Any Guys from the UK? My 1JZ in an MX5...
 

Hi there

This is my first post guys, so please be gentle! I've been reading the forum for months now, and especially the 2JZ build thread lead by Sean, and wanted to know how many guys there are from the UK on here, and what conversions have been done in the UK?

You may have guessed by the title that I've embarked on a 1JZ build in a MX5 / Miata which I beleive is the first in the UK. Just to put you in the picture, I have recently bought a Lexus / Toyota Soarer TT complete with (Supposedly) the head gasket gone. However, I'm 99% sure it's the water pump, not the head gasket anyway. Also, it is one of the ultra rare manuals with the R154 box in it, so my idea is to use the engine, box and rear diff (none LSD though) with custom prop shaft and hybrid / custom drive shafts.

My donor car is a '94 1.8 (NA8C?) in good structural condition, though will benefit from a paint refresh when complete. The goal for the project is to keep the car looking as standard as possible from the outside, and to sit the engine in without it protruding through the bonnet. My main aim is for drag racing but to keep it so that it could be used for the occasional track day too. My other big aim is to build it to drag in the high 9's / low 10's too, as I bet a friend I could build a car that would be able to (on paper, at least) beat a Veyron up the Quarter Mile - I think this is around 10.1 - 10.2 from what I have read...

I have currently got the engine nearly out and am accumulating parts for it, with (so far) 100mm throttle body, single turbo manifold, 1JZ inlet manifold (on it's way from the US), T4 size turbo plus much more to come. I think I'm going to get it running on the stock ECU / injectors before going standalone with 600cc+ top feed injectors and rail. I'm hoping for 500+ bhp on the stock engine which should be acheivable - My Supra made 500hp at 0.8 bar boost with a big single.

I've got a good amount of knowledge on the 2JZ and drag racing, as I worked for a motorsport company for 7 years and had a 740bhp Supra, and 860bhp Mitsubishi Evo which did a 9.89 quarter in the end, so I'm hoping this will benefit me when doing the conversion. I'm also quite good with fabricating stuff / welding so this may also help me.

So there you go, I just though I would share my experience so far, and if anyone in the UK has any similar experience or wants to share some knwoledge which may help me, feel free and I will take some pics in the spring of 2011 when I will really make a start on the MX5.

Thanks guys, and just to let you know this forum is a font of knowledge for stuff like this, and not so much of the 'bedroom experts' as you get on a lot of the forums.

Cheers Chris


Manchester, UK.

From the UK, tho my swop is for a later 2001 BP, so a little bit easier than your project...

I dunno exactly how your registration process works, but wouldn't you want to use a 1.6 chassis? Do you have to report the displacement of a swapped engine when taking the car for MOT?

Looking forward to the potential of seeing this....and I say that becuase there is a lot of talk about a lot of swaps, but very few finish it...you know how that goes.

If he is only going to track the car, is this really an issue?

The power goals should not be a problem with a 1JZ as you say. The problem, as always, will be getting it down. Sounds like you have some experience there though.

That said, it will probably be a challenge to set this car up to do sub-10 second 1/4 miles AND have the suspension compliant enough for the odd track day... unless that track is a NASCAR oval... ;)

I dunno..some people still drive cars to the track. I didn't se where it said "track only" in his thread either.

Indeed you are correct - it is not clear one way or another... ;)

“Assumption is the mother of the screw-up” - Donghia

So, dear OP, will this car be road-driven, or just a track hack?

In the UK, if you change the engine, insurance gets much more expensive, but it doesn't stop you from driving it on the road assuming you can get insurance sorted.

I'd assume from the OP's job he'll have a trade policy, which means insurance will be pretty much a non-issue. He'll just inform the DVLA (Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency aka a bunch of crooks) of the engine size change (if there is one), and job done.

Update...
 

Hi Guys

There's no intention to use it on the road at this stage. I think the work required to get out of it what I'm after, will make it unroadworthy anyway. May involve cutting rear inner arches, move fuel tank etc. I will probably remove all electrics including lights, and removal of p/s and a/c is a given too, so life would be hard on the road at best.

It's nice to see people taking an interest too!

Cheers Chris

One issues I could see, and I can't fully remember but I believe the soarer 1jz are mid/front sump. With the miata being rear sump car, you most likely going to want to use a rear sump oil pan.

Progress...
 

Well chaps, it's been a while since I last posted as I've been waiting to get the garage sorted so I can start to tinker. Had all sorts of issues, but now the project is underway. See pic below of the start of a big project!


https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...4&d=1345730639


Just started to strip the donor car down, a 1991 Lexus Soarer JZZ30, and so far the all ancilliaries off and ECU, fusebox and Wiring harness have been removed. I've spent the last few nights taking all the wires out of the harness that I'm not going to need like headlights, horn, fans, A/C stuff etc and ended up with a pretty neat harness leftover with a question mark over about 5 or 6 wires in total which I should be able to sort out.

The engine is held in only by the gearbox bolts so I'm about 10 bolts from it coming out onto the engine stand. Then the plan is to strip the rest of the stuff required i.e. gearbox, prop, drive shafts etc so I can scrap the car as it's looking a bit of an eyesore now having stood for 3 years!

I'll get some photos up soon with progress for anyone who is interested. It's very exciting for me, as I've had this project in mind for 4 years and just getting around to doing it...

Cheers!

in, love me some 1jz/2jz

In for progress pics. Loving the sound of it so far. :)

Progress...
 

OK Chaps

For those who are interested, the donor car is being sufficiently ripped apart and pics below show what the 'building blocks' for the MX5 will be. Hopefully, this weekend will be fruitful enough for me to remove the gearbox, rear diff, prop shaft and driveshafts.

More pics soon...

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...1&d=1346418445

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...1&d=1346418445

In for updates. This looks like it could be awesome.

I'm from Essex.

Progress...
 

Quick update from the weekend. Missus at a Christening, so loads of free time to mess around!

The Lexus donor car now is pretty much stripped out. Just the throttle cable to remove I think, then it's off to meet it's maker!

Gearbox now out of the Lexus, as is the rear diff, drive shafts and prop.

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...1&d=1347262395

This is the starting point of the MX5 transmission...

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...1&d=1347262395

Turned my efforts on to the Mazda for an hour or so, so started off like this...

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...1&d=1347262395

Ended up removing most of the peripheral stuff, wiring loom, charcoal can etc and then binning a load of stuff I would never need again...A/C condensor, P/S cooler etc and looked a bit like this.

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...1&d=1347262395

Needless to say I'll have the engine and transmission out soon so will be going spare should anyone need a 1.8 !! As well as loads of other spares ....

Keep you all posted....

Just a quick update for those who are interested and following this thread.

Had a couple of hours free over the weekend and not much left to do to get the 'donkey' out if the MX5, so got it to a state where I could pull the engine and box out together. Note, anyone who's taken a box out of these before will have encountered the 2 massively long bolts that go through the gearbox cradle and can only assume bolt into the rear view mirror - they are that long!


https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...1&d=1349078297


She's been stood for the best part of 3 to 4 years so she's a bit rusty in the engine bay so when I've had a chance to get rid of all the unneccessary stuff in there, I'm going to rub down and repaint the whole engine bay.

Next step is to get the 1JZ engine back out and see if she fits in. With it coming out of a Lexus Soarer and is the mid sump variant, I'm not sure whether it'll fit in or not, or whether I'll be on the hunt for a front sump setup.

Only time will tell...

Thanks for keeping this updated. Looks like you are on a bit of a roll at this point...keep it up!

Glad it's keeping some people interested. I'm at that point now where I can't wait for another session on it !!

Update...
 

Update from the weekend for those following this thread.

Had a few hours free this weekend, so converted the power steering rack to a manual rack as per the FM instructions and removed the dashboard so I could get to the wiring easier.

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...1&d=1349684519

I thought whilst I was in there, I would get rid of everything that wouldn't be needed so out went the A/C box, the fan blower and the heater matrix. Doesn't it look bare in there now!

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...1&d=1349684519

Had to remove the headlights to get to some of the the wiring so it's looking very sad at the moment!

Next job is to get the wiring out of the car so the engine bay is as empty as possible, jet wash and degrease the engine bay so I can assess how much surface rust I need to address and then try the engine for size. Managed to locate a Front Sump for the 1JZ engine should I need it for a good price, as I'm suspecting the mid sump on the engine will hit the sub frame but I guess I'll know for sure later in the week!

Do you think you could use the mid sump but cut the firewall and move the engine back a bit to keep the weight off the front wheels and add more weight to the rear? Or you could just modify the oil pan and pickup tube to be a rear sump (easier).

Not sure to be honest until I drop it in later this week. What I have noticed is the Anti Roll bar sitting precariously towards the front of the engine bay so not sure whether this will have to be modded at all. I've managed to find a Front Sump set up for 70GBP (approx $100 US, I guess) so that's not worth the hassle modifying the original for that. I think it would have to sit way back in the firewall for a mid sump to clear the frame.

Update...
 

Just another quick update...

Had a couple of hours yesterday so continued with removing all of the wiring from the engine bay, and the headlights (who needs those anyway!) - Then decided to clean up the engine bay as I know she's picked up a little rust whilst being stood, but suprisingly not that bad.

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...1&d=1349768085

I'll leave the body wiring for a later day I think, as the only things I'm likely to want to use is the lights, horn and indicators I guess, so I'll concentrate on getting the engine wiring done first and then retrospectively add the body wiring into the loom and make it nice and pretty.

90% the way through removing the diff, the huge girder that holds the diff in and the prop shaft. Thought it would be out last night as all the bolts seem to be out yet it miraculously appears not wanting to come out. I'll figure that out tomorrow, and then the engine should be going in for the first time !!

Update...
 

Well guys, this is the moment I've been waiting for for a while now. The first time the 1JZ engine is actually seated in the engine bay. So my observations at this stage give me an idea of how much effort of going to be needed over the course of this project.

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...1&d=1349942761

The big issue is not it's length but how far it stands up with the current setup. It's probably 4 inches too tall at the minute!

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...1&d=1349942761

Firstly, the frame gets in the way so I need either a front or back sump assembly, as I suspected. I think there is more room at the front so will probably opt for that one but the other problem is the anti roll bar gets in the way. This will either need removing all together as (I'm hoping) ARB's aren't that essential for drag racing but if the car goes on the circuit then it's going to be good to have one fitted. So maybe extended the current one so it would clear the front sump or some how move the brackets down that hold the ARB to the chassis or fabricate some new ones.

Exciting times to say the least !!

Holy shit that's sticking out a lot. Have you pulled the pan and dropped it in that way to see what minimum height is? Are you going custom subframe as well as sump?

Was hoping not to bother with a custom sub frame so when the rear sump is on and the ARB dropped down for a while, I'm rather hoping it'll just sit right. If not, dependant on how much it sticks up, I'll try and shim the frame or maybe just give it a 'haircut' if we're only talking a few MM's.

The other option, which I'm hoping I don't have to consider due to costs involved, is going dry sump which will give me loads more room down there.

UPDATE: Front sump set up ordered. Next week should be fun - it'll either fit or it wont!

Update...
 

Just a quick update for anyone following this.

Had a few hours spare, so took the loom out of the car completely and started removing the wiring for things I won't need, so out came anything to do with heating, A/C, engine wiring etc. Hopefully I'll get it to a point where it's just the body wiring I'm after for lights, horn, indicators etc.

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...1&d=1350294029

The next bit was removing the front bumper and investigating how much room I had to play with for an intercooler, so off came the bumper, the support bar and the metal support pieces. It was looking a bit sorry behind there, so I attacked the rusty bits with the grinder and re-painted in primer so it doesn't go any worse.

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...1&d=1350294029

I noticed it's an awkward shape there and I'm now thinking whether to remove the cross member piece all together, trim down the inside of the bumper and weld in a support hoop instead, like the pic below. This way I can move the intercooler further forward and leave room for a small radiator.

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...1&d=1350294029

Lots of thinking to do.....

Update...
 

Quick update. I'm still waiting for the Front Sump to arrive and keen to see if the engine will fit as I'm hoping it will. In the mean time, I've removed the lower sump pan and released the Anti Roll Bar so it will move downwards. I'm pleased to say that it appears that it should fit in nicely, just may need some webbing removing from the underside of the bonnet.

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...1&d=1350556322

Still need the front sump on to be 100% but things are looking good and ready to fabricate the engine mounts soon.

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...1&d=1350556322

Looking good, trimming the framework under the hood can drop a decent bit of weight as well..

Well chaps, for anyone following this thread...

Had a few hours free over the weekend, so got the front sump on there now and got the engine sitting where I want it. Had to lower the steering rack down as it's hitting the sump, and removed the steering rack mounts that are attached to the subframe. Now the sump has clearance to sit where it wants to be with enough hood clearance, but the sump pan will need trimming a little to allow for the repositioned steering rack. I'm hoping it will only sit 1 inch lower than stock with some custom brackets, so hopefully won't throw things out too much.

When the sump was off, I had a look at the bottom end as best as I could without removing anything, and could see the condition of the bores looked OK for a 100K engine.

I also removed the front support member behind the bumper and it's allowed for a much bigger opening for the intercooler. I've welded up a support bar that now sits between the 2 chassis legs which will be welded in place when I have chance to try the bumper back on. Realised how out of practice my welding was! It looked like pigeon shit!

Finally tried the single turbo manifold and big inlet manifold I've had lying around for a while to see how they would clear and they sit well, needing no modifying except the wastegate pipe perhaps. You can tell there's no truer saying than 'You get what you pay for' as the inlet manifold came from Titan in the US and is a great fit but the turbo manifold is a Chinese thing off Ebay and some of the studs didn't line up and will need redrilling!

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...1&d=1352107159

Next job is to get the engine mounts fabricated, which I started on but run out of interest towards the end of the weekend. Any tips on doing this would be helpful as I started out by cutting up a cardboard breakfast cereal box but not sure this is the best way!

Nice build!

Nice progress, keep up the good work. Intake manifold looks the business

Cheers

Just found this threar via your recent post over on Nutz... really nice loking build this!!

Russell.

/\ If you're spamming to up your post count and buy/sell something you'll be banned very soon

Nope. I just found the site and I am excited to finally find a car that fits my needs but I do not need to tell you how or why a miata is a great car just to drive around let alone track. I have tracked other cars and this coming weekend is going to be my first track day with my miata.

Ok cool. Just seemed like you're another spammer noob trying to bump post count to buy/sell something.

*edit: annnd of course you're full of shit and I was right

Well I just stumbled on this thread and I am happy to see it. I currently have a 2jz in my miata its in the final stages of being done I hope. If you need any help I will do what ever I can.

I can give you a little input on the oil pan. I have a front sump set up and I notched the lower pan to clear the steering rack I looked into many possibilities of moving the steering rack and not matter how you do it it seems to really mess up steering geometry. I still do not have a front sway bar on my car and my engine sits up just a little higher than yours part of that being it is a 2j so its taller to start with. here are few pics.

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1388426511

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1388426511

shifter mod to come thru factory location on a w58

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1388426511

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1388426511

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1388426511

I have put mine together and taken it apart about 5 times over the last 4 years to fix and resolve problems and I think i have just about worked them out. I hope the best on this project I love mine and would love to see another person succeed in it.

Well man, his last post was over a year ago and ended with this:

Probably gave up and parted it all out by now.

Hey Sean

Thanks for your interest. Yeah still 100% on this! Only a matter of days away from getting it running. All the ECU wiring done, all mounts, i/c piping done. Just need fuel return to be finished! Post soon to let you know the progress. Post on the Uk site Mx5nutz if anyone is interested.

Cheers Chris

Woot. Love getting proved wrong on cool stuff like this.

I will be TRULY impressed to see this thing completed. Awesome that you're keeping at it, op.

Nice I realized the thread was really old too late. I am glad to see you are still on it. I will check out the other thread to see some progress let us know how it works out. Just for fun I will be tuning my car in a few weeks. Its on a borg warner s366 going to go for 24psi on pump with methanol. should be fun.

removed post