Charlie Brown's NC

[Charlie Brown]

Hawk Blues seem to be the default choice amongst MX5 drivers for track days. Good bang for buck i take it?

Not a huge choice for the NC. You need to import them.
Blues are tried and proven and are around $220 a front set, landed.
EBC Yellow are around the $150 mark and Porterfield R4 RACE at around $250 but I don't know anyone who's used either of them.

[Charlie Brown]

Well Team Winning Blue has grown wings and flies.

Gone is the first of two exhaust restrictions, the standard header/cat and in their place is a lovely stainless steel Good-Win Racing header.

It took me about 4½ hours, 3 hours to get the old one out and an hour and a half to get the new one in.

I ran it without the O2 sensors in the mid pipe for two days and the difference in power over standard wasn’t really all that noticeable. The cell light (engine management) was ablaze (the computer goes into safe mod and runs the mixture rich) and the idle was all over the place. A trip to the local exhaust shop to weld in a couple of O2 bung holes, one before and one after the centre CAT, fixed the cell light, idle and power. It took another day to get the computer back to its normal operating self with the bonus that it seems like my old 'oscillating idle at cold start up' problem has gone.

There are a number of noticeable before and after changes.
First up is a drop in torque below 3,000prm. These are 4:1 headers. A 4:2:1 setup would be better for low down torque.
The next is the way it really jumps when you hit 3,500rpm and then gets to the red line without slowing.
Then the “pop” on gear change up. I like that.
Last but not least is the exhaust note.

The exhaust note is something that I’ve become use to over the last week and a half. It’s louder but not overly loud, maybe up 30%. I don’t love the sound, it’s buzzy or raspy. No pun intended but it’s like a thousand wasps (the killer type). No deep burble, no Ferrari wail (sigh), hopefully something like that will only come when/if the second restriction, the muffler, is updated.

Was it worth the change? YES. I managed to take three seconds off my best time around Eastern Creek, so it must be working.

How much extra power? Unknown at this stage as I’ve yet to hit a dyno (Edit: see later dyno posting) but I’d estimate 5 – 6 rwkW going on the reports out of the US. New rear mufflers to take the place of the standard one will nett another 2 rwkW and with my CAI, that would bring the car up to around 100 rwkW making it around 9% up on standard. Another little project may put the mufflers on hold for a while though.

[Charlie Brown]

A teaster, they're in the air over the Pacific at the moment

EDIT: These shocks never made it onto the car. Later posts will show that Tein FLEX were fitted instead.

[16bit]

sweet! what springs will you use - same brand?

[CoffeeBoss]

A teaster, they're in the air over the Pacific at the moment

Those truly are remote reservoirs. Will be particularly handy in the boot, i rue having my damper adjustment under the boot lining, but can't bring myself to cut into the stuff.

[Charlie Brown]

sweet! what springs will you use - same brand?

Not sure of the springs yet. I'm still investigating. Anyone have any 65mm ID 200mm long 350 lb x 2 and 65mm ID 180mm long 225 lb x 2 springs laying around they want to sell?

A teaster, they're in the air over the Pacific at the moment

Those truly are remote reservoirs. Will be particularly handy in the boot, i rue having my damper adjustment under the boot lining, but can't bring myself to cut into the stuff.

I'm not sure if they will be in the boot. Brian Goodwin had his attach to the sway bar bolts underneath. I'd like to have them in the boot but I'll need to wait and see how they'll fit.

Now what are they?????
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Mazdaspeed Motor Sport Development. Straight from the MX5 Cup Series in the US.

[PAU61L]

Hello CB, are you getting the hardware to fit the top of the rear shock absorber. Regarding springs have you tried eibach (since that's what's written on the reservoir)
http://www.eibach.ashop.com.au/
or they might put you on to the other part of their retail/shopfront business, let me know how you go.
PS We'll be thinking of you on Sunday, if it is going to cold on Sunday morning I might run my wet track tyres (just the early runs) what do you think ?
Regards from Danny DeVito to Arnie

[Charlie Brown]

Hello CB, are you getting the hardware to fit the top of the rear shock absorber. Regarding springs have you tried eibach (since that's what's written on the reservoir)
http://www.eibach.ashop.com.au/
or they might put you on to the other part of their retail/shopfront business, let me know how you go.
PS We'll be thinking of you on Sunday, if it is going to cold on Sunday morning I might run my wet track tyres (just the early runs) what do you think ?
Regards from Danny DeVito to Arnie

Hi "Danny", the Eibach site doesn't show the springs that I'm after. Also on a phone call to them 3 1/2 years ago they wanted $800 for a set of springs for my NC, thus the development with Kings.

I was going to reuse the existing rear top hats but I wont know till I have a look at them. The shocks have just been delivered here at work, so I'll check them out tonight.

Re Sunday, you know it never rains or is cold at Wakefield . Your representing the NC class so brake hard and late.

Cheers,

CB, aka Arnie, aka el Presedentee, aka..........one who forgets.

[CoffeeBoss]

Mazdaspeed Motor Sport Development. Straight from the MX5 Cup Series in the US.

I trust they threw in a nice PLAYBOY sticker for your front windscreen?

Here's an NC with what looks to be similar reeeemote reservoirs to yours. Some placement ideas for you perhaps:

[Charlie Brown]

Thanks Matt.

I've seen photos of the fronts located adjacent to the brace to the rear of the shock.

The rear one will depend on the length of the reservoir line and the ability of getting the reservoir into the boot through some opening without disconnecting the line.

I don’t really want it to be within the boot space as will take up what little room there is in there. Ideally the adjusting knobs would just stick through the rear plastic cover panel.

I need to get some time to crawl underneath and have a look. Might need a big hole saw. Hmmmm, sounds like I’m taking lessons from Slammer about how to lighten the car.

[Charlie Brown]

MX-5 Club Dyno Day today.

This is the first run on their dyno since the extractors went on.

105 rwkW. I'm pleased with that. Up 13 rwkW on the stock engine run 12 months ago.

[CoffeeBoss]

MX-5 Club Dyn Day today.

This is the first run on their dyno since the extractors went on.

105 rwkW. I'm pleased with that. Up 13 rwkW on the stock engine run 12 months ago.

Wow- that is a very good result. Better than you expected?

How does it sound? Say, on the freeway with the roof up at 3000rpm in 6th?

[Charlie Brown]

Wow- that is a very good result. Better than you expected?

How does it sound? Say, on the freeway with the roof up at 3000rpm in 6th?

I was hoping to crack the 100 mark, knowing that Chris G said he gets around the 99 - 100 mark on the race cars before the CAI, so when it registered 105+ in two passes I was wrapt.

Noise wise, you can really hear the difference over the standard setup. Makes it sound like a sports car now. It’s fine on the freeway, not intrusive, though the only time I have the roof up is when it’s raining or extremely cold. Others in the Club have noticed the noise when we have been on runs, so it’s probably a lot noisier from behind than in the cabin though not excessively so.

When revving up through the gears it does “pop” on the changes which I think is a product of the removal of the first cat and there being a little bit of unburnt fuel getting to the muffler and igniting. I love the sound and I’m wondering if it flames.

So I’ve ended up with a 15% increase in power over standard with just the Goodwin extractors and a Cobalt CAI. Not bad for about $500.

[Charlie Brown]

Time for an update.

Performance:
Following comments from a number of members about the condition of my front rotors after 80K plus road and track work (yes there was a "small" step where the pads wore the surface down a couple of mm and yes there was a bit of crazing but hell they worked), and the need to fit some new front pads after setting a new PB of 1:11.26 at Wakefield on 19 October , I’ve purchased a new set of DBA slotted rotors to go with the new EDC Red Stuff front pads. These are my second set of the EBC. They last about the same as the OEM pad and Hawk HPS being 15,000 kilometres with track and road use.

Show & BLING:
Due to the close competition of the “reverse concours”*** held at Batemans Bay weekend away in October, with me just fending off Judge Peter (Vice Prez) & Paul (Captain), I have upped the anti a bit by adding a chrome filler cap (thanks to Richee), chrome exterior door handle inserts and internal handle caps. I think that takes the mods to 49.

*** “reverse concours” is determined by the number of modifications and additions carried out on the car since it left the factory but not including OEM replacement parts. Deductions are made for high kilometres and other whims of the judge and this is fed into a complicated formula only understood by Peter until the winner (probably the judge) is determined.

[monte5]

CB - In have seen the 'Reverse Concourse' score system and I am afraid that the addition of those extra chrome bits will not advantage you in points. In fact a litle known fact is that you may well have exceeded the bling plimsol mark. This is the point at which you car begins to groan under the weight of the extras and ad ons. The door handles alone are estimated at 0.2 slower per lap! PS I have added a new sticker and changed the CD I was listening to so you are still level.