Relatively noob, very close to boost.
 

Hi guys frequent lurker, finally a member here. Picked up my 1st car/ 1st na 90 miata 2 years ago this coming April with 121,000 on the clock now approaching 135,000.
Very new/noob to the car world, wrenching and miatas but taking it as a learning curve. Got a bunch of really commuted car guy friends to help along the way and I'm starting to diagnose and maintain things on my own.
Now onto exciting things, few weeks back I was presented with a deal I couldn't pass on. I was able to pick up a fm turbo 1.6 motor with i believe 440 injectors have to check and tranny w/ fm stage 2 clutch with a recently upgraded no electronics fm kit accompanying fm intercooler without piping. Hacked up engine harness as a spare/ Connectors source, Harddog rollbar, rear bumper, finish panel and rear tail light that I needed after someone demolished my rear end while parked all for sub 1000 bucks.
As it sits I'm am confident that I am half way to the turbo world with all of that, just waiting on some warmer weather here in New York to start the swap with my buddys.

My basic understanding of what I have left to get
-management (will be aiming for megasquirt. Have come across the mslabs stuff here and really considering it but on the fence about having all those features while I still very new and trying to stay away from the boost bug and keep psi relatively low to stay under the internals threshold)
-loose ends on intercooler from posts I've seen about routing I could be in the region of a few 90*s and some straight pipes.
-wideband, guages (boost, oil, water ?)
-exhaust

Open to whatever else I might be missing that you guys can think of.

Sorry for the long winded post but trying to get as much info out to you guys as I can to help ease me into the turbo world.

-Antonio




https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1454385690


https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1454385690


https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1454385690

How far do those car guy friends live if they have to commute?

Are they interested in replacing the 1.6L with a v8?

Guess that would be determined if it's a kit route or not. But were all pretty close under 10 min drives. Actually have a buddy that did a 5.0 into his e36 last summer on his 2 week vacation in his driveway. And got a couple 240 guys dropping ls's in prep for the up and coming drift season.

That explains it!

Really have me lost here.

This speaks volumes to us.

QUOTE=Monk;1304401]This speaks volumes to us.[/QUOTE]

If I was lucky enough to have miata guys in my circle then they wouldn't have been mentioned. The topic of v8 swap and if they would be interested in the swap was brought up. They're simply mentioned for the sake of having associates who've done a v8 swap.

I on the other hand have a boosted 1.6 engine and tranny on hand to swap in my miata, which is why I'm here. Me and them don't go hand in hand. I have no desire to become a drift king just looking for a little more pep in my step after 2 years of ownership.

Good. You'll do fine then.

I think psyber's joke was referring to the fact that you used commuted instead of committed in the first post.
As long as you aren't crashing your car into walls, you'll be alright, although very few people will like your engine choice.
Speaking of, have you done a compression check on either?
If the one that's already in there is healthy, there isn't any need to swap the entire thing unless it's built or not a 1.6.
Speaking of swapping engines, this would be a good time to get rid of the 1.6 and get a 1.8.

But then he'd have to get a new exhaust manifold!

Posted late last night and still didn't catch that until you mentioned it. And took first few post as a hazing so to speak to join the mt.net frat.

From the brief talk I had with the seller the 1.6t was his weekend/track rat up until he rear ended someone and rather then fix it he parted the car out. So it's believed to be healthy. Bought it from a friend of friend i trust. Going on man to man word theres 6000k on the new turbo bits. Bit have to really look into it.

My 1.6 currently in the car has its moments. Used to find coolant in 2nd cylinder front nose which relieved itself after a few days while I was searching up solutions after a bad misefire and i checked the plug wires. Currently trying to find a solution to a sort of chatter up under the drivers seat with a wierd exhaust note and lack of power which I believe to be a possible clogged cat.

Know making the jump to a 1.8 would be desirable but I'm just looking for a mild ompf on hp at the moment and certainly know down the road I'll be looking into but as of now I'll have my fun and then pass most of this stuff to someone else wanting to enter the boost world. From the picture my car is the blue, my brother owns the white one and funds aren't allowing him to get on his boost dreams so inevitably everything might be donated his way.

Also have tossed around the idea of building up the 1.6 after I swap it but don't want to throw money at a dead horse from what I've seen around the forums.

Yeah, don't do that.
The bits you need to beef up a 1.6 cost the same as the 1.8.
If you're dead set on putting the 1.6 in there, so be it.
You'll be less upset when you blow it up.
You still need a downpipe, and replacing the rest of the exhaust isn't a bad idea either.
You're also going to want to replace the diff because the 1.6 version likes to splode under power.

Really aiming for the least ammount of work to get it going. As I look at it it's unplugging one and plugging in the other with not much inbetween.

Down pipe came with the purchase. So cat & catback. Was thinking of welding the diff for the time being until I can snag a 1.8 diff from someone local that doesn't want my kidney as a payment..

New Yorks weather has been all over the place lately hot, cold, snow and rain. This week we're suppose to be close to the 60s while last week we had 18+ inches of snow. So none of this is taking place till mid March beginning of April when things are a little more predictable. Taking the time to get advice for my perticular situation to make it a seamless transition.

It's not quite as simple as just plugging in the new stuff.
For instance, you don't have a standalone yet, correct?
You're going to have a bad time if you just do the swap, plug in your megasquirt (you will be buying a megasquirt), and step on the gas.
You should really be installing that now while the car is still NA and more tolerant of n00bish tuning.
As for the diff...
They are around, just be patient. With some luck, a few sockets, and a breaker bar, you can pull the entire rear subframe with the diff attached at your local pick n' pull for peanuts.
Otherwise, just wait for a deal on the classifieds.
Welding a diff is grounds for giving you a mushroom stamp right between the eyes.

Once I swap my rear bits in, I'll have a 4.1 Torsen available. You'd have to source a driveshaft but it'd include axles. Where in NY are you?

Brooklyn but willing to travel within reason and for the right price.

Good to know. I pass through the area throughout the year to go to Providence/Boston. But if you ever find yourself in DC area, I'd be willing to throw a bunch of stuff in.

Rear subframe, control arms, knuckles, axles, and the diff. In fact, it'd be drop and swap ready.

Why don't we just meet in Annapolis, MD at Downmented's house and swap both our rear ends at the same time over a weekend.

Welcome to the site OIUOLUV, thanks for joining up!

Not many pick and pulls with Miatas in them for any length of time up here in the north east (I am 45 minutes out from NYC, just off RT80, so I keep and eye on parts in this area myself).

If you are in brooklyn, you may want to look into joining the NJ Miatas facebook page. Mostly in central NJ, but we do a lot of parts swaping and such on there.