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I feel like I'm posting too frequently, but so be it. I ordered those headers from a guy on FB marketplace over the weekend and they showed up last night. The package was sent from a business address labeled "Anderson Plastics" or something like that, and contained a bonus on top of the manifold. I now won't have to use my dishwasher for the next six months.
Roadstersport 1.6" header and nine hundred styrofoam plates procured. Seriously, I covered a decent portion of my garage floor with plates just taking enough out to see the header.
Also continued investigating my battery light concern yesterday. Got rid of the kill switch, ran the chassis and engine grounds independently straight to the battery, and added a second chassis ground for good measure since the Antigrav battery has two separate ground terminals.
I did a little experiment last night. Took the car somewhere quiet, got it warmed up, revved it up to 6k in neutral and held it there for 10-15 seconds. The first time, charging voltage dropped to 12.9v for maybe five seconds, the battery light came on for a second, then voltage jumped back up to 13.7v. The second time I did this, charging voltage stayed at 13v while revving, no battery light, and voltage didn't stray from that 13v for the 15ish seconds I revved it.
I'm not worried, just a little perplexed at this behavior. Given the first result, it seems like the alternator isn't out of capacity to charge the system. Possibly the ECU is just commanding lower charging voltage for some reason? Could be something to do with the AntiGrav battery's static voltage being 13.2V instead of 12.6 like a regular flooded or AGM battery. The battery also has its own BMS, so maybe that factors in to it as well? I did some searching and couldn't find any similar experiences. Gonna have to drive the car at redline some more and see what it does or if the voltage drop worsens at all. Alternators aren't super expensive either so I may just grab one for testing purposes and write it off as a spare if no difference is made.
GWR midpipe is supposed to arrive tomorrow or Friday. Should be able to install the exhaust this weekend.
Honestly, I was thinking I might stuff all the plates back in, reseal the box and ship it to the first taker free of charge. I could make an ad for it in the buy/sell section here. It's about time I give back to the forum.
Exhaust system is in! Holy hell, everything I did on the car today I either botched or had something go wrong outside of my control lol.
Started out this morning by popping in the driver side rear Mazda Motorsports hub. Got the new bearing in, popped the hub in, installed the knuckle, got ready to pop the studs in and... oh **** there's no room to install the ARP extended studs with the hub installed. Rookie move. I'll check that next time. Transferred the OEM studs over for now and will have to pop the hub off AGAIN to install the ARP studs at a later date.
My exhaust components showed up this week. The car already has a Roadstersport Street muffler installed. I rounded the rest of the exhaust with a RoadsterSport midpipe with Helmholtz chamber and high-flow catalyst as well as a RoadsterSport MaxPower header that I got secondhand off of FB marketplace. The header is an earlier model with 1.6" primaries. Roadstersport has moved on to 1.8" primaries for their current flagship header and offers a 2.0" primary header for extreme N/A or supercharged engine builds. These would obviously be a more desirable option but this car is going to have a turbo in it sometime in the near-ish future. Thus, I'm fine with saving a few bucks now and running the slightly skinnier headers in the interim.
Had some free time on Thursday to toss the midpipe in. Install was pretty straightforward. GoodWin includes O2 sensor bungs before and after the catalyst in the midpipe. This allows you to toss in their catless headers and not have the car throw a check engine light. They also include a pair of O2 sensor plugs if you're going to keep the stock header and O2 sensor setup. I tossed the midpipe in and snugged up the plugs with a dallop of anti-seize and went on my merry way. Swapping the midpipe alone didn't seem to affect performance or sound much, but it eliminated the mild decel drone that the exhaust had before, so that was cool.
I did the header install today. I moved the alternator out of the way for access and pulled the stock headers out without a hitch. Next was to lengthen the O2 sensor harnesses so they'd reach the bungs in the midpipe. O2 sensor extension harnesses can be purchased for this specific application for $59 and $69 respectively, and I haven't seen a single person post about their header install who didn't use them. Blasphemy. Sorry, GWR, I love you guys but I'm not shelling out the cash for that. Lengthened the O2 harnesses myself and was ready to pop the sensors into their homes.
Except both of the O2 sensor plugs were seized into the midpipe now. What the hell? They went in by hand easily two days earlier and I had anti-seize on the threads and heads. By this time, the exhaust was completely cooled down too. Didn't have too much time to look into it as it was already mid-afternoon and the shop was going to close relatively soon. The midpipe came back out and I ended up having to drill and extract both plugs. Hit the bungs with a thread chaser after and started the thing up. No exhaust leaks. Woo!
Once installed, the exhaust looked pretty dang good! And it sounds killer to boot. I never cared that much about exhaust notes but I'm pretty amped on how the car sounds now. Aggressive, but not too loud until you're revving it above 4k rpm. Zero drone anywhere in the rev range, so I guess the whole Helmholtz thing isn't just a gimmick. Cold start vid below.
Can't remember what's coming next. I think the MadFabWorx oil filter perch is showing up next week so I might start on the oil cooler setup then. Gotta set up my 5 point harness at some point too. Oh, and get the thing tuned and dyno'd. And throw my other bucket seat in on the passenger side. Will keep you guys updated...
Obligatory weekend mountain drive photos. The new exhaust is sublime. Sounds so good at high rpm and I'm pretty sure I can feel the tiny bit of extra power up top. I installed my Sprint seat in the passenger side of the car last night too, although that didn't make a huge difference while driving.
I'm getting more used to the depowered steering in this thing. Now that I've been driving it for a bit, I think it's just a hair heavier than the steering in my NA. Nonetheless, it's an improvement over how the NA felt. With the solid mounts, the steering is extremely responsive and communicative. Especially in rough or undulating corners. There's no question about what the front wheels are doing or feeling at any time. I can't wait to try it out at WSIR in a few weekends (a track known for being very bumpy).
It was goddamn hot out this morning. Actually we got a heat wave and it was goddamn hot this whole week. I left the house early and was headed home from the mountains by 10am. It was already close to 100* out. The car did well, though. Coolant temps stayed under 205* even pushing it on 10-minute long hillclimbs in 90* heat. The TDR air intake is doing its thing, too. IATs are down 20 degrees or so while pushing the car, compared to the stock airbox. I still have no idea what oil temps are doing, though, since the sensor is out of the flow of oil in its current configuration.
I sold some more NA stuff this weekend and ordered a 19-row Setrab series 6 oil cooler for the car. I need to order some 200TW tires and proper track pads for this thing too. I can get 225/45/17 Falken RT615s through work for silly cheap. I know they're not the highest performing 200W but I might still run them to start out since I don't have a baseline for what lap times this car is gonna run yet.
Another weird thing I noticed today. The rev limiter on my car hits at 7,100rpm. NC1s are supposed to redline at 6,800. I confirmed my rpm not only with the tach, but with a scan tool as well. I checked with the PO asking if the car had a tune and he said it didn't. The car also passed a CA smog test a few weeks ago, which checks the ECU for the original OEM software. Either this car has a modified tune that slipped past the OBDII portion of the smog test, or not all NC1s redline at 6,800rpm (unlikely), or or or...
I'm not tripping on it, just an interesting bit that I noticed. I'm still gonna shift at 6,800rpm. These motors don't seem to live as long when revved past 7k.
Not sure what next week holds. I'm tentatively planning on going on a mountain bike trip next weekend, so any car work done will be after work during the week.
I didn't post on your old thread but was following it. :( Sorry to see the NA is gone but you're right back at it with an NC. Amazing how much progress you've made already.
Sim, I suspect those coolant temps will not stay the same after I install the turbo, but they're not bad for running on the OEM radiator! I still have to purchase the GoodWin triple pass radiator and upgraded water pump from an EcoBoost motor, but the cooling system seems perfectly up to snuff for now. You're right on the exhaust note too, I was hesitant about the exhaust setup after reading how easy it is to make these cars too loud by installing catless headers. It's just the right amount of loud, though. I'll take an in-car vid this week and post it. Stoked on it.
Originally Posted by SlowTeg
I didn't post on your old thread but was following it. :( Sorry to see the NA is gone but you're right back at it with an NC. Amazing how much progress you've made already.
Thanks! Yeah man, it was hard to let the NA go but I don't regret my decision (yet). I'm nearing the end of the honeymoon phase after having this new car for a month and a half now, and am still stoked on it. The thing is still slow after 45+ hours of labor put into it, but that'll change somewhat soon The good news is that parting out the NA is fully funding everything I want to do to this car, power adders included. It's just up to me to roll my sleeves up and put in the work now haha.
Exhaust note vid. Microphone doesn't pick up everything, but it's close enough.
Sounds good man, so how you liking the NC compared to your old NA? Can you notice a big diff w/ chassis stiffness? Chassis stiffness I sorta think is similar to "shifter feel." It's nice but doesn't really make you faster per say.
Originally Posted by SimBa
Is this the Z_WAAAAAZ face reveal video???
Haha! Ya I know how it is.. I'm not trying to hide my face, just no need to post a shot with my goofy mug in it unless it's just by accident.
Thanks, Teg! I'm just about halfway through the honeymoon phase with the NC and am still really liking it so far. It's just like driving my NA but with a bunch of small improvements across the board. More torque from the stock powertrain, slightly more comfortable and roomy inside, stiffer chassis with fewer rattles, more "refined" feel to the powertrain. It's been really enjoyable to drive, even though it's way slower currently than my NA was. Learning to drive the car aggressively also took almost zero getting used to. At the limit, it still drives just like you'd expect an NA/NB to drive.
One really big kicker about this NC project, though, is that (I think) I'm currently on track to spend a lot less money than I did on the NA to make the NC turn similar lap times. Been talking to a couple NC guys around here that ran 1-2 seconds faster than me at Buttonwillow last year and their built 2.5L-swapped cars cost much less to build than I expected at the outset of this project. I'm not going to rule out, though, that my car was capable of turning their lap times and I'm just a subpar driver lol.
Side note, my bike trip for this weekend is cancelled. My Fiance's Kia Soul ate a rod bearing this week and almost every mountain range in SoCal is currently on fire. We're gonna talk to the guys at my work about getting her set up in a Ford Maverick and I'm gonna stay around and try to install my 5-point harness in the NC tomorrow then maybe start drilling and mocking up the oil cooler and lines. There's an autocross event at the docks in San Pedro about 45 minutes from my house on Sunday and a fellow 2.5-swapped NC track addict said he'd let me take his car for a few runs if I wanted, so I'm definitely doing that. I signed up for the event too but got waitlisted. Gonna drive my car there just in case a spot opens up.
So there's four separate fires going on in the mountains around SoCal as of this week. The road in my above post burned on Monday, as well as several others in that general area. There's another fire going northeast of LA as well as one in the mountains next to where I work. There's also a fire going on in Camp Pendleton but that doesn't really count since Pendleton is always on fire anyways.
View of Saddleback Mountain from my work on Monday. OC Public Works was moving some boulders to block motos from getting into a hiking trail entrance, citing a fire hazard. The heavy machinery being used ended up sparking a fire and the whole mountain burned over the coming days, as well as everything ten miles south of it. Crisis averted, right guys?
I'll probably take the car up to the Malibu mountains after visiting the AutoX and driving the 2.5L NC on Sunday. Hopefully it isn't too crowded with all of the other canyons/mountain roads currently closed.
Thanks, Teg! I'm just about halfway through the honeymoon phase with the NC and am still really liking it so far. It's just like driving my NA but with a bunch of small improvements across the board. More torque from the stock powertrain, slightly more comfortable and roomy inside, stiffer chassis with fewer rattles, more "refined" feel to the powertrain. It's been really enjoyable to drive, even though it's way slower currently than my NA was. Learning to drive the car aggressively also took almost zero getting used to. At the limit, it still drives just like you'd expect an NA/NB to drive.
One really big kicker about this NC project, though, is that (I think) I'm currently on track to spend a lot less money than I did on the NA to make the NC turn similar lap times. Been talking to a couple NC guys around here that ran 1-2 seconds faster than me at Buttonwillow last year and their built 2.5L-swapped cars cost much less to build than I expected at the outset of this project. I'm not going to rule out, though, that my car was capable of turning their lap times and I'm just a subpar driver lol.
That's good to hear. I've heard some folks say the NC chassis feels similar to the s2000. I guess makes sense. Similar weight and newer cars. That's good to hear the NC is a bit cheaper, but I'm a little surprised a built 2.5L can keep up with a built turbo motor especially with the lighter chassis. It'll be interesting to see how your build goes.
I think there's no question you went pretty deep on the mods for your NA (excluding the ZF tranny and getrag diff), and I've said it before, but I believe close to 300whp on an NA/NB for a serious track car is beyond the "sweet spot" of what the drivetrain can be reliable with. I'm hoping to stay in that sweet spot of low 200whp and have fun (and hopefully it'll be semi-reliable). I'm amazed how quickly you jumped chassis and didn't lose a bit of steam. Good to see you having fun!
That's good to hear the NC is a bit cheaper, but I'm a little surprised a built 2.5L can keep up with a built turbo motor especially with the lighter chassis. It'll be interesting to see how your build goes.
That's what I was thinking, but there's three or four guys around here running ~190whp NCs that put out similar times to what I was doing in my NA at higher power. The only track where I was running faster than those guys was WSIR, where an increase in power makes a substantial difference due to the super-high average speeds there. I believe a decent bit of the NC's ability to turn faster lap times with less power can be attributed to larger tire size and the more refined chassis. A lot of guys are running 200TW 255s and some are even on 265s. Also, a stripped NC isn't too much heavier than an NA/NB chassis. The dude who offered to let me drive his NC on Sunday just had it weighed at ~2390lb. Obviously there's going to be a delta between different scales, but if that's an accurate number it's pretty impressive. Again, though, maybe their cars aren't all faster than mine and it was my driving skills and car setup that were at fault lol. We'll see in the coming months.
I've said it multiple times, but if I were wiser I'd have kept the car at 270whp with the built motor and 6 speed and ran it like that indefinitely. At 220whp, I think you're going to have a ton of fun and the car's going to be properly reliable with all the support systems you have in place. I could've left my car at 210whp and been amped on it for years.
Hell, if I hadn't done the transmission swap and set a goal to make 400whp on the street, I'd probably still have the NA Ah well, I'm not regretful. This has all been an overall enjoyable experience and I'm not about to stop anytime soon lol.
Bonus Friday afternoon things. Changed out the transmission fluid, started installing my 5 point harness, cut the rear bumper more. Stoked on how the bumper looks and I probably shaved a whole tenth of a pound. Gotta grab my belt anchors from home and will finish the harness install tomorrow.
I've been MIA on a work trip and just saw all your updates. The car sounds great in that video and looks plenty quick for an NA Miata. It looks about the same as my buddies NC2 with bolt ons, which is surprisingly quick. It dusts my bp4w 99 nb and hangs with my 1988 323gtx with bolt ons.
The car also looks cool with the track aero mods, I dig your fender and bumper cut. It would look great if it were all the same color, but so would my car, so I'm not judging
Thanks Nate! I'm amped on how the car is looking for now. It'll be all one color someday, once I'm done with the hundred other performance-related things I need (want) to do to it first.
And yeah, it's not an absolute slouch in the speed department! It's slow but not slow and that'll do for now haha. I don't have a tune on the car yet, but hope it'll be making around 20whp over stock between that and the upgraded exhaust once I get one. I'll get it dyno'd at the track in two weekends and see what it's making then.
Never mind the fact that I was still working on shift points or that I'm overdriving the **** out of the car lol.
So I've been talking to a couple of the local NC track guys on Instagram since I got my car, posing tons and tons of questions about everything you could imagine. Luckily, everyone has been super helpful and willing to share their expertise. One dude specifically, Frankie, has been extremely receptive and helpful. I was asking him last week about the new Shaftworx coilovers and spring rates he's running and he suggested I should come try them for myself at an autocross event this weekend. Well that was an offer I couldn't say no to! Frankie's car is a dialed in 2.5 swap with aero, 18x10s, proper coilovers, the works. I cruised over this afternoon after the competition was over to take the car out for a couple of fun runs. The event was held in San Pedro, at the Port of Los Angeles, right on the water! This venue is referred to by the locals as the Monaco of autocross.
The original plan was just for me to grab a wristband and take the car for a couple runs, but we ended up talking to the event organizer and he allowed me to pay a small fee and do all the fun runs I could handle! By this time, about half of the field had gone home so we got quite a few runs in a short period of time. I got four runs in my own car to get familiar with the course and then took Frankie's car out for a rip. Holy hell, what a machine! The 2.5L motor doesn't produce a mind-boggling amount of power but it definitely kicks you in the pants more than the 2.0L. The traction the car generated was insane too. Needless to say, I'm even more amped on where this new project is going now, and I'm pretty sold on how the Shaftworx coilovers handled. Super stiff spring rates but they handled the undulations and bumps on the course surprisingly well. I got two runs in his car then hopped back in mine for one more. What a difference.
Nothing to see here, just a couple Iowa-class battleships
Anyways, great Sunday! These next couple weeks leading up to WSIR are gonna be busy...
Looks like a great day! I really think the NC is now where the NA/NB was 10-15 years ago. The aftermarket is starting to come alive, and the potential of the cars is being demonstrated on the track.
Originally Posted by Z_WAAAAAZ
Nothing to see here, just a couple Iowa-class battleships
I might have had a little experience with those, back in the dark ages...
Roda, yeah! I'm pretty amped I got into this chassis when I did. There's quite a few new products that have come out for the NC in the last year or two and some more cool ones on the way (Fab9's MZR/Duratec intake manifold for example). The knowledge base regarding setting these cars up for track seems to be growing as well. That's not quite at the level the NA/NB knowledge base is at yet, but it's closing the gap.
Haha no way! Never knew you were a sailor, man. What ship did you serve on? I'm not up to date on modern warships but have been tweaking on WWII Pacific naval warfare for the last year or so.
I've only heard great things about Shaftworks stuff so far. We have 3+ cars locally that run them, 2 of which have taken a podium or win at nationals. The owner of the company is a long time autocrosser and seems like he's pretty hands on with setup/support questions. I'm not sure how popular they are for track vs autocross, but I'd imagine they'd do really well all around.
09-04-2024, 02:35 PM
0
Amazing how much progress you've made already. 
The good news is that parting out the NA is fully funding everything I want to do to this car, power adders included. It's just up to me to roll my sleeves up and put in the work now haha.
Ah well, I'm not regretful. This has all been an overall enjoyable experience and I'm not about to stop anytime soon lol.
