You will not get any benefit over just the stage8 locking hardware if you track the car. The issue is studs stretching, not nuts coming off. There is talk of their being Nissian inconel hardware out there that is cheap. I do not have a part number, nor have I seen any proof that they hold up on track. The only company that I know of that has published actual data on Inconel working has been TSE. They did all the original development on figuring out what studs work correctly with on track testing in Cali. I will only recommend picking up their hardware because of that testing.

Thanks for the input, I'll look into TSE inconel studs.

If you read the thread that six isn't referring to you'll find the nissan inconel bolts. I bought them from the infinity dealer for like 15 bucks (5 bolts). I planned on putting them on my down pipe but they weren't long enough. I added a 1/2" spacer to prevent boost creep on my begi separated gasses dp. They are just bolts though I wouldn't use them on a manifold.

That's just crazy talk

Finally running cool at the track...
The intercooler on my FM II basically blocked the top half of the radiator on my 1995 Miata. A 3" hole saw and saber saw was used to make an opening just above the internal bumper. It made a big difference on the track with engine temperatures holding below 220 degrees for 20 minute sessions on a 90 plus degree track day at Road Atlanta.

With proper ducting (not just holes in strategic locations) and a proper radiator you can get much cooler than 220. I ran basically TStat temps on track Friday in the fastest group at ~260whp and ~85 ambient. Temps did creep up to ~210 and cause my single OEM fan to kick on for a minute but I was idling on grid waiting for a broken car to clear the black flag. As soon as the green flag went up, the temp dropped right back to ~190.

104*f heat in Austin, 275whp, and water never went over 195*f with my old turbo set-up.

You're doing it wrong and you're reducing intercooler efficiency significantly.

Ducting including a splitter that goes back as far as possible, and of course the rad. plate on top is far better than any holes you can make in the bumper. Also, as a poor man's alt to inconel studs I simply threw a tack weld (well my exhaust shop owning buddy did) on the bolts in question and problem was solved for the last 2.5 years of track abuse. When I decided to change my downpipe/exhaust and needed to remove the turbo/manifold assembly it only took a few minutes to pop the tack welds loose and remove the hardware. JS

If you're going to run .25-.28 gap you don't want the -11 at the end of the plug part number. That signifies a .44 gap to start with. If you run "BKR7E" plugs they start out at approx. .30 gap.

I run them.

I use to stretch studs all the time before just from aggressive street driving and the drag strip.

Since installing them (turbo to manifold), I have never had to tighten them. A couple of track events and no problem (just drag strip, not the real track :( )

anybody getting ready for the race season coming up?

Like it makes a difference what they start at

I've been running an '03 with an FMII and Hydra for the past 2 seasons,


( 12 - 15 HSAX and track days @ ) with no issues


It ran " warm " the first track day ( 90 deg ) after install


After adding a 3" " air dam ( slight angle, under rad ) zero heating issues

Can someone suggest a solution for my pipe beading needs? This is something I've been meaning to do for a while. I'd like a solution that would let me do small pipes (ie for coolant lines) but also 2-3" pipes for intercooler plumbing. I'd like to do it cheaply, but I would rather do it right the first time than fuck around with 10 different cheap solutions that don't work.

Also, even for a low skill driver (ie, someone who hasn't done track days in a few years and definitely won't be chasing SM records), is there a boost or power threshhold beyond which certain mods become necessary to avoid catastrophe?

I've done everything on emilio's list except:
-no trans/diff coolers
-stock oil pump (which is why the car is currently not running, lol lesson learned)
-stock CAS, wasted spark setup (thank you 10+ year old Link ECU)
-internal WG @ 18 psi
-beads on pipes (this has been annoying me forever)
-throttle plate epoxy (will do this before I start the car)
-non-water cooled turbo
-plain turbo hardware (ie, no inconel stuff)

For pipe beading, nothing beads a dedicated tool. Vibrant has what looks like a good one, but it's not cheap. There are lots of home-made DIY versions out there, but very wide range of success/failure rates on those. Long ago, I tried to bead pipes by crimping all the way around the edge with a home-made tool I made from an old set of pliers. It worked but wasn't pretty.

Regarding your list of yet-to-do's:

-no trans/diff coolers you should be OK
-stock oil pump (which is why the car is currently not running, lol lesson learned) no note needed
-stock CAS, wasted spark setup (thank you 10+ year old Link ECU) I've gotten away with stock CAS for years of track use. YMMV
-internal WG @ 18 psi you should be OK, address only if it's an issue
-beads on pipes (this has been annoying me forever)
-throttle plate epoxy (will do this before I start the car) Must do. It's not a problem until the day it is, then it's too late.
-non-water cooled turbo you should be OK if you have a good oil cooler
-plain turbo hardware (ie, no inconel stuff) MUST change to inconel

What I used to bead roll: DIY $5 charge pipe bead roller - D-series.org
<br />Worked awesome.
<br />
<br />Throttle body epoxy? Is this the broken throttle plate issue? Relevant thread?

Ok, sounds good. Inconel hardware, oil pump, dampener and some sort of pipe beader are all on my list now.

One other thing that occurred to me was the bit about 15" wheels smaller than 9" and the one about 205/50/15 being bad....

If I'm not supposed to use 205/50/15, what should I be using? Since this isn't a daily driver, I could run R-comps (I used to love Victoracers), but it has to be something that is sort of streetable (ie, drive to the track and back) so no hoosiers or similar.

People have put epoxy on the screw heads in the throttle body shaft. It should prevent the screws from backing out, or hopefully from ejecting themselves if the throttle shaft breaks.

The car won't spontaneously combust if you run 15x8 with 205/50/15, but you'll find traction limitations quickly.

Drive-to-the-track options available in 225/45/15, in order of grip level:
Toyo R1R (best of the bunch in rain)
BFG Rival
Hankook RS-3 (v2)
BFG Rival S
Maxxis RC1
Nitto NT01
bonus option FTW: 15x10 and 245/40/15 Maxxis RC1