What have you done today/recently to your 5?

[LiteIsRite]

Added a pair of DRLs... and learnt a bit more about relays in the process

What did you learn? Did you run the relays from the accessory 12v?

I learnt that there are relays, when energised, that open a circuit rather than closing it. In my limited auto electrical experience I had only previously used the latter.

If you mean the blue diagnostic connector in the engine bay, yes, that’s where I took power from for the DRLs. To energise the relay, and cut power to the DRLs, I spliced into the park lights. Although my understanding is that DRLs only need to go off when the headlights go on, in practice I couldn’t work out how to do that for both low and high beam activation.

[Mr Morlock]

very easy to do when you buy drls with full and legal kit. The rules were for DRLs to extinguish when the headlamps were switched on- I think it also applied to park lights. When I fitted Philips drls to an NB it was controlled by the box that was integrated in the cable assy that came with the kit. I took the power from the starter motor if memory serves- that was quite some years ago. A dark coloured MX-5 really does need drls to be seen esp on country roads with shadows being caste.

[LiteIsRite]

Yes, no doubt it would have been easier to do with a prewired kit, but the ones I could find were considerably more expensive than the $80 odd it cost me to do mine. For example, Hella has a kit with LEDs in a round housing (which I think better suits the car than the rectangular/strip ones) for $370.

[lonesailor]

I have a dark green NA8 and I agree that some form of daytime running lights are essential. I bought a pair of LED strips through E bay, (for $16 from memory), made a couple of brackets out of some sheet aluminium, which I had on hand, and connected them through a NO/NC 12V relay from Jaycar (about $5). They are on when the ignition is on and the parking lights are not, The parking lights are on when the headlights are on, high or low beam. I mounted them inside the air intake curving around the profile. In retrospect I think they would have looked better angled across the curved intake, but straight.

[Mr Morlock]

I used Osram Daylight 4 and they were about $100 or thereabouts - I never had any problem and the car was sold with them. Osram or Hella would always use quality leds- there certainly is quite a difference to some of the nasty cheapies going around. Narva I think have a unit which will fit into the fog lamp aperture i.e. in place of the foggy. In the early days of LEDs these were almost entirely sold to transport companies - these were high cost lamps but reduced high labour costs in replacing bulbs on vehicles. Now the price of leds has come down and we all benefit from this type of light source.

[drckarcher]

Installed Voston Mach1 coilovers (MCA engineered and produced in Taiwan I think)

Took me a good day together with my 13yo son. Much fun. And amazing what you can learn on YouTube....




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

[16bit]

i took off the stock intake manifold to install a skunk2 one i bought off the forum.

holy wow what a task. mainly the underside nuts on the bottom half of the manifold were the problem. strangely had the most trouble with the nut i could actually see closest to the radiator.

now in the process of swapping out the studs for longer ones because it came with some really thick gasket.

learning lots and swearing a bit too!

[StanTheMan]

Desperate times call for desperate measures . No place to do the work. Rego is due . So engine change was done in the street.



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[93_Clubman]

Well done Stefan - not ideal as you say, but at least you appear to be at the quiet end of your street.

[bruce]

Almost looks like an LS swap (if the white Commodore in the first picture was a bit closer...)

[greenltd]

I like the refreshment stand

Sent from my SM-N920I using Tapatalk

[93_Clubman]

Indeed, reminds me of the Godfather!

[StanTheMan]

I like the refreshment stand

Sent from my SM-N920I using Tapatalk

Ha ha neither of us could touch it. It was too hot. Sure the water kept on disappearing LOL



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[LiteIsRite]

Let me begin this post by wishing you all a safe & prosperous 2020. This goes doubly for anyone affected by this most recent outbreak of bushfires.

While I was wiring up the new DRLs (separate post), having removed a headlight to improve access, I saw how corroded the outside of the reflector had become...



Seeing the inside surface of the reflector had become quite dull in places, I figured it was time to replace both these (original?) lights. Today I fitted new Raybrig units. The following pic shows one fitted (passenger side), in comparison to the OE headlight.



In the process, I cleaned up some surface rust on the retaining springs and screws.

[Mr Morlock]

Looks like Raybrig is actually Stanley- at least that what is said on the net. My guess is that Mazda may have used Koito originally. Both Japanese lamp makers tied into the car industry. Sure the back of reflector will deteriorate over 30 years but the actual reflector inside surface is the most important. The lighting game has been taken improved so much with leds and affordability - gas discharge did not seem to last long at all.