Turbo 1.8 NA, 240whp, 7.5 Ford rear, what gears?
08-02-2013, 12:08 PM
#24
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Multiple people have gone on about how slow it must be, how I'm not making any power, etc. I recently bought the car as is, I know it makes 240w, but the guy didn't have a tq number. I'm not an idiot, this is my slowest car, but also my favorite 
even more so than my c6z and the others. I wasn't throwing out my car's specs trying to big-time anybody or seem like I think I'm making a bunch of power. I threw out the specs for the sake of getting some accurate info, and people are trying to bang on me left and right like I don't know how to build a car. Flame away, doesn't matter to me anyway. Thank you to the people with the good info guys
even more so than my c6z and the others. I wasn't throwing out my car's specs trying to big-time anybody or seem like I think I'm making a bunch of power. I threw out the specs for the sake of getting some accurate info, and people are trying to bang on me left and right like I don't know how to build a car. Flame away, doesn't matter to me anyway. Thank you to the people with the good info guys
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08-02-2013, 12:13 PM
#26
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I don't live in LA, I live in Las Vegas. If you're going to troll, be a troll with strong reading comprehension 
The guy I bought the car from had it dyno'd a couple years back when he had the megasquirt tuned. He couldn't remember the torque number, just the hp. I'm not worried about it as I'm going to dial a few things in on the car and then start working for some more power as things break. The traction issues are due to the greasy streets of Las Vegas as stated earlier.
The guy I bought the car from had it dyno'd a couple years back when he had the megasquirt tuned. He couldn't remember the torque number, just the hp. I'm not worried about it as I'm going to dial a few things in on the car and then start working for some more power as things break. The traction issues are due to the greasy streets of Las Vegas as stated earlier.
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08-02-2013, 12:20 PM
#27
I don't live in LA, I live in Las Vegas. If you're going to troll, be a troll with strong reading comprehension
The guy I bought the car from had it dyno'd a couple years back when he had the megasquirt tuned. He couldn't remember the torque number, just the hp. I'm not worried about it as I'm going to dial a few things in on the car and then start working for some more power as things break. The traction issues are due to the greasy streets of Las Vegas as stated earlier.
The guy I bought the car from had it dyno'd a couple years back when he had the megasquirt tuned. He couldn't remember the torque number, just the hp. I'm not worried about it as I'm going to dial a few things in on the car and then start working for some more power as things break. The traction issues are due to the greasy streets of Las Vegas as stated earlier.
Dammit, my bad. Either way... find out why it's not hooking. That ****'s weird, and wrong. It's not due to the greasy streets of Vegas unless the entire city has been covered in an oil spill in similar quantities of the famous Exxon Valdez spill since the last time i was there with my Miata.
So you don't actually know how much power it's making. I'd say step one would be to dyno and/or log it and see what the **** it's doing.
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08-09-2013, 10:53 PM
#28
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Mine doesn't hook even in 2nd with a 5spd on 12" wide tires. Oh wait......mine only weighs 850lbs in the rear. 
Seriously though, what tire are you running? Don't forget tire height has a direct affect on gearing and drive rpms. My guess is you'd be very happy with 3.55s if you went to a 6spd. With the 5spd you probably want to go 3.73s for drivability even though it won't drop your cruise rpm a lot.
Seriously though, what tire are you running? Don't forget tire height has a direct affect on gearing and drive rpms. My guess is you'd be very happy with 3.55s if you went to a 6spd. With the 5spd you probably want to go 3.73s for drivability even though it won't drop your cruise rpm a lot.
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08-11-2013, 12:35 AM
#29
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Hey all! I picked up a '97 NA Miata, and I'm trying to sort out what gear set I want to swap to. The car is on 12 psi, currently makes 240whp. It has a Ford 7.5 rear end, currently with 4.10s in it. With the torque this car makes, I don't see any reason to run around at 4,000 rpm at freeway speeds, as well as first through third gears being practically unusable. So, I'm going to step down the gear ratio, but I'm unsure exactly what I want to run. I'm in between a 3.73 and probably a 3.55. I've researched and seen people saying that under 18 psi you want a 3.73, but I'm not sure that a 3.73 will drop my freeway rpm all that much, and would give me a little more headroom for more power later. Conversely, I don't want to go too long of a gear and put too much stress on the motor trying haul around too long of a gear. I just don't want to do the one and then wish I went the other way. What are your thoughts? I'm all ears, thank you!
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08-11-2013, 03:45 AM
#31
I want to echo the people talking about tires. I had some (old and hard) all-seasons on my car last year and I can see where you might be coming from. Once I put on some summer tires on the car it was a totally different ball game.
Also, another recommendation for the 6-speed.
Also, another recommendation for the 6-speed.
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08-11-2013, 11:55 AM
#32
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The right diff ratio not only depends on his motor's output and which tranny he has, but what he is looking for.
Couple of points.
Comparing the 5 speed and 6 speed, the gearing of 1st through 5th are very similar, if the 6 speed is mated to a new diff that is 19% taller. So automatically if the OP thinks the 4.1 with the 5 speed is too tall, then a 6 speed with a 3.44 will be too short. (wrt gear spacing).
Some people say "use a 6 speed with a 4.6 diff and start off in 2nd gear". That's not the same, because then you effectively get a 5 speed with super-close spacing. That's fine if you like super close spacing, but super close spacing with a turbo is slower because you spend more time between gears shifting, than in the gears accelerating.
Note that the percentage the RPM drops at every upshift gets smaller and smaller as you go up in the gears. The reason for this is as you go faster you spend more time in a given gear before you upshift. This is why a 6 speed with a 4.7 diff (and taking off in 2nd gear), is not the same as having a 3.6 and using 1st gear.
In my case I thought the 5-speed with a 3.9 rear was perfect. Far, far better than the 4.3. This was at 10-12 psi. When the 5 speed blew up I installed a 6 speed, and now at 15 psi the resulting gear spacing is annoying as ****. The RPM drops between gears are too small, and if I skip shift it's too much. With the 6 speed, to get my old ratios back, I need a 3.3 rear, which is nonexistent. A 3.6 will get me halfway there, and for the expense, I think won't be enough of an improvement.
For the OP, a 5 speed with a 4.1 will have the same 1-2-3-4-5 spacing as a 6 speed with a 3.44. So if he upgrades to a 6 speed, he needs to go to a 3.1 rear to feel an "improvement".
Couple of points.
Comparing the 5 speed and 6 speed, the gearing of 1st through 5th are very similar, if the 6 speed is mated to a new diff that is 19% taller. So automatically if the OP thinks the 4.1 with the 5 speed is too tall, then a 6 speed with a 3.44 will be too short. (wrt gear spacing).
Some people say "use a 6 speed with a 4.6 diff and start off in 2nd gear". That's not the same, because then you effectively get a 5 speed with super-close spacing. That's fine if you like super close spacing, but super close spacing with a turbo is slower because you spend more time between gears shifting, than in the gears accelerating.
Note that the percentage the RPM drops at every upshift gets smaller and smaller as you go up in the gears. The reason for this is as you go faster you spend more time in a given gear before you upshift. This is why a 6 speed with a 4.7 diff (and taking off in 2nd gear), is not the same as having a 3.6 and using 1st gear.
In my case I thought the 5-speed with a 3.9 rear was perfect. Far, far better than the 4.3. This was at 10-12 psi. When the 5 speed blew up I installed a 6 speed, and now at 15 psi the resulting gear spacing is annoying as ****. The RPM drops between gears are too small, and if I skip shift it's too much. With the 6 speed, to get my old ratios back, I need a 3.3 rear, which is nonexistent. A 3.6 will get me halfway there, and for the expense, I think won't be enough of an improvement.
For the OP, a 5 speed with a 4.1 will have the same 1-2-3-4-5 spacing as a 6 speed with a 3.44. So if he upgrades to a 6 speed, he needs to go to a 3.1 rear to feel an "improvement".
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08-12-2013, 11:24 AM
#33
Mine doesn't hook even in 2nd with a 5spd on 12" wide tires. Oh wait......mine only weighs 850lbs in the rear.
Seriously though, what tire are you running? Don't forget tire height has a direct affect on gearing and drive rpms. My guess is you'd be very happy with 3.55s if you went to a 6spd. With the 5spd you probably want to go 3.73s for drivability even though it won't drop your cruise rpm a lot.
Seriously though, what tire are you running? Don't forget tire height has a direct affect on gearing and drive rpms. My guess is you'd be very happy with 3.55s if you went to a 6spd. With the 5spd you probably want to go 3.73s for drivability even though it won't drop your cruise rpm a lot.
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