1995 M-Edition Build. on the CHEAP!
 

1995 M-edition miata with blown headgasket and some bodywork issues. good interior and top though. also has a cold blowing A/C, and a LSD.
$400.

that was saturdays purchase. FROM A CAR LOT!

then today I traded a gun and some cash about a $500 package for this turbo setup off a 1.8 ltr. Protege BP block.

came with:
all mazda charge piping
Turbo XS BOV
Haltech E6k ECM with the full harness
HKS Intercooler
2 90 degree HKS solid charge pipes
custom built down pipe
Garret T28 with A/R.80 coldside
RX7 550cc injectors
Autometer c/f air/fuel ajd boost gauges with piller pods

also a complete 1.8 miata head with Web cams, injectors, fuel rail, and 323 gt intake manifold, and solid lifters. also a cork spork plug cover, and plug wires. basically bolt the head down and and route all the piping. also has a J-spec turbo manifold that is cast.

so $900 in all that including the car, and I haven't even sold any of the stuff I am not going to use yet.

this will be my build thread so I will start it off with the down dirty and nasty before pictures of how the car is when I got it. i.e. filthy and unorganized.

now off to start searching on what other experience with these parts, and how much power I can expect CONSERVATIVELY.

things I will need:
head studs
intercooler piping
fuel pump
boost controller
and-
do I need a turbo timer?

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As for the intercooler piping, boost controller, and turbo timer, you can find decent stuff on ebay that works perfectly fine.

Some people say turbo timers are a waste, other say its a must.
My guess it depends on how hot it gets, and how fast it spools at idle speed. I use a turbo timer off ebay that works like a charm (altho the wiring instructions were all wrong), I use mine for a set time of 30 seconds for my small turbo, just to be safe.

Oh, it seems like your going to need a new downpipe.

Seeing as you have the makings of a nice setup and a built head I would think about spending $300 on some m-tuned rods so you can sleep at
night with moderate power.

Holy fuck, who would do that to an M? Fucking awesome find, clean her up and keep us posted!

I would. I bought an M-edition because it was cheap, available, and it had all the stuff I needed. I hate those people that think mods will ruin the value of the car. Mazda's made what? nearly 3/4 million of them. Miatas are worth nothing - even the classic, or special edition ones. Go have fun with it.



Smokin' deal BTW.

^Sorry, I meant who would let it fall into disrepair like that. I have no trouble with him modding it to his heart's content.

Mod away!

Damn what a steal!

I knew what you meant... :)

and on the M-tuned rods, would I just put the stock standard compression pistons on them? can you use the automatic's pistons to run less compression? or was that just on 1.6's?

I had already intended on doing ARP studs and a MLS head gasket.

going to put one of my heads up for sale soon to keep the finances rolling too. I am going to try to be organized and keep a excel spreadsheet of the incoming and outgoing to have a solid full build log.

Deal of the year, and I thought when I bought my blue escort GT with 200,000 miles for $400 was a deal.

Don't let it become scrap metal, that car has one good story to tell!

Just curious, can you the m-tuned rods from the escort 1.8?

you got a nice deal. if all those wheels are in decent shape he could have sold them for like 350+ great find! and good luck!!

What? they are both the same, even from the Kia Sephia (if recall well 95 to 97).

Car looks like it might have been a theft recovery. Those can be great deals at dealer auctions. Insurance companies just dump them.

the wheels all look good and I am only missing one center cap.

and I actually bought this from a dealer with a clean title from the original owner at trade in.... amazing deal.

the car is beyond filthy, I will have it pressure washed, and all the turbo stuff organized and clean this weekend. going to peel off the nose, and both fenders and get cracking... I will try to salvage the right hand door. it latches good so why not save a little more and really make this a full budget deal.

maybe a 2011 challenge car for Grassroots motorsports? I'm off to a solid start without even selling anything.

the 2 expenses that I am dreading still are the rollbar, and hardtop.

I am hoping to trade something I have little in for a hardtop, and I don't know how lucky I will be to get the roolbar though... might try my hand with the ol' wire feed lincoln to give it a shot.

Wow...this has potential.

I hadn't even thought about a 2011 car...

Starting with the 3/95 start of the ODB-II implementation (VIN 14193) the pistons were changed with a slight dome to increase the compression ratio to an actual 9.0:1. The '94-3/95 pistons were factory rated at 9.0:1 but actually was around 8.8.

So your pistons are fairly low compression to start with and provided you don't see major knock then they should hold up to the power levels you are going to see. This will also save you the expense of forged pistons.

So yeah order up some M-tuned rods from Marc, get some new bearings from eBay and profit.

what kind of power would I expect with this at 12 psi? ball park is fine. I still have to figure out how to use and calibrate the Haltech and everything so it will be a process I know.

Dunno....er...250-260ish Anyone? Anyone? Bueller? depends on a lot of factors.

I'd like some more info on this Haltech ECU. Not many people around here running one so you may find help/support for it a little thin on the ground. Good news though, Megasquirt is cheap ;)