small turbo vs n/a for daily driving Miata

[— Dandy —]

I think it is a fair deal. For forced induction it would be pretty hard to do much better than $2k for a complete kit with only a few months use. Although for the same $2k there were some very good naturally aspirated options listed in this thread. Of course I have my biases. When you add in the cost of a header (~$400), you are getting closer to my suggestion in post #14 for a fully supported, brand new, and complete turbo kit.

It sounds like you made a commitment, so I wouldn't sweat it. Get it. Get it installed. Drive it. It will be a learning experience no matter what you do. I don't think you will be disappointed.

[Super Grandpa]

I am brand new to the forum. But here is my 2 cents. If you want less maintenance and headaches stay NA. I had a FFS Coldside M62 and lost an engine with it. Still do not know what happened. I think the cheap timing card failed.

I have two Miatas. One is a 93 with an M45 and it works great. You can find those used for between $500 and $1,500. My other Miata is a 97 and I am putting on a BEGi Garrett turbo that will produce 260 whp.

One of my best friends is a Miata FI specialists. He just sold his car with M62 and bought a new Miata. He says for everyday use there is no need for FI.

Whatever you do you can't go wrong - as long as you set up the engine correctly to prevent detonation with a turbo or SC. Best way to prevent detonation is to get a MegaSquirt Plug & Play 2 from BEGi. They cost $800

[psulja]

One of my best friends is a Miata FI specialists. He just sold his car with M62 and bought a new Miata. He says for everyday use there is no need for FI.

Whatever you do you can't go wrong - as long as you set up the engine correctly to prevent detonation with a turbo or SC. Best way to prevent detonation is to get a MegaSquirt Plug & Play 2 from BEGi. They cost $800

There may not be a need for FI but it is sure nice to have, even for daily use. Right now I'm switching between my Civic and Grand Marquis for daily use, and always driving a slow car can get frustrating. I can't wait 'til I can bring the Miata out again, the extra power is really nice for overtaking and merging.

Just getting a megasquirt won't prevent detonation. You need to know what you're doing for tuning, or be ready to pay someone to tune the car for you. There are also a few other places to pick up an MS, such as Dimitris from MSLab's (aka Reverant) who builds enhanced megasquirts and can set you up with a pretty solid base tune for your car. 949Racing also has the PnP MS2.