TSE EFR NB2 Build Thread
 

Hi. My name is George. Some of you may know me from lurking around the forums. I drive a 2003 NB. I have a build thread over on CR but its been mostly non boost related. Im just going to give you guys the low down on whats been done so far.

First....heres my car. Its silver. This was taken at Thunderhill.
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...l.jpg~original

It has a 6spd, 3.9 torsen lsd, ls package car I assume. It came with the hard dog roll bar. I would like to weld back in diagonals eventually. I got a used set of tein street flex coilers with edfc before I knew about what good coils were. 9kg front springs.

Things I have installed in the car already.
MS3 from Rev/TSE:
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...v.jpg~original
Yes I have a long ass last name.

Bracket for ECU:
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...n.jpg~original

LC2 Wideband:
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...s.jpg~original

CX Racing Intercooler kit bought from member on here(not piped in, just mounted):
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...b.jpg~original

CAN Module:
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...4.jpg~original

And Flow Force EV-14 640cc Injectors:
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...z.jpg~original

Today I picked up the actual turbo kit:
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...a.jpg~original
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...b.jpg~original
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...c.jpg~original
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...k.jpg~original
Colors :)
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...j.jpg~original
Upper Down Pipe:
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...u.jpg~original
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...p.jpg~original

And not pictured is all the "accessories" (oil/water lines, studs, etc.)

I would like to give a shout out to Andrew from TSE for putting up with my noobness and helping me out through the way. Thanks turbo daddy. We still got a long way to go.

Y U got downpipe already?

Because not yet mated to flange?

Me waiting long-time!

This is just the upper down pipe. The lower half should be in next week.

Half a downpipe is better than nothing, but I think I might get death threats if I send out "Downpipe tracking!" emails and only half a DP is in there. :) NB lowers are in production and should be shipping this week with any luck.

Want more! My NB1 is begging for boost, and I have been drooling over the TSE kit for a while now.

Shiny! Good to meet you at the NCR meet this evening!

--Ian

I will update the tread this evening with the extra goodies that I got. Im very exited too!

It was good to meet you too!

https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...179c3e9df.jpegI picked up 3 225/45/15 RS3s for dirt cheap. They appear to have about 90% tread. Ill get a new one from tire rack.

https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...1c3bc9a0c.jpegI needed to block off the BOV port on my intercooler pipe so I cut this out from a sheet of steel that was laying around.

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...8623fc289.jpegAfter some time on the bench grinder and two holes. Still needs some refining and a lick of paint.

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...a3aab6ef5.jpegInconel stud kit. Attempted to install into the manifold. I was suprised to read 10ft lbs on the instructions for these. I hope they dont come out of the manifold.

https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...d09362831.jpegInconel stud. So nice.

Nice build so far! Welcome to the EFR club, is that a 6258? The brake fluid didn't like the proximity to my downpipe, watch your brake fluid when you start tracking it. My (custom) downpipe was bent as tightly as he could to keep it away from things but it is still fairly close to the MC. I cooked my fluid after a few days in the high 90s.

Yep its a 6258. I picked up some heat wrap so I'm going to wrap everything close to the turbo. I have considered ceramic coating the downpipe but I want to see how the car does with just the heat wrap first.

The manifold looks great coated, glad I sent it to swain. I get a lot of comments from folks since it's the second thing they see after the shiny turbo lol.

So I picked up a bunch of intercooler couplers last week in preparation for the turbo install.
URL=http://s935.photobucket.com/user/enzoloco1/media/image_zps858vjfwx.jpeg.html]http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a....jpeg~original[/URL]

Friday of last week. The turbo install began.

Out came the airbox and header heat shield. You can see in the pic I was mocking up the intercooler piping. I need to figure out how to keep it from crushing the upper radiator house.
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a....jpeg~original

Here is a pic showing where I routed the driver's side intercooler piping from the engine bay.
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a....jpeg~original

Out came header and on went valve cover breather
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a....jpeg~original

I managed to unscrew the whole manifold stud while removing the header. The nut was frozen on.
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a....jpeg~original

Oil pan drilled and tapped. Was kinda nervous while doing this.
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a....jpeg~original

I will update with more pics tonight.

on the cold side, if you use a silicone 90 degree bend, instead of the reducer and then a 90 degree metal pipe, it will clear the radiator hose better.

also i cut the radiator hose a few inches shorter at the radiator end, so it doesnt arch as much towards the intercooler pipe.
https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...7e7ec53f41.jpg

I was just using what I got with the intercooler. I will try cutting the hose. Thanks!

:winner: (spooky effect lighting)
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a....jpeg~original

Here is cold side intercooler piping for anyone that was interested
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a....jpeg~original

Make sure you clear room for a gates 22436.

Why?

it doesn't fit an NB anyhow.

Needs to use the Begi method

explain...

Mods feel free to move this to the build thread section.

My latest purchase just in time for MRLS
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...i.jpg~original
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...m.jpg~original
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...n.jpg~original
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...1.jpg~original

15x9 Advani storm S1s wrapped in fresh 225/45/15 RS3s. So....much....grip. I ended up getting a new set of tires so they will have even wear and they will al have the same level of grip. I may pick up another set of rims in the late future and use the used tires on those for dd, and then once the new tires are done, ill put slicks on these rims.

It fits my car good enough.

Subbed for ridiculousness :bigtu:

It was nice meeting you over at M@MRLS this year!

Nice meeting you too! Thanks for bringing out the LC2 stuff even tho I couldn't use it 😂. Im 98% sure its the sensor itself so I have a new one on the way.

Loved seeing your car on the Brokeandboosted video. Looks killer.

Thanks man!

Under 7000 replies. Not a cool thread.

jk. car is cool. whens the built motor go in?

When the EFR kills the stock one? :)

--Ian

actually, I have another engine ready to have surgery. It's just not high on my to-do list right now.

MRLS was a blast this year. I was there Saturday only. I signed up for D group back when registration opened because it was the only group that was available. Next year I am going to sign up for B group for sure. It seemed I was just too fast for D or C. Nevertheless, I had fun.

Front straight:skid:
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...8.jpg~original

Dippin into the corkscrew.
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...k.jpg~original

The corkscrew
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...k.jpg~original

Me and the car behind me in this photo were playing a game of cat and mouse my second session. Tons of fun. This is t5
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...0.jpg~original

Exit of t4
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...v.jpg~original

I got a chance to meet Greg from TheCarPassionChannel. I ended up giving him a ride along in my last session. We talked for a while after too. Here is the link to his video, my part starts at about 13:14.

Here is the footage from my last session. The track was getting a little slippery as temps were dropping. Despite this, it was this session that I was able to set my fastest lap. This tells me that I improved as a driver thought the day. Im very pleased with that. Next time I'm at laguna I want to shoot for mid-low 40s. I was almost able to break the 1:50 mark I think. I had no lap timer so I just timed my laps off the footage. Let me know if any of you guys have any tips or recommendations.

Ive also been contemplating removing the rear sway bar. The car feels very balanced, but at the limit the rear will step out before the front pushes. Im just afraid that if I remove the rear bar completely that the car will understeer like a bitch. So, I may just add rear downforce via blackbird fabworx wing. What do you guys think?

I made my own oil catch can because I was bored and wanted something to do. Within how many miles should I start to see oil in there?
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...737979e685.jpg

Depends on the health of your engine.

Ok. Btw, look at my post in the pcv thread.

What suspension are you running presently?

Also, the Gates question early on relates to a coolant re-route.

That manifold is beautiful.

Right now I have Tein Street Flex with 9kg front springs and the EDFC.

And ya the manifold is pretty.

I did the same catch can set up and I am at 1/3 full after 4,000 miles or so. I beat the shit of it.

I have done about 70 miles and mine is still bone dry....

This is how I ghetto rigged the catch can (temporary spot). I think I set it up wrong. Its just connected to the PCV valve and is VTA. Probably gonna get flamed. hehe :giggle:
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...f.jpg~original

I picked up Ian's 2" singular brake ducts in hopes that they might prolong the life of my track pads.
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...1.jpg~original

What track pads you ask? Well, I got myself some hawk DTC60s for the front, DTC30s for the rear, and ATE fluid for my foot.
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...b.jpg~original
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...u.jpg~original

And last but not least I scored these manely rods, unknown bearings, arp hardware, and weisco pistons all for $180! But here is the ketch... all the pistons and berings are toast. So, I got rods and ARP hardware for $180. Sill a good deal. Even better if you use the pistons as art. Apparently what happened was the CAS rotated and the rest is history.

WARNING: WHAT YOU ARE ABOUT TO SEE MAY CAUSE VOMITING, CRYING, DEPRESSION, OR SUICIDAL THOUGHTS OR ACTIONS. VIEWERS DISCRESSION IS ADVISED!

Piston 1:
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...m.jpg~original
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...m.jpg~original

Piston 2:
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...i.jpg~original
slight scoring
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...e.jpg~original

Piston 3:
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...0.jpg~original
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...e.jpg~original

Piston 4:
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...9.jpg~original
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...t.jpg~original

1 side of bearings:
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...1.jpg~original
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...r.jpg~original

Here are the rods. Zero damage.
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...1.jpg~original

ARP bolts (I should be able to re-use these right?):
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...0.jpg~original

I got some nice juice for the build too:
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a....jpeg~original

I still need to swap out my stock pads and rotors for a new set. The pads are glazed over from the track and my rotors are slightly warped. I am going to be doing that this weekend if it doesn't rain.

Technically, in order to reuse rod bolts you need to have the measurements from before they were torqued, so that you can re-measure them and determine if they've stretched beyond their elastic limit. I think machine shops will usually give you the measurements when they assemble a motor for you (dunno, I've done it myself the two times I've built bottom ends), so you might ask the PO if he's got a set of measurements. Hopefully you've got it marked as to which bolt came out of which hole in the motor?

If not, then you're taking a risk by reusing them. I think rod bolt failures are usually due to tensile loading rather than compressive loading, and detonation is more about compression, so that would argue that as long as they were torqued properly (ideally with a rod bolt stretch gauge, not a torque wrench) they should be fine.

--Ian

Well shit...

I tried to reuse rod bolts once. I pulled the recorded stretch specs from my assembly notes, measured each one again to verify, and then started disassembly. The fourth rod bolt came out 0.0005" stretched. Had to throw the whole set away anyway. :party:

Fresh ARP2000 bolts are $75

I know they aren't expensive, but its still money I could have saved. Is 0.0005" really going to effect anything? That seems negligible?

Any stretch at all means the bolt has been yielded and should be changed. Rod bolt failure is the definition of "catastrophic".

I'll preface this by saying that I'm a software guy, not a mechanical engineer, but here's my understanding:

Metals stretch in two ways -- elastic and plastic. Elastic deformation is like a spring, it deforms in a particular direction under a load and when the load it released it goes back to its original shape. Plastic deformation is a permanent change, when you remove the load it does not return to the original shape. Steel will stretch a small amount in an elastic fashion, and beyond that limit it becomes plastic.

When you torque a bolt, what you are actually doing is stretching it within the elastic range. That's what produces the clamping force, the "spring" of the steel trying to pull the bolt back into its original shape. A torque wrench is only a somewhat accurate way of measuring this because much of the torque goes into overcoming friction. Variances in the cleanliness of the threads, lubrication of the surfaces, etc can change the amount of torque required to get a particular amount of stretch by a fairly large amount.

So when you attach critical fasteners, the best way to do it is to directly measure the stretch of the bolt using a stretch gauge, like this:

http://www.codrus.com/miata/fm2r/bol...tch-gauge.jpg?

The two points go into the dimples on the two ends of the rod bolt and the dial indicator tells you how long it is. For the final tightening you turn the bolt until the length is the specified amount longer than it was at the beginning, typically something like .005-.006 inches. This puts the clamping load into the desired range, but not so high that it plastically deforms the bolt. The rods come with an installation procedure that gives the exact steps for doing this.

Rod bolts need to deal with both static and dynamic loads, though. As the piston moves past the halfway point in the upwards direction it is moving upwards faster than the crank throw. This means that the rod is being stretched by the crank on one end and the piston on the other, and since the rod is in two pieces, all of that stretch is being taken by the rod bolts. This dynamic load is added to the static tensile load that you put on the rod bolts by torquing them, and if that load goes above the elastic limit and into the plastic zone the bolt is permanently stretched and will never be as strong as it was before. When you stretch metal it necks down, becoming thinner and losing some of the strength it needs to resist further deformation. Do that enough times and the rod bolt breaks and boom. If one of the bolts was overtorqued a little bit putting it in (perhaps because the installer used a torque wrench instead of a stretch gauge) then an overrev on the motor may have deformed it.

So yeah, if a rod bolt comes out half a thou longer than it went in, it's junk. If you don't know how long they were before they went in, there's no way to check this because they aren't close enough to each other the factory to go from that spec. I measured mine with a micrometer before they went in, and they ranged between 1.82525 and 1.82735 inches.

--Ian

A yielded part will have considerably lower fatigue limit.

http://www.asminternational.org/docu...81G_Sample.pdf

Long article, but the 2nd paragraph tells the story:

"Fatigue damage is caused by the simultaneous
action of cyclic stress, tensile stress,
and plastic strain. If any one of these three is
not present, a fatigue crack will not initiate
and propagate. The plastic strain resulting
from cyclic stress initiates the crack; the
tensile stress promotes crack growth (propagation).
Careful measurement of strain shows
that microscopic plastic strains can be present
at low levels of stress where the strain might
otherwise appear to be totally elastic. Although
compressive stresses will not cause
fatigue, compressive loads may result in local
tensile stresses." ASM article

Lots of good info here. Thanks guys. I am just going to get new ones because I don't want to risk it. I don't know what the specs were when the rods were new so I can't use them. Oh well.
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/a...g.jpg~original

I got new "premium" front rotors because the stock ones were grooved and just worn out. I didn't get any pics of them due to time (I was in a rush to install everything to to daylight running out, I don't like working in the dark)

I have to say, I am beyond happy with these pads for the street. They dust like stock and are silent, yet the initial bite and overall stopping power is greatly improved. I will surely be buying another set of these once they wear out.

Any 3" turbo exhaust recommendations aside from Enthusa and FM?

Artech

Or anyone that will build you an exhaust with the "MT special big Maggie"

There is basically nothing better

I thin artech and I are the only ones who will use the big mt.net on an exhaust. I don't regularly build exhausts though. I used an enthuza exhaust for years and was happy with it.

What is the "big MT.net" thing you speak of?

the big ass MagnaFlow muffler that's popular here

Its his penis

YUS.

If you can't DIY then ARTech is a no-brainer, and the "MT.net Approved Large Body Magnaflow" cannot be beat.

https://www.miataturbo.net/general-m...12579-a-84584/

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...9-muffles.jpg?

I'm running the 1x579 and its the best thing since the EFR. The other two in the above image are a little easier if you are building an exhaust because the last bend going into the muffler is not as tight, but I doubt it matters that much in the end.

Abe said he was taking a break from fab until next year.

The big magnaflow is Great. I ordered mine on Amazon and had a local muffler shop cut the small can off my Enthuza and replace it with this one. The Enthuza exhaust is a great piece, well made, but my car was loud enough that I'd set off alarms while slowly driving through the parking garage at my office. I even added added a resonator and it still wasn't quiet enough. The big manglaflow is amazing, now the car is basically 100% stealth.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

You can get the same muffler on Advance Auto's website, use trt41 and get $40 off the order.

OHHHHH!!!

Hmmmm.

Does that work for stuff other than mufflers? Might be time to order a spare O2 sensor.

I love me some quiet exhaust and I should point out I'm running the Magnaflow 1x579 AND a Vibrant 17950 great big sonnovabitch 3" resonator. I posit that I have the quietest, stealthiest, free flowingist exhaust <clarkson> ...in the world. </clarkson> The fact that I'm running that resonator is a testament to @gesso's ability as a fabricator. :bigtu: