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So… I’ve been reading more and I have 2 options: 1. Buy a kit or 2. Build it myself.

As I’ve gotten into more into it all, I thinking building it myself from scratch is a bit beyond my mental and emotional investment. I’m going to go with a kit.

So, regarding kits, I already mentioned those from Flyin’ Miata. But I also found Bell Engineering. These two seem to be the major players in the “kit” market.

After reading through all the specs and the forums, I think my best bet is a hybrid of the two. I don’t know why, exactly, but something in my gut likes BEGi’s hardware better. But FM’s ECU (the Hydra) rocks.

Regardless, the first thing (Step 1) I have to do is replace the clutch. And since it comes in a “happy meal”, I’m going to add a lightweight flywheel too. The OEM clutch can’t handle the power I want to throw at it, and the flywheel will make the throttle more responsive.

Step 2 is to add the BEGi Series 2/3 kit. The big difference between the two is the size of the turbo. As I understand it, the Garret T2554 spools faster and gives more low-end torque, but lacks in high RPM power. The T2860 is just the opposite. It gives HUGE top horse-power, but takes forever to spool up. After driving today and paying careful attention to my driving habits and RPM’s in normal and highway traffic, and open country roads when I like to whip-it-up… I think I’ve decided on the T2560. Untuned, the turbo should start spooling around 3300 RPMs and between 4000-6000 RPMs will take off like a rocket. Since I enjoy driving the ‘twisties’ and not so much ‘drag racing’, I think the T2560 is the best choice for me.

Step 3, then, is to add a new exhaust. I’m still debating on which, but I’m looking for an additional 10hp.

Step 4 will be to add a new ECU. Right now, my only real option is the FM Hydra. I looked at the FM Voodoo II, but I think it’s a waste of money. I considered the Xede, but it just doesn’t seem “complete” to me. I also looked at the MegaSquirt from DIYAutoTune. And while I think that’s probably the best EMS out there, honestly, again, it’s over my head and beyond the mental/emotional investment I’m willing to make right now.

I’m not even finished with the current project, and I’m already thinking about the next.

First, a quick update: I have 2 more bedrooms and less-than-half of the kitchen to finish flooring. What I have left is actually relatively easy compared to what I’ve done so far. But I just carried in more wood from outside and it needs a few days to acclimate before I can start nailing it down. The rooms are (as of this morning), stripped of carpet, prep’ed and ready. But I’m at a standstill. Tomorrow I’ll rip out the wall-side cabinets and scrape up the last of the vinyl tile… but overall it’s pretty easy from here out.

Oh, and I reinstalled the kitchen sink today too, and encountered something I wasn’t expecting. Installing the floors under the cabinets, raises everything 3/4 of an inch off the floor. As most everything else (like the dishwasher, which was also reinstalled) is also raised 3/4″ off the floor, it’s not a big deal. But when re-attaching the water feeds to the sink (the height of which is NOT dictated by the floor height because they are connected to plumbing under the floor) I found the hot-water lead is about 3/4″ too short. So I have a sink again, just no hot water there yet. I’ll hit the hardware store tomorrow and fix that pretty easily. I guess I just got lucky that the drain feeds were flexible enough to make up for that 3/4″ difference. But if you decide to do something similar, check it out before-hand.

Anyway… the topic here is that I’m not even finished, but I’m already thinking about the next project.

Over Thanksgiving weekend, while visiting my parents, I accidently left the keys to the Miata there. I finally got them back yesterday. So today I went for a drive. I love that car!

The specs say that the 2003 Mazda MX-5 Miata produces about 142hp. My motorcycle produces about 98hp, but I would never drive it that hard. It’s more than enough for me (ie, quicker/faster that I feel I can safely ride it). I think it’s important to note here that the Miata weighs about 2,000lbs while the motorcycle weights about 450lbs.

But after taking numerous rides recently in a BMW 6-series convertible, the Miata feels weak. I looked it up and the BMW 650i engine generates about 360hp in a vehicle that weighs about 4300lbs. I’m not sure yet (but further research will reveal) how horsepower and vehicle weight relate.

Using the “engine hp” vs weight, these are the figures:

The bike: Weight: 450lbs. HP: 98. = .218hp/lb
The Miata: Weight: 2000lbs. HP: 142 = .071hp/lb
The 6-Series BMW: Weight: 4300lbs. HP: 360 = .084hp/lb

So… in trying to figure out how much I’d have to increase the horsepower in the Miata such that it was at least as quick as the BMW (but not necessarily as quick as the bike) and knowing that most upgrades I’ve researched do not increase the weight (instead typically reduce it slightly) I determined I need a horsepower rating of between 170hp and 400hp for my 2,000lb car.

As I mentioned, I’d never ride the bike that hard. That would scare the crap out of me. So trying for a .2 hp/lb+ ratio in the Miata would be rediculous. But I did find that shooting for a 170hp-250hp (.085-.125 hp/lb) is do-able.

Luckily, I don’t have a garage and therefore won’t be working on the car until Spring/early-Summer when the weather warms up. But between now and then I’ll be learning all about the differences between Super-Charging and Turbo-Charging, intakes, exhausts, engine timing, programming ECU’s and clutch tolerances. Sounds like fun to me!