Andrew's '93 NA6 - KL V6 swap

[LiteIsRite]

Power to you and your tenacity to start a project like this and see it through. So many times do you see and hear of people who, with the best intentions start something and then abandon them at the first hurdle.

Well said... couldn't agree more

[manga_blue]

I can't see how coolant would get in via the inlet manifold.

I can't either but I don't know the engine. Some V engines have coolant running through the inlet manifold, meaning there are water passages between the head and manifold.

[Beelzeboss]

they are from the old 323's right?

thats an over square engine, should build a custom flat plane crank and rev its tits off!

This one is from a Eunos 30x but I think they were used in 323's too. All K series are way oversquare with good rod ratio's, the only things stopping them from revving to the moon is the hydraulic lifters and mild cam specs. I'd love to convert to shim under bucket and get a proper cam for it, maybe later on down the track. I also found out that since it's an identical block to the KL, you can put the KL crank and rods in it to make a 2.0L engine, and you can also safely bore out the engine to accept KL pistons and then put the KL heads on to make it identical to the KL

Words of encouragement

After following this for many months all I can say is, I wish my boys had the get up and go in them that you do.

Power to you and your tenacity to start a project like this and see it through. So many times do you see and hear of people who, with the best intentions start something and then abandon them at the first hurdle.

Good on you and thanks for shining a bit of positive light on the youth of today. I hope my children read this and become as inspired by this as much as I have (although there is no chance of that because its not on television or in a computer game LOL!).

All i can say is 'Excellent, excellent, excellent"

Wow, thanks vass! That's the sort of praise which makes me glad I kept going with the project I appreciate it

Well said... couldn't agree more

Cheers

I can't see how coolant would get in via the inlet manifold.

I can't either but I don't know the engine. Some V engines have coolant running through the inlet manifold, meaning there are water passages between the head and manifold.

Ah I see, yeah the KL doesn't have any coolant running through the intake manifold. I just helped a mate install a supercharger on his commodore ecotec, until then I'd never seen an engine where coolant went through the intake manifold.

Well I'm picking up the K8 engine (and attached Eunos 30X) on Monday. Today I unbolted almost all the bits and pieces from the engine in preparation for removal and also welded the final pieces onto the intake pipe. I made a bracket to hold the Bosch/BMW idle control valve I bought from the wreckers, and I also pretty much finished the washer bottle which is the final part to be made for the car All that's left is to remove the exhaust and make the brackets which hold the washer bottle... and swap in the K8 engine of course.

[Beelzeboss]

Well the 1.8 is in, running well and I discovered that it was the E85 causing the white smoke so there's nothing wrong with the KL motor (I think)





I also replaced my broken electric window switch with 4 cheap relays and a couple of jaycar mini switches. I've yet to zip tie the relays up under the dash, but they work perfectly.





A much cheaper alternative to those expensive, hard to find window switches.

I have a few things left to do on the car before blue slip but I'm going to book it in for next week

[NitroDann]

Mad.

Mad props for the whole build really If i havnt said it yet.

Dann

[Beelzeboss]

Thanks very much Dann I've been a big fan of the fabrication work you do, the $2,000 turbo setup is just awesome.

Cheers,
Andrew

[Regie]

that's awesome! I do love the sound of a V6 at full throttle

cant wait to see this thing in the flesh

[jules]

I'm in Killara so pretty close to the chocolate shop. I'm keen to go once the car is registered.

Unbelievable. I spent my entire childhood growing up in Killara. Even went to Killara High...Small world isn't it.

Jules

[jules]

Oh, and in regards to your head unit fascia, you will be happy to know there is a very simple fix

Mazda changed to a standard DIN size tombstone in about 1996.
Available down the road at Mania!
http://www.mx5mania.com.au/oemparts.php

"Genuine Mazda® Centre Dash Faceplate (Tombstone)
If your current faceplate is cracked, this genuine item will give your interior a fresh look.
NA Early $93.50
Na Late $104.00"

You will want the late one. Then you can buy a pocket from Supercheap that will click into the bottom half and be able to slot in your standard head unit at the top for a factory finish.

Jules

[Beelzeboss]

that's awesome! I do love the sound of a V6 at full throttle

cant wait to see this thing in the flesh

It sounds amazing, I have to say. I'll definitely be bringing it to the next MX5 meet (even though it's leaking quite a bit of oil)

I'm in Killara so pretty close to the chocolate shop. I'm keen to go once the car is registered.

Unbelievable. I spent my entire childhood growing up in Killara. Even went to Killara High...Small world isn't it.

Jules

That's awesome, it's a great place to live

Oh, and in regards to your head unit fascia, you will be happy to know there is a very simple fix

Mazda changed to a standard DIN size tombstone in about 1996.
Available down the road at Mania!
http://www.mx5mania.com.au/oemparts.php

"Genuine Mazda® Centre Dash Faceplate (Tombstone)
If your current faceplate is cracked, this genuine item will give your interior a fresh look.
NA Early $93.50
Na Late $104.00"

You will want the late one. Then you can buy a pocket from Supercheap that will click into the bottom half and be able to slot in your standard head unit at the top for a factory finish.

Jules

Thanks very much Jules, I'll definitely look into that when I've got some spare $$$. Good to know there's a simple fix.



Notice anything odd in the video? Besides the fact it has a nice sounding exhaust now... IT HAS NUMBER PLATES AND REGISTRATION!!!!!!!!!!!!
That's right, it passed blue slip on Monday afternoon. The inspector rang the RTA tech line and they said it was fine, no worries

So yes, you can register an MX-5 with a K8 (1.8L) if it's 89-92 or either a K8 or KF (2.0L) if it's made later without engineering (provided you don't modify anything structural and keep all emissions stuff)

I've been driving it around all afternoon and besides it leaking oil from many places and not being tuned properly it's been a blast! Got a few weird looks from people that I guess didn't expect the MX to sound like it did It really does sound amazing.

[jules]

Brilliant! You did it.

[Doug Danger]

Congrats man!!

[Beelzeboss]

Thanks Jules and Doug! It was amazing driving it for the first 3 hours, then it started missing and now the ECU keeps shutting off for ~2 seconds every time it has a bad bout of missing. It never misses at full throttle and it never cuts out at full throttle. I'm convinced it's electrical noise from the ignition coil and those ridiculously long HT leads, so I'm converting it to coil on plug with some CBR pencil coils. They should be arriving late next week.

Today I fitted my wheels that I was given AGES ago.







I think they look awesome, but I had a few tyre paint pens I ordered a while ago and a few hours spare time. Now I think they look amazing.











Yes, it does need to be lowered, especially at the back. I'll be reinstalling my coilovers at some point soon and getting a wheel alignment. Even so, I love the look of the chunky tyres on 13's with white letters. Let me know what you think

[16bit]

looks good and yes it needs more low.

those hood risers are going to do exactly nothing to improve cooling through.

[Beelzeboss]

looks good and yes it needs more low.

those hood risers are going to do exactly nothing to improve cooling through.

Thanks 16bit, and I agree completely on the hood risers. However, they do serve an important function in this instance (they stop the bonnet hitting the engine )