It is best to buy a 1.8... the 1.6 guys use so many parts from that car that it would be cheaper to buy a 94 + (94-95.5 are obd 1, and the most wanted...)
Search on the classified section for a t3 manifold and go with a garrett super 60.
The gt2560r should take you there...but not without big mods...

Go with the t3 and anything below the 300rwhp can be achieved.
Above 250 hp trannies start to break.. but they are cheap enough...

you try some 10" rotors with the same pads and report back.....untill then, enough said.

come out to the autoX next weekend. Should be plenty of miatas for you to sample :)

=> houston

Hmmm where is it and and what time?


By the way, what is the most common part that breaks as far as internals go?

I'm assuming a GT28 can hold up to 19psi or so and is good for probably 350whp. Any thoughts?

Yeah but the GT28 is expensive. You can get a T3-60 for less and have a ceiling of 300 which is high enough to destroy your trans and rearend without a problem if driven very abusively.
It's not the internals of the miata that fail, it's the tune that fails causing detonation. Detonation kills motors not weak internals. Though some say the rods are the weakest link though. There are many people that make big power on fully stock motors.

If I had to do it over again, I would have started with a 94. I certainly don't lose sleep over it though. Buy a really low mileage car, they really aren't much more expensive and you will appreciate that all the little things have less use on them.

I would go for the 94-95 were I to do it again myself, basically just for the differential and brakes, which I upgraded later ... but i did it for free because I bought a 97 as a daily driver and did a lil swaparoo.

get a t3 -60 and run it with a stand alone. On a bone stock engine @ 15psi it will be able to reach your goals...
The gt2560 is topping out @ this hp level... The gt3071r (t2) is also a good option.

For stand alone: Link ecu is the easiest...Hydra expensive and powerfull...
lots of ecu's to get it to run.

Whats the budget (without miata)

$3500

you could do a lot with that.....

go to http://bellengineering.net , hell even http://flyinmiata.com

FWIW my 1.6 setup initial 200 whp only 1800 dollars including new clutch.