As a noob and with limited mechanical/technical knowledge, I decided to go with a Kit option. I have a 2002 NB with 65K on it.
I went a little crazy with my purchase. I bought the S5 kit from Begi. I also bought the Clutch/flywheel, the big brake kit and the reinforcement rails from Flyin' miata. So far, I had installed the clutch/flywheel and I kept everything off the car waiting for the turbo kit. The 'big box' arrived and I started going through the instructions and components. Some things were listed as backordered, but, unfortunately, all the other little bags that came with the kit do not match the instructions . Since Stephanie has been responsive to my emails and questions, I have sent her an email describing the issue and I will keep everyone updated on how things progress. In the mean time, I have attached a few photos of the prep work, if anyone is interested. At the point the pics were taken, I had not removed the water inlet valve under the exhaust manifold. I removed the PWS pump as instructed in the new version of the instructions, version 1.4. Stephanie had emailed me an earlier version that did not ask for it to be removed... version 1.1. Anyone notice the repaired dipstick? It broke while I was putting the bellhousing back into position and rocking the engine/bellhousing apparently too much
I have a question about rust... my car was in Chicago when I bought it and there is quite a bit of rusted parts on the bottom of the car, like the parts of the steering mechanism, A arms...etc. When I removed the plastic undercarriage cover, at least 5 screws sheared off because of rust despite the penetrant that I used. I I don't want to take everything apart because I would have to just get EVERYTHING off, treat the rust, then put it back together. That would mean I won't drive my car for the next year (too little time to work on the car)... I bought the car as a project and I have another car that I can drive, but I like driving more than working on it. Suggestions?

 

I started working on the installation. So far, I have one part of the coolant re-route done, the PWS cooler installed, the heater hose re-routed and heat wrap done... I included some pictures. My poor repair of the dipstick did not hold up, as you can see. I'm hoping to get more things done this weekend.

 

I wouldn't even replace the dipstick, It will melt or break anyway. The funny thing is, I just broke a new one yesterday. I forgot to take it out while working on the car.

I'm going to look into a meltal replacement if they have one.

Good luck on the build. Some of those parts with rust. I would just hit them with a wire brush and spray them rust kill black or silver etc. LOL

 

wow there is a serious amount of rust and corrosion there. If it was me I'd just try to clean up what I could in the engine bay before the turbo goes in, it will be easier to work in there without it. A die grinder with a flap wheel and scotchbrite disks will be your friend.

 

Your pics/build do a good job of illustrating the advantages of going with a kit. I agree with the brush and POR (paint over rust) paint. There's several different kinds of abrasive brush wheels you can use on grinders/drills to speed the clean up. But I'd definitely do it while things are apart.

 

Thanks guys for the suggestions. Today I tried to get some of the rust taken care of. I should have brushed things more, but I just sprayed the rust stopper stuff (black and gray). I have been waiting on more parts to come. Yesterday I finished tapping the sump and put in the adapter for the oil return line. I also temporarily installed the intercooler with the old tow hook bolts, the new ones are not here yet. I need to get a few more pictures tomorrow possibly and post them.

 

Looking pretty good. Could you describe your experience taping the oil pan? How did you flush it after taping?

 

Thanks. I guess the tap was not very difficult. I did not have a drill large enough for the big drill bit so I borrowed one. I did things slowly and I used grease on several occasions on the drill bits and on the tap, stopping, cleaning it off, putting more grease. There were a lot of shavings but the grease did a good job in picking up the critical pieces. After drilling, which was not entirely straight, I used the tap. The tap is tapered, so when you start, if you are a bit off a straight line, just keep working on making it straight with every turn. By the end of the tap, everything was straight. I used grease on the tap to pick up shavings. The oil will come out of course when you do the drilling and tapping which helps with the shavings. I made the mistake of draining my oil before starting the installation, but I filled it with new oil (only to waste again) before doing the tap. I installed the adapter without issues, but I didn't screw it in too fast, because even with the threaded hole, it still wanted to move from horizontal. I did not know how much to tighten, so I tightened to my comfort level. I was worried about the thinkness of the sump wall - thin soft metal . So, after I installed that, I hand tightened the hose and per the instructions, I took the oil drain plug out, let the oil drain out. I routed the braided hose up through the engine compartment, put a funnel in it, and poured about 30 oz of mineral spirits into the funnel. That pushes any remaining shavings towards the drain plug area. After I put the oil in a different container , I found shavings in the original drain pan I used, so it definitely worked out well. I think the hole, after all was said and done, is straigh, but lower than the picture in the manual, but I think it will be fine. When oil starts leaking out of it, I will have to deal with it . I will get some pictures later to show the position.

 

I'd switch that splice in the upper radiator hose to the lower radiator hose. I don't know how cold it gets in MO but in 50F whether here I was having my CLTs drop to 150F on the highway, with a stock radiator. Switched the splice to the bottom hose today and the temps stay between 187F and 196F right where I want them.

 

It does get cold here. Tonight it will hit 28 degrees. Thanks for the suggestion. I will ask Stephanie if they had dealt with this issue on my system. Some parts of my system are on back order and the lower coolant re-route parts are on that list. I kind of mocked it up with the old coolant hose and the solid metal tube they provided, so I don't impinge on that with other parts of the install while waiting for the parts.

 

If you find the metal replacement option, let me know. Thanks.

 

I asked Stephanie about this and here is the answer that I received: "The coolant temps will be less period. The important thing to remember is to use anti-freeze in the winter and water in the summer. As long as your car reaches operating temp before you turn it off, it is ok."

So, I will try that and if I need to, the switch is not complicated since both tubes have a metal portion that I can interchange.

 

Here are some updated pictures. I did not have any time to post them yesterday. At this point, I cannot proceed with anything else, because I have to get the rest of the order to move on.
You can see in the pictures I tried to use that paint over rust stuff on the engine, not the best job in the world, with the little lighting I had. I also took a couple of pictures of the sump connection, the oil supply line and the intercooler, which is temporarily held in with the old bolts from the tow hooks. The EGR tube is removed and a metal piece is used to close the hole (last picture). I mocked up the lower radiator hose re-route for now, waiting on those parts too!
It's getting colder out in the garage, and I wanted to get more done before winter temperatures hit , but it's not in my hands.

 

do they salt the roads like ****'s in chicago or something?!?!?
My car is from ontario and i feel they do it a lot, but never seen an engine block quite like that. but i agree with the POR-15 comment, that is great stuff.

 

I lived in Chicago for 3 years (I didn't own this car at the time) and yes, they do. I also think the previous owner had it sitting a lot of the time, so the rust took hold well. I have been trying to spray everything with POR wherever I can.
I haven't posted anything new because the parts are not in. I have been sending emails to Stephanie, and she tells me she expects them in a few days, I don't get anything, send another email, get the same promise...etc. Just a run around. From what I read, their system is better, but I wish their delivery was better. I have been waiting almost 3 months! It's ridiculous. Unforturnately, I can't go back and change my mind now

 

I found one, here is the link:
Mazda Miata Parts & Accessories at MiataMania.com
It's "Chrome"

 

I have been waiting on parts from Begi for quite a while and I finally got some more things, but still, far from receiving the whole order... 4 months later! Anyway, I installed the injectors a few days ago, put back the intake today, and installed the exhaust manifold and loosely connected the turbo. The manifold holes of course did not line up, so I had to widen on the of the holes slightly. I had problems with the turbo placement because the turbo would not go on without taking the studs on the exhaust manifold off first and leaving only one of the lower ones. Then I found that the turbo hit the shelf next to it, so I trimmed the shelf with a Dremel. I put on the turbo, then re-threaded the studs with the two nut method, through the holes in the turbo - pain the *** of course. Next came the down pipe to Cat and guess what, another glitch. The angle between the downpipe and the cat was off, the flange holes did not line up with the studs, and the holes in the down pipe flange were too small for the studs. I took out the studs from the Cat, tried different fasteners, just in case they were bent, but the discrepancy is so large, it is definitely not from the Cat. I sent an email to Stephanie, hopefully she can get this stuff resolved... I cannot believe this project is taking so long, let alone the amount of time it took to get the stuff in and now, it does not even fit . I will post any new updates as they occur.

 

What size turbo are you running? I've got a feeling I'm gonna have very similar problem with my manifold and turbo. I may use regular bolts instead of studs.

 

Man, those glitches kind of worry me. I had always heard that the BEGi kits were always pretty problem free. Maybe you just got a bad batch of stuff. Sucks having to wait on stuff doesnt it?

All of that rust makes me sad. Im glad I am in the south with no salt. I have a 65 year old tractor that had less than half of the rust that your 6 year old car has (before I restored it). Didnt know salt did that much damage, that fast.

Good luck on the rest of your build. Keep us updated, Im curious to see the results, and how the problems get resolved.

 

thank god I have a leaky front crank seal, keeping everything well lubricated and rust free. that rust makes me shiver. nasty.

why are you tapping into the brake booster line? and what is that thing you mounted below the bumper? sorry if these are obvious answers, I don't know much about BEGI kits.