What BEGI kit do you run? how was the install?
 

What BEGI kit do you run on your miata? How do you like it and how was the install? Looking at just getting a kit and installing it myself. Be my first turbo install, so im trying to see whos done the same thing.

I'm using a Begi S5 turbo kit for NBs. I bought from another forum member and it was hard to adapt. Thank God I didn't have to do the work in my case. Begi's own site states that S5 kit is not for NAs.

But in terms of the final results I couldn't be happier. :)

I've got a huge IC and a great Manifold. I haven't faced any issues with the turbo kit since I installed it.

If you're going to do the installing yourself then my experience is of no use to you.

Do a search and you'll find plenty of past threads about issues with Begi S kit installs. Most of them, minor issues.

I have a lot of parts from a BEGi kit, does that count?

I've got an S3 kit. Several parts had to be modified to fit. So it's not really plug and play. I had to modify the downpipe slightly, take a dremel to the cold air box and turbine heatshield and abuse my air conditioning lines to get the hotside intercooler pipe to fit. Their replacement for the mixing manifold hit didn't fit with the bracket for the A/C pulley with PS delete. I also had to send a turbo back. Now that it's all in and working right I'm happy but if I had to do it over again I would have gone custom/DIY as it would have probably taken me the same amount of time in the end and fit better from the get-go.

I bought a BEGI-S, with a 2560 and SS lines, that has since been upgraded by me with non BEGI stuff. I've got a link in my sig to the installation thread.

Short answer, the only big problem I remember was the oil return line was slightly too short which caused too much tension at the fittings and resulted in leakage. I tried three times to get it to work but no luck. BEGI sent me a longer one and it went in fine on the first try, no leaks.

begi s3

I have a '91 witha '99 swap.
the cold air box oil and water flange thingy hit the compressor housing
I didn't like the race reroute
I wish the intercooler were centered
the water pump flange didn't fit because of my big swaybar brace
had to make the holes bigger in the "little" manifold heat shield
something weird is going on with the scooper, not really sure what, but I'm about to get wild with the sheet metal and make a big splitter.

the enthuza exhaust fit perfectly (think 1.6 body, 99 motor, begi dp...and somehow it fit)
Aside from those issues, I'm happy with the kit. Actually, I'm floored by it. This is my 3rd turbo kit (vw cars previously) and the quality is a breath of fresh air.

BEGi has been good to deal with every step of the way. I went into this deal knowing that some stuff wasn't going to fit because we're working with a swap car with every exception in the book. Even 2-years later, after this stuff sat forever, I can call them with the issue on the airbox, and they're going to make it right. I'm happy to give them my money, and I'll probably do it again for the other miata, lol.

I'm have the begi-s kit 2554 tubo, non-intercooled, RRFPR, 255 fuel pump, basic oil and water lines. car is a stock 1990 with ecu and 96 1.8 engine swap.

Install went smooth had a few little problems, parts were excellent in quality and customer service was great. I had to trim some of the hood frame to fit the crossover pipe. car runs great definitely worth the money have much more in store for this car. the kit was my first and would definitely recommend to anyone although you may save some money by diy. :noob:

Hmmm, I have the Begi S2. If I were to do it again, I'd drive my car to them and make them do the install. And I live in california. 6 months to get the parts, lots of modifying here and there. Scoops not fitting etc. Actually, the only thing that fit with zero problems was the intercooler.
Nice stuff, but dang...

Begi S1 - see signature for install pics. Only major problem I had was down pipe interference and 02 bung locations - dp had to be replaced.

i installed an s4 kit on my friends car, it wasnt that bad

I've got a 1.6 manifold, DP and the heat shield on my car. Had to modify a wrench to get several of the nuts on the manifold, not enough room between runners. DP required a LOT of fucking about to get it to fit with out rattling. The slip joint was too loose, used an exhaust tubing spreader to get a tighter fit. NB O2 bung was oriented wrong so that a sensor would not fit. WB O2 bung was absent. Heat shield would not fit with out doing some cutting and bending. Other than that the parts are top shelf!

If I had to do over I would have purchased from FM. The BEGI stuff is very nicely made and pretty, but I could have done with out fit issues. For the price I expect things to fit.

wow...doesnt seem like its that great. Are people having better luck with the FM kits?

There's nothing like a fresh production kit in town that a buddy needs help installing. I love going to somebody's house and turning wrenches... but only if the engine bay has been cleaned thoroughly and all the exhaust nuts/studs have soaked in PBBlaster overnight. It sure would be nice to know where you lived... maybe there's somebody with experience who could come over and help you out when the time comes.

An S3 kit can be done in a day with two people who know what they're doing. That won't include the clutch or tuning (unless your name is Scott).

with only 1 person who knew what they were doing, (paul) and myself who had an idea, it took us 2 days to finish my kit. and that's including the trip to the exhaust shop.

I have an s5 kit.
I have the 1st s5 kit made.
It was a bit of a pain in the ass, but I figured shit out.
The instructions were beat, but I really think that was because it was really the 1st one to go to a customer.
Beside that, that kit is solid as fuck.

:bowrofl::bowrofl::bowrofl:

I know the feeling.
My BEGI kit is working and it is stupid fast for only a S1 but I wouldnt suggest this install being a DIY it is not P&P. I have had a year of problems and almost sold the car becuase I was flat tired of $#!% rattling and banging down pipe and topping it off with the 02 bung as well.:bang:

The down pipe sucks "period" and sadly the more that I read about it the more it seems its not just my year.

But other than that I was pretty happy with the kit.:) I would suggest not doing the coolent reroute if you plan on changing your radiator, Im in the process of undoing the mod as my car will not warm up on cold days with a racing radiator. (aka will not leave "C" at all)

I did the install my self in about 2 days but i have more tools than some shops and I used them all plus some that I created.

Last I will have to say that customer service is the best, Stephanie and Corkey and the family are the kindest people in the world. :)

suckers....my BEGi DP is easy.

http://boostedmiata.com/turbo/uninstalled.jpg

If that is a BEGI greddy down pipe please tell me how it fits, we have a member wanting to get one and is wondering the fitment of it.

My DP is pretty simple too..

Plus, it sounds awesome when the waste gate opens up!!!!!!!!!!!

I started out with a BEGI-S, blew the engine and had it rebuild. Mor BEGI parts added, so basically I have a BEGI-S3 now, with additional partly custom coolant reroute, MSPNP, 550cc and alot of other suff like an oil cooler. I am adding an Enthuza CAT+3" soon

I've got an S3 kit. I had a horrible experience with BEGI. From payment date to delivery of the last part was right around 8 months (I was told it would be 1 month before it shipped out). The bulk of the kit was shipped out 2-3 months after payment, I can't remember exactly. I was missing a bunch of little parts and the Megasquirt. Then they sent the wrong megasquirt and I had a horrible time getting them to swap it for the correct one. Aside from a couple issues they were nice about it and did send the parts out. I probably made 20 calls to BEGI to harass them into sending stuff though.

On top of that I had a lot of the same problems Hustler did: Air scooper has absolutely nothing to mount to (I guess this could possibly be my fault for removing whatever it was supposed to mount to? But there was nothing about the scooper in the instructions so I can't tell), cold air box didn't fit very well, I spent forever trying to figure out why the intercooler wasn't centered (apparently that's how it's supposed to be), manifold heat shield didn't fit and I had to drill it out.

I'm not really all that familiar with turbo setups but even with the wastegate actuator adjusted all the way out the lowest boost I can run is 10psi. Which isn't really a problem for me, but I could see it being a big problem for some people.

Overall, the car is finally running and I'm happy about that, but I definitely will not ever be buying from them again.

I had no problems getting the correct parts, and they made good on the two fitment issues with no resistance at all. I'd do it all over again with them, with a smile.

Good to hear, and they did ultimately make good on the sale. I certainly don't feel like they cheated me or anything. It was just a long, slow process and if I was going to do it again I'd look into going another route.

Diy ftmfw!!
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Welcome to BEGI... sounds like the standard. I had the same experience with my S2.
Still have the air scooper and about 4 other parts that were un-mountable without instructions and are sitting in the garage...

I have a hard time believing that BEGi sent you the wrong parts and refused to make good on the problem.

I have the BEGi-SSM with the addition of Megasquirt, braided lines, cold air box, stainless dual downpipe and boost gauge. I had BEGi do the install. I have the advantage of being close to BEGi, so I spent two days there watching the install. Mine was the first install of this particular system on a 1.6 NA.

The issues they ran into included:

- the power steering unit being in the way of getting a regular drill in to drill the oil pan. They ended up using a right angle drill and shorter bit.
- the downpipe wasn't quite centered between the engine and the frame, so they made a new one on the spot. They wanted it perfect so they could build a jig for future builds.
- one of the oil lines in the kit was longer than needed, so they replaced it with a shorter one.

I have never seen a turbo install before, so I don't know if it is normally done, but they did clock the turbo so the lines ran smoother.

All in all, I am more than pleased with the whole experience. BEGi is made up of some very talented and just plain nice people.

On the flip side, my paperwork indicated ALL back orders were shipped within 4 weeks. And you neglect to mention the reason for the MS hold up. He refused to ship back the original MS, basically holding it hostage. So, yes, it took him an additional 5 months to get the correct MS because that is how long it took for him to return the incorrect part. Could there have been another way of approaching the MS return, sure. And for that, I am willing to take the blame. But don't make false accusations of "the bulk of the kit was shipped 2- 3 months after payment". That is just flat out untrue.

Stephanie

owned, lol.

I shared my experience and apparently you've got a much different story to tell. All we can do at this point are try to prove the facts that are available to us. I'm sure you guys maintain shipping documents right? I tried to look up my credit card statements but unfortunately I can't go back that far. If you would like to post up the dates my kit was shipped that's fine with me. If my kit was shipped within 4 weeks you have my word that I will humbly apologize and forever cease my incessant badmouthing.

I was able to look up the date my debit card was originally billed for half the price of the kit at the date of purchase. The kit was then delivered while I was on a business trip so I can get those exact dates at work on Monday.

To OP - Running a BEGi "S2" kit (mostly) with the old Link engine management (MAP sensor, intake air temp, knock sensor) that was left over from very early BEGi experiment (the Aerodyne turbo).

Installation wasn't bad, but I had done a few engine installs and turbo-reinstallations before. Most of the parts and fittings were there, a few got lost in shipping/etc - I laid everything out and matched it up before I started, which made for less of a headache.

Really didn't have any issues with major components (Manifold, Downpipe, IC or tubing). The coolant re-route seemed to be the least well thought-out portion, and had the worst initial fitment. A year later, I finally got the brass hose barb machined down to minimize the coolant weepage at the upper front connection.

Timing was okay - not exactly above my expectations, but not really "late" either.

Aluminum parts weld quality is top notch, steel and stainless is okay - (I used to TIG weld bicycle frames.)

My purchase was made 6/3/08, package was delivered 7/23/08 and was missing ecu, airbox, filter, heatshield, and a couple other little things.

51 days / 7 days in a week = 7.2857 weeks.

My apologies for the 2-3 month accusation, but I did aknowledge that I wasn't sure on that statement and the delivery was only about a week short of 2 months.

Stephanie is a hot tamale

I spoke with Stephanie a few months ago about a turbo kit...and I am just now ready to pull the trigger...I was very impressed with the professionalism and knowledge base. I personally find it hard to believe there is a disregard for customer service in ANY aspect of BEGi's operation.

She and I conversed about monthly for a couple years now...I think that's a record. No woman and I can maintain an amicable relationship that long, lol.

Keep searching old threads about begi then. Begi in general seems to have a hard time:

Packaging all the correct parts to ship that were ordered
Building a down pipe that fits
Shipping things in a timely manner

There are several threads here where people ordered a kit and got parts that didn't fit as advertised, had to mail parts back, etc. I ordered a book a long time ago and never got it. So I called them up a week later and they have no record that I ordered anything. Then I'm put on hold, they come back, and they "found" my order. Then they billed me and shipped it. After two weeks, I finally got my book.

I don't have a kit from them, but I have ordered several things. Each time there has been issues. Whether it's having to call back because the person answering the phone can't take the order, the order not getting processed correctly, or just plain and simple the parts I receive aren't able to be installed without making changes to them. Needless to say, they lost my business a long time ago.

I agree with some of the things Patmx5 said, some of those things we are notorious for. Especially the shipping in a timely manner. I will never refute that. However, it someone is grossly in error and saying so publicly, I will correct it or provide the other side to the story. Not everything is our fault.

In our defense, the downpipes were an issue at the beginning. However, in the last year, there have been fewer reported issues. There are downpipe issues if you take our downpipe and add it to an older BEGI or current FM turbo setup. That is usually explained when someone purchases it and those circumstances are known. I cannot help those that know about a potential issue up front then choose to gripe about it later when it happened.

As far as packing all the correct parts, you have to remember that every kit shipped out these doors is different. Very few kits are alike, due to custom pieces needed, ECU's, custom powder coating, etc... Most of the time we do a good job of matching the correct part to the correct turbo, but , yes, there are occasional slip ups. At Least we offer that custom option, no one else does. We allow people to customize a BEGI-S kit, think Greddy will let you do that?

It was discussed, over a year ago, about a downpipe that we just could not get right for a somewhat custom application. In the end is was concluded that we should not stop making custom parts just so that everyone could have a cookie cutter, perfect install.
Stephanie

Some of us don't want to hear an explanation. Begi had an opportunity to take care of customers from the first time we call all the way through making sure a properly fitting part is shipped. It either happens or it doesn't, no explanation needed or wanted.

I cannot help a national back order on a turbo, but yet I am supposed to take the blame for it not being delivered on time? Not fair by any one's standards.

If we have made a mistake with a part, we will get it corrected as soon as possible. I am sure it will never be on the customers time table (since they wanted it done yesterday!), but I will do the best I can.
Stephanie

I disagree. Good luck finding someone to make weird, custom parts off the car. Good luck finding a shop to guarantee a kit to fit a 99 motor in a 1991 car. BEGi was roughly 1" off on one custom part. Not bad if you ask me.

I'm sorry to nut-swing them, but its dumb to berate one of the only companies making whatever we want through email. This is my 3rd turbo car. I paid for "the best of the best" for my VW, and not only delt with more fitment problems, but dumbfuck asshole crooks who wouldn't fix their own bullshit. Thanks EIP, kiss my starfish!!!

I call it like I see it and vote with my wallet.

Pretty much sums it up. Cracked/poor welds, warped surfaces with coatings on them, wrong parts, missing hardware, etc are things that should never leave the shop. No excuses for stuff like that. I see more threads about crap like this then I do about back ordered parts.

From what I've read, BEGI doesn't cross ship, or whatever it's called. I've seen several threads here where "BEGI sent me a XXX instead of a YYY and it doesn't work and I have to remove it and ship it back to them and them get it before they ship the correct part". Causes more down time. If the problem was 100% BEGI's fault, they should take corrective actions immediately, not whenever the old one gets back.


But, I say props for doing everything they do. I'm just leaving what I feel is constructive criticism. BEGI needs to work on QC.

I can't help but feeling the BEGi haters are being a little over critical!

I am aware that they have QC issues, but I'll be honest I couldn't in any way shape or form criticise the service i have recieved from both them and their UK distributor MX5mad.

I ordered and put down a 1/4 of the cash as deposit, and then paid the rest off a few months later when the kit was in the UK, ok so i didn't get it next week, but nonetheless I recieved it when i could afford it, and also when I had time to fit it.

Fit was 110% perfect..I didn't have one issue at all with mechanically fitting it, and i am a complete numpty when it comes to car mechanics! I got all the appropriate bits, and I'm exceptionally happy with the quality of the parts and indeed design of the kit! (far better than the FM jobbies imho as a techy theoriser)

They did forget to put a boost gauge in the box, but MX5mad sorted that out when they finished off the install for me..and i'll be honest i never use it (it's actually in my glovebox disconnected currently)

So I think your being a tadge harsh on Stephanie...clearly a lot of things are out of her control and you can't criticise her and corky for that! I suppose the real question Jay is.....could you do a better job? (i'm going to say no)

Just curious, can you explain why?

We totally agree. We have added extra steps lately to ensure stuff like this gets caught. I am now inspecting all parts prior to coating and prior to shipping. Tim is now the third person to inspect all kits for proper pieces. It means a delay in shipping parts, but it gets looked over prior to shipping. But that does not mean I do not have my total and complete "Blonde" moments and miss something. But we have added those steps in an effort to eliminate problems.
Stephanie

Thanks Steph for checking my order before it goes out. I am sure it will be perfect when it is shipped :) I look forward to getting my S4 kit installed on the car and will post my power numbers.



Thanks,
Mike Miller
Waiting relatively patiently (I suck at waiting)

Primarily three things

1) Divorced Wastegate downpipe
2) Manifold Design (which i believe is currently being redesigned looking on here)
3) Metal IC piping as a posed to the silicon tubing in the fm kit