Fire up the DeLorean!
 

Assume Marty McFly and Doc stopped by your place with a flux-capacitor equipped, stainless steel, four-wheeled time machine and gave you the option to go back to the beginning stages of your track-oriented Miata build and give yourself advice.

I'm specifically thinking of guys like Savington, Hustler, bbundy, thesnowboarder, Orion4096, et al that are running under SM lap records at the tracks they run.

For a car that was going to get driven to an event a few hours away towing a tire trailer, what would the major components consist of (assuming an NA chassis)? Priorities are, in this order: reliability, speed, cost.


I have read:

• The Turbo Reliability Thread
• The Epic Nuts/Studs Loosening Thread - I accidentally the whole thing
• Hustler's List of Regrets Thread

Though this is totally against the vein of this site, I would add some requisite threads from here or elsewhere on racing a V8 swap Miata. It is an option worth considering.

Copy my car, I'd do it all over again with the lessons I've learned to get the car in it's current state: V-band, inconel safetywire, heat shielding, new rubber and joints on the suspension, check the electrical harness and clean-up whatever you need. I'd like to emphasize the need for fresh suspension parts.

I spent tons of cash on making power (twice) and suspension, now I'm dealing with problems associated with 20-year oil joints in my car. I decided to freshen all joints with new rubber from the dealer or poly from 949 and new, expensive grease on the items I've refurbed and replaced. Going through the suspension is a life/safety recommendation.

BTW, rolling in with the tire trailer, crushing, then pulling the trailer home is awesome. The experience of driving my car around the state and crushing at the track is pretty romantic.

Stay N/A. Especially if you are a first time track driver. You will learn so much more and then you can move up from there. Expect to spend $6-7K at least on a built motor and all your turbo parts if done correctly.

If you get hit don't worry about the body shop. Just get another shell and swap everything over. If you don't you'll regret it. Ask me how I know... :facepalm:

I have given it considerable thought and it was my original preference over turbocharging the BP. However, after more research and acknowledging my lack of mad fab skillz, yo, I decided it was probably not going to be cost effective.

Also, some guys enjoy the build aspect of project cars. Given the choice (and budget), I would rather drive and never turn another wrench.

How mission-critical would you consider the built engine, understanding that you give up some safety margin per power level and (in the case of higher static compression and/or higher displacement) some powerband improvements? In other words, all else being equal, would you think a conservatively tuned stock engine making less power could fit the bill?

Anything specific? I'm assuming you are referring to all of the bushings, primarily. ARBs, endlinks, adjustable coilovers, etc are already (relatively) new.

I consider myself a relative novice, but I'm not new to handling events. While I don't have a ton of seat time between now and then, I attended my first ProSolo National Tour event circa 1999 and have been on a couple of tracks in a couple of different vehicles.

That said, I do plan on continuing to get seat time with the car in its non-turbo state while I add the rest of the supporting platform. Next up is more safety equipment and then datalogging gear.

This is also my goal, I like driving
I think you're fine on a stock motor but I'd stay well-under 250whp on a dynojet. I look at guys like Bob Bundy who's run lots more power without incident. I built the motor because I wanted to be sure I made it home and didn't have to pull the engine again.
Upper and lower ball joints, tie rod ends, inner tie rods, and a anything that looks sketchy that holds the wheels on the car.
I had a ton of track time in my car before the build. After the build it took me a year to learn to drive this car and there is much more to go. Do yourself a favor and budget for a set of Xidas before you budget for something related to power. The sum of a 250whp Miata and good suspension is greater than that of it's parts. I can't stress this enough.

Had the club sports been out when I was looking at suspension, that is the route I would have gone. I would also look at the rotrex supercharger system as an option.

Those are definitely on my radar. I went with a non-adjustable (so I couldn't mess it up) matched setup as an interim solution while I knocked the rust off my driving skills knowing I would replace it.


Thanks for bringing that up. After wandering from link to link and bouncing from M.net back here, I came across this gem. :D

I have not driven a centrifugal supercharged Miata, but I am really enjoying the Vortech installed on my M3.

I wouldn't


That's old. Issues have been fixed for sure. Sav's car is so reliable now that I've seen him wander out to the garage and break shit on purpose just to have something to do.

I would have the 949racing rental car. Xida shocks, 9" 6UL's, 245 stickies, JDM VVT, light aero small splitter, spats, diffuser, tire trailer, go pro, traqmate

Explain

He asked what would you have done differently on your car.
I wouldn't have done anything different. I bought a turbocharged car with a built motor and after all the suspension, brake, and tire wheel upgrades, have about 7k into it. (Includes buying the car!) Best you can do is allow someone else to spends thousands on the car. Then when he starts a familyy and realizes that he needs to sell it, you swoop in and steal it, spend minimal dollars to finish it or do a track suspension on it and win. I already did the whole build deal on another car, and after $20k its sitting in my garage untouched since I bought the Miata. Even though I have pauter rods and wiseco pistons, they aren't necessary since I never run more than 10 psi (215whp) and still haven't maxed it out at that power level. I too know what it feels like to drive to the track, pwn on Porsche's, vette's, etc... then drive home. Although half the time, I had three tires stacked where the passenger seat used to be and one in the trunk with a bungee cord holding it down. I skipped the tire trailer and jumped to a tow vehicle with a dolly a few months ago.

If I had never built a fast Miata, I never would have realized that I wanted a slow one.

I regret very little about my build as it sits today, and even over the course of the build I don't have a lot of regrets.

-Spend time with the car N/A. Do all of your safety upgrades, suspension, wheels, tires, etc. with a stock motor. Learn to drive. A competent driver on 225/45 NT-01s should be within a second of the SM record at virtually any track in the country - if you're still 5-6 seconds off a turbo isn't going to help you go any faster. It is just as much fun (IMO) to go fast in a slow car as it is going fast in a fast car - I jump between my 350whp car and the 120whp rental at the track all the time, and I love driving both for different reasons.

-Once you are ready for power, it's advisable to spend a lot of money very quickly - it's always more expensive to do things slowly/twice. If you expect to track the car hard at 230whp+, build the motor - they aren't expensive motors to build and you don't need to go hog wild with crank work or head work, but get a good set of rods and forged pistons into the short block before you're stuck at the track (or on the way to the track) with a ventilated 3-cylinder waiting for AAA. You can always make a powerful car less powerful, either with intake restrictors or pulleys or softer wastegate springs, but don't piece together your own turbo setup and then replace every component piece by piece as it fails, as several of us here have done. Even if you do the labor yourself, expect a 250/300whp-capable track build to come with a ~$10k price tag.

-Be reasonable with your power expectations. A 200whp Miata will outrun a Subaru STI in a straight line. A 250whp Miata will outrun a C6 Corvette in a straight line. A 350whp Miata will drag away from turbocharged Porsches and get from a dead stop to 150mph in ~30 seconds. You're also going to be stuffing that power through a 225mm-wide tire, unless you defecate gold bullion and can afford to keep the car shod with 275mm-wide Hoosier autocross tires.

I guess I am asking less about regrets and "how would you build it today, knowing what you do now?"

Roger that.

10-4. That's why I listed my priorities as "reliability, speed, cost." I am prepared to spend more up front and give up some ultimate speed in order to maintain reliability. I understand that one of the risks associated with a "cheap, DIY" setup built for street pulls is the opportunity cost of missing a weekend of track time because of a preventable failure in the first session.

I am pretty disciplined with my power expectations. I am very confident that I could be perfectly content with a sub-250whp car, especially if the difference between 200 and 250 reliable whp meant pulling, "building," and reinstalling the engine.

See my next post.

Assuming:

• a willingness to spend money to "do it right the first time"
• an understanding that what is reliable for street pulls at .4 gees is not the same as reliable at 1+ gees on NT01s
• a willingness to sacrifice power in order to not have to build the engine
• a preference to drive the car to and from track days

What specific components should I be looking at? Complete v-band ABSURDFlow manifold and downpipe set up with a TiAl v-band GT25 turbine housing?

Or have the inconel stud kits + inconel safety wire proven durable enough that something like an ARFab manifold and downpipe with a standard turbine housing should prove reliable for the goals outlined in this thread?

GT2560R with .64 A/R turbine?

Can a low mileage 5-speed in good condition reliably handle the 200 - 225 whp power levels being discussed?

I can answer the 5 speed question:

No, it can't, it will break. 6 speed is recommended and if you can get your hands on one, the mazdaspeed 6 speed shifts much more nicely and supposedly has stronger gears.

If you want a tire to drive to and fromthe track on, then get the Hankook RS3.

ABSURDFlow is one of the best options out there right now. I haven't kept up but Abe at ARTech may be doing V-Band as well. Either way you really can't go wrong and both make great stuff. If you plan on making this a serious track car in the future I would definately go V-band and skip the studs.

For the turbo I would do a 2860RS with an .86 housing. It will leave you with a fair amount of headroom and has a V-band housing available.

The stock 5-speed can handle that kind of power for a little while, but you have to have a degree of mechaincal empathy. If you have the funds I would step up to a 6-speed. If you are patient and kepe tabs on local junk yards, they come up fairly cheap.

You're being a little conservative on the drag race figures. Also remember that you're going to have lots of exit speed compared to the idiots on track.

I feel ya on tires, Hoosiers mock me. I'm 1.5 seconds behind the top Miata time at HHR and I'm competing with a lesser tire...I look forward to putting my name up there with "R-comps".

Do you want "the best" or do you want "good enough"? I went from making 250wtq-4500rpm-16psi to 240wtq-3300rpm-11psi with the AF kit. Something magical happens between 225-249whp and when you get over that, things change from "zippy little Miata" to a sum greater than it's parts. It's pretty sweet to have 3300-7200rpm of tire smoking w/ the 6-speed/3.63 and gives you gearing options on the track which I use frequently to short shift and avoid shifting mid corner or over-revving.

If you are building a motor it does not make sense to run such a small turbo, do a gt2860rs w/ the .86 turbine (also the smallest turbo TiAL makes a housing for). I built my car to make 300whp on the track, and I've tracked it from 200whp all the way up. I currently have it on an 11psi spring and loving it at 250whp/240wtq (Mustang Dyno). There is a balance of power, money, tires, fuel, money, wow factor, and money. My car is capable of running down C6Z's on Hoosiers on the front straight at TWS touching just north of 150mph (or the highway) and still really tame in the slow, slick corners thanks to the manifold design and tuning. I can also get 10-days on a set of tires, but can still lay stripes in 3rd on the exit of Hallett #2. At 300whp brakes, tires, and fuel go very fast. At 250whp on the AST's it does all those supercar things that make jaws drop, gets drivers to unload off line when they see you coming, you get to post lap times with the rich people, and most importantly you get a huge smile which nothing in this world can duplicate.


There is some debate...do you want to find out if you will make it home? the 6-speed/3.63 gearing is better than sex with a Koala.

You can do a 2560R, but the ceiling on that turbo is basically ~280whp. A 2860RS will make that power with less boost, and it will do it further away from the det threshold too.

It depends on whether you intend to build the motor or not - when I first turboed my car, I never intended to build the motor or push past ~220whp. I wanted an awesome street/track/autocross car, and that's exactly what I built - 217whp on a Mustang dyno with a torque curve that looked like you drew it with a ruler. I ended up popping the motor and building it, and then deciding that I wanted a lot more power, and it snowballed from there.

Unfortunately the ideal setups for a GT2554R/GT2560R car making 220whp and a GT2860RS/GT2871R car making 300whp are totally different. The only components left over from my original setup are the wideband, IAT sensor, boost gauge, and a few of the t-bolt clamps and couplers - everything else has been changed/redone.

Why the aversion to building a motor? In the scheme of building a car like mine or Hustler's, it's maybe 10% of the cost and 10% of the work.

Or buy the one I am selling. $4500 worth of parts and machining for $2650 :)

I was previously pretty content with a ~300 WHP Evo8 and a ~300 WHP C5 in terms of power. Both were roughly 11:1 weight-to-power (without driver) and both about 108 MPH traps despite being about as different as you can get in terms of body, drivetrain and approach. I didn't have DAQ when they were on-track, so those are the only useful objective measures of speed I have.

I am confident (but not positive because I almost never say never) that I could be content with a ~220 WHP Miata. Using ~2350 pounds as a target weight (without driver), that puts it around the same 11:1 w-to-p. Granted, now that I type this... 300 WHP was practically stock for both of the previous cars and more power was easily accessible where as ~220 WHP on the stock 1.8L would be about the reliable cap.

In fairness, I'm looking for the reliability you guys seem to have found, not necessarily the pure speed. Particularly as it relates to your car, Sav, I don't expect to run any significant aero, I am not looking for 300+ WHP, I'm not planning on rewiring the car or other "extreme" weight loss, etc.

My aversion to building the motor is threefold:

1. R&Ring an engine may not be much work to you, but it's more work than I would prefer to do all else being equal (and they almost never are).
2. In my years around modified cars, I've seen too many "built engines" with premature failures, even from reputable builders.
3. Despite my claims of discipline above, I can suffer from ocassional bouts of whileyou'reinthere-itis.

Thanks for the input, guys. It's very helpful.


A big part of this for me is trying to make the decision to either initiate "Phase 2: Serious Business" or pull the plug and move on to another platform before I get too deep.

I'd initiate Phase 2.

Day Custom Engine
401 S Sherman St # 117
Richardson, TX 75081-4012
(972) 235-7405
http://www.daycustomengine.com/DCE/

Buy Supertech pistons and rods from 949, then expect $1300 in machine work labor/seals/assembly. This guys reputation is unscathed, he's built tons and tons of Miata engines that are raced every weekend, and I don't think I've ever heard a negative word spoken about him. He built my engine in a month, it's reliable, and it was affordable...and didn't hustle me on "while-I'm-in-there's". I selected him because TDR has a 290whp supercharged car than runs 300*f oil temps, revs to 7500rpm, and it's been flawless for 100-hours+ on the racetrack and even loads of daily driving.

How many miles are on your current shortblock? What kind of budget do you have in mind for the drivetrain on this car? (drivetrain = motor, turbo, clutch, cooling systems, ECU, injectors, anything else related to the motor)

The deal with a built motor is that your goals are right on the edge of needing it. If you were going to DD the car and do 4 track days a year, I'd never suggest a built motor for 220whp - but if you want to do 12, 15, 20 days a year in the car, I'd strongly recommend it. It's not expensive to do as Trey said - we can build a longblock for $2300+core. Once you get a good turbo kit, an ECU, injectors, fuel pump, wideband/boost/CLT/oil temp gauges, a big radiator, a good oil cooler, and all of the other little stuff you need to keep a 220whp track car healthy, the built motor isn't going to seem expensive OR difficult, and if you buy one prebuilt from John Day or us, it's going to be downright easy.

The order to which I would upgrade things if I was buying a car to track/dd for a planned 220-250whp:
Rollbar $400
Cooling system(Large Radiator and Re-route) ~$400-500
Good brake pads/stainless lines $350
Decent tires on stock wheels (Star specs or RS3 are great for DD/Track) $600
LSD(if you don't have one) $400
Coil-Overs(Don't stair step this too much. Buy something decent and used at first, but then save for a good setup like Xida Club Sports. That way you don't lose your ass when you turn around to seel them) $500-$2200
Good tires on larger wheels(15x9 with 225 NT01 or RS3) $1200
Poly Bushings $300
Upgrade front big brake kit $700
ECU, injectors, fuel pump, wideband/boost/CLT/oil temp gauges $1000-$2300 depending on ECU
Built Motor $2300
Oil Cooler $300
Trans/Clutch $1000-$1200
More better seat $300
Harness $100
Turbo Stuff (V-band setup Manifold,Turbo,Downpipe,I/C and piping, exhaust) $3000-6000

I know I left soemthing out, but someone I'm sure will point it out. I just did a mental checklist and it seems all there. Then again, I'm not all there.

That is the order to which I suggest to people who ask and I wish I was told from the beginning. I skipped a few steps a learned some bad habits, but I knew that and did what I had to do to correct them.

Your built motor may even be a built N/A like mine is. I ended up spending about $3000 with the machine shop doing the short block assembly and me doing the rest. I have a setup that will do about 160whp. My car also only weighs about 1900lbs.

The cool thing about doing the motor last in a car with Xida shocks and 9" r-comps...you have a lot of time to post on this forum, flip people off, take phone calls, pour shots, and shoot the pistol between corners.

I like to tweet what corner I'm coming up to

This is quickly becoming like my time with the IMV Films/INTMO crew: a relationship built on peer pressure. :hustler: :D

Honestly, that's a big part of what this thread was designed for (and is helping immensely with): determining the ballpark dollar figure needed to get to the goals of reliability and power.


The car has ~117k miles on it, original shortblock to the best of my knowledge. It has seen less than 5k miles of driving in the past couple of years. I would expect 6 - 20 track days per year with the miles driven going up if I am driving from Orlando to Barber or Homestead or Palm Beach.

Savington - you make some excellent points about the built shortblock. I suppose it is a lot like the v-band versus studs issue.

I was not on a budget for my build because I essentially saved up a bunch of money for a car and it was either 50% down on an AWD turbo econobox or my car as it sits today, unfortunately I did not have the suspension/wheels/brakes/and general coolness that we have today.

Start with Xida-S and go from there.

Drivetrain:
built motor - $2400
absurdness - $1600
turbo - $1400
WG - $350
BOV - $225
random welding - $500
FMIC - $500
computer - $700
wideband - $200
radiator - $500
oil cooler - $300
heat sheilding - $200
wire wraps - $100
catch can - $150
DIYAutotune coils - $???200???
gauges - $300
marijuana?

clutch - $700
trans - $700
rear end - $500

Yeah, that's $12,000.00. Can someone get me a barf-bag please? Mine was a little cheaper in some places, more in others...and I BOUGHT TWO FUCKING TURBO KITS OMFG SOMEONE KILL ME OH MY GOD WHY DID i SPEND THIS MUCH MONEY ON A MIATA LOLOL SO IT CAN CRUSH RICH IDIOTS AND I CAN RAPE THEIR MOUTHS!!!

At first the $12k made me sick, but now I'm editing the thread because when it hit's the track, it's worth every cent; I drive a heap-of-shit $1300 Miata because I own the turbo car rather than something presentable like a lifted truck and a bro-cap or a Lexus. Take a look around, you're fighting with $70,000-300,000 cars. It felt pretty cool to share the garage with a handful of vettes and a 996 Cup car that both had a ton of respect for the green terror. I'm pretty sure the Vettes and Cup car driver experienced suspended disbelief when I tucked behind them, out-braked them coming onto the infield, and went around them at the first corner...thanks AST.

Starting with a totally stock car, I would go in this order:
-rollbar, seat, harness (all at once)
-Good pads in stock brakes
-Decent street tires on stock wheels
-LSD (Torsen)
-Suspension (don't skimp, do it once and do it right. Xida Clubsport, revalved Bilsteins, or similar. Don't spend less than $1k on the shocks or $1800 on a full coilover setup. Upgrade the FSB at the same time.)
-Radiator and coolant reroute
-Wheels and tires (15x9 6ULs and 225/45 NT-01s)
-Front BBK, Wilwood prop valve, brake ducting, race pads all around

At this point, you basically have our rental car. Stop here and learn to drive it until you can lap within 2 seconds of the SM record consistently. Once you've done that:

-ECU, injectors, fuel pump
-Transmission (6-speed) and clutch
-Build a motor on the side, and install it with...
-...-turbo, full exhaust, intercooler, gauges, oil cooler (all at once). Break it in correctly, get it dyno tuned, and leave it alone.

From here, it's small alterations to taste. Radiator ducting, vented hood, bushings, alignment adjustments, data acquisition, OS Giken, etc. Keep front wheel bearings/brake pads/rotors around so you can swap them as needed, and spend your money on tires and track days. At 200whp you should be able to lap 5 seconds under the SM record at most tracks.

A list for the total dollar amount spent on my car in the last 4.5 years does not exist on this planet, because I'd probably have a stroke if I saw it.

There's $12k in mods to our rental car, and about $22k in mods to my black car.

I have a buddy I used to set a benchmark time for my car at a local small track. I had to make sure he didn't bring any sharp instruments in to the car with him when he drove it for the first time, for fear he would commit seppuku on the back straight.

This thread just went from good to great.

For what it's worth, here is how the car sits now.

I remember driving my car at 86whp and even on small tracks thinking "Do I have thawed chicken in the fridge or should I pick something up? I had BBQ for lunch so that's out, and it's Sunday so my choices are limitted." Eventually I started thinking about work when I was driving straight at the track, then I immediately ordered $10k that monday.

Then, I finally installed everything after leaving the racetrack and a Prius was picking on me in traffic, lol. I could not get away from the Prius, lol.

If you have any money whatsoever to spend on your car, immediately order Xida-S and find a Torsen (Savingaids probably has one). Those two are enormous steps forward that you will use in either car. Also get AWR swaybar mounts, RB front bar, and FM rear bar. Once you get that, the only thing left is to freshen the rubbers on the suspension and do poly bushings. Now, suspension is buttoned up on your car and you can know that there is no way in hell you're leaving anything on the table in the corners. There's a debate on which way to go with the power plant, the road to suspension glory is paved with the aforementioned list-o-parts.

When you get the shocks on your car, do yourself a favor and start turning in earlier than anyone recommends, even the instructors. It took me 2-days to figure this out, it defies logic, but Xida/AST are magic.

I was a dumbass and turbocharged my car after 2 track days, but I also spent 3+ years racing karts so I lived to tell the tale.

+1. A really properly good suspension setup is almost comically formulaic on these cars now. The only folks who still talk about suspension are the people who a) cannot afford the following, or b) sell something other than the following:

-Xida Clubsports
-RB Tubular FSB/RB block kit (so you don't tear the mounts off the car)
-MSM RSB
-949 endlinks
-Energy Suspension poly bushings
-LE tierod ends and/or shim the steering rack to ward off bumpsteer
-depowered power steering rack
-ride height 4" to the pinchwelds
-3.0F/2.7R camber, 3.5 caster, 0 toe

i too have gone from 400+ whp dsm, 240whp 1900lb. crx, and now have my 200-215whp miata. i also have seen way too many "built" motors break for one reason or another. even the built motor in my car was a problem at first. my buddy that owned the car before me had the hassle of getting the motor taken back apart and fixed twice after the initial build. the shop did the labor for free but he had to buy the parts needed each time. since then though, the motor has close to 70,000 miles of street, drag, (my buddy), auto-x, rally-x, and almost 40 trackdays on it without a hitch. but i'm a firm believer in the "if the stock block can handle it, leave it alone" theory. although my built motor did save me a couple times when i mis-shifted at speed and over revved it off the tach! (9-10k maybe?) anyway's, have you seen how fast emilio's rental is? imagine if his rental had another 50-60whp! that would make it about the power i'm at now. it's also a rwhp that would be totally reliable for a long time.

ScrappyJ - If you have the money do it correct. Once.

I've been doing my wagon in stages and it blows. Way too much effort, time and money have been wasted because of it.

So:
Build up your motor
Start with Xidas (do the "Clubsports" and upgrade later if you don't quite have the cash)
ABSURDflow Manifold with V-band
6-speed tranny

Those are minimum. Really.

Someone should make this thread a sticky, and change the title to "What is the Best Way to Build a Track Car?" or something along those lines.

I'm subscribed.

might have to add "super" or "ultimate" to the title. because a great track car to someone like my buddy's dad would not involve any of the parts mentioned in this thread. like savington said, some guy that plans to track his car 2 times a year would not benefit from this thread at all. some guy that plans to run TxMC next year...... then this thread is all win.

Edited for specificity.

A plan is beginning to formulate.


The one hole in the strategery is my lack of a prenuptial agreement combined with my wife's complete disdain for the Miata.

I don't have much to add that everyone else hasn't already covered:
- Absurdflow or your own manifold/downpipe if you have the skills like Bob.
- Dedicated track car. That doesn't mean you can't drive it on the street, but you need a second, reliable car. I had a second car, but it was a turbo garage queen which I never drove. That doesn't count.
- I have never built or blown a motor so I don't have the experience to comment on it.
- Fully agree with Savington on doing suspension at once and not being cheap.

My gt2554 track car went from 'suspension + wheels/tires' to 'suspension + wheels/tires + aero + turbo + a bunch of other stuff' between 2 track days. All I did since then was play with boost + brake pads and fix the stuff that broke. My only regret is not starting with Absurdflow/v-band.

I agree, then add power. Yes, this just happened.

This seems like an appropriate place to ask, somewhat... Will I kill myself in a 200-225hp turbo car on track with stock calipers and rotors (94) with but with SS brake lines and some decent fluid and pads? (XP10's or 8's) I haven't done much with the brakes yet and I'm only looking to do 5 or so track days per year.

If you drive like me, TDH, Emilio, hustler, dtfastbear, thesnowboarder, orion4096, etc, etc, etc, yes. If you drive like a normal driver doing their first track day, not at all. The stock brakes won't be awful, you'll just burn through them much faster than you'd burn through a set of Wilwoods.

Doing a Wilwood/Corrado setup or the new Wilwood 11" kit will save you money if you're fast enough to work the brakes hard.

I'd run the carbotech xp12 or the cobalt xr2's.

If you have to ask that question you aren't driving hard enough to need them right now. You will gradually get more fade and increased wear. At that time you need to upgrade. Until then, run XP12 and pay attention to your brakes. It is obvious when you are driving hard enough to need better brakes.

You could always benefit from bigger brakes, but you may not need them just yet.

Did a couple track days with a stock engine and just HP+ pads, none with the turbo car yet. Hell, the turbo isn't even on yet... I'm just trying to be prepared. :) So no, I'm probably not nearly fast enough to worry about that just yet.

nobody breaks brakes like hustler!

Nobody

Savington, would you say a GT2554 running on a cast manifold with your studs below about 200hp be almost reliable as your Absurdflow setup?

You probably won't kill yourself, but you'll find that it's really annoying having to lift halfway down the straight to keep from fading the brake pads.

(I was fading Hawk Blues in stock rotors & calipers at those power numbers).

--Ian

Power level has very little to do with it, but I do think that the studs are basically as good as the v-bands are.

Let's talk consumables. Specifically, life of NT01s and brake rotors (please specify what you are using).

• How many sessions (and how long are the sessions)? Or, how many days on track?
• What tracks are you frequenting (i.e. "just Sebring" or "most of the West Coast tracks")?
• How do your lap times compare to Spec Miata records at the tracks you run?

And how about on-track fuel economy? For that, please specify fuel type (e.g. 93, E85, C16) and approximate power levels.

I checked my mileage at Putnam when I was stock last year and got 15mpg, for comparisons sake.