Fun!
The bar has been raised .........
MLambert19 (07-06-2016)
Something else arrived today...
I actually stressed quite a bit over what rollbar to get. It's not like I didn't have choices.
I have Harddog, Moti, Zerek, Local custom, used on forums/fb groups, and even had a friend/vendor tell me to wait a bit and get in on a coming special. Unfortunately, I was a bit pressed for time in the "I have to buy this now or the money will be funneled into something else" kind of way (this may sound like poor money management, but it was more like "I will lose my nerve to spend the money").
Unfortunately, Moti isn't making door bars any more due to lack of demand (hurr durr I can find one on eBay for 1/2 the price!) so I will have to source door bars from someone else sometime.
Luckily, that shouldn't be too much of a concern since most are bolt-in and attach to the rollbar mount points. All the heavy lifting and drilling will have been done when I decide to get door bars. I haven't figured out where I am sourcing them from just yet, most likely the tried and true hard dogs or getting a custom set done on that coming special a friend told me about.
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The thing was wonderfully packaged, and took about 10 minutes of careful work with a utility knife to get her out and extract the hardware without cutting the bolt bag or dinging powder coating.
I guess now I can look into selling the old no-diagonal one that was on Ruckkehr (the silver one, if you remember).
Also, my dog was terrified of the box and even the bar wrapped in padding until it was entirely unwrapped. Then she calmed down a bit.
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Unboxing and scared dog pictures:
Greasemonkey2000 (07-07-2016),HarryB (07-07-2016),NCGreasemonkey (07-07-2016),oldgrayleather (07-08-2016),Phatmiata (09-18-2016),tsingson (07-07-2016)
Big day, because I know there's at least one other package out for delivery today...
RuckkehrMiata (07-07-2016)
RuckkehrMiata (07-07-2016)
And now for the big project direction reveal!
I know I have never really shown much of a direction, but it's been there all along. I really think boost is cool, I do. I love the sound of a blowoff, the pull, etc. However it's never really what I wanted for my roadster, horsepower is cool - but I am always more impressed with the horsepower people gain without boost than with (And you don't know how many people I know who complain they can't truly open their car up because it is simply too powerful - I want to drive my car at its 100%).
This is why I hee'd, I haw'd and I obsessed over this decision for almost a week before sending MLambert19 my payment. I decided I was going in on it, finally.
Over the years, I've invested heavily in the aesthetics of my car (albeit not the paint hah). From carbon miata window cranks, to my Nardi, to my carmake corns drivers seat, to any number of nice high quality parts that I have scavenged from the likes of Bo Gaut, Artcentermiata, Phatmiata, and many others. I was always obsessed with getting the nicer version of parts. The only eBay part on my car is the crappy front lip that I was unwilling to drop $100+ on just to smash it into every parking divider.
I knew it was time to start investing in the engine, in performance, not just handling and aesthetics. This will be the single most car-changing modification I have ever done. It will also likely be the most time-consuming to get it tuned right, and even once it is installed I intend on upgrading the horns & lines (I really want braided fuel/vacuum lines, and maybe carbon horns).
This is my first step forward into really, and truly, modifying my roadster. This is the direction I am going in. All-motor is expensive, I know. But my car has never been about money to me, it's the reason I don't already have any turbo or sc I could get cheaply, and it is why my cars paint is slowly fading and rotting off of it. I don't want to do these things unless I can do them well, and with good quality.
These Jenveys might not see my car for months, as I plan the implementation of all of the requisite parts. I may not be able to get everything done at once, ending up following a cadence of "just the ECU installed and tuned" followed by "just the cams installed and tuned" and finally the ITBs. More expensive in the long run, but most know these things require multiple tunes anyways to factor for different weather conditions and find issues in the original tune.
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This build direction has been formulating in my mind for years. And post-IRTB I know the work will still not be done, I will be wanting a port & shave, I will be wanting solid lifters, I will be trying to find old JDM cam gears. I will likely cut my valve cover, maybe get a capri. Maybe one day I will be able to afford a complete engine tear-down and rebuild with forged components. I don't know, but I know this is just the beginning.
And even when it is finished, I will likely still be stuck in the Prologue.
Greasemonkey2000 (07-07-2016),HarryB (07-08-2016),MLambert19 (07-07-2016),NCGreasemonkey (07-07-2016),oldgrayleather (07-08-2016),Phatmiata (09-18-2016)
Congratulations on all the fantastic parts choices! Definitely doing it right the first time!
As far as power i TOTALLY hear what you are saying and am still torn on what direction, FI (supercharger/pd or rotrex, turbo) or NA with some GLORIOUS irtbs. I think they all have pros and cons but as you said most let the hp/$ ratio be the deciding factor, which is why i have been leaning towards FI. Even though straight line performance of a irtbs miata won't be on par with most FI setups, the throttle response certainly can help fill the gap especially with a ultra lightweight flywheel.
I am jealous of those that are satisfied with oem power on the miata but it has been the one thing that has me looking, on occasion, on getting something v8 powered BUT i know most anything I can afford won't compare in the overall fun factor/experience of the miata (never mind the bond I have), so improve the weak point! Excited to see your progress and jealous of the conviction on induction path!
Edit: One of my favorite aspects of irtbs is how much it cleans up the engine bay! Also the great thing about irtbs is FI is still an option....just saying.
'01 NB2 aka MisF1re: http://mazdaroadster.net/showthread....218#post207218
'97 M aka Warbird, gone but not forgotten: http://mazdaroadster.net/showthread....B&goto=newpost
Instagram: @greasemonkey2000
oldgrayleather (07-08-2016),Phatmiata (09-18-2016)
Greasemonkey2000 (08-11-2016),HarryB (08-16-2016),NCGreasemonkey (08-10-2016),oldgrayleather (08-11-2016),Phatmiata (09-18-2016),RustRat (08-10-2016)
Hammerhead (09-13-2016),MLambert19 (09-13-2016),Phatmiata (09-18-2016),RustRat (09-13-2016),tsingson (09-13-2016)
Really wanted a happy update on the car after tonight, she was running so beautifully and the HKS 264's had given her a new personality - an aggressive one that begged for a night ride.
Unfortunately this is not that update. And I apologize if I seem especially whiney or upset, but this was the culmination of 7 days in the shop - with nothing to show for it. I am somewhat crushed.
However I will bring you up with the fun stuff before I crush you and bury you.
Everything was a success at first. The HKS 264 cams were in, brand new laser welded lifters, the tuning was wrapping up. We had lower numbers than expected but after playing around with a CAI style intake bypassing the now-dead MAF we saw some interesting gains that would have led the next portion of the build (leading up to the ITBs eventually). We realized that the cams created an air imbalance, and the stock breather was not going to be enough in the long term. It wouldn't hurt her, but knowing the engine was feeding on the cold night air and saying "please, can I have some more" was satisfying. She ran beautifully, and even sung a new song out of the engine from the cams and lifters lilting their sweet tune. The only thing missing for perfect throttle response was a variable TPS, which was proving difficult to implement on my `90 1.6 intake manifold. We could survive without it until we figured out a solution, everything was going well. I had already began planning my airbox/maf delete for the extra 10-15hp we were observing on A/B dyno ramp runs (much cheaper than the ITBs, which have to wait 6+ months for their lime light). I was excited to take her for a spirited drive home to really feel the work done.
While this may all still become a reality, I now have a new pain to deal with before she is even reasonably drivable again.
My ECU (MS3 Basic) died after tuning, entirely, as I left the shop to go home. Started with the tac slamming to 0 during acceleration and progressed through stalling up to the car not starting at all. This continued to progress to the ECU shutting off and not responding entirely. The shop owner stayed up with me until 4am in their parking lot troubleshooting but it simply was an issue outside anything he had ever seen before - as we systematically ruled out everything from low voltage, to the CAS, to bad grounds.
We finally opted to reinstall the stock ECU so I could limp home. It was hard, as I have to avoid WOT entirely until I get the ECU replaced or fixed, as the cams will lean me out too much to the point of causing damage. And of course I am a carhypochondriac, so every little difference meant (in my head) that the engine was about to blow up.
It is now 5:12am, I just got in the door, I have a move across the state in a few days to finish planning and packing for, and I am sipping a small bit of (Blood Oath Pact 2 - on the rocks) bourbon to ease this whole headache. The whole debacle will likely have to wait for a bit.
Agent☣Orange (10-21-2016)
Sorry to hear man. Hope it all works out in the end.
Man really sorry to hear. I'm sure Reverant will fix the issue but still doesn't undue the frustration and inconvenience. So what are the cam specs that they can't run on a stock ecu? It will be worth it in the end, the long game sir.
'01 NB2 aka MisF1re: http://mazdaroadster.net/showthread....218#post207218
'97 M aka Warbird, gone but not forgotten: http://mazdaroadster.net/showthread....B&goto=newpost
Instagram: @greasemonkey2000