Would you get your spanners out?

wesimmo

wesimmo

wesimmo

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Joined
19 Mar 2012
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So I bought an MX5, Mk2.5 Sport so it comes with a slip diff and Bilstein suspension and I absolutely love it.

However the intention was always to start upgrading bits and bobs for the track.

First up is an Exedy stage 1 clutch as the one on it is slipping so that arrived today and is getting fitted by my mates RAC approved garage.

I've bought myself a Haynes manual to learn a bit more about doing other stuff to it such as brakes and a new radiator which look fairly straightforward.

However due to being offered a very good deal on another few parts I've pulled the trigger and ordered something silly. Am I being stupid to even think about installing them myself? My optimistic self says it's just a case of taking my time and following instructions, a bit like when I decided to build my first PC.

This is what is on its way from America...... http://store.kraftwerksusa.com/supercharger-systems/sport-compact/kraftwerks-miata-1088.html
 
I've got a mate across the road who does a lot of work on his cars, replacing hubs and the such like and my 2 mates who own a garage who could offer hints and perhaps lend some tools if required.

If the worst came to the worst their garage is only 3 miles away.

I'm just really interested in learning something new, I managed to download the instruction manual for the old version of the kit which didn't have an intercooler and it looked well documented.

I did replace the air box on my old ITR which was a bumper off job to get the CAI down into the wheel arch.

The main concern is the uprated fuel pump which scares me just because of petrol being involved!

Are there any tools I should start collecting up before it arrives that I can't get hold off quickly should I need them. I've got a couple of half decent socket sets and that sort of stuff.

A heat gun is one thing that I'll need to source for doing the electrics for example.
 
Wow, to be honest I was expecting a lot of "Don't do it" and "Just buy a faster car" type comments, so thanks for the support, guess I'm going to have to give it a go now then.

Even if I do all the stripping back and easier bits and then get stuck I'll save a few hours labour costs and I can get them to finish off the fiddly technical bits.

But yes I'll be careful, documenting it all in detail with photos which can only help as I'm acting as a reference for the kit as part of the deal to supply it at the price I got it.
 
Wow! I'm not sure I'd get away with that "tool kit".

Is it worth buying a few specialist bits now by mail order or will I just get away with nipping to Halfords around the corner as and when I need bits?

I'm guessing some sort of torque wrench or similar is going to be useful if a get at all semi serious about this?

Part of the reason I want to learn is that I've been on track days where people I've been with have had to give up when little bits went wrong but then others when I went with a guy who was a mechanic and he quickly did a few bits and bobs to rescue his day after bits gave up.
 
Lol.

This model comes with bigger brakes than the standard models so I'll be fitting new pads at the very least. Probably ASAP so I can get them bedded in at the same time as the clutch.

I'll also be making sure the suspension is all 100% and investing in new tyres.

I'd planned to do the engine work next year but I got such a good offer to buy the kit as the first person to buy it from this company in the UK that I had to go for it.

As for fuelling. It comes with all the parts to flow more fuel and a bit of kit to splice in to the loom to adjust the fuel and I think relocate the MAF sensors.

Once funds allow i might look at a full ECU solution but all reports are that provided bits will do the job for the level of power I'm looking at, about 190 at the wheels.
 
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They SHOULD be ok as I read about that before buying and I got it in writing that the supplying garage would inspect the sills and rails and repair as necessary.

While my mate has got it up on the ramp to do the clutch I'll get him to check them and if they're not ok then it'll be back to get them fixed and delay the project.

I always knew I'd end up modifying it so I was less concerned about consumables, I just wanted a rust free shell as a basis.
 
Vigoro said:
You might want to budget for some proper management if you are putting in that kit you linked.
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They claim the Supercard they provide is all you need, it was one of my concerns as I'm aware of the cost of aftermarket ECUs and mapping. We'll see how it goes...plenty of these engines about for not much I guess.....

@Diagro, one of the reasons I chose this kit and decided to try and do it myself is that most of it is just taking a few bits off and replacing them with others....I hope.

I did a load of reading about FI on these and though the block is designed for a turbo anyway so it has oil feeds for the turbo already, on that you'd have to drill oil returns from the turbo which started getting complicated. With this the oil system is self contained and you just bolt it all into the engine bay.

It seems if you're going to go FI on a non FI car, this route is probably the easiest way for a beginner.

If it all goes wrong it's not going to kill me financially either, I can get a 10 minute bus ride to work and we've lived with 1 car for a year before I got this project so he who dares might win. ;)
 
It's not as much as they list it for me, as i say I got a deal if I act as reference for the kit in the future.

But yes I can see your point, but the MX5 is just my sort of car and I've always wanted a supercharged motor.

If all goes well I'm going to end up with something that reminds me of the good old days of tootling around in my mates old Spitfire but not so much of the tootling but still not stupidly powerful, overly so, for my preferred real world driving adventures with enough power to enjoy track days without spending half the day letting other cars through on the straights.
 
Genuinely, thanks for all the feedback, even the more doubtful posts are constructive.

I accept that turbos are probably more bang for buck, but my target was always about 200bhp as I think that's the sweet spot for me, and I wanted the more linear delivery of the supercharger, though again I recognise that modern turbo set ups are less laggy than was the case.
 
Yep, the engine has 118k on it and I'd read that although the stock radiator will do fine at those miles under normal conditions, charging it would soon highlight any degradation in performance so I've budgeted for that too.
 
Bunka said:
Sounds like an awesome project and kudos to you for taking it on yourself.
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Re: the awesomeness of it, thanks. :)

As for taking it on myself, to be honest as I said above I was expecting more people to poo poo the idea and end up getting it installed by someone else, but if even here I get mostly positive comments and constructive criticism then I am getting quite excited about giving it a go!

I'll be seeing my mechanic friend next week to do the clutch upgrade, so I'll see how much he laughs at me before finally deciding, but if you've never failed it probably means you've never tried and part of the reason for not just blowing my fun car budget on something more expensive was I like tinkering with things, just never on this scale before.
 
Glad you said that, although I got a very good discount on the list price for any UK supplier with a UK warranty support, I paid a bit more than 1.5k just for the kit!
 
Given all the feedback. I think my plan is this.....

Get the installation manual, I had asked for the e-version so i could read up but i got the shipping note today, so things just got real and i'll have the lot within a week, but anyway, if it's like their old 5psi kit then it's really very good and gives you a list of tools you'll need at the start.

If that's scary just reading it I might reconsider, especially if the tools are weird and wonderful, but surely if it's just a list of some spanners and common tools, there's going to be nothing that time, well documented procedures and YouTube won't help me get through.

The clutch will be done next Wednesday which gives me time to order brake pads, new radiator, new tyres and get the pads and tyres on.

While the clutch is being fitted get a proper mechanic i trust chance to go over anything that could be dangerous to other people, i.e. making sure the suspension, and brakes are 100%.

I can then go about learning something new, expecting to be off the road for a while, working on my new project safe in the knowledge that if i do something wrong it's only the engine that'll suffer and not someone else or me! ;)
 
Will said:
As the Kraftwerks kit is American, expect some imperial sized bolts and fittings, I'd see if you can get the kit contents to see what size sockets/spanners you might need, if (like me) most of your tools are metric :p
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This is the list for their old 5psi kit that had no intercooler, i can't find the new kit at the moment, but i have asked for it.

For tools you will need:
o A full set of metric wrenches from 8mm to 21mm
o A full set of metric sockets from 8mm to 21mm
o A screwdriver set
o A set of metric allen wrenches
o Wire Crimping Pliers
o Heat Gun or Butane Lighter
o Electrical Tape
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Just had a horrible thought, I'm about 2/3 weeks into an insurance policy....going to have to check the T&Cs tomorrow, because I'm pretty sure whoever I'm with isn't a modification friendly insurer...
 
Will said:
That sounds like you'll be using metric with this kit then. List of minimum tools required is handy :)

Are you registered on the MX5Nutz website yet? Thats probably the best place to ask for advice and tips, plenty of folk with experience of charging these cars, and expect they'd like a build thread on this new Rotrex kit, seeing as its new :)
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Done.

Though I have perhaps put myself under some pressure now. If the photos go from well documented to "and here's one I made earlier" you can assume I cheated and sent it away. ;)
 
Oh, what whinges? Parts missing or not as bolt on as they claim?

But I'll admit cost was a consideration.

The apparent bolt on nature appealed too, such as the completely self contained oil system on the supercharger and lack of maintenance, apparently every 50,000 miles for a fluid change.

That plus the company importing it for me are giving me their warranty so I don't have to faff on with shipping backwards and forwards myself if things do go awry.
 
So.......this hasn't quite gone to plan.

I've now been without the car for 1.5 weeks and counting, but not due to my amateur spannering.

Due to changing jobs and getting a bit of consultancy work on the side I just couldn't find the time to be messing around and at the same time found a garage 30 mins away that race a couple of MX5s (including a 450bhp turbo one) and prepare other people's cars for them.

So off it went on Monday morning with the supercharger kit crammed into the boot and passenger seat, a set of Meister R coilovers and some uprated brake pads (EBC Yellow stuff) waiting at the garage and a 4 day wait for them to fit all that and do a full fast road alignment set up on their specialist equipment before i picked it up while i was in the area and had an afternoon off work to go for an interview on the Thursday.

End of day 2 i get the call..."Yeah well, this is proving more tricky than we thought, the kit isn't bolt on for the UK car, don't worry it should all be done for Thursday still, but just letting you know."

End of day 3 i get the call...."Well the good news is the kit is on, we got there and it looks really good, but it's not working." Turns out the engine is getting so little fuel it can't even idle despite a new fuel pump and 350cc injectors. They've been over everything they can think of so they suspect it comes down to the sealed box of magic tricks to adjust the fueling sent with the kit.

The guys in America say they want some photos of the install to see if they can diagnose it....i point out that the install is completely different to what they would recognise from a few photos as they have failed to inform me at any point that the differences in the UK and US cars is such that the kit doesn't fit my car, despite me telling them several times it was a UK car and them shipping it to the UK.

I've asked my importer to sort out my sending back any electronics and refunding some cash as I'm going full ECU now. That is now an ongoing saga i will update as and when it's resolved.

Given the the fact that Kraftwerks wanted me to wait 5 days until they even thought about dispatching a new fuel card as they were "stocktaking" and then 5 days for it to arrive and then it may still not work with the UK car, plus the additional install costs due to the differences, i think that's a more than reasonable request.

So Friday is spent trying to get my head around the ECU situation. Eventually i get put in touch with a guy from Greece who builds Megasquirt ECUs for MX5s, after a little persuasion he agrees to build one up for me with all the bits and sensors i need for the application and a half reasonable base map loaded within 2 days and get it shipped across. That should arrive tomorrow (Tuesday) at the garage along with a wideband sensor i'd ordered independently.

They have a classic mini booked in for a lot of work on Wednesday and normally UPS, who have the ECU, don't deliver to them until last thing so it looks like they're going to have to try and get my stuff fitted and tweak the map on the road on Thursday before i finish my (3rd and hopefully final) interview at about 3pm. Then it'll be time to book a dyno and get the final set up done.

This had better be worth it...
 
Yep AK Automotive and Reverant are making it all work I hope....

As for dealing with Kraftwerks, I found it hard to swallow when they wanted to wait 5 days to send me a part to test if the original was faulty just because of a stock take, but hopefully they are now out of the loop, I'll be chasing up the refund / compensation with the importer as that's the reason i went with them.

At the end of the day the kit was essentially decent quality, but there's no way on earth i'd have managed to fit it myself and the ECU solution was always going to be the long term plan. So if the importer come good on doing something then I'll have almost certainly over paid on the components, but not by too much, but got a decent, reliable supercharged set up.
 
Diagro said:
Well. Its a shame its not gone to plan, But if you think about it you actually gain as you have pro's installing it and a pro making an ECU for you.

I cant wait to see the results :)
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You can't? I was like a kid who found out Santa hadn't been when I found out it wasn't ready last week!

But yeah look for the positives, another one is getting it mapped means I'll have graphs and all sorts to show off in the pub.... ;)

edit: Oh and I found an old feature where Auto Express (I think) did a very similar conversion, the resulting MX5 was quicker to 60 than a brand new Boxster S and did a 1.16 lap versus the 1.13 the Boxster managed, mainly due to the braking power of the ceramic equipped Porsche.
 
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