Witty title, 94' Laguna Blue 6758 EFR inbound.
 

Hello all, my name is Lewis. Classic forum lurker and long time Miata enthusiast. I'm on Miata number 2 at this point in my life and finally stepping into the horsepower/turbo game with an order to TSE (during Andrew's absence) hopefully getting me back on the road later this summer or early fall. Local to San Diego and huge car nerd so I can't wait to meet some of you (eventually) and maybe even track my rig some day.

The first 90' NA that I owned was a little red gem that I dearly regret getting rid of. At that time in my life, I was in need of something mildly reliable getting me to to and from work and when the crankshaft failed rather dramatically (classic 1.6 L wobble) left me stranded; it was time to let it go. Little did I know that I had a completely rust free NA tub and almost tolerable paint. Whoever the lucky owner was likely saw through my ineptitude and threw another shortblock under it immediately doubling the value.
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Cue two years without a soft-top and lots of forum/classified ogling spawned the Martian Maggot. This little turd was a listed Laguna Blue by a lexus dealer and the low low price of $2200. I should have smelled trouble but was flush with cash and opportunity. Sight unseen, I bought it and had it shipped to my house on the cheap. Upon discovery, I immediately noticed the respray paint job (no longer true "laguna blue") and wash of rust and problems. My house however is a no-kill Miata shelter and thus, the current saga began.
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Originally a blue and tan, the first things to do involved solving the mirad of problems that always plague NA cars that are at or above 20 years old. Here's a quick snap of the janky interior from 2013 when the car first appeared on my doorstep. On the plus side, the NB surfboard seats were a definite upgrade to the previous shorty NA ones and thats about where the "good" stops. The turn signals had a strange habit of not engaging the detent to stay left (it would turn right) to which I quickly determined was a loose screw mechanically blocking the stalk from moving. Why this was not addressed by a certified Lexus dealer who sold it to me, I will never know. More to that later.
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Other random problems included the steering wheel in which the 20 year old foam had long since departed its eternal connection to the steel underneath resulting in an extra 10-20* of twisting action every time I wanted to go anywhere but straight. A razor, some rubber cement and an order to Redline goods put me in touch with some new leather and a more obvious connection to the road. Living on the panhandle of Florida at the time I was quick to find out that the original tan top leaked like a sieve and was more of a suggestion against UV than any sort of barrier to airborne water. Another ding on the mastercard and I had a new robbins econotop and some rain rails from R-Speed. The second being a completely non-functional upgrade but supremely satisfying non-the-less.
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Lastly the most obvious to all, a timing belt. It was clear upon inspection that someone had at one point replaced the radiator but when was a mystery. After draining the coolant and finding as many chunks of rust as to be expected from a sewage pipe underneath NYC, I feared the worst for the engine. Multiple flushes with CLR and distilled water eventually ran clear and my paranoia about a torched bottom end of my iron block 1.8L were muted but not forgotten.
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The car was still drive able though and as my work took me from the panhandle of Florida to sunny San Diego, the Miata followed in trail. New problems unfolded though once there when the heater core decided unceremoniously one day to begin a subtle but direct assault on my daily footwear. I decided a re-route was in quick order as new parts were prohibitively expensive and I had just made the switch from a 94' dash with a blown airbag to a 90-93' model that I picked up on Craigslist. Overall, the new(old) dash was a huge improvement and minus the impending deathtrap of the passenger airbag and discarding the propellant weight, a vast improvement to the cars acceleration and looks.
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The next step was getting the car semi-road legal which resulted in an inspection by a California smog agent. After laughably failing the test, despite having all the requisite parts under the hood I quickly determined the cause of my mistrail.
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The obvious question at this point isn't of course "why did a Lexus dealer sell me a car without a cat" but a more apropos question would be what could possibly be next with this rust bucket?

The car was still drive able though and as my work took me from the panhandle of Florida to sunny San Diego, the Miata followed in trail. New problems unfolded though once there when the heater core decided unceremoniously one day to begin a subtle but direct assault on my daily footwear. I decided a re-route was in quick order as new parts were prohibitively expensive and I had just made the switch from a 94' dash with a blown airbag to a 90-93' model that I picked up on Craigslist. Overall, the new(old) dash was a huge improvement and minus the impending deathtrap of the passenger airbag and discarding the propellant weight, a vast improvement to the cars acceleration and looks.
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The next step was getting the car semi-road legal which resulted in an inspection by a California smog agent. After laughably failing the test, despite having all the requisite parts under the hood I quickly determined the cause of my mistrail.
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The obvious question at this point isn't of course "why did a Lexus dealer sell me a car without a cat" but a more apropos question would be what could possibly be next with this rust bucket?

Somewhere in this time frame, the car made a couple trips up north during my winter breaks and I finally had to shed the super old and crusty summer tires. Cue co-pilot pic prior to 3000 mile adventure.
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On the way back from one of these winter excursions, the failing battle between my $100 plastic eco-top and the cold elements of the Idaho/Utah winters finally was lost. Traveling at highway speeds, an already warped thermoplastic top exposed to the "sudden" heat of Las Vegas decided to shatter rather spectacularly during a one handed attempt to transition between roadster and speedster. I decided to splurge on the $500 robbins canvas/glass to future-proof the maggot and add a little class while all the while rapidly approaching the point of spending more on upgrades than the original vehicle. Add to that and my winter trip finally smoked the summer only tires which further nailed in the coffin that the 45lb steel italian wheels had to go as well. The upgrade of choice was a set of advan 15x7 wrapped in BFgoodrich rubber for the summer and Kumho all seasons for the trips up north.
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At this point, I think I finally started to get the picture that I if ever wanted this thing to be more than a rusty, faded blue, oil burning daily I needed to spend more than "just a little" here and there to get it moving. I started with the nicest exhaust I could find, some fresh sway bars, end links, and a brake kit from 949.
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Don't mind the utterly random imgur size choice while I attempt to standardize for future postings. The brake kit was long overdue and I ended up discovering a rather useless right rear caliper that had sized and begun dragging incessantly. Fresh lines, Motul 600, rotors, and carbotech pads (before they became g-lock) installed to great satisfaction.
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The pad bedding was exceptionally fun due to some erratic driving and smoking brakes. I'm sure the neighbors were amused.

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Somewhere around this stage of ownership the car started to become actually fun to drive (excellent exhaust and brrrrrap noises) but the suspension still needed drastic upgrades and the car was obviously super low on power (NA....1.8L with no intake upgrades). Unfortunately, it also started consuming oil...a lot of oil. I was driving 60 miles a day and probably downing 1q a week. I feared the worst for the rings or maybe some sort of valvetrain issue, front main seal, etc. It got to the point where it was no longer trustworthy to get to and from work and finally had to be sidelined just before I deployed in the fall. I did my best to protect it despite my complete/semi detachment to its overall condition, I overpressurized the tires, pulled the battery, and stuffed dryer sheets everywhere I could. Despite best efforts including a fancy covercraft cover, what I didn't suspect was the rodent problem. Normally a scenario reserved for a warm engine block after a hot day, I would find some turds on the valve cover from time to time but I had no idea what the roof rats of San Diego had in store for me.
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Those photos are post cleaning. Seriously hantavirus everywhere. I must have removed 2-3 GALLONS of turds, nuts, and random trash from the engine. The only thing that was fortunate was that everything else was cherry. No signs of entry or rat shit in the actual vehicle/trunk but the engine bay was toasted.

Post cleanup, I decided to give her one last try before tearing down the motor to investigate the oil consumption and after a replacement battery and lots of cranking, it fired up. Idle was horrible and puddled on top of the exhaust was a huge pool of oil that I assume had seeped out of the valve cover but it nearly caught on fire as it smoked out the whole hood. Not a good look.

I rolled her into the garage and began a more serious investigation.
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Peaking out in that pic is the new block. Another poor choice on my part, I picked up an MSM block on craigslist with promises of low miles and rainbows. On external inspection, I would easily have told you that it was a no shit new motor. shiny, no a drop of oil outside the block. I pulled the head and the cams looked great. I snagged several of the sensors as well but perhaps missed one or two that might bite me later.
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Next up in the build sequence I put in the big orders to everyone's favorite companies and started piling up parts, plans, and credit card debt.

949
Coolant Reroute with appropriate early model cometic head gasket
Dual clutch and flywheel with organic plates
New balanced driveshaft w/ ARP studs and washers
MSPNP Pro 94-97
Xidas with billet mounts, 700/400 springs
ES bushings
ID750 injectors

Fab9
Supertech 84mm pistons 9:1, wiesco rings
Manley rods
ARP head/main studs
ATI crank damper with trigger wheel
Boundary stage 2 oil pump
Gates timing belt/water pump kit

TSE
EFR 6758 Kit with 350hp precision intercooler

Priority Mazda
Ball joints, tie rod ends, suspension bolts
Mazdacomp engine mounts

Overall a pretty stout list and quite a dent to my fico score. The engine was dropped off at a local builder for the headwork including supertech valves/seals/subs and some new seats/bronze guides along with overall machine work and assembly. As she sits, the suspension is about half done but waiting on more engine parts to come in and keep the project rolling.

Good start and a fun story. Rats suck.

If 949 has not already shipped your injectors, call them back and upgrade to ID1000's. The price difference is minimal, but they will give you more head room. Especially with a built motor. Won't be any difference in idle quality so no need to go smaller for that.

Unfortunately I've already had them in hand for a while but still uninstalled. If I don't do E85, I'm hoping the 750s will take me to ~300 whp on 91 but message received non-the-less. Maybe Emilio will have pity.

My daydreams have me buying an exocet once I get this thing up and running which would deal with the paint, rust, and future 15x10 wheel and tire combo. I'm leaning towards an ARtech 3" exhaust but I've been spoiled by the Fujitsubo one. If only they made a turbo friendly product, their build quality is fantastic.

One note, I've had the shortblock for a few years sitting in my garage (call it "insurance") but had I known all the different little peccadillos that the MSM block would give me, I would never have sprung for it. I'm leaving the MSM cams in, despite evidence to the contrary that they are not the highest lift/flowing product for my turbo application and the super fancy red valve cover is actually a PITA trying to get correct aftermarket plug wires for the two different size shelves on the top. Even though it isn't a VVT motor, would VVT wires from one of the vendors here have the two different plug boot lengths required to accommodate?

So, a long time without a big post. It's been a rather serious process to get the new motor built, install all the various plumbing bits and pieces and build my fully sequential ls2 and ignition coil harness with all the NB sensors mapped (correctly?).

So engine is in but it won't catch. It cranks over at 63-78 rpms per megasquirt and since its below the minimum to trigger both cam and crank sensors into sync with the ms3, it doesn't add fuel or spark. [Rpm not synced]

Things I have checked that may matter. Main relay, swapped old with new, same effect. Grounds, all cleaned on the head, throttle, and powerplant frame. Battery (obvious...) 13.6v from a Bosch U1RT which is brand new and should be giving 320cca and was just tested on a bench to verify. Clutch switch is jumped so no longer in the loop.

Alternator is new and is a BP4W from priority Mazda. Using MS3 control for it. Starter is a used 80k NB starter using the 2 bolt method to connect to a NA 5-speed trans. Lead wire seems fine, as does power and terminals.

As I understand it, most miata starters crank at 200-300rpms which is why the base map of the ms3 is set to 450-700. Any ideas?

60-73 rpm is really slow. One revolution per second. This would sound painfully slow when you cranked it.

Does it sound normal to you? Or does it sound painfully slow?

If it sounds normal, then you have a sensor problem. The ms3 is not getting the correct signal.

If it is, in fact, only turning over 60rpm on crank, then that's a different problem. But I have to think that you would notice this, which leads me back to a sensor problem.

Double check that your cam and crank sensors are reporting correctly.

Edit: and that you have the settings in the MS3 proper for your sensors.

Exactly. It sounds painfully slow. My suspicion is the starter itself since nothing in my unprofessional wiring harness changed inputs to the starter or a maybe a grounding issue sapping the amps needed to crank it over. Its certainly possible that my ms3 settings are imperfect but I don't think even with the "rpm not synced" it would affect starting speed.

Would any of the alternator control settings affect the start sequence?

Maybe others with greater experience will chime in but as I understand it, you turn the key and the starter should crank the motor, regardless of the alternator even being physically present. I can't see where ECU settings or alternator anything affects the starter. The key is turned, the relay is engaged, voltage is applied, and the starter turns the engine. So either insufficient voltage/insufficient amp delivery to the starter, or a bad starter.

Clean the connection of the main battery ground at the rear of the ppf by the diff. Scuff it with sandpaper or a wire brush.