$2011 firm
edit: located in Gainesville, FL 1 mile from I75
The time has come to move on to other projects so sadly we must let the Miata go. The build was mostly documented in this thread: Husband and Wife $08 Challenge Build
Here is a summary:
The car is a 1990 or so fairly straight body Miata that I bought from a co-worker of my wifes. My wife expressed interest in learning some mechanical skills so I coached her through a pretty thorough tear down and build of the car. We barely finished the car in time for $08 and entered. It did alright taking home the Phil Kime Spirit of the Event award. The car then sat for nearly two years at which point some upgrades were made, and the car again was finished at the last minute and entered in $2010. The car did great in the autocross at both events, mediocre in the drags, and poorly in the concours. The car has never been properly tuned, never been properly aligned, and never been through troubleshooting. It has 2 challenge events worth of driving plus about 1 mile of testing.
This car is easily capable of a top 15 finish if someone is willing to put some time into it
Chassis:
-1990 Miata painted with rustoleum aluminum. (It could use a new paint job)
-Headlight buckets removed, driving lights in flash to pass holes.
Interior:
-All carpet and trim removed.
-Keith Tanner Half Dash
-Stock Miata seats with seatback center pad removed. (Sits you 2" deeper in seatback)
Engine:
-Stock Miata engine
-Megasquirt
-New Greddy manifold, turbo, and downpipe
-3" downpipe back exhaust
-front mount intercooler
-550 injectors
-Corvette FPR
-DIY Dual feed fuel rail
-Walbro 255 fuel pump
-New NGK blue plug wires
-New Timing belt, valve cover gaskets, assorted other gaskets
-Poly motor mounts
-Edit: forgot to mention the lightweight flywheel and heavy duty pressure plate
Suspension:
-Home brew poly suspension bushings
-R1 motorcycle coilovers rear (aluminum double adjustible 550lbs/inch)
-Tokico Illuminas with 550 lbs/inch motorcycle springs
-factory rear sway disconnected.
-Diamond racing 13x8 4" backspace wheels with Hoosier 225/45/13 tires
Extras included but not currently on car:
-Spare 1.6 Miata engine and trans (was running when pulled)
-4 13x8 3" backspace Diamond Racing Wheels
-MazdaComp 80% lock Clutch Limited Slip Diff Pumpkin for first gen RX7 (should fit Miata housing)
-spare Miata Diff and housing disassembled
-First Gen RX7 LSD and housing
-Poly Diff mount
-Anything else Miata related I feel like throwing in when you pick it up
Known Issues:
-The car ran pig rich in $08 because the car was not seeing proper engine temperature and never got out of cold start mode.
-The car also ran rich in $08 because the 255 fuel pump was overpowering the stock FPR to exacerbate the problem.
-In $2010 I added the Corvette FPR and modified the fuel system to have a dual feed rail. The Corvette FPR runs at least 15psi more than the Miata FPR so again the car ran pig rich. I never did learn enough about Megasquirt to make a good map in time so I just suffered through pig rich in $2010 as well.
-The rear crank seal is probably shot-car is leaking oil from the bellhousing drain hole.
-Alignment is merely an approximate. All bellcranks are at the nuetral position.
-Slight contact of intercooler piping with frame rail
-downpipe to exhaust junction is about the ugliest thing I have ever made.
-Paint is dusty and ugly. It was a neat concept, but it didn't turn out well.
I would really love to see someone enter this car and let it live up to its potential. It placed 8th in the autocross with a crap alignment on ancient tires. The engine has a least 75 more hp available by simply turning up the boost and giving it a good tune. The car is under 2k lbs with a passenger seat still bolted in. The potential is here if someone has the time. Unfortunately I am not the person to do it, so it is someone else's turn.
The other thread has a bunch of pics and I have more if you want them.
The key word here is "easily", as in: without professional fabricating, painting, welding, shopping, bookkeeping, bartering, or driving skills your average amateur mechanic could put this car in the top 15.
