Looking for some advice...
 

Hi guys!

I am looking to build a Miata. I have been browsing the forums because tons and tons of questions have been answered here before. I am finding great information, but I need some help on a few things.

*Are certain years much better than others in terms of engine longevity, transmission strength, etc...
*What is the sweet spot in terms of HP for a 1.8L Miata? I would like to build a powerful car, but more importantly I would like to build a fairly economical RELIABLE car. Forged internals maybe.
My question is, where can Miatas as a whole be pushed to comfortably in terms of HP and TQ. IMHO, if you have to swap the transmission, diff, axles, driveshaft, and work the motor... you should be starting with a new car :laugh:

Does that make sense?
What is the perfect reliability to power ratio? Can you sum up a build for me (Speaking strictly in terms of power train + Drive train I am not concerned with brakes or suspension)

Thanks!
-Dave

200 horsepower stock everything+turbo kit+good cooling setup+good ecu

I had this discussion in another thread. I am really looking for reliability, most of the motors I see on cars I can afford to buy and build up for this project have 100,000 or 200,000 + miles on them. My gut tells me that a motor like that wont be reliable unless I open it up and build it with fresh parts and make sure all of the clearances are right where they need to be.

I know this argument has to carry *some* validity to it. No?

Also, as you go higher and higher with HP, what is likely to fail first on a boosted build. Is it the stock internals? Transmission? What?

Additionally. How would a 200HP Miata stack up to other cars? Should I find someone with a 200WHP Miata and take a ride to find out?

Thanks
-Dave

Generally miles only tell you so much. Get a compression and leakdown test on the engines BEFORE YOU BUY a car to make sure you have a strong engine to start. I started with 117k miles, runs like a champ. 200-230 hp should be very reliable on these cars with a SOLID/SMART setup.
what breaks first depends what the weak link is. Bad tune=knock=engine blows. Hard launches=most likely trans.

My old setup at 10 psi (no dyno, estimate +-200 hp) pulled on a srt4 and got pulled on about a half car from 70-120 by a STI. I dont know the specs of the other cars, only two cars I can say were legitimately trying.

You should read through the build threads here, It will give you a great idea where to start.

I have been reading a bunch of threads around here. Some with forged rods and pistons, the one where the guy has truck coils, meth, gutted intake, 4" exhaust, etc... The woman colored green one with the pink intake piping lol. There are some nice builds on here, I am just not sure which way I want to go myself. I have a WRX that is conservatively modded. I have beaten an STI with it so I know its faster than one. If I do build this miata, I would want it to have some pull to it. I wont do all this work, and spend all this money if the car is going to be slow, or only marginally faster than my subaru.

Well a miata is quite a bit smaller and lighter than a STI. It doesn't take much to get a miata fast. I think around 230-250whp is perfect. Low cost, reliable and fun.

SHIT, search bitch. All of your questions are answered in

"Sticky: DIY FaQ - All your answers in one big post"

Then read and comply with the other stickies.

Specifically, the newb stickies.

Have you even visited the newb section? There's a reason it exists.

Now apologize to the people you made read this thread.

Thats exactly why I am looking into one for a build here are my reasons
-Relatively low cost
-Notorious for handling
-Light
-Fun

The main reason why I want to do this, is because I really really REALLY want another project. I would love to rip everything out of a miata and go to town on it. I would like to do this to my car even more, but I dont have the balls to WELD a roll cage into my car, or red line my car around a track for hours and hours. With a miata, these things would bring a smile to my face. At the end of the day, if I blow it up, I still have my WRX and another project to tackle.

Where are you located?? Come pick up my 97' shell for FREE! Clean title, no accidents, still a lot of parts on it.

Fuck off

Although he was a dick about it, a lot of your questions ARE answered else where. I would recommend checking those sections out if you haven't already.

(zack morris's phone)

Chill son

I think this thread answers your questions.

Fast and reliable miata.

^Link is broken


Heres what I'm looking for... I have been trying to find out what year miata I should search for, and what are inherent flaws or problems I should be aware of.

This thread got side tracked with some questions.

I know subarus pretty well, I dont know miatas as well. Here is a good example.

Q: Hi I want to build a quick subaru without spending too much money, where should I get started. Are there inherent flaws with certain years of subarus? What is a good balance of power to reliability on one of these cars?


Answer I am looking for: The 2002 and 2003s are notorious for spinning bearings and glass transmissions, Stay away from them unless you want to build the block and tranny. 2004 to 2005 is a good year, at 2007 to 2008 reliability started dropping off. The 2008 is probably the most problematic STI ever made (Blah blah blah you get the point...)

Good power levels to shoot for on the WRX are mid 200s. Any higher and you will run the risk of breaking the transmission. All else equal, the AWD is tougher on them than a FWD or RWD car.



^ Something like this is what I was looking for.

As for the N00b sticky, I read that thread. I haven't read the whole thing as I skipped parts about engine management, injectors, etc... I am looking for good general information.

Why would I look up engine management for a 1.6l car if I go with a 1.8l from the get go? I want to know where to start so I can build up from there.

Can anyone help me out with this? Is there a sticky about deviance from year to year in terms of reliability, capabilities, downsides, or benefits of these cars? Because I haven't found one yet.

Stay away from the 90-93's, the factory neglected to add 200 milliliters of displacement. They also skimped a whole inch off the ring and pinion.

And stay away from the '98 miatas, unless you're outside of the US, because in the US, they didn't exist.

^^o i c. like this!

There's a reason you're not finding information on which years are mechanical fail. There are none. The 1.6 R&P is IT. No other year of miatas have significantly undesireable mechanical traits relative to other miatas. They used the exact same 5-speed transmission for 16 years. There's a reason these things are called "reliable and cheap".

Now quit acting like mazda changed shit every year.

On a serious note, don't build your own miata.
Save a ton of money, buy mine already built. Drive it like you stole it and love life.
https://www.miataturbo.net/cars-sale-trade-6/1999-mazda-mx5-miata-%248000-00-a-55051/#post701160

If I wasn't tall and in need of a larger car I wouldn't be selling it. It's wonderful.

If everyone was like fooger03. Plenty of more bitching would go around about not reading stickies, or earlier posts in threads
Edit: NVM, Thanks for editing your post into something helpful. ( <-Genuine)

Instead of skipping through, read thoroughly. Brains diyturbo faq has the kind of answers your looking for. As well as the build threads.

Its how I planned out my sub 250whp build.

There are several regular members on this board that are a lot more direct and a lot less forgiving than I am.

Refine your search techniques with the following terms:
Head Swap
6-speed swap
coolant reroute

Edit: Add "Real Oil Pressure Gauge"

Report back here with your findings.