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plohl
1st November 2011, 09:36 AM
So...

I thought I would start a build thread to try and keep my motivation up with this car.

The story:

As some of the other Queensland guys might know, I used to own an 86 st162 Celica. I have wanted an 86 for quite a while and was planning keeping the Celica for a while until I had enough money to get an 86. However, as a Christmas present my dad was driving to my grandparents and the Celica decided it had had enough and through a rod out of cylinder one.... Could of had something to do with my driving, but we'll never know haha.

So I started looking at cars after Christmas. On my wanted list, I had (of course) 86, Integra type R DC2 and mx5. Unfortunately, Integra type r's were outside my budget ($6500 on the road). I looked at 1 or 2 86's, hoping to get something with a 4age already, but they were both pretty rubbish and the takumi tax didn’t make the good one affordable. Looking at the details, mx5's were the only 86 alternative I could find on the market, don’t get me wrong, I went and looked at a few s13's which were all fucked and a couple of nice r32's but what I really wanted was something light, 4 cylinder and not going attract stupid amounts of attention. The Integra didn’t really fit this description, but they seriously haul ass and I have only ever had fwd. haha. So I would have looked at 10+ mx5's, ranging from stock, turbo, supercharged. There were some that were reasonably priced, some that weren't. I think the advantage the 5 had over the 86, is that they have the same chassis from 89-97(or 98?), so it is super easy and cheap (ish) to get parts for them! Eventually I found this eunos roadster that had been imported into Melbourne 2007 (I think) and had one owner who had left it with her parents to sell on her behalf. It was pretty stock and fairly clean.

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6226/6303120043_e1170f1bf8_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6303120043/)
1989 Eunos Roadster (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6303120043/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

So I picked it up for a good price in February. Details were:

1989 Eunos Roadster
Engine: B6 1.6L dohc
wheels: stock BBS 14x6 +45(haha)
Vicious LSD
Stock nardi wheel
only aftermarket part was the Cusco front strut brace

The plan has always been to run the car in weekend sprints. I was hoping to get it on the track much earlier but yeah, haven't got that far yet.

First impressions of the car - it handled really well for a stock car, I couldn't fit hardly anything in it! Figured out if I take the passenger’s seat out though, I can get my MTB in there or a set of wheels!

Mods so far:
New wheels - 949 Racing 6UL's - 15x8 +36 5.5kg each
Racing beat rear brace - closes the rear sub frame up.
Apex'i spiral collector headers - $100 = score
Koni yellow sports shocks and random springs - FREE!!!!
Removed soft top, rear carpet, deadening etc.
1994+ front brakes, A1RM pads (235mm disc to 255mm)

That’s pretty much it. Still goes alright but I have noticed the lack of power compared to the Celica, 4age powered cars and others through the bends. I still wouldn’t say I have gotten into a rhythm driving this thing yet. The transition from fwd to rwd has been a bit challenging, with braking being the biggest difference.


http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6234/6245397028_8c377fe95b_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6245397028/)
roadster vs mx5 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6245397028/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

Joshie_Mcslide
2nd November 2011, 09:14 AM
Whack a 13bt in there.....should sort out that lack of power issue!!

Nice clean car though man,good luck with the build.....Nice to see something different in here with a little class!

plohl
2nd November 2011, 02:00 PM
Cheers man.

Its getting a new engine, but not a 13b haha.

Some more pictures!

New wheels. Needed to remove the passeger's seat to fit my old celica wheels with the tyres and the new wheels in the boxes haha
http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6092/6303685736_7c9749d018_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6303685736/)
6ul's? check! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6303685736/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

Sparco seat installed. Was pretty easy, bolted to the existing rails with some slight modifications.
http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6037/6303123923_3842611b0c_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6303123923/)
Sparco sprint V Installed! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6303123923/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

Apex'i headers before it went in the car vs the stock headers
http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6033/6303647770_5461431ce6_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6303647770/)
Apex'i vs Stock (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6303647770/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

Installed!
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3191/5822089521_d3e5330b09_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/5822089521/)
Apex'i spiral headers, NA6 roadster (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/5822089521/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

Future Plans for the car....
Getting a car this weekend that was written off at mount cotton. Comes with a 1.8L engine with big cams, haltec ecu and Torsen diff (torque biasing) with 4.3 ratio plus a bunch of other stuff that'll be flogged off. Engine has 130 rwhp which is more then enough for the moment haha.
6 point weld in cage to be done in december - that's the plan anyway.
Suspension upgrade - too many choices, but will most likely be some for of coil over

I am endeavouring to keep this car as legal as possible, so the cage has to be done asap to beat the new laws that are supposed to be coming in. I am planning on rigging something up for the HVAC system as the cage will require me to remove the standard blower box.

So yeah, should be keeping this fairly up to date with what is happening.

70XIN
2nd November 2011, 04:42 PM
I like this car :) look forward to the updates and such. Be careful with that NA6 diff! BOOM lol

plohl
2nd November 2011, 05:21 PM
Thanks Seamus!

Yeah, the new diff is from an NB8B or C - but yeah, the one at the moment would probably be destroyed instantly with the new engine haha

plohl
4th November 2011, 06:22 AM
http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6223/6309562431_76b2606da4_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6309562431/)
Nice body work (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6309562431/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6220/6310083054_8e3442e22e_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6310083054/)
Flatter roadster (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6310083054/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6032/6309562025_3d8d56be20_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6309562025/)
the power plant (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6309562025/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

marvis
4th November 2011, 03:16 PM
NA8?! Cams too? Going off the sticker on the door...

Going to steal the diff etc also? They are stronger.

Pidgey
4th November 2011, 04:49 PM
This is cool!
I WILL own an MX5 one day.

plohl
4th November 2011, 04:56 PM
Yeah its an NA8. The engine, loom, ecu, torsen diff, sway bars and maybe rear suspension will be going into my car. The cams are tighe "fast road" cams, so the most lift you can go before having to mod the internals supposedly. Off the top of my head I think its about 10mm. I took the rocker cover off it last week and the cams looked brand new! Just the cams and a tune added a total of 28 HP at the wheels and had a good increase in power over the whole range.

Picking it up tonight and stripping it at a mates work so it's going to be a busy weekend.

plohl
4th November 2011, 04:57 PM
This is cool!
I WILL own an MX5 one day.

Cheers!

Yeah, even if it's just a few months get one and trash it around! heaps of fun haha

shift_rook
4th November 2011, 05:45 PM
mate what an awesome pick up on that written off rig! i was considering an mx5 myself but the severe lack of power was to much a turn off, looks like you have it well sorted now though

plohl
16th November 2011, 05:56 PM
^ thanks dude! yeah, you dont notice the power too much until you're following other 1.6's!

So, I picked the wreck up last Friday the 4th and took it to my mate’s work. The boss was kind enough to lend us some space whilst we stripped the car. We got started and about an hour later I remembered to start taking some photos!

Things I learnt from stripping the car:
Take everything apart at the time! Some components we thought would be easier to get off once they were out of the car. For example, dropping the whole rear sub-frame does not make getting the rear suspension/ drive train components disassembled easier, although it may save a little bit of time at that instant!
Looms are a pain
Pry bars, impact drivers and fork lifts are awesome


A massive thanks to my mates Nick and Patrick for helping me out! And Anode Engineering for giving us the space we needed!

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6212/6349509306_67c27f93ab_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6349509306/)
stripping started (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6349509306/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6033/6348759473_c923fc4156_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6348759473/)
front shot (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6348759473/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6101/6349509522_b2c183f390_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6349509522/)
wrecked parts pile (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6349509522/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6032/6348759651_8bc1838e3e_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6348759651/)
getting lighter (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6348759651/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6036/6349509676_6256678a0c_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6349509676/)
surprise!!! =( (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6349509676/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr
^shit find =(

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6220/6349509756_2172ebcd17_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6349509756/)
Enigne come out (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6349509756/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6118/6349509856_14a12626ac_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6349509856/)
much lighter (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6349509856/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6035/6349509948_24f0255dd8_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6349509948/)
roadster. (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6349509948/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr
random shot of my car

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6100/6348760051_acc0554aa6_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6348760051/)
mazdaspeed shocks. No leaks (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6348760051/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr
Front shocks are a little bent.

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6041/6349510114_b7d66928b9_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6349510114/)
loom? (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6349510114/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr
Gutting the beast haha.

Fork lifts are really handy!
http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6091/6348760253_80e3764cd0_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6348760253/)
raised 5 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6348760253/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6240/6349510324_9eca7cde36_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6349510324/)
low 5 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6349510324/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr
low(est) 5?

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6041/6348760423_7dcb3c8b00_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6348760423/)
Lower front control arms (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6348760423/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr
The front lower wishbones - got well fk'd up in the accident

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6047/6348760509_a5c4e5865c_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6348760509/)
fork lifts ftw (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6348760509/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6218/6348760589_e3b3f0ffa9_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6348760589/)
Final Resting Place (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6348760589/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr
DONE!

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6112/6348760689_c187344001_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6348760689/)
Parts packed (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6348760689/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr
One load

plohl
16th November 2011, 06:03 PM
So, i haven't done too much, to the car except put the front sway bar off the wreck in. Turns in heaps better now. Will be fitting some advan AO48's at some point so that should be interesting. Will keep them for spirited driving/track only haha.

Have been figuring out some of the wiring for the ecu and it doesnt look too bad. Over the next few weeks i'll be measuring the car up for the cage. Hoping to get it started just before christmas. The engine will most likely go in after the cage.

oh,

the dyno curve of the engine: Red (stock cams) Blue (new cams)

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6238/6349191699_7ca27ffa29_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6349191699/)
dyno chart (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6349191699/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

1.8L BP engine
805c tighe cams
4-2-1 headers
60mm exhaust
haltec e6x ecu - alpha-n tune

Vance
16th November 2011, 08:00 PM
looking good man. what happened to the bbs wheels?

plohl
16th November 2011, 09:38 PM
Cheers dude!

The bbs's are my daily rims.

plohl
23rd November 2011, 04:22 PM
for those interested in the bbs's a set of the 15x6 ones are up on yahoo jap. - http://www.astinagt.com/forums/showpost.php?p=277176&postcount=67

plohl
7th December 2011, 09:23 AM
Not much has been happening - just a bit of driving. I did put the front sway bar in and a set of advan ao48's on - Never had so much grip!!!! Really notice the lack of power on corner exit now.

Last night, work begun for the cage

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7028/6468212369_befc064d37_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6468212369/)
getting stripped (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6468212369/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

I'll start CAD'ing up some rear hoop profiles hopefully on Thursday night and will remove most of the rear parcel shelf over the weekend. Worse comes to worse, i'll have an epic roll bar haha.

Thanks to Andy from Adaptronic, I have some new ecu connections so I can redo that patch loom for the NA6 loom (the patch loom was set up for the NA8 loom which has slightly different pin ou! So will solder that sometime this weekend.


on another note... Someone buy my B6 engine (+ all the other stuff I have for sale!!)!!!!

trikzlane
7th December 2011, 08:17 PM
like

turn69up
9th December 2011, 04:25 PM
needs more like this
23310

plohl
10th December 2011, 06:14 PM
^ yeah... my car will never be that cool haha

plohl
13th December 2011, 12:45 AM
Not much progress really made on the weekend :(

but getting slowly there. Going to speak to the guy doing the cage tomorrow. Below is a rough idea of the rear half of the cage. Still need to get some accurate (ish) measurements for the rear members. They'll end up sitting just behind the strut mounts on the main member where the rear sub frame bolts too.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7014/6499021457_e15ee61dcc_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6499021457/)
cage wip (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6499021457/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

plohl
29th December 2011, 11:54 PM
update:
Cage postponed :(
Depowered rack
removed old engine
Need some more parts for new engine so have to wait until next tuesday :(

Should hopefully have the wiring done for the ecu tomorrow. Might tuck the loom a little as well. maybe.

Galant_GT0
30th December 2011, 04:05 PM
Nice build mate, should go a damn site better when done. My Wife had a 2001 MX-5 and it was slow as, handled great but slow :(

plohl
16th February 2012, 07:52 PM
^Thanks dude

They are a heap of fun... around corners.

time for an update......

Steering rack de-pow-erz! Christmas day i de-powered the steering rack out of the wreck. Pretty simple job, just took a bit of time. The power racks have a one less turn lock to lock (2.6 iirc) compared to the manual racks.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7009/6803557131_79883eaf3a_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6803557131/)
Christmas day steering rack de-power...ing (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6803557131/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

wire tuck-ing

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7001/6803558815_7aa189af0b_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6803558815/)
wire tuck WIP (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6803558815/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7022/6803556553_73978933d1_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6803556553/)
Wire tuck WIP (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6803556553/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

Out with the B6

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7151/6803557539_1224aa80a7_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6803557539/)
Engine removal WIP (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6803557539/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7172/6803557977_f169998918_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6803557977/)
B6 out (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6803557977/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

In with the BP

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7154/6803558483_4d12f27a9d_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6803558483/)
Engine in! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6803558483/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

Making the Patch loom for the Haltec - it was a **** to solder!!!!!! Ended up getting little sockets from jaycar and using some deutsch sockets and crimping them onto the pins.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7049/6878818849_2bd71860e4_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6878818849/)
Patch loom in the making! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6878818849/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

some time passed.....

Figured out I stuffed up the timing when I removed the front coolant outlet (see welsh plug) - Cars do not work when the intake and exhaust valves are opened at the same time haha!
So I decide to redo the timing completely....

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7178/6878819053_507aab3d5b_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6878819053/)
new pump! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6878819053/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7063/6878819417_759b08f19b_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6878819417/)
piece by piece (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6878819417/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7059/6878819719_e42a4325a8_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6878819719/)
Gold! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6878819719/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7182/6878820007_fd1b878a12_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6878820007/)
right timing? (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6878820007/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr


http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7180/6878820355_057006332c_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6878820355/)
Back together (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6878820355/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

.....Done!

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7205/6878820641_ac019e1d60_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6878820641/)
Timing done! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6878820641/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

Others stuff that has happened along the way....
-MX5 (Automotive) Plus coolant re-route installed
-TorSen diff installed!
-Braided clutch line from MX5 plus
-New clutch slave cylinder
-Put NA8 rear brakes on from the wreck with the used ebc red pads and new slotted RDA rotors. Went from 230mm rear disc to 250mm.
-Changed springs in the rear - fronts need changing
-Figured out even though the headers and exhaust came from the same chassis (essentially), it doesn't mean it'll all fit correctly http://mx5cartalk.com/forum/images/smilies/icon_rolleyes.gif
-Wired up the ecu - did like 3 continuity checks to makes sure sensors and everything were hooked up correctly. More time consuming then you think.
-Started the loom for the COPs - A big THANKS to 70XIN for hooking me up with some very nice cable sheathing-type-stuff :thumbup:

I am starting to get really sick of not having my car on the road! I have been too busy doing other stuff to work on it... yeah, I know, my priorities are wrong http://mx5cartalk.com/forum/images/smilies/icon_confused.gif Seriously having massive driving withdrawls :verysad:

Parts I am waiting on....
-Braided brake lines from Hel

Plan:
Install radiator and fill cooling system
Change front springs
Fill diff and gearbox with oil
Install brake lines
Fill and bleed brakes/clutch
Charge battery
buy and install oil catch can
-????
-START THE CAR!
-trouble shoot haha


Until next time
http://mx5cartalk.com/forum/images/smilies/icon_beer.gif plohl


http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7048/6878820871_cec0ff9f14_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6878820871/)
Maurha Motors Co. Cam Gears (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6878820871/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

shift_rook
17th February 2012, 09:55 AM
Great to see an update, keen to see it back on the road :)

plohl
17th February 2012, 10:50 AM
Thanks man!

Yeah, me too!

plohl
18th February 2012, 07:05 PM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hqoqcLfOPNc

plohl
20th February 2012, 07:23 AM
Big thanks to my mate nikc for helping me yesterday!

What we achieved....

Install radiator and fill cooling system
Fill diff and gearbox with oil
Install brake lines
Fill and bleed brakes/clutch
Charge battery
Got the COPs working


um.... thats about it.
Still to do

get catch can
change front springs
put lock washer things on steering arms
install body work
tidy up some wiring
.... and much much more.

4agtezza
26th February 2012, 06:37 AM
Looks great Shane!
Well this should fix that exiting speed issue you were having :P

Give me a ring for your first 'test' run lol

plohl
27th February 2012, 11:00 AM
Thanks dude!
It'll be interesting to see just how much quicker it is haha. I'll text when I'm ready to go for a run. I think it might take a few runs to adjust to how it drives.

4agtezza
27th February 2012, 11:04 PM
Yeah it will be! I'm keen to see the 'reborn' mx5 :D I'm playing with new shocks and tyres so I'll be a bit off myself.. lol the more runs the better!!

plohl
28th February 2012, 01:40 PM
Hell yeah! will be very interesting. I have a feeling the week its back on the road im going to spend a lot on fuel haha.

plohl
5th March 2012, 04:32 PM
The car is back on the ground and running. Few issues to sort out like my headlights not popping up any more and temperature gauge jumping to the furthest edges of the hot side when the ignition is on (before the car has even started) and staying there. It is running way too hot for my liking, but I am unsure if this is just an mx5 thing. The temperature settles around the 98*C mark - Bit of research suggests this is in the dead spot of the sensor, and isn't anything to overly worry about - this said, I haven't checked to see if the sensor is calibrated.

I'll need to get the exhaust fixed up with a cat install and the toe aligned sometime this week. So hopefully I have a chance to get all that sorted.

First impressions:
I just drove the car around the block yesterday, so it was hard to get a full idea of the difference in the car - having changed so much in one hit, I think it'll take me a while to adjust to everything. The first thing I noticed - heavy steering. Crazy heavy compared to a normal non-PS rack. Should be interest to see how I hold up at the track. The next thing I noticed - the brakes needed to be re bleed... Finally; the extra torque! It is stupidly noticeable, the car doesn't throw you into the back of your seat like a turbo would, but compared to stock, it is a huge improvement. Power delivery is very nice, with no dead spots and it will quite easer rev past 7000 RPM. Finally, I’ll be able to match great entry speed with moderate acceleration on corner exit!

I'll slowly plot away this week to try and get the car gremlin free.

Stocked to have is semi functional again :D

4agtezza
7th March 2012, 01:30 PM
Great news Shane! Just waiting on my txt now :P

plohl
7th March 2012, 05:22 PM
haha, it wont be for another week or so (i hope) - have to get a few more things done before I start driving it a lot again. Though I am crossing them off my list and watching my bank account decrease!

plohl
9th March 2012, 12:41 PM
So I have a bunch of stuff coming from the states now

Stealth Catch can from 42DD,
Willwood proportioning valve,
Competition spec engine mounts - hopefully these stop the engine moving so much that the headers hit the trans tunnel >|

Panda BVB700
15th March 2012, 10:32 PM
do like this thing keep it up, if that doesnt work make an engine damper

plohl
16th March 2012, 11:32 AM
Cheer dude! that's next on the list. Hopefully the mounts fix it, they're about 40% stiffer then the stock mounts.

plohl
18th March 2012, 12:02 AM
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7199/6989665141_7d19f2e01d_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6989665141/)
New engine install - 90% complete (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6989665141/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7062/6843541894_74d67cc667_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6843541894/)
needs more low (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6843541894/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

Need to lower the car a bit more - Looks like a 4wd.

Car is up and running - few hiccups such as the COPs popping off (working on a solution), exhaust hitting the racing beat rear brace and headers bashing the transmission tunnel. Hopefully have all that stuff sorted in the coming week. This said – the engine has made a huge difference. I think I underestimated the time it is going to take me to adjust to it. I am hoping to try and make the Mt. cotton hill climb at the end of april, however, this depends on the cage or roll bar. Will need to do some testing before than too

I am getting used to the steering. It’s not that bad considering i am running 6* of caster, but I am still yet to go fast and put the bigger tyres on. I can still palm it around small corners. Everyone here is probably used to heavy steering haha.

The engine mounts cleared customs on friday, so i'll hopefully be able to put them in monday night.

plohl
20th April 2012, 09:29 PM
Last Sunday I entered the Ipswich West Morton Auto Club Autocross http://iwmac.org.au/. It is a hard packed dirt track. One of my mates convinced me to enter - A massive thanks to him for helping me out for the day! It is a good practice for driving the car at its grip limits with out the speed, but the track is hard enough that it begins to rubber up throughout the day - the evo's had the tyres squeaking - but the rained rolled in just after lunch and they red flagged it http://mx5cartalk.com/forum/images/smilies/icon_evil.gif so we only completed 3/6 rounds http://mx5cartalk.com/forum/images/smilies/icon_sad.gif with each round consisting of a standing lap and a flying lap.

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5452/6935235134_026071954c_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6935235134/)
IWMAC Dirt Autocross track 15/05/12 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6935235134/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr
(from gearzy lap timer - 3rd run)

I started off on my bbs's (185/60R14) as the track was a bit wet due to the early rain and they would have had a better chance of get through the soft top surface. I took it pretty easy and got (a pretty slow)...

1:09.2 standing
1:00 flying
Total: 2:09.2


I quickly (<5mins so not F1 speed - yet) swapped to my advan's (205/50R15) for the second round and took it easy again...

1:03.8 standing
57.7 flying
Total: 2:01.5


A quick drop of the rear tyre pressures before my 3rd round, chat to a few of the other guys about corner entry and i was a bit more confident to take things up a notch.

57.6 standing
51.7 flying
Total: 1:49.3


I am very happy with the last lap as I still think I drove pretty rubbish so there is heaps of room for improvement. In the class (1600-2000cc, 2wd, NA), the guy that won it (ford laser, BP engine) had the following times, 1:50.6, 1:42.7, 1:41.8. The fastest car on the day, Evo 6, had 1:42, 1:34.1 and 1:33.9! So quick!!!

But yeah, the rain ruined the rest of the arvo and everyone packed up and head home to watch the F1.

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5345/6935234642_76e63100fb_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6935234642/)
Packing the car (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6935234642/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

I re-did the tie downs before leaving home to make them look more secure. The tyres wouldn't budge though.

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5038/6935234800_8908001ee3_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6935234800/)
Roadster ready to race (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/6935234800/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

Two random photo's I grabbed. I really need a better camera for these events - the phone does not cut it haha.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7096/7081308341_17c6f70a5e_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/7081308341/)
2012-04-15 12.33.58 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/7081308341/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7261/7081307697_21e8fb1289_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/7081307697/)
2012-04-15 12.34.16 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/plohl/7081307697/) by plohl (http://www.flickr.com/people/plohl/), on Flickr

Before heading out on sunday I installed my 42dd catch can - which was a bit of a fail cause it gave me a massive vacuum leak at the pcv which lead to my engine consuming 2L (ish) of oil. I quickly fixed the vacuum leak when i got out to the track, but was unaware of my oil loss (school girl error). Monday morning when i checked the oil before heading to work I found out. Thankfully there was no major damage and a fresh batch of oil sees the car running fine again :))

Can't wait to do some more driving!