Re: Somebody *please* talk me out of this

"JackH" <jackhackettuk@xxxxxxxxxxx> writes:

Timo Geusch wrote:
Pete M <pete.murray@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> writes:

Timo Geusch wrote:
I have vague notions of fitting slightly uprated suspension, sticky
tyres and swear at it on the occasional track day:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=110365889223

At least it has the right engine.

I wouldn't bother with it, Timo. Stick with the MX5 and enjoy that
instead.

I know what you're saying, but one of the reasons I'm looking to get
shot of the MX5 is that need to stop pouring money into it.

One: I'd consider stopping lining the pockets of 'specialists', and do some
of it yourself... or with regards to the ECU wiring / mapping, I can have 'a
word' with the mate who used to run the dyno and is still in there enough to
maybe be able to help sort it using the rollers there once the wiring etc is
improved.

I've done most of the work on the MX5 myself, apart from the bits that I
don't have the tools for (like setting up the alignment) and those that
require a lift (like the rear subframe and diff). Unfortunately it's
also a question of time, I had allocated a couple of weekends but I've
gone way over that already and there is more to come.

It's not like I've just dropped it off at the various places with an
open chequebook...

He's got quite good form in that respect; he's wired in several piggyback
and dedicated ECUs, and then done the mapping, including a Haltech on his
RB26.

Well, guess who's been at the wiring also :).

It may well be he can't be arsed, but like I say, I can have a word if you
want. :-)

Two: You know the MX5 needs money thrown at it to get it how you want it -
and that's the thing... you *know* what it now needs. You could end up
buying someone elses problems (again), if you get shot of it and buy
something else, no matter how careful you are.

Yes, I can see what you're saying. I think part of the problem is that
my inner beancounter has been totting up the amount of cash I've thrown
at the MX5 (that supposedly didn't need it) and doesn't like the
figures. Nothing to do with a decent offer I've got for the car, oh no.

Unless you really can't see the drivability being improved to the point
you're happy with it with a bit of mapping, see point one and see if you can
get the cost down a bit - have you had a ballpark figure from the other
place yet how much they'd want to sort it?

I do have a firm quote how much to rip out the current piggyback,
replace it with one that we both prefer and map that, yes. And I've also
got an alternative quote to re-map the current one.

There are however several other points that need addressing, not the
least the potential problem hinted at in the "What do we call a
turbo..." thread.

Just some suggestions anyway - I quite like that MX5 having been in it, and
it looked like it was holding its own on the track the other day without
having the shit kicked out of it. :-)

.... until I got to limp home because of yet another bodge that I
discovered. All of these bodges were fine on the road but they don't
work well on the track, so I will have got to sort them out. Plus, as I
am planning to go off to far-flung places like Cadwell, I would like to
know that I'll get there and back without needing a trailer or recovery
lorry.

I've totted up what I think I would need to do sensibly to get the car
where I need it to be and I don't like the job list TBH:

- Mount AFM properly, which includes fabricating a bracket/cold air box,
putting a new induction kit on because the one on the car has a hole
worn through it (on account of the non-mounting of the AFM). Also
requires a bunch of replacement silicone hoses. I'd also like to sort
out the intercooler piping because that needs some re-routing to stop
it from rubbing on various brackets in the engine compartment.
- Stick a boost controller on for, err, better boost control. So that'll
be an electronic one then. Used one will be around 150+shipping but
it'll be a decent one and not some cheap shit from China. I don't
want to turn up the boost (yet) but Saturday revealed that according
to the boost gauge, it isn't always consistent and everything points
at the wastegate needing better control.
- Get the turbo checked out for potential damage from Saturday's split
hose incident and the "puffs on lift-off". I've done that already but
want a second opinion.
- Fit front 1.8 brakes. Guess I can do that myself but it wouldn't break
the bank having someone else do that either.
- Sort out the Luigi Spaghetti nightmare wiring. That depends very much
on how far I can push the current piggyback. I'll have to see if I can
make that work with a TPS (as it's able to use one, but the underlying
ECU isn't) and if not, it needs to be removed and replaced with one
that can run the engine off a MAP sensor and a proper TPS. That would
of course remove the need to sort out the first point, but that'll
cost around 600 quid alone including the TPS and mapping.
- Downpipe needs redoing - someone bent the downpipe so it would fit
into place with the hybrid turbo on the car and it got a tad squashed
during that exercise. Fixing that should improve the spool-up quite
massively. At the same time, the wideband needs to be relocated so
it's less likely to hit the body. As I'm sure you noticed, the
Wideband's location is a little suboptimal...
- At this point in time I'd like to get the rear bodywork Beav'd, but
that's actually not that expensive compared to the rest of the work.

I'm looking at around 1.5k for the above if I do part of it myself and
have the rest done properly, which would mean that by the time I'm done,
with all the parts and labour I've had to pay for, I've almost
"reinvested" the purchase price of the car and spent over 5k to end up
with a 3k car. Excluding the paintwork, that is.

--
'88 Porsche 911 Targa '00 Golf TDI estate
'92 Eunos Roadster Turbo
.

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