small turbo vs n/a for daily driving Miata

[blenderblast]

I daily my turbo '97.. around 60-100 miles a day. Weekends usually around 300 miles or more(Friday - Sunday). I play a lot and I trust my car to get me as far as my money can take me.

I've been driving this car for over a year.
My uncle drove it for 5+ years with the same turbo setup.

[The Driver]

I drove a car with just an AEM ecu, and man I'm sold! AEM or Megasquirt when done well will have a VERY noticeable bump in power. You'll needed anyway if oging FI, so why not start there?

[psulja]

+1 on getting a standalone ecu. Get in touch with Dimitris from MSLabs and he can build you a custom MSII or MSIII for a great price. He's really busy usually with constant orders so you might face some wait time but it's totally worth it.

[Silvernb03]

i am leaning toward turbo because it seems like many people dont have any problems with it. I also have more choices with turbo if I want to make it go faster. right? if so, maybe i start with standalone first. Then i can use that ecu if i decide to turbo my car. do the standalone ecu just plug and play? or does it have to be tuned by professional?

[— kung fu jesus —]

Holy crap, I see a lot of misinformation.

SilverNB, stay N/A. If 150 bhp is your goal, it is easy to attain with a standalone and a few other bits, like a square top manifold, header and exhaust. The Megasquirt is a nice option and they have a VVT controller too.

That is a pretty easy number to hit with those items, FYI

Why complicate things with forced induction if you don't want higher power?

Those items above, with tuning should set you back *maybe* $2k with tuning? The extra $1-2k you save going n/a can be applied towards further suspension upgrades.

I have been turbo'd twice, supercharged once. I went back to n/a and loved just driving the car without worrying about all the extraneous BS that f/i can bring. If you are a n00b, adding f/i brings an added complexity and cost to maintain. Because it is a DD, you need to keep it simple.

[BoBo]

I get tired of the stock power of Nb2 Miata. i dont need crazy big hp. I just want my miata little bit faster, maybe around 150. which one would be a better choice for me as daily driving? I drive 120 miles to go to school every other day, so i need something less maintenance as possible. My budget is around 2-3k. I have been thinking about either voodoo I or Ms3 with intake and header. Thanks

150hp can be done with bolt-ons and good ecu tuning. I too commute about 120 miles a day to school and work, and turbo power can be a little more on maintenance. With bolt-ons your not gonna really notice anything until you wind up the motor. On the other hand, you will definitely notice the power delivery of a turbo specially if your commuting on the freeway. A decent clutch and 3k on boost will get you going. Non- turbo will always be more reliable with less complications.However, you are just not going to have that power that your probably looking for. You mentioned turbo for a reason.

Money will dictate your dilemma
NA= more reliable & less power.
Turbo= More maintenance & More power.

If commute is more important leave it NA. I commute on boost before and it ain't fun when maintenance comes, but that's because I'm just a FT-college student who also works FT to pay bills.

[Pfunk]

If 150 bhp is your goal, it is easy to attain with a standalone and a few other bits, like a square top manifold, header and exhaust. The Megasquirt is a nice option and they have a VVT controller too.

This. I also second Dimitri for an MS if you're not up to building one yourself. I wasn't, and I had him make one for me--great guy, great product.

I guess I would say you should really think hard on what your goals are. If you are serious about hitting 150rwhp and staying there, with reliability as a key concern, and budget equally in mind, I think:

1) Intake from FM (it's not officially listed, but ask Jeremy or Keith for the "prototype intake," and they'll get you the parts needed to make a functional, useful, CAI. I have one on my somewhat crazy n/a build, and it works as promised.
2) Flat-top intake manifold if you want to improve top-end power; if you're more of a mid-range guy, the one you have will be better, with some modification.
3) Decent header. There are some really nice ones out there that cost a fair bit, but the RB one is cheap and works well, too.
4) Free-flowing cat.
5) Cat-back exhaust. Use your ears as guides, as some of them drone like a mother%$#.
6) Megasquirt ECU--if you're new to tuning, as I was, have it made for you. You'll need to choose what you'll do for the AFM and other inputs needed.
7) Proper dyno tuning.

Dimitri tells me the next iteration of his custom MS will be OBDII-compliant, will have dynamic alternator control, SD-card based datalogging, and other goodness. It isn't ready yet, but I'll be upgrading my current one to that when it's done.

If you haven't already added lightness, that helps, too. Take out the spare, if you have one, and replace it with an NC tire repair kit, or similar, make sure you have the lightest/strongest wheels you can swing, etc.

[Hyper]

the best turbo for a daily driver is a Garret 2554 make sure you choose the ball bearing option. Other than that, you can always upgrade the intercooler and other parts later on.

because you have a 1.8 perhaps the 2560 is best for your engine but the 2554 just spools really fast which is what you want.

[BoBo]

All this turbo talk is getting me teased up, I might have to get one instead of buying an R6 Yammi.

[Hyper]

For 1.8 built engines search Garrett GTX2863R, dual ball bearing turbo.

[Silvernb03]

I have not checkd this thread for awhile. I just got a used mp62 for 2k, i will go low on boost. Hopefully, i wont give me any trouble

[— Dandy —]

Did it come with fuel management? Are you running a stock exhaust? Keep us posted on the install.

[Silvernb03]

This is the post "Selling my mp62 supercharger kit from track dog racing. I bought it about a year and half ago and had it installed for a few months. The kit is for cars with power steering and a/c although you could run no a/c with smaller belt. The kit is/was carb legal and is controlled via power cards. The power cards are direct plug and play, so there is no wiring at all necessary to install this kit.
kit includes:
Installation manual
mp62 sc and mounts
pnp power cards
dummy throttle body
upgraded belt tensioner"
He also gave me cxracing intercooler core. i need i buy the piping from ebay and route it. This kit is for nb1, but I was told that it will fit my nb2. All i need is just the boomslang for it. Does it seem like resonable deal?

[— Dandy —]

OK, the power cards are managing the fuel and engine computer, more or less.

What you have is probably comparable to this:
http://www.rspeed.net/RSpeed_MP62_ba...p/nab-1337.htm

Here's another close match:
http://www.fastforwardsuperchargers....-cost-kit.html

I wouldn't worry about "deals" at this point since you have it. The kit was expensive to produce which is why it has been discontinued. You'll want to learn as much about your kit as you can and look at the other kits to make sure you have everything you need. I'm not sure if you need to upgrade your fuel pump. I know that was something that should be done on the NA's with the M45 kit. Having the intercooler is nice. I don't know how easy it is to add the piping and get it fitted. You'll probably want to upgrade your exhaust at some point to take full advantage of FI as you do with all FI systems. For a supercharger you'll want a header too. So plan on these and probably a clutch at some point but what you have should be fine to start with, assuming the kit is complete. Good Luck.

Here's a whole thread of MRnet members' various supercharger set-ups: http://mazdaroadster.net/showthread....ull=1#post4683

[Silvernb03]

It has not shipped yet, so i think i still can back out on the deal if the price is not right