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Thank you for these! They're great, and look at that face.
Originally Posted by Roda
Finally had a chance to look at our videos side by side... GREAT driving!! You beat my Vmin in several corners and were definitely smoother overall. All you need is more power!
Well I did not expect that! Thank you for analyzing them and sharing. I will keep in mind doing a later apex in T3. I think I hit that cone at some point.
As far as power, my wife didn't object too harshly a bit ago when I mentioned my plans for cams+springs...there may be a chance this winter.
It was great to see you again and chatting a bit more! You car is awesome, as is your driving. Both great inspiration for me.
Originally Posted by curly
Yes extra torque due to VVT. Might as well buy the VVT cams and look around for a head Honestly any losses are marginal. We're talking 5ft/lbs. But technically at 3k and 4k, the cam'd engine makes more torque. There's just a small band between ~3400 and ~3800 where it dips below, which could be my fueling or ignition, but who knows. I wouldn't choose cams off of that. I'd go with the 264, but don't blame you for going with the 252s either. Just don't eliminate them just yet!
I'm going to buy a spare VVT head to have shaved and install cams into. I follow you now, and luckily I have time to keep thinking about this and don't have to decide today. It sure would be nice to at least keep the same torque in that area because it was a big difference going from the BP4W to BP6D as far as hair pins are concerned.
IIRC, it was 0.9v=4psi(?) 4.2v=14.7psi, but I'll get the actual calibration at work tomorrow. I kept the OE solenoid, just turned it on above 8v, so if it's ever below that, the Link won't inject fuel due to low voltage anyways.
And yes I work in standard/psi units. I actually tune in MGP, which took me forever to realize I needed to calibrate for MAP, not MGP, but figured it out eventually. At least I learned why my crankcase MAP sensor never seems to make sense...
Is this the MAP sensor that the OE ECU used for EGR? If so that's neat and I'll go find it to try it out!
Quick question. Do you tune ignition timing in MGP too?
Yes the OE EGR MAP sensor, yes I tune ignition in MGP too. Here's the official calibration I used. I just hooked up the internal map sensor and took WOT and full vacuum as my two points. These cams don't make much vacuum.
I also might jump on that EGR MAP sensor train as well. One less thing to run through the firewall is a win and I think I still have that sensor kicking around somewhere.
Edit - just realized it only goes to 14.7 PSI, probably not going to work for me.
I had the pleasure of driving scooter on track last week. It's a great car, and makes me question the rabbit hole that is my car. Good work Ricardo, and thanks again for throwing me the keys.
And seriously great work on the time. About 2 seconds off my car with over 2x the WHP.
just realized it only goes to 14.7 PSI, probably not going to work for me.
well that’s MAP not MGP, so that’s only calibrated for atmospheric pressure. Supposedly they’ll handle ~1-2 psi, but yeah, definitely not for forced induction. Good for crankcase pressure maybe? Should only see 1-2psi max, but you can see if your catch can setup pulls into vacuum i suppose.
To get ready for FMSC I wanted to do an oil change, change the spark plugs, flush the coolant, fix a leak in a differential seal, and replace the front brake pads. I noticed a bit of brake fade at the last trackday and realized these pads had been in the car since July 2022. Here is how they compare to new pads.
I didn't have time to fix the differential leak so I decided to trailer instead, which also meant I got to drive in AC! What a technology.
A friend welded new pockets to the trailer and also made me stakes with D rings which worked very well. I'm still dealing with issues loading and unloading the car. The butterfly braces get hung up in the dove tail trim every time. @roda had some long 2x4s at the track and those did the trick, so I'm going to grab some of those and try again.
I regret not making time to take pictures during the trip, because it was a gorgeous drive. I took the quickest path to FM, which goes through a couple of tall mountain passes, up to 10.2k feet or so. The Tundra took it in stride and the trailer brakes worked well. At the end of the trip, Big Bertha averaged 15 MPGs, which I'm happy with. I also took my friends' track tires in the bed which they appreciated.
My goal for the trackday was to improve on last year's time, a 65.5, which I had high expectations to do with these Nankangs. Aside from tires, the other changes to the car were longer trumpets (50mm vs 25mm), the dyno tune and better suspension tuning (i.e softer).
I setup the Garmin, did the normal checks, and got to grid. Right away through the first corner I could hear a really nasty rubbing noise. Sounded like the tire getting filleted again and that messed up my concentration. The car also felt very soft and flexy which I was not expecting. Right behind me was the K swapped NC, and every corner I could see him closer and closer. GET IT TOGETHER BOY. So I went full send and was able to set a 64.64 on the third lap. WOOOOT. Last year's time beat by almost a second. Mission accomplished, but that rubbing... I looked around the wheel well and found that the tab in the fender that holds the corner of the bumper was the culprit, and it was already making a groove near the sidewall of the tire! I did not have a file or any tool to remove material with me, but Tim whipped out a multitool that had a small file and we went to town with it.
A few moments later it was the second session. I stiffened the shocks a couple of clicks, and started behind said K swapped NC. On the second lap I was on a flier, and as I'm about to enter the slaloms I see a red NC rear end in an unexpected spot:
I backed off a good bit and got ready for another hotlap, which ended up being another 64.64 . He went on to set a 64.4 that session and snatched 5 place. I spent the rest of the day setting high 64s and low 65s, but had to accept that was that. The car did well and I'm very happy overall. The wheel rubbing was nearly eliminated after another round of filing, although I also had to remove part of the fender liner that was making contact with the tire. Not a big deal, but I would like to keep the liners, so a project for another time.
There were some interesting moments. One of the sessions I hear a banging noise coming from the rear right of the car. Immediately I think the battery came loose, but I said screw it "shut off if you want to" and sent it; Turned out to be the passenger belts banging the rear firewall .
In the session after that I was giving a ride to Nads' daughter. Yes, Nads from Hoonigan! Turns out his daughter is into Miatas and that was her first trackday. I wished I had taken a picture with them, but it was awesome hanging out with both of them and hearing some of his stories. So anyway off we go and I hear an insane rattle coming from the front of the car, or somewhere near the tombstone . Immediately I think the worse, but only happened above 4k RPM regardless of load. I said screw it, "blow up if you want to" and kept on going, but the noise didn't go away. Since it wasn't present at idle I doubted it was something with the engine, and instead thought something was loose behind the dash or something with the trans. Then on the next session I gave a ride to Nate , and in the first hotlap I went a bit too ham into the slaloms, overcorrected which pointed the car straight at the dirt, but convinced to salvage the lap, did some tap dancing with the brake and surprisingly kept it on track. Nervous laughter between us ensued. Here is a video of that lap where you can hear the rattle and Nate's reaction.
As I'm prepping for the next session I hear the rattle at idle Start poking around and notice it goes away when I grab the shifter. Prod around the base of the shifter looking for loose bolts and it goes away, I revved the engine and saw the shift **** blob about. BRUH. The shift **** was about to fall off and that was the rattle all along. This isn't a K swap!
After the 6th session, they opened the track for untimed laps and Tyler proposed the idea of swapping cars. How could I say no to drive a 30th anniversary with Xidas around this track?
It was quite the trip seeing Scooter lined up without me
The ND2 is fantastic, and I felt at home quickly. It has grip for days and at no point did it ever do anything unexpected. I loved it. While we were in swap mode, I took a ride in the K swapped NA, and let Nate take Scooter for a rip. Now THAT was a trip. The K swap is screaming down the hill and in the corner of my eye I see Scooter doing a mad drift LOL, hell yeah. That was cool to see and I really enjoyed letting them drive the car.
Lined up on grid with Nate
Having a good time
About the Ks, those things are seriously cool. The difference in torque is immense, and at least on Tim's car, if it's over 2k RPM it just gets up and goes with a perfectly linear powerband. His car doesn't have crazy vibrations as others have noted however. We're not sure if it's because he is running a rubber mount still, the Fluidampr being an MVP, or both. At 8k RPM it is bananas and sounds amazing.
The next day was the meetup at the headquarters which is always nice. I went around checking the cars and chatting with the owners. There were some really fun cars out there, but I failed to take many pictures, but you can find some in Chris' and Nate's threads.
Cool fastback NC with a 2.5 turbo swap
Very cool NB Coupe!
Cool wheel and gauges in the NB Coupe
The parking lot at FM HQ
The annual Conoco picture
2025 FM Summer Camp was once again a highlight of the year so far. Cool cars and cool people. Truly a great community.
Last edited by redursidae; Jun 17, 2025 at 10:20 AM.
Damn, congrats on the result! That's super impressive considering your power level. Maybe you don't need much more after all
Thanks man! I'm excited for the next iteration of the build. Going to think about it for a bit and start putting ideas together, but certainly some cams+springs and E85. Might have the head refreshed by a machine shop while I'm at it too.
Originally Posted by Fireindc
Damn man, you need to bump that limiter! Would have bought you some time on the uphill before the 2nd hairpin.
It's already higher, softcut around 7300 with a hard fuel cut at 7450. I don't think I should try higher with this one until it has better springs, but maybe I'm being too careful. Last year I was going up to third up the hill to not be on the limiter so much (was at 7k then) but forgot to try that this year to compare the data. Oh well, next time!
Looks like a blast man! I agree, always strange to see your car from the outside while someone else is hooning it. I also find it pretty rewarding to be able to toss the keys to someone without a laundry list of "don't touch this" or "it'll do this weird thing" and just letting them beat on it. Glad you guys had a good time out there. Maybe I'll make it out next year.
About the Ks, those things are seriously cool. The difference in torque is immense, and at least on Tim's car, if it's over 2k RPM it just gets up and goes with a perfectly linear powerband. His car doesn't have crazy vibrations as others have noted however. We're not sure if it's because he is running a rubber mount still, the Fluidampr being an MVP, or both. At 8k RPM it is bananas and sounds amazing.
The NC swap retains the factory balance shafts. I'd love to drive one to compare to the E30 and NA installs I've done, because supposedly the balance shafts make a huge difference.
The NC swap retains the factory balance shafts. I'd love to drive one to compare to the E30 and NA installs I've done, because supposedly the balance shafts make a huge difference.
The car he was referring to was the really clean red NA. The guy at Summer Camp with the NC had removed the balance shafts on his engine even though it wasn't necessary... he also had DC 3.2 cams and was making ~240whp. Don't know why he removed them... retaining them is a real benefit of the NC swap.
I spoke with the NC owner a good bit. He said his goal was to get the VTEC sound of a B series and his tuner recommended DC 3.2 and no balance shafts to that end. He sure achieved that goal! But I agree, keeping the balance shafts is a huge bonus of the NC swap
Took the car out for a town cruise and the local car meet. Fun snorts and stiff ride with the Nankangs still on. Unfortunately the idle is still hanging around 950-1000 RPM at full temp. I'm honestly at the point where I don't really mind it because it drives great otherwise and it's just my OCD flipping out. Will look into it at some point but more important things are happening these next two weeks (more on that another time).
Spare VVT head acquired. Traded it for a bare BP-4W I had originally planned to use as a core before deciding on the BP-6D swap.
Still have to do more research and won't be ordering parts for at least 2 months. So far I'm leaning towards the following:
- 0.030" head shave
- Whatever machine work is needed to refresh the head
- Maruha 264/264 race cams
- SUB lifters
- Supertech light doubles
I'm somewhat worried about piston/valve clearances with the higher lift and head shave with VVT at full advance. I haven't found a clear answer to that, so the putty test seems mandatory, albeit intimidating. Should I be worried about it at 0.030"? I figured the engine will become interference, are there any special tensioners or parts I should be using for it at that point? Am I overthinking this whole thing?
Better off decking the block. 030 headshave will reduce most of the squisg. That squish is important to control detonation. More work an $ but better overall.
What do you want your idle RPM to be? I'm idling around 950 right now but my injectors seem to be inconsistent with that PW so I have to idle a bit rich there.
Better off decking the block. 030 headshave will reduce most of the squisg. That squish is important to control detonation. More work an $ but better overall.
Decking the block is a pretty big difference when talking about a stock block build, since (AFAIK) that can't be done without disassembling/rebuilding the bottom end. Could the det be controlled with e85 and maybe a more mild skim? What would be the best compromise for a setup like this when re-using a stock unopened bottom end?
Better off decking the block. 030 headshave will reduce most of the squisg. That squish is important to control detonation. More work an $ but better overall.
That's not something I was aware of. In that case it may just have to wait until I do the bottom end a year or two from now. But I'll still do the cams.
Originally Posted by Fireindc
Decking the block is a pretty big difference when talking about a stock block build, since (AFAIK) that can't be done without disassembling/rebuilding the bottom end. Could the det be controlled with e85 and maybe a more mild skim? What would be the best compromise for a setup like this when re-using a stock unopened bottom end?
For sure. To deck the block I'll just have to wait a little while longer.
Originally Posted by SimBa
What do you want your idle RPM to be? I'm idling around 950 right now but my injectors seem to be inconsistent with that PW so I have to idle a bit rich there.
I'm targeting 900 RPM @ 80C+ , so not the end of the world that it doesn't go below 950, but it bothers me just enough to think about it haha. I have no trouble with the AFRs or injectors, so happy for that.
I like the back and forth re: head skimming/decking that's going on here. Can't wait to see what numbers it makes with the head mods! Just curious, no interest in doing oversized valves as well? I can't remember how much power +1 OS valves all around on these motors were supposed to be worth. I guess if we're talking about limited clearances already, that would just throw in another factor to deal with...
Well I did not expect that! Thank you for analyzing them and sharing. I will keep in mind doing a later apex in T3. I think I hit that cone at some point.
Honestly any losses are marginal. We're talking 5ft/lbs. But technically at 3k and 4k, the cam'd engine makes more torque. There's just a small band between ~3400 and ~3800 where it dips below, which could be my fueling or ignition, but who knows. I wouldn't choose cams off of that. I'd go with the 264, but don't blame you for going with the 252s either. Just don't eliminate them just yet!
0
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. Immediately I think the worse, but only happened above 4k RPM regardless of load. I said screw it, "blow up if you want to" and kept on going, but the noise didn't go away. Since it wasn't present at idle I doubted it was something with the engine, and instead thought something was loose behind the dash or something with the trans. Then on the next session I gave a ride to Nate , and in the first hotlap I went a bit too ham into the slaloms, overcorrected which pointed the car straight at the dirt, but convinced to salvage the lap, did some tap dancing with the brake and surprisingly kept it on track. Nervous laughter between us ensued. Here is a video of that lap where you can hear the rattle and Nate's reaction.
Start poking around and notice it goes away when I grab the shifter. Prod around the base of the shifter looking for loose bolts and it goes away, I revved the engine and saw the shift **** blob about. BRUH. The shift **** was about to fall off and that was the rattle all along. This isn't a K swap!
