When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
I got sick of having crappy autozone universal floor mats, so I picked up some Phase2Motoring floor mats. Overall, I'm impressed with the quality for the low price tag. Similar floor mats for the FC are over double the cost. Even if these wear out relatively quickly, the replacement cost is low enough not to care.
that is cool! i've been outbid on JDM floor mats a few times, they actually go for big bucks, seat belts too
Randomly, a fiberglass vented hood came up for sale for a whopping $50. While I'm not sure I like the look, I figured its $50 and I can guarantee that I'll be able to sell it. There is a tag on it, but nothing that indicates the manufacturer name.
The hood as is. Already cut for aerocatch pins.
Some minor chips here and there.
I spent about 2 hours wet sanding it. It's now damn near glassy smooth and once I clean it, I can repair the chips/cracks.
In the end, I'll probably wrap it as I don't see myself keeping this hood for very long.
I didn't really want to post this update, as it was a sad one Oh well.
Ended up smacking a curb AGAIN (this time due to slick roads) and damaged two of my completely refinished Advans. To say I was salty is an understatement.
Damage to the rear wheel. The lip was pretty much folded over in that spot.
Better image of the damage to the rear.
Damage to the front wheel wasn't too bad.
At this point, it was clear that I had damaged by rear hub and bearing after two hits on the same side. So I decided to suck it up and drop the rear subframe again, replace the passenger side axle, hub, and wheel bearing. In doing this, I figured it was finally time to do something with my severely worn S4 clutch diff. The diff was so worn, I could feel it bind in corners and from a stop. Seeing as rebuild parts for the S4 diff (clutch discs, bearings, and all that) would run around $400-500, I decided to try something different and picked up a Miata type 1 Torsen off a friend. My reasoning was both cost and that with a high RPM peripheral port, the clutch type diff would lock up too aggressively when corning on track and mountain roads. This made the car pretty unstable on throttle.
New axle just in case something got messed up.
Miata Torsen Type 1 I picked up from a friend.
Disassembling the old diff. All that basically new and expensive fluid
Old S4 clutch type diff taken out. Holding on to it for now, just in case I don't like the torsen much.
Torsen installed with the backlash set and new carrier bearings.
Labeled the housing (the "O" is crooked as hell lol).
Ended up needing new rear brake lines, but didn't want to wait. Luckily enough, CorkSport Mazda 6 stainless front brake lines fit. They're just 6" longer. Not really a cost effective option for anyone else, but I got these for free from work.
As it stands, I just need to put the exhaust back on the car and get an alignment. Then hopefully throw away that stupid Racing Beat exhaust.
Edit: I should add that the wheels were able to be repaired by a local shop, and they look basically brand new!
I haven't had a lot of time to put miles on the new rear end; however, I will say the Torsen is MUCH smoother when cornering than my old clutch type. This could be due to the fact the old differential was worn out, but there's no more sudden lockup on acceleration through a corner. I have yet to put it through it's paces on the track or some hard home roads, but it definitely makes the rear of this 10k RPM machine much more manageable.
I haven't had a lot of time to put miles on the new rear end; however, I will say the Torsen is MUCH smoother when cornering than my old clutch type. This could be due to the fact the old differential was worn out, but there's no more sudden lockup on acceleration through a corner. I have yet to put it through it's paces on the track or some hard home roads, but it definitely makes the rear of this 10k RPM machine much more manageable.
sweet! i'm glad you were able to save the wheels too.
I decided it was finally time to get my new exhaust made. I've proven in the past that a collected exhaust makes more power/torque than a true dual on my specific intake set-up (back to back dyno runs). I kept my RB Road Race header, and sold everything from the presilencer back.
My fried works at a fabrication shop and he was going to weld the exhaust for me, but was too slammed at work to do so. However, he was able to get me 2" OD and 3" OD 304 ss piping at his cost which saved me some money. I then picked up a Qty=2 Vibrant 1790 2.25" ID bottle style resonators (couldn't find 2" ID pre-silencers for the life of me), one for each primary and a 3" inlet/outlet Vibrant 1107 oval muffler (shown below). These are all stainless steel with steel packed perforated cores. I know this exhaust will be louder than my old true dual, but it shouldn't be unbearable.
I did manage to find a guy locally who does quality side work (no shops near me would touch my exhaust) and he's currently wrapping up the exhaust today. I'll have to take some sound clips.
Cut off that stupid 6 bolt flange from the RB header (I hated that flange), and replaced with two 2-bolt flanges. Also, collector and pre-silencers welded up.
Due to the size of the pre-silencer bodies, they had to be staggered unless we added in more bends.
All done! This new exhaust sounds mean and there's a noticeable improvement in mid-range torque. Can't wait to put the car back on the rollers for a comparison!
When I had my LS1 FC I used a bunch of Magnaflow mufflers on it and made it quite subdued with a big cam. I kicked around doing it with a rotary to see the results.
As for the dolphin tip, I'm not a big fan of those. In my opinion, they look like a droopy weiner.
It's definitely much louder at idle and under low rpm load. At cruise, it's about the same as the RB true dual or maybe a little louder. Not much drone at all though. I need to borrow a decibel meter.
I will say that I think I got all the math and collection points right though. The engine really picked up in mid range torque and I can feel the exhaust pulses about 10 feet back from the car.
Once again, I got annoyed with my click click start issue. So, I finally quit being lazy and tried out @RotaryRocket88 's fix listed in the "I've solves the 2nd Gen sticky starter mystery" thread. Following the diagram below, I wired in a second relay and VOILA!! My car has started EVERY single time. I guess it pays to not be lazy . (BTW, if you attempt this and screw up your car it's not my fault. I highly recommend reading the thread I mentioned before attempting anything)
With that resolved, all I really have left on the car for major wants is the following:
Haltech Elite 750 (likely install and re-do all my wiring this winter)
Tuning the new ECU
Rx-8 6 speed swap
Bodywork and paint
Other than that, the car is basically as I want it. Little things here and there, but nothing major.
Any idea how long the tubes are before collector? I'm going to be doing a short primary system on my full bridge setup that I recently swapped to RB 4150 style intake with a Holley EFI 1000 CFM throttle body. Haven't tuned the MS3 Pro yet or anything but my previous setup with full t2 intake and true dual exhaust always felt choked up above 6k. I'm hoping the much shorter intake runners pair well with short primary exhaust.
Any idea how long the tubes are before collector? I'm going to be doing a short primary system on my full bridge setup that I recently swapped to RB 4150 style intake with a Holley EFI 1000 CFM throttle body. Haven't tuned the MS3 Pro yet or anything but my previous setup with full t2 intake and true dual exhaust always felt choked up above 6k. I'm hoping the much shorter intake runners pair well with short primary exhaust.
Agreed. My true dual did not play well with the peripheral port. I opted for a longer collected system with the collection point at 93 inches. Pretty sure I got the math right, as mid range torque is MUCH better and I can feel the exhaust pulses 10ft behind the car ;p
I believe that's almost exactly the length Defined Autoworks uses for their long tube collected headers. I was originally going to go that route but already have a racing beat short primary collected header sitting around so figured I'd try it out first. Might pair well with the super short runners on the RB holley 4150 style intake?
I'm really liking that exhaust setup with those bottle style resonators. Makes me want to pick up a couple and build that mid collected setup that keeps the dual outlets I've wanted to try.
I believe that's almost exactly the length Defined Autoworks uses for their long tube collected headers. I was originally going to go that route but already have a racing beat short primary collected header sitting around so figured I'd try it out first. Might pair well with the super short runners on the RB holley 4150 style intake?
I based my measurements off of information given to me my Pineapple Racing and Racing Beat's Rotary modification catalogue. From what I've read and seen first hand, a short intake set-up pairs well with either a short collected or long collected exhaust. You just need to ensure the collection point is correct. The mentioned catalogue states this:
Primary Tube Length Guidelines
Non-ported, Street-port, Bridge-port w/stock or Weber carburetor
Short system - 22 to 25 inches •
Long system -120 to 125 inches Both short and long systems require primary tube inside diameter of 1.7 to 1.8 inches.
Bridge-port w/600CFM or 650CFM Holley
Short system - 15 to 18 inches
Long system - 113 to 118 inches
Peripheral Port
Short system - 10 to 18 inches
Long system - 89 to 94 inches Inside tube diameter required is 1.9 to 2.0 inches.
Originally Posted by Dak
I'm really liking that exhaust setup with those bottle style resonators. Makes me want to pick up a couple and build that mid collected setup that keeps the dual outlets I've wanted to try.
Not much of an update, but I've finally gotten sick of my old haltech and I purchased an Adaptronic M2000 wire in ECU. I plan to have this wired and re-tuned in the next few months.
Not much of an update, but I've finally gotten sick of my old haltech and I purchased an Adaptronic M2000 wire in ECU. I plan to have this wired and re-tuned in the next few months.
Nice build man! I just got my Adaptronic M2000 wired in and fired up the fc for the first time in like 2 years. So far, I'm liking it +1 Adaptronic
Not too much has been happing. COVID has hit us pretty hard at work (in a good way), and we've been extremely busy. I did snag a quick release set-up and Momo Competition steering wheel for cheap. The wheel does have some slight damage, but I'll use it for now and just buy a brand new one down the road. Unfortunately, the Works Bell Splash hub adapter didn't have a built in plate/ring for the OEM horn function, so I had to be creative.
As you can see, there is no plate built into this hub. Since there's nothing touching the horn contact (that spring loaded contact at 6 o'clock), the horn won't work.
To fix this, I pried the OEM horn contact ring off my factory steering wheel. It does come off, but some care should be taken when doing so Unfortunately, the OEM horn contact ring has an inner diameter that is larger than the hub adapter. To fix this, a press fit adapter was 3D printed. This allowed the contact ring to sit on the hub and also served as an isolator. This is necessary as the FC provides a constant ground to operate the horn, if metal to metal contact occurs before getting to your horn button, the horn will constantly go off.
better image of the adapter and OEM contact ring. The turn signal cancel still works and is attached in this photo. Quick release and new wheel installed!
My custom gauge cluster swap is nearly complete, so I need to fix the broken tabs on my dash so I can drive the damn car for the first time in three months.
Turns out that one size fits all mazda hub didn't quite work on the FC. So, I decided to buy an FC specific momo hub. In addition, I purchased a brand new momo competition steering wheel, as I sold the slightly damaged one to my friend for the same price I paid.
Currently waiting on more ABS filament to arrive, then I should be able to wrap up this cluster/interior project. Still looking for OEM black cloth seats though
Oh well.
)
.
. (BTW, if you attempt this and screw up your car it's not my fault. I highly recommend reading the thread I mentioned before attempting anything)
