Just having a nose round the inter web and was wondering if anyone has used a mx5 turbo engine in their locost projects
and what's their thoughts on this setup
Steve
quote:
Originally posted by steve-hv8
Just having a nose round the inter web and was wondering if anyone has used a mx5 turbo engine in their locost projects
and what's their thoughts on this setup
Steve
Lots of people including myself use turbo mx5 engines in 7's
MX5 is poorly designed at managing heat but easily modified to reroute the coolant out the thermostat housing at the back of the engine rather than
the front.
Finding space for intercooler on any 7 is challenging but doable.
MX5 stock injectors are too small
Map-able ecu essential
Probably other stuff I forgot to mention but loads of info on miataturbo.net
I'm planning to fit a turbo to my build during the winter and getting it ready for next year
Its a zetec turbo for me...
Plenty of FI mx5 based kits. Turbo is very doable even in a tight bay such as an MNR just a bit of thought required.
Turbo conversions much more common and can be done on a reasonable low budget. Td04 turbo cheap as chips and perfect for up to 220bhp at which point
you reach the limits of the standard rods anyway. Manifolds available easy. Budget in for an ecu. Extraefi do a plug and play megasquirt which plugs
straight into the mx5 loom. When I was looking at doing this a budget of 1500 was somewhere in the ballpark plus mapping on top.
Supercharger not so common on a 7 as they can get a bit bulky but look up red seven engineering as he's done a couple and am sure he was looking
at producing a kit.
Good info for turboing in this blog
https://mazdafield.wordpress.com
hi I have a supercharger on my 2003 mx5 1.8 (see my archive / build thread), as said there are loads of mx5 forced induction stuff on mx5 nutz gives
you food for thought.
as said space is at a premium but with a bit of lateral thinking it can all be squeezed in , there is actually more room than you think available in
there 
I had the charger, 2nd t/b , cat and manifold all on the near side, like I said you just need to think things through and then work around
stuff.
good luck
I've done it, MAC#1 MX5 turbo 205 bhp.
Let me know if you need any help etc.
quote:
TextI've done it, MAC#1 MX5 turbo 205 bhp.
1990 1.6
First Start.
Dyno Run.
Thanks Ash
So that started off at about 115HP and you are now getting 205HP. Iv got the 1.8 VVT 146HP in mine now and I would be hoping to get
around 220HP once iv fitted a turbo.
Yes. stock engine on 105bhp but I never used it on that form, it was turbo'd right away. I took the pinto out to install the MX5.
It's 1.6 with TD04L
Alifab radiator and a custom charge cooler
RX8 injector with Sytec fuel pump regulator etc
Emerald K6 ECU with a MAP sensor
Well I've made an executive decision and I'm going to turbo my 1.8
I've just got hold of a mega squirt 2 and should be picking up a td04 from an Impreza over the weekend
As for the manifold and down pipe I've seen a set from blackcat Motorsport and was thinking if the down pipe was suitable for inside a Haynes
chassis
What kind of power should a mk1 1.8 turbo be making
200 is a nice number in a 7 without being a handful. Having the electronic boost controller makes a smooth delivery. The TD04 spools really quick.
The biggest issue I came up against was manifold cracking and that was on a thick 316 stainless tubular manifold. I would recommend buying a mild
steel "log style" manifold by someone like Black Cat Motorsport to use with a TD04.
They're cheap and relatively reliable.
If you want more performance and want to go tubular then do yourself a favour and forget the middle ground, find a reputable turbo manifold fabricator
that will make you one from 321 stainless. There's loads of people out there who will make you a manifold from the common 304 stainless
(including some well known names) but it's the wrong material for turbo applications. It suffers from something called carbide precipitation from
the intense heat cycling which results in continuous cracking and it can't be fixed by welding, it's basically scrap.
But other than that, yeah go turbo - best thing you can do to an MX5 engine.
Have a word with Dale at Bailey motorsport he's done shed loads of mx5 turbos and he's especially good with MS from what I've heard. He
said to me that 230+ bhp is easily achievable but your on the limit of the standard rods. As above I was planning a 200bhp figure with maybe a
switchable map to give a bit more for play time. The guy at blackcat seems very helpful and there's also doug @ g19engineering who does all the
bits. I'm not sure the downpipe will be of any use in a 7 unless your planning a funky design.
You might also want to keep an eye out for a set of rx8 yellow injectors as the standard ones are at the limit above 200bhp. They are a straight swap.
They are getting dearer/harder to find as they are a popular mx5 mod.
I've been offered a set of 440cc yellows from impreza but don't think they fit have to do some research
Just picked up my td04 that had a rebuild by turbo technics
I'll order a manifold and a short down pipe from blackcat shortly
My other concern is a fmic what's the best size to fit under the nose cone
quote:
Originally posted by steve-hv8
Just picked up my td04 that had a rebuild by turbo technics
I'll order a manifold and a short down pipe from blackcat shortly
My other concern is a fmic what's the best size to fit under the nose cone