Slowly moving towards boost
 

Hey all, I'm Bryan and I’ve had my ’00 Evo Orange Miata since ’05. Before it I had a ’97 M-Edition, which sadly I sold when I went overseas. My ’00 is stock, but I have decided to install a turbo in the next year or so. I’ve been getting prepared by doing most of my own wrenching—nothing too complicated, but I did take out the dash and carpet to heatshield/sound-deaden the cabin. I DD my car and plan to do the same after upgrading it; I would simply like some more power for some spirited driving.

In working up to the turbo, I want to upgrade the suspension (still original) and the cooling (El Paso is hot). I’d also like to upgrade my open diff and possibly get a 6-speed to pre-empt a broken 5-speed, but depending where I'm at, I might have to wait on those. First priority is to get my engine management sorted. I've been reading up on it, and I'm fairly certain I'll go the MS route, just not sure which version/vendor, and I do appreciate all the expertise on this forum.

Lastly, I tested my compression recently and I’m reading:

Dry Wet
160 182
155 190
150 178
154 205

I think these numbers are good enough for moderate boost, and if I ever decide to turn it up, I suppose I can do a rebuild—but I’d need another vehicle before I can pull the engine of my daily.

Based on my experience with a DIY build, I would not boost a Daily Driver with no back-up. We have a lot of hours, I suppose close to 40 hours, though I haven't been keeping track, and 6 weeks down. I'd put us at 3/4 finished.

I have seen kits installed in what seemed a weekend (Carnut169 comes to mind) but I bet that is rare.

I reviewed Carnut169's build. I think it only seemed like it took a short time because his first post contained the entire build. But quick to read doesn't really mean it was quickly executed.

thelarva, congrats on signing up at the best site on the web!