My DIY Turbo build

last_resort14 · Post by **last_resort14** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 4:56 pm

mmmmmmmm theres nothing better than a nice fresh white, probably the only colour i would ever change to if i was going to.

My project is still underway, although a bit slowly,
i have cleaned up the engine using about 4 cans of engine degreaser and a toothbrush,lol

The head came up really nice and so did most of the other alloy parts, i have given the block a quick paint just to freshen it up a little.

I now have turbo

I purchased Gazzas TD04 and Greddy manifold, as well as the turbo downpipe and a few other bits, thanks to Gary for being really helpful with all this.

I have given the Exhaust manifold and the downpipe a paint with VHT Flame proof 1100 Degree Celsius paint so hopefully it will withstand the heat and keep looking nice.

I have had a look at my existing engine mounts and they are poked,
does anyone know of anywhere within NZ i could get some aftermarket stiffer engine mounts? i have had a search but only found factory items and i would prefer something slightly stiffer if possible.

Cheers
Luke

last_resort14 · Post by **last_resort14** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 5:00 pm

Oh and one other thing, i would advise against using "Autohaus" brand engine degreaser in your engine bay,
I started to use it when i ran out of other stuff and found that it started taking the red paint right off, i know the paint in the engine bay isnt extremely good but i have never had degreaser take it right off.
also it leaves a greasy,soapy residue everywhere so i have given up using it

Luke

poison · Post by **poison** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 6:52 pm

I used tried 2 types of Engine degreasers, and expensive one from Repco and a really cheap one from the warehouse, both did a similar job but both left marks on any alloy, in fact I needed to scrub them off with a lot of water to get them free of white marks. Avoid any contact at all with anything polished.

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WideOpenThrottle · Post by **WideOpenThrottle** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 8:52 pm

Yep,watchout for engine degreasers as some will etch the glass as well.I laboured for months over what colour to respray as i think most other colours look best in the rear view mirror ha!-ha!

poison · Post by **poison** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 9:06 pm

And what did you go with in the end?

----- Original Message -----
I laboured for months over what colour to respray as i think most other colours look best in the rear view mirror ha!-ha!

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WideOpenThrottle · Post by **WideOpenThrottle** » Fri Feb 13, 2009 1:52 pm

Have a look at the bottom of page two of this thread.

Euen · Post by **Euen** » Fri Feb 13, 2009 2:41 pm

I have had a look at my existing engine mounts and they are poked,
does anyone know of anywhere within NZ i could get some aftermarket stiffer engine mounts? i have had a search but only found factory items and i would prefer something slightly stiffer if possible.

Mazdaspeed do a competition mount, part number NAY1-39-040. You may be able to order them through your local Mazda parts dept but they may have to come from Japan. Alternatively you can get them from Flyin Miata. They certainly help keep the engine sitting still.

poison · Post by **poison** » Fri Feb 13, 2009 5:12 pm

WideOpenThrottle wrote:Have a look at the bottom of page two of this thread.

Good choice, white after all is the red of the new Millennium.
Blue would never do (and it rhymes with poo)
Yellow – it’s all based on the yellow snow principle
Green – BRG, WTF is there anyone who really likes BRG? Come on you people you know you regret not getting a decent colour

SLYDIT · Post by **SLYDIT** » Fri Feb 13, 2009 5:12 pm

before you fit the manifold and turbo i suggest you replace all the studs.

the standard greddy bolts and studs are generally regarded as CRAP and shear all the time.
I used good quality stainless studs and copper oval locking nuts for my turbo.

have a look at the link to get some good tips about greddy turbo upgrades etc:
http://www.miataturbo.net/forum/

Habanero666 · Post by **Habanero666** » Sat Feb 14, 2009 12:18 am

Yep would be worth the time and $ to change to studs and NordLoc fasteners.

last_resort14 · Post by **last_resort14** » Sun Feb 15, 2009 6:06 pm

Euen wrote:
Mazdaspeed do a competition mount, part number NAY1-39-040. You may be able to order them through your local Mazda parts dept but they may have to come from Japan. Alternatively you can get them from Flyin Miata. They certainly help keep the engine sitting still.

Thanks for that, i will give Mazda a call tomorrow and get a price for those,

and thanks for the tips about the studs on the manifold, i may as well do them while its all apart.

I have drilled and tapped my sump today for my oil drain, and now put it back on the motor. fingers crossed it wont leak.

poison · Post by **poison** » Sun Feb 15, 2009 7:18 pm

On the sump did you use some of the JB weld to give it some added strength? I've read about some guys using other products like knead it and it has failed. I got some off TradeMe
http://www.trademe.co.nz/Trade-Me-Motor ... 447394.htm

Re-parts. Try a couple of Branches like the on in Christchurch, prices do seem to vary. No idea why but I can always get parts off them cheaper than from the w@nkers ([email]w@nkers[/email]) at North Shore Mazda, 10/10 for crap service. The guys in Christchurch are way way more knowledgeable and helpful too.

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last_resort14 · Post by **last_resort14** » Sun Feb 22, 2009 4:40 pm

I didnt use JB weld, but i used a loctite product we had at work, one of the fitters said it will work so i will see how it goes.

I priced up the mazdaspeed engine mounts from a few places and the best price i could get was $81 each and they will be 3 weeks,
In my travels i went to Autoline in hamilton here and they are Nolathane retailers and they can rebuild my engine mounts with rubber of any durometer i choose for about $40-60 each, so i will most probably be taking them in there to get done.

I have been Polishing all weekend, something i hope to never do again, its pretty time consuming but satisfying when done.

I think i will get quotes for getting things polished professionally if i do it again,haha

I will be giving these bits a tidy up and then sticking them back on tomorrow and then go and get some quotes for clutches,

Luke

last_resort14 · Post by **last_resort14** » Fri Feb 27, 2009 5:11 pm

Alright, i have everything back together, quite a few more little bits to put on but i am glad to have the main bits on.

and i have also got my engine mounts back from nolathane, they look really good and feel nice and stiff,

Does anyone have a gearbox for sale for a good price? i am in the middle of getting quotes for clutches as i am hoping to get the engine back into the car next weekend, but my current gearbox is no good so i will need to get one of those too.

WideOpenThrottle · Post by **WideOpenThrottle** » Mon Mar 02, 2009 8:20 pm

Nice polishing job! With what & how did you manage to do it?

last_resort14 · Post by **last_resort14** » Wed Mar 04, 2009 5:56 pm

Just sanded it all down getting smoother and smoother,i started using flap wheels on a die grinder to get it semi-smooth and then i used a "mouse" small handheld orbital sander and i took it down to 320 grit. From there i had my friends bench grinder with a big selection of buffing wheels and just got stuck into it, it took quite a while but after some time i got then knack of it, you need to use quite a lot of buffing compound.

WideOpenThrottle · Post by **WideOpenThrottle** » Thu Mar 05, 2009 8:40 am

Good one, i'll give a go one day Cheers!

last_resort14 · Post by **last_resort14** » Sun Mar 15, 2009 9:07 pm

ok
I have been slowly getting money together to keep this project going

I purchased a gearbox last week, it cost me 390 but it had only done 89000kms so hopefully will be mint.

then this week i purchased my clutch

Its an Exedy 4 puk Brass button, and also has a new heavy duty pressure plate, thrust bearing, and new spigot bearing,
I also got my flywheel machined while i was getting this

I didnt have any extra taken off the flywheel at this stage, i will see how this feels and decide if i will look into a lightened flywheel later some time.

So with all this i made a day of saturday putting it all together and then throwing it back into the car,

You can see here ive also rotated the front housing of the turbo as it will suit my intercooler piping up, its a bit closer to the exhaust manifold but i will make up a shield for that.

Its good to see the car back on the ground again, its been a while.

today i've just been plugging all the loom back together and putting my headlights back in place,

now just need to mount up my radiator and intercooler, then save up for my computer and a few other fuel system bits.

WideOpenThrottle · Post by **WideOpenThrottle** » Mon Mar 16, 2009 7:14 pm

Unlike mine!-which is still being painted.Allthough i am soon to start fitting the body kit which also will require painting!Oh! so much to do!!!!

last_resort14 · Post by **last_resort14** » Sat Apr 04, 2009 8:15 pm

alright, time for an update

Its been a while since i've updated on here because i've had issues with my computer, tried to repair windows vista because it was running slow and ended up with a full format

. so now i have ditched microsoft completely and am running linux!

anyway, throughout all this work on the car has still been coming along slowly.

I have been working on my mount for my radiator and intercooler and have got this pretty much sorted. I just need to tidy up all the edges and give it a paint and it'll be ready,

As you can see i've made it out of pretty serious flat bar, but i have done this so i can have the one mount to hold the radiator and intercooler and not have to worry about its strength

I have also got onto he oil feed and drain for my turbo,

My -4 stainless oil feed line, not cheap stuff.

and my oil drain,
I have also put on a new fram oil filter

next up is my lower coolant line, intercooler piping and then the fuel system and computer and i will be driving again

WideOpenThrottle · Post by **WideOpenThrottle** » Sat Apr 04, 2009 8:34 pm

Nice work! Are you going to put mesh across the front mount or leave it visible?

Anthug · Post by **Anthug** » Sat Apr 04, 2009 8:34 pm

Nice one, looks good!

Anthony.

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last_resort14 · Post by **last_resort14** » Sun Apr 05, 2009 5:16 pm

Thanks guys, I'm pretty happy with how its turned out.
I will be leaving the intercooler exposed at this stage, may as well show off some of the money i have spent. haha

SLYDIT · Post by **SLYDIT** » Sun Apr 05, 2009 8:57 pm

I see you removed your Air con pump ,and in the two photos posted you have not replaced the "front" bolt that goes through the oil pump housing.

You MUST replace this bolt with a shorter one so your oil pump is correctly clamped to the block and doesnt leak and loose oil pressure.

last_resort14 · Post by **last_resort14** » Sun Apr 05, 2009 9:30 pm

Thanks for pointing that out SLYDIT
I had made a note of doing that when i first removed the aircon pump but since then so much has happened and it had completely slipped my mind
You may have just saved me from a major failure