's running great so far. Taking it slow, and letting tunerstudio do its thing. Hopefully I can button up some tuning and get into a little boost soon.

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And all just in time to roll over 60K.

So the no intercooler idea is a pretty big fail for two reasons I should have expected.

1. It's difficult to keep boost below 6 psi.
2. IATs in this time of year are far worse than expect (~170 cruising in the afternoon)

I should have seen it coming, but all I saw was dollar signs. Moving on I ordered an intercooler from eBay seller dptmotorsport.
27"x5 5"X2 5" Aluminum Black Fmic Bar Plate Front Mount Turbo Intercooler | eBay
It was a shot in the dark. I didn't get a recommendation from anywhere, it literally was the cheapest example with the specs I wanted (2.5" in/out and black)

Also ordered a piping kit from cxmustang's eBay store.
2 5" inch DIY Aluminum 8pcs Turbo Intercooler Piping Pipe Kit Black Blk | eBay
This one wasn't the cheapest, but it was the cheapest one that looked like half way decent quality couplers and piping. Also black.

Plus I had to buy the following to make everything work:
-1.25" x 20" flex radiator hose
-2" to 2.5" 90 degree silicone reducing elbow to adapt to my 2" turbo outlet
-3/8" NPT bung for IAT sensor
-1" OD tube to weld on a bung for BOV
-.75" OD tube to weld on a bung for IACV

All totaled, DIY intercooler should be $206

The only problem is I sold my TIG welder to buy a new one and shipping is delayed. Install is delayed until next weekend.

Pics of the intercooler and piping:


https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1433544529


https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1433544529


https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1433544529


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I'm surprised by the quality. Everything looks pretty decent. Welding isn't perfect, but nothing terrible.

The piping is as expected. Powder coating looks good, but is has small scuffs from shipping.

Update on the project: the intercooler is installed, but not really.

Using the piping kit, I fabbed the intercooler pipes. I opted to weld what I could over using the silicone couplings.
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1437343128

I also fabbed some brackets for mounting the intercooler. It's mounted to the same mounting point as the A/C condenser.
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1437343128


https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1437343128


https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1437343128

Everything looked good and it was time for a test drive. On the first trip out I was having trouble getting boost pressure. I couldn't get over 0psi.

I came back and reconfigured some things, but the problem persisted.

I injured my thumb, had vacation, and became otherwise busy for the next few weeks. Today I revisited the miata with a new idea: the intercooler is restricting flow. I simply replaced the intercooler with a straight piece of pipe and it was like magic. I suddenly had boost again.

Time to replace the intercooler.

DO NOT BUY THIS INTERCOOLER: DPT Motorsport 27"X5.5"X2.5" Black FMIC

Nice work. Too bad about the IC. A leak seems more likely than a clog.

It would have to be a pretty major leak to have that much loss in boost. I gave it a half-assed pressure test and didn't find any leak, so if there is one it must be small.

My BOV was still operating when the intercooler was installed. BOV was between the IC and the turbo. To me that means I had boost pressure before the IC.

Also, I could hear the compressor wheel stall out once I hit 0psi. It sounded very restricted to me, and once I installed the test pipe in place of the IC, the sound returned to normal.

Is that a question or are you trying to comment?

Just something I thought deserved a closer look. Looks nice.

Thanks. I wish I had a real sheet metal brake so I didn't have to leave teeth marks from my bench vise in the things I bend.

That's funny. I thought "wonder what kind of mandrel he's using to leave that pattern".

Only the 2 pound mandrel was used this time.


https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1437430281

[Mandy Patinkin]Mandrel. You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means. [/Mandy Patinkin]

Made some good progress tonight. I got my new intercooler in. CXracing item number 0049. Had to make a few modifications for it to go in place of the DPT brand intercooler. By the way, DPT is working with me to give me a refund. It's currently in the mail back to DPT. We'll see if they actually give me a refund without any hastle.

The CXracing intercooler has 2 inch inlet/outlet, but I wanted 2.5". They didn't have one on their site that was the same core size with 2.5 inch in/out, so I just cut the 2 inch nipples off, and welded on some of the scrap ends I had from the intercooler piping kit. I also bent up some new brackets and welded those on as well. I took a page from the BEGi book for the new mounting location.


https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1437796776


CXracing item number IC0049


https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1437796776


Cut the 2 inch inlet/outlet off


https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1437796776


Welded on some left over 2.5 inch intercooler piping to work with the piping already on the car


https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1437796776


New brackets made to bolt to baby teeth mounting location. Much more appropriate than my previous setup.


https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1437796776


https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1437796776


Mounted up and ready for a test ride

New intercooler works beautifully. I finally got the chance to tune my EBC. I've attached my current tune, and the data log from my final 3rd gear pull when tuning EBC. Keep in mind that I still have stock exhaust, so my spool is a little slow compared to other T25 equipped miatas. My spark table is the stock table from DIYautotune, and the fuel table is stock with about an hour and a half of autotune this evening after I got the ebc tuned.

Please feel free to take a look at my tune and give me any pointers. I'm a very novice tuner, and look forward to smoothing some things out in the near future like throttle tip in.

Those are good looking welds. Wished you lived closer so I could bring you my stuff! All I've got is a MIG and I've never been brave enough to try to weld AL with it.

Thanks. The MIG aluminum works pretty well, but by the time you buy a spool gun and argon bottle then you might as well have spent that money on a TIG setup. And I'd highly recommend an Everlast brand machine like I have.

If you've ever got something you need welded that you can ship easily, give me a shout. I really enjoy this kind of work. That goes for anyone.

In the past couple weeks I built and installed a 3 inch exhaust from the downpipe back to get rid of the stock exhaust, tuned OLEBC/CLEBC for 13 psi, and made a few pulls for some virtual dyno plots.

The exhaust is all stainless with one exception: I started with a flange I stole from the stock mid pipe. Bored that out to 2-1/2" to match the down pipe outlet, then made a reducer to bring the diameter up to 3". The midpipe is from the down pipe back to the axle where I have a v-band flange that connects the midpipe to the muffler. Muffler is the 22" Magnaflow 12578. Then it's 3 inch out the tail pipe.

For bends I used a 360 degree mandrel bent donut. The large muffler needed the tightest bends I could find to work without a 180 loop on the muffler inlet. Several things are required to fit this muffler without the 180 loop:
- 3 inch radius bends
- Rotate muffler 10 degrees
- Trim the muffler in/out to weld bends closer to the muffler case


https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1439665143



https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1439665143


Magnaflow 12578


https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1439665143

I enjoyed having something round to weld, finally. I'm a pipe welder by trade, but now I have an office job. Felt nice to get back into walking the cup around some elbows and flanges.

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1439665143

I trimmed the stock exhaust hangers down and reused them on the magnaflow muffler

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1439665143

The muffler has about 1/2 inch clearance between the lower subframe brace and the sway bar above it. With the stock hangers, it bangs around a bit. Poly hangers will be installed soon to reduce movement.

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1439665143

You can see that the outlet did not need to be trimmed flush with the muffler. If I had to do it again, I would move the muffler closer to the tail pipe to allow more clearance around the subframe on the inlet side.

Once I got the EBC tuned I finally got some decently clean 3rd gear pulls to plot some virtual dyno graphs. I'm not sure how accurate the high HP numbers are, but I like what I'm seeing with the torque. Hopefully I can get a professional tune soon and see what it looks like on a dyno.

10psi at 3400rpm
13psi at 3700rpm


https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1439666057




https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1439666057


First clean pull


https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1439666057


Clean pull after reducing kpa spike at 3700rpm. Same road, opposite direction.

The intake I started with was a simple, carbon steel flange and neck to mount a filter right on the front of the compressor housing. I wanted to source intake air from not directly behind the radiator and I wanted something I can plumb the BOV into at some point. A homemade flange and some ebay mandrel bent 2-1/4" tubing worked nicely.


https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1439777965


https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1439777965


https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1439777965


https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1439777965


https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1439777965

Make sure your filter is big enough: https://www.miataturbo.net/build-thr...e3/#post706313

Ah, I thought my filter might be a bit small. I just bought the cheapest K&N on ebay that had a 2-1/4" ID. New filter is needed.

Thanks for the link. That's some excellent info.

EDIT: Just ordered a K&N RU-1100

Back from the dead post
 

A lot has happened since I last posted, I'll try to keep it short.

Soon after my last post I blew a head gasket. I was being a dummy and drained some coolant to adjust some hoses, then got distracted and neglected to refill the coolant before a short test drive. Once I figured out the head gasket was blown, I pulled the head and found water inside cylinders and exhaust. Definitely a blown head gasket. Machined/measured the head and block and reinstalled a new head gasket. The machine shop said that there was little to no warping in the head, but the ground a couple thou good measure.

After that, I could not hold boost above 8 psi. A dry compression test showed all four cylinders under 120psi. Wet compression test improved numbers dramatically, and a leak down test confirmed that the piston rings were leaking compression. The car was at least still running, and life was busy so I put off a rebuild for the time being. I've since moved to FL, and now have a much larger garage space and more time on my hands. Time to dig into the motor to see what the problem is.

Now I'm no engine builder; I'm barely a shade tree mechanic, but I can sort of read. I acquired a copy of the Mazda workshop manual and started disassembly. I've been following the directions in the manual pretty closely. All the bearing surfaces, valves, and cylinder walls are still within the specifications of the manual. Not super surprising considering the motor is has less than 65K miles. I'm currently working on reassembling the motor with new bearings, rings, and gaskets. It should be back in the car in the next week or so. I'll attach some potato pictures of my progress.

While the block, head, cylinders, and valves were very dirty, my untrained eye didn't see any obvious signs of damage. Please let me know if you spot something out of the ordinary.