This being a TURBO forum and very much a DIY turbo forum, I don't see how anyone would recommend anything other than a (DIY) turbo.

As long as you don't care about CARB, turbo is what people have and will recommend here.

 

I can't recommend The FFS, I have never even seen one.... But I have driven, and several friends all have FM IIs (BEGI's). And all were positive experiences.

I do own a supercharged miata--but I am no expert on superchargers. It was/is a BRP kit. It has blown three belts in three months, it has left me on the side of the road once, and very close the second time (thank thee for a good battery). I had to DIY the original BRP belt set up and it has been trouble free since. I carry a tool box/belts/pulleys /bolt's/ and flashlight all the time.

Neither of my DIY Turbo's have ever left me stranded, nor Do I carry any tools. So, yes DIY Rules here

 

superchargers SUCK! i would rather be n/a then supercharged again! ripped 4 belts in 2 ******* weeks with m45 :/

 

Kyle, I wouldn't track an FFS kit. The 5th injector setup is not proper or good in any way, IMO. It works on the street, but I'd be very worried about intake temps and detonation on the track. I'd go with the BEGi-S kit and an intercooler. Stick with 6psi to start, and then as you want more and more power, add the MS, larger injectors, and a bigger exhaust. I don't know if you were at the dyno day, but my car is pretty much exactly what you'd end up with if you started with a BEGi-S kit and added a custom intercooler, their twin-tube downpipe, an MSPNP, and injectors. 219whp untuned at 15psi.

 

Kyle: Just a reminder on the budget: If you are aiming for a reliable boosted track car you will need to invest in some heavy cooling too.

 

Godspeed radiator and coolant reroute.

 

Hi all - again, thanks SO MUCH for all the advice and input in this thread.

Jefe - I'm going to leave the MAF in there anyway, unless someone comes up with a way to mimic its signal; I want to keep OBD2 from freaking out. I have smog techs in my pocket, but there's no way to fool the OBD2 connector. Good call on the injectors. Probably getting ahead of myself, but how large an injector do you suppose the OEM ECU can manage at OEM pressure? And how much headroom would I have for boost on OEM 1.8L injectors at OEM pressure?
UrbanSoot - I'm familiar with the belt woes, but I'm under the impression that's taken care of with the FFS coldside.
Sav - I wouldn't use the PCpro/Ecool under any circumstances. If I can't tune for it with MS, I can go WI off the bat. Bandaids kill engines, no doubt.
Torkel & Bryce - well aware of the cooling issue. One of the things that's so wonderful about tracking the car stock is not worrying about temps. Through a major weekend track flog, running basically nonstop for three hours at a stretch, the temp never got to 12 o'clock, and oil temps maxed out at 220.

I suppose I should see what a BegiS + upgraded lines + upgraded DP + EbayIC + homemade exhaust costs versus a FFS. Either way, WI is a sure thing, as is MS and WB.

1800-150(FPR)+150(lines)+150(DP)+200(IC)*+200(exhaust)= $2350
FFS coldside bare=$3000

MS/WB/WI is another $600 on top of either, though it could be postponed with the turbo+IC, and another $300(?) for radiator and reroute, plus $200(?) for a clutch. That's another $900-1100.

So it looks like I could have a turbo done right, minus WI, for $3000+/-. The FFS would be $4000+/-. So it costs $1000 more, less dicking, less power and tuning potential, marginally better drivability, easier de-boosting. Still thinking I won't run much or any boost on track, FFS makes it on/off, turbo makes it variable 5-10psi. So much to think about.

*http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/2-5-D...QQcmdZViewItem something like this acceptable? Interesting to see it's so cheap. Err... inexpensive?

Think I could get by without an oil cooler? We run Thunderhill in july/aug when it's 100F+

 

You need an oil cooler. I'm running a lot of boost, but I still see 275+ degree oil temps regardless of temperature.

 

Break the shaft or blow the oil seals out and you'll understand precisely why I say that.

Mark

 

Look for $3000, you could have a killer turbo system, but you could do a pretty damn good one for under $2500. I don't see the advantage of the supercharger unless you are going to be auto-xing.

You can overheat the stock car if you flog it hard enough and you are a good enough driver to really get the maximum out of it. If you plan to leave the MAF in then you might as well run MS in parallel with the stock computer and run whatever size injectors you want.

And yes, that $139 intercooler would work better than you think it should for $139.

Mark