Miata NOOB
 

Hey, I'm selling my 2002 WRX that makes 235awhp and 240awtq because it gets me way too much attention, but was interested in something with similar speed and handling. I came to the Miata because I used to track my WRX and I know for a fact from being passed in the turns by a turbo miata that they are great track cars. What I was wondering is, if I bought a stock 1.6L Miata, how much money would it take, including the turbo kit and everything, to achieve maybe between 200-220whp? Also, what parts/kits should I be buying or looking into. I will have 7k to spend on mods right off the bat, and a roll bar, seats and harnesses are definitely first on my list, but after that it's all power.

Thanks for your help, and let me know if I'm posting in the wrong forum or something.

follow my sig

Any order I should go in? More explanation of some of those?

EDIT: Also, is there any particular year Miata that I should buy that's especially accepting of turbos? I was already thinking the first gen miata was the way to go, but 1.6 or 1.8? I seem to see more kits for the 1.6...

Sure there's more information. First, exercise the search function. Then go to the "meet and greet" section of forum, read the sticky, and sign in properly.

It doesn't matter how many kits are actually out there your only going to one of two places. BEGI or flyin miata. either offer kits from the cliche "mild to wild". The 1.8 is just as boost happy as the 1.6 as long as where talking about the NA chassis code. Safety first, which is relative in a two seat roadster, then suspension and a 1.8 diff. and brake conversion if you've chosen to start with a 90-93. Mine and disturbedfan's cars have had a few of the local "1.8 guys" in the rear view quite a few times so at least at the power levels your looking at the extra 200cc isnt that much of a deal breaker if you find a nice 1.6 car. Good luck!

Looks like the BEGi S4 system will probably be the way to go for me. Thanks so much for the help! I will also probably try to buy a 1.8 so I don't have to deal with those problems you mentioned. Basically, I have 12k total to spend on it.

If you've got 12K to drop in an NA you should be able to do pretty well for yourself. Plan to spend about 3-4 K on a nice decent mileage car if you waait around long enough (94 seems to be the most ideal year since it's got a real oil pressure gauge, OBD1, and it's got the big diff and brakes) If I were you I'd do suspension, hard top, roll bar, engine management, THEN boost.

you'll have a nice setup for 12k. Why not just get an s2000? In the HP range and price range and your ready out of the box.

:slap: :asshole: :sad2: :ugh: :barf: :nono: :gtfo: :twofinger

I like the fact that if I put all this together for 12k instead of buying a used s2k, I would have the same performance, if not better, AND it would be my own. I would always rather build up than buy ready. Thanks for all the help guys!

What do they make in the way of engine management for these guys? What if I just got a protune, then wouldn't I be fine?

All the info you need can be found HERE

P.S. you have now reached your spoon-feeding limit on this site. No more uneducated questions.

how much?



more than you can afford, pal.

What? Who are you talking to? :squint:

buy a 1.8L, you'll be much better off.

Bullshit asshole, no one likes the tuna.

Are all the 1.8L NA's good, or only the '94s? For example, would a 96 be just as good as a 94?

94=95>96 + 97 becuase 96+97 are ODBII cars. Only an issue if you have emissions testing. If not, they are all the same.

I live in Cali, so emissions are the worst. Why is OBDI better than OBDII? Could I be catless with obd1 and still be legal?

Why don't you watch the way you type to me on here. Its going to make your life a lot easier if you can manage to not piss me off. We don't need your poser garbage here. Tone down the disrespect, final warning.

Now I'm even more confused! I hope this is some kind of joke. What did I do to make you angry? Was it the squinty smiley? Dang, name calling already. I was expecting the Miata community to be more accepting and kinder than the WRX community, and the other users in this thread have already been proving that it really is a good group of people. I'm just trying to do a little research before buying a Miata because it will influence which years I look for, not sure how that makes me a poser.

give me your phone #. We need to talk about how its going to be around here.

:rofl:

Okay okay, now I know you're joking. Still, with that one guy being banned after his first post, you never know.

Hey, he had clear, simple options...either PM me nudes of your girlfriend, or GTFO.

And yes, I will use the introduction forums, or we could even move this there.

if you only want 220whp, it would be dumb to switch to a 1.8. I have a 1991 and I'm in the very long process of swapping in a 99 motor. Considering that Ii haven't driven the car yet, if I could do it all over again, I'd keep the 1.6. Well see if the 1.9l 99 motor is worth it one I fire this bitch up in 2 weeks.

Why do you recommend the 1.6 over the 1.8 if I can get them both for the same price? Doesn't the 1.8 have a few nicer things like brakes and the diff? Also, why would someone buy the S2 package over the S4 package if they are only a $200 price difference? Just curious. Faster spool maybe?

I only read the first post and didn't see the price discussion. Only buy a 1.6 if its a good enough deal to still pay cash for the torsen rear and 1.8l brake swap. So basically, $1200 price differential.

The cast manifold in the s2/3 is more reliable than the tubular. That's the sole reason I went with it.

S4 isn't CARB approved. All of the others BEGI are (for 99 and older).

Many in CA don't care about CARB compliance but it's one more worry I don't have.

http://www.bellengineering.net/pages.php?pID=4

Mt.net has some tough crowd, especially if your a noob. Don't mess with husler or he'll e-thug you every chance he gets. That or mods will ban you just for the hell of it! :giggle:

So I should get S3 with BEGi fuel if I want to stay legal? I'm assuming there will be good gains with an exhaust afterwards too.

If your confused by Hustler then you obviously need to stop posting and read some of the past post from this site, there is so much info that you wont have anything to post for days.

Joking; what are you talking about? I'm a bit surprised you haven't been banned already with your asking noob questions you can get simply by using the search function. This isn't kindergarten.

OBD-II vs OBD-1

The reason you want a '95 or earlier car is that they aren't OBD-II. Starting with '96, the cars all have OBD-II computers in them. Part of the emissions testing for CA, OR, and numerous other states is hooking up to the engine computer to read the OBD-II codes.

No aftermarket engine management systems return OBD-II codes. I believe this is Federal Law - only the OEM systems can return those codes.

So if you get a 94 or 95, you have more flexible engine management options, because the system doesn't have to return those codes to begin with.

There are options for the later year cars. The XEDE system, distributed by BEGI in the US for Miatas, works in-line leaving the OEM computer in place. BEGI has had around 10 cars or so pass OBD-II emissions test with the XEDE installed. I am planning to go this route with my own car. But CA has a visual inspection as well (OR does not) so unless you've got a CARB sticker for the turbo, you'll still fail. Even though your car may well pass a sniffer test and be no more polluting than it was before modifications. Thanks gubmint !

So, in your case, from an emissions perspective, the easiest way to go is with a 94 or 95. The emissions test won't include reading the OBD-II codes, so you can run any engine management you want, including ditching the OEM system entirely and going with a MegaSquirt or a Hydra.

Edit: It is possible, and numerous people have done it, to run a MegaSquirt, Hydra, or other system in parallel with the oem computer. But such a setup is significantly more complicated to install.

Thanks for clearing up all that OBD stuff. I'm doing more research on em now.

is the car going to be a DD? or do you want a weekend warrior/trackslut? if you got 12k buy any miata with a torsen you want, just make sure the body is good, spend 6k and buy an FM stroker motor and never worry about it blowing up again.

$3000-miata
$6500- FM stroker motor
$450- HDHCHTDD
$700-MSPNP
$500- AGX w/springs
$2000-begi -s w/2860
$100-ebay intercooler
$100- ebay intercooler piping

^ done. only like $1000 over budget lol i chose the 2860 cause of the stroker motor, should be able to spool is np. You can get the rollbar used and find the MSPNP cheaper too.

The built stroker motor is 10k, and the kit is 4200, so I'm not sure where you are getting those numbers from. And if he was going to stroke it with exhaust, I think a GT3071R would be a better choice of turbo.

He didn't need that much power. I wouldn't blow all that money on a stroker if I was just going to run 12 psi. I would be jacking that shit up to like 30, then we're talking new driveline.

http://flyinmiata.com/index.php?dept...umber=04-01000

^6500

thats why i asked if he was going to daily the car. if he is then dont bother with a stroker. but if its gonna be a track car and you wanna build a ridiculous miata, well then there is a part of the solution

Yes the car is going to be my daily, and I don't need anywhere near that much power. Just looking to be roughly the same as how my wrx is now. It will still see the track occasionally, but most of the time it'll be on the street.

then follow what i posted minus the stroker motor and the 2860. the 2560 is perfect. the majority of the price for begi's s3 is from the intercooler. you can save like 1k if you just go the ebay route like most of us on here. get a -s and add the 2560 for an extra 200. drop the FPR -150 and it basically balances out.

I like the idea of $1000 cheaper, haha. Sounds like a plan. Now if only my car will sell... I really hope I don't have to end up trading it in.

Edit: I think that BPV from Begi for $135 is a rip off, shouldn't I just buy a by-pass valve separately? I'm thinking I will give BEGi a call when I am ready and sort this all out.

Edit again: Also, if I want to stay fully street legal, isn't the BEGi S3 worth the extra cash?

I'm gonna throw a few modifier ideas out there and build on what others have already laid out.

Since this is a DD, and a California car, I'd consider cutting back a bit on the engine itself, and spending a bit more on the turbo system and a few other bits. You don't need a $6,500 "built" motor to run street tire levels of power. Spend a little more money on the base vehicle itself and get something clean and nice. Basically anything '90 to '95, with a preference for '94-'95 so you'll already have the larger diff. So long as the motor isn't smoking and blows consistent numbers on a compression test, leave it alone.

Spend the money on the turbo system. Get a Bell S1 thru S3 (your choice) with the full BEGi fuel system, so that you get the CARB sticker. Put it together and run it that way. Also get yourself a decent clutch and an Enthuza exhaust. And a wideband O2 sensor.

Also, set aside $2,000 to $2,500 of the money you didn't spend on the engine for your suspension. Springs, shocks, bumpstops, front swaybar, and all the little bits. Plus a set of 15x7 wheels and some RE-01R tires. In fact, do this before you go turbo.

If you wish, you may decide down the road to go with better engine management such as a Megasquirt. And if you blow up the motor, then you can make a choice to either buy another cheap used one and stick it in, or spend the money on the big fancy "built" engine. But truthfully, few of us here have them.

Ben, I can't believe some of the shit you're being fed in this thread. Some of the advice is downright absurd.

It's obvious you're doing some homework and are genuinely interested in this project, so I'm gonna chime in on the backside of Joe's advice.

If you're set on an NA, then 94-95 is absolutely the way to go. Assuming you start out with a $5k car with a good motor and have $7k to spend on mods... make sure you find a car with some mods already on it. They're out there, be patient. The car of your dreams with a bunch of mods already on it will present itself. How about this one: http://www.miata.net/cgi-bin/isc/cla...revaction=show
It's got everything on it except a turbo. You can blow your whole wad on boost. Sell the supercharger and NA exhaust to recover some costs and you're still looking at $7k+ to spend on turbo. The good news is that you don't need to spend near that much money.
I'd stick with a straight BEGi S3/2560 and an Enthuza cat-back. You'll need the Walbro 190lphHP fuel pump to get enough fuel pressure... 305cc injectors too. Get yourself a TT FuelRail, LC1+gauge, 3.9gearset, and MBC... set for 10psi and call it 200whp. That's how to stay CARB Legal.

Or... and here's the awesome part. Get yourself a Megasquirt PnP w/EBC/MAFdelete, and some RX7 460's. Run the second output from your LC1 to the MS (first goes to the gauge). You run 12-14psi at around 240whp 364 days per year.

On smog day, you pull the MS and plug the stock ECU back in. Swap your 460's for stock fuel injectors. Un-bypass the AFPR. Plug the MAF back in. This process takes less than an hour. Go pass smog. Come home and reinstall MS.

As Joe suggested, do your homework on ACT clutches.

+1 on everything sam said. btw california FTL

disturbedfan you fucktard. You go and correct a guy by saying the stroker is only $6500; then you post a link to FM's built 1.6 and 1.8's that are $6500. The stroker (aka 2.0L) is indeed $10,000 and out of his budget.

I agree with what everyone is starting to say on this third page, no need for even a built 1.6 or 1.8 if you're just looking for 12psi and a modest build, take what joe and sam say as free money, be happy you've got this much advice. I think we're all day dreaming as to what we'd do if we had $12k to drop on miata+mods, because most of us would never have that much

wow you are right, my bad. i didn't even realize

that's alright, I probably drool over that engine while flipping off the price tag too much...

I finally got my WRX sold, and I've already gone to look at one NA just to compare the one I'm really considering to. Gonna check out the good looking NA this Sunday.

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.js...ce=&cardist=34