Kieron's NB MX-5 - Maxine

Chat to do with your MX5/Miata/Eunos Garage Ride(s).

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ManiacLachy
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Re: Kieron's NB MX-5 - Maxine

Postby ManiacLachy » Sun Jun 10, 2018 8:30 am

So much better with the pictures! Thanks :mrgreen:

The car came up really nicely with a bit of polish. Reminds me I need to go back over mine. Man, I hate how good these cars look with a hardtop on. If I weren't so keen on drop top driving I would have to get one. The car is looking really nice, just needs a suspension drop now 8)

I haven't notice any stopping in the wet issues with my AD08Rs, but I also haven't had to do any hard stops while it was wet. They're meant to be well rated for wet from what I recall, but that doesn't mean technology hasn't advanced further since they were released.

6258 is the dream :beer:

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Re: Kieron's NB MX-5 - Maxine

Postby kiezon » Sun Jun 10, 2018 2:25 pm

ManiacLachy wrote:So much better with the pictures! Thanks :mrgreen:

The car came up really nicely with a bit of polish. Reminds me I need to go back over mine. Man, I hate how good these cars look with a hardtop on. If I weren't so keen on drop top driving I would have to get one. The car is looking really nice, just needs a suspension drop now 8)

I haven't notice any stopping in the wet issues with my AD08Rs, but I also haven't had to do any hard stops while it was wet. They're meant to be well rated for wet from what I recall, but that doesn't mean technology hasn't advanced further since they were released.

6258 is the dream



Been wanting to order coilovers but I figure the car needs more power than handling. Hence why I'm selling the soft top. Buying a Koyorad to start the turbo process and the factory item is showing signs hairline cracks. Looks like arse with the stock ride height though.

Haha, #turbogoals. I actually wanted the GTX2860R GEN II but a few of the boys convinced me the 6258 would be better in every way. Gonna pair it with a Kraken manifold and have a custom 3" exhaust done. Probably will go with the Fab9 Stage 1 FMIC. Will start buying parts in the beginning of next year. Masters has me broke.


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Re: Kieron's NB MX-5 - Maxine

Postby ManiacLachy » Mon Jun 11, 2018 8:03 am

You'll appreciate the handling upgrade even at stock power. You might still be slow getting up to a good speed, but with better handling you'll be able to carry more of it through the bends which leads to less time getting back up to speed and more time going fast!

GTX GenIIs look interesting, but there's not too much data out there on them for our cars, the EFRs however are showing excellent results. They might end up putting out the same max power, but the main benefit of the EFRs is the super fast spool and response, and for a street car that's what I want.

The upgrade is still a few years away for me (I hope), so I'll be curious to see how the Kraken works out for you. Trackspeed is where I think I'll send my money, by then they might even have the complete kit ready :mrgreen:

What's going on in this picture. Did you cut the outer skin off and bend it backwards to get to the insides?!

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How'd you find the effects of the sound deadening?

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Re: Kieron's NB MX-5 - Maxine

Postby kiezon » Mon Jun 11, 2018 10:20 pm

ManiacLachy wrote:You'll appreciate the handling upgrade even at stock power. You might still be slow getting up to a good speed, but with better handling you'll be able to carry more of it through the bends which leads to less time getting back up to speed and more time going fast!

GTX GenIIs look interesting, but there's not too much data out there on them for our cars, the EFRs however are showing excellent results. They might end up putting out the same max power, but the main benefit of the EFRs is the super fast spool and response, and for a street car that's what I want.

The upgrade is still a few years away for me (I hope), so I'll be curious to see how the Kraken works out for you. Trackspeed is where I think I'll send my money, by then they might even have the complete kit ready :mrgreen:

What's going on in this picture. Did you cut the outer skin off and bend it backwards to get to the insides?!

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How'd you find the effects of the sound deadening?



Had a look at the Trackspeen kit - a little pricey. The Kraken manifold is $400USD shipped, the EFR is $2,550, custom dump pipe would be about $800 or so. Ends up being cheap than the Trackspeed kit even before the conversion from USD to AUD.

Haha, yeah. I bought a spare NB8B door for $50 and cut it open to make up a template for the deadening. So if anyone ever needs templates - I'm your guy. Treating the outer skins alone made a huge difference in sound. Improved reverberations, clarity and midbass, as well as insulating the cabin from road noise. Highly recommend it.

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Re: Kieron's NB MX-5 - Maxine

Postby ManiacLachy » Tue Jun 12, 2018 8:44 am

Thank god you're not actually using that door in the car! Had me concerned. :mrgreen:

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Re: Kieron's NB MX-5 - Maxine

Postby Lokiel » Tue Jun 12, 2018 9:37 am

kiezon wrote:[
:
Treating the outer skins alone made a huge difference in sound. Improved reverberations, clarity and midbass, as well as insulating the cabin from road noise. Highly recommend it.

I did mine years ago with Dynamat, cutting sections to fit to cover the inside of the outer door skin as much as possible..
It made the door sound great when closing, a nice solid thunk instead of a tinny one and did improve audio. I too noticed that road noise was reduced, even with the top down, not really sure why because it's not like anything is striking the side of the doors as you're driving (maybe it simply deadens noise vibrations within the doors?).
Not long after I did it, I learned that I could have achieved exactly the same effect using a checkerboard pattern, alternating between dynamat and no dynamat - would have cost me half as much $$$, half the weight, and MUCH less time since fitting small squares is a lot easier than shaping and fitting large sections of Dynamat.
Don't worry about dying, worry about not living!
Garage Thread: http://www.mx5cartalk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=57&t=76716

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Re: Kieron's NB MX-5 - Maxine

Postby kiezon » Fri Sep 20, 2019 2:23 pm

Not too much has happened during the past year as I was completing my postgraduate degree. However, now that I've completed:


The MX5 reached 100,000kms!

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The DIY 100,000kms begins!


Coolant flush

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OEM radiator uninstall

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...but why, you ask?

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Valve cover and top timing cover off

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Accessory belts, crank pulley, water pump pulley, cam gears, tensioner bearing, tensioner spring, idler bearing and water neck removed. What a mess...

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Cam seals removed and area cleaned

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New cam seals installed and more cleaning

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Crank seal removed and installed. More cleaning again.

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Fancy new aluminium radiator and cap...

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Timing belt, tensioner bearing, tensioner spring, idler bearing, new OEM water pump, O-rings, water pump gaskets and lower timing cover installed!

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Buttoned up and almost near completion! Finally. New accessory belts - no more squeaks! Also had to replace bypass hoses #2 and #4 with new OEM items due to cracking upon removal.

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Had to improvise on some clearance issues with the PWR radiator. Nylon washers and a bit of trimming of the engine fan shroud.

After this, I trimmed the inner edge of the plastic engine fan shroud - for those interested, it was about 5mm off. Some basic shaving to clear the water neck was also required. I've spoken to Ajay from MX5 Mania about this issue and he'll be contacting PWR to resolve this for me.

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Of course, pièce de résistance... The new radiator installed! Time to add coolant and start her up.

[img]https://imgur.com/1k5xkJ7[.jpg/img]

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I have wanted to do this job since before I purchased the car as a test of my own abilities. Although, the task was overwhelming at first, it was not difficult. For those interested in tackling the job themselves, nothing is truly difficult with a couple of torque wrenches, picks (seal removal), degreaser, methylated spirits and a basic tool kit.

Now I have piece of mind that every bolt and cover has been cleaned while all bolts have been torqued to specification. Time to upgrade the pads and rotors next as the brake wear indicators are now audible. Just in time for some track work in the next few months!

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Re: Kieron's NB MX-5 - Maxine

Postby ManiacLachy » Fri Sep 20, 2019 4:50 pm

I said it on FB, I'll say it again here, good job! I'll be doing similar soon, hopefully it goes well for me.

Why did you remove the water neck? Just for cleaning, or is does it need to come off?

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Re: Kieron's NB MX-5 - Maxine

Postby kiezon » Fri Sep 20, 2019 10:42 pm

ManiacLachy wrote:I said it on FB, I'll say it again here, good job! I'll be doing similar soon, hopefully it goes well for me.

Why did you remove the water neck? Just for cleaning, or is does it need to come off?


It doesn't need to come off. I received the O-ring from mania, so I decided to replace it.

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Re: Kieron's NB MX-5 - Maxine

Postby bootz » Sun Sep 22, 2019 10:35 pm

Nice photos! Don't forget to check the condition of the engine mounts as well. :wink:
Bootz and Boof - On the road to somewhere.

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Re: Kieron's NB MX-5 - Maxine

Postby SKYHI » Thu Sep 26, 2019 4:13 pm

Nice work. Wish I'd had the time to attempt the DIY 100K service, but in the end I just didn't.

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Re: Kieron's NB MX-5 - Maxine

Postby bruce » Thu Sep 26, 2019 4:25 pm

That's a pain regards the PWR radiator being not quite right. Premium priced product disappointment.

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Re: Kieron's NB MX-5 - Maxine

Postby kiezon » Sat Nov 14, 2020 9:51 pm

2020 updates!

Stainless steel sill plates!

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Some more sound deadening! The entire car excluding the inner B-pillars, front guards, front firewall and bonnet has been treated.

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Had a couple of dents fixed by The Ding King once again.

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Brodit dash mount and ball joint to allow the use of an iOttie phone mount. Also, genuine Mazda leather handbrake handle and aluminium handbrake button. And of course, replaced the factory cigarette lighter for an AUX/USB socket - super tight fit even after some sanding to the centre console trim.

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Had my clutch line burst whilst driving to the gym. Promptly replace with an MX5 Mania braided line.

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Half moon seals were the cause of an oil leak, thus the sump had to come off. For those who know, this is a subframe off job - this meant I could have a turbo drain bung welded on.

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New pads and rotors! Winmax W3 pads with Protex blank rotors.

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Had the mechanic replace my fuel filter as I called it quits attempting to remove the fuel line clips on my driveway.

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Whilst the mechanic was dropping the subframe, the passenger engine mount fell apart... Time for Competition engine mounts!

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Fresh Hankook RS4s in 225/45r15!

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Followed by a road alignment by Peter Hennessy at Road & Race Rydalmere.

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Acquired a Talon bike rack!

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Decided to check my fluid levels one night and discovered this... Sweet lord.... Replaced with a genuine Mazda item and replaced the thermostat gasket with a Mazda item as well.

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The audio project continues with even more speaker wiring!

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My friend called me in for some sanding... A little daunting if I'm honest, but the end result speaks for itself! PM me if you need a detailer in Sydney.

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Finally! After two years of having the hardtop on, I finally pulled the trigger on a Robbins zippered soft top! Hello top down drives at night!

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Gosh, it was a pain in the backside getting the skin onto the frame. Then there came hours of stretching the top to finally allow the latches to close.

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She's closed!!!! I'll never do this job again, but at least I can tick this off the list of DIYs.

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DanDak LED third brake light.

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Replaced my broken seat belt tower caps after one flew off - luckily behind the passenger seat.

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SE boot spoiler acquired! Only took me 3 years of searching! I was lucky enough to find a whole boot lid and the spoiler together to enable myself to transfer a template for the holes.

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Plenty of measurements taken!

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The moment of truth. Phew! Time to paint the holes. Still need to organise a day to drive down to Hume Smash for repaint.

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Thanks to Alex for the auto window switch and centre console panel. Had an awesome chat about MX5s with you. Heated seat mods next year? Alarm light relocation? Yes, please!

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Thanks to Marty at FHRX Studios for sourcing me a new Odyssey PC1200MJT as well as making me a new battery tie-down. Bought some rubber matting from Clark Rubber to prevent sparking around the positive terminal and to replace the stock battery tray. I may look into 3D printing later on to replace the rubber mat/'tray'.

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Oh, but how can I not leave out this mod? Revlimiter custom gauges!!!! I opted for the 'Version Dart' gauges that Adam normally stocks for the NA. I requested that I have them made to suit the NB cluster and to swap out the blue accenting for red. Here's the process of the installation and the end result! Super nice packaging also!

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But wait, there's more! 'Version Zen' HVAC panel kit! I'm yet to install these as I'm still looking for a supplier for quality T5 bulbs.

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Re: Kieron's NB MX-5 - Maxine

Postby ManiacLachy » Sun Nov 15, 2020 3:06 pm

Massive update, lots of good work done too. The car is looking great!

How bad was the oil leak from the half moon seals? I wonder if maybe that's what my leak is? Mine isn't a seep, it's a flow when the engine is running.

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Re: Kieron's NB MX-5 - Maxine

Postby kiezon » Sun Nov 15, 2020 4:09 pm

ManiacLachy wrote:Massive update, lots of good work done too. The car is looking great!

How bad was the oil leak from the half moon seals? I wonder if maybe that's what my leak is? Mine isn't a seep, it's a flow when the engine is running.


I didn't see any oil on the driveway, but it was losing an enormous amount of oil and appeared on the front of the sump pan after several thousand kilometres. Kept me on my toes every weekly inspection.

Most of the work is regarding the audio project. Most of which I choose not to post.

I'm currently considering purchasing a slightly used set of Ohlins with 10/7kg spring rates. The owner offered to throw in Maruha rear top hats.


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