STS2 Miata - Dory Part Deux - 2008
 

With the 2007 season over and a 2nd overall, I'm very happy how far this car has come since buying it just about a year ago. However, she's still got a long way to go and will be under then knife for what I can only imagine to be the better part of the off season.

Plans for the off-season include:
1. Take it to Mazcare for a recurring problem with the fuel tank building pressure (in progress)
2. 700/450# springs f/r
3. Bridgestone RE-01Rs (pending testing results of new ST legal and possibly competitive tires)
4. NB rear shock mount conversion fo-cheapsies. See thread. This will give me about 1/2 - 3/4" more shock travel before hitting the bump stops.
5. Brake pads / fluids.
6. The car's 15 years old, going on 16. The stock suspension...everything... is tired and / or broken. I will be replacing all of the stock ball joints / rod ends / dust boots / etc. They're pretty much all toast. Do I have any idea what that entails at this point? Nope lol. I've gotta get under the car once she comes back from Mazcare and get a list of everything that I'll need (off topic: YAY GARAGE!)
7. Poly Control Arm bushings from Flyin Miata. Why? See #6.
8. Rear main seal / clutch et al.
9. After driving kcbhiw's car for a couple runs back to back at the last points event, I'm seriously considering a manual steering rack.
10. Get the injectors cleaned, flow tested and blueprinted by witchhunter.
11. After most of these, I'll need an alignment anyway. Then I've got to find a shop open on weekends to corner weight the thing. Or find someone to let me borrow scales.

Beyond these changes / fixes, I'm still waiting on 949racing's 6UL to come out in the 15x7.5" size. These should be available in April.

In conclusion:
Dory for Champion 2008!
Attachment 9973

Just keep swimming! :p


EDIT: Added CURRENT mod list:
Chassis
- Koni Race valved / shortened shocks
- Ground Control coilovers (550#/in f / 375#/in r)
- Racing Beat 1 1/8" front swaybar
- Rear swaybar delete
- Gearhead Garage heim-jointed, spherical bushing end-links.
- Ground Control linear bumpstops
- Hawk HPS brake pads
- Russel Stainless Brake Lines
- 15x7 ATS Complites (13.5 lbs. ea)
- 205/50/15 Falken Azenis shaved to 4/32"

Engine
- Racing Beat 4-1 header
- Ebay Racing-beat knockoff intake with K&N filter
- Timing advanced to 14* BTDC (premium only :()
- NGK Plug Wires
- Custom cat back using Supertrapp muffler (total weight: 6 lbs.)

Interior
- Corbeau Forza seats
- G-Force 4 point (for now) Cam - lock harness
- Kirk Racing 4 point double-diagonal roll bar
- MiaTurbo m4d cust0m roll bar camera mount

finally decided to post in the *right* place?

yeah yeah yeah. It was boofed last night when I tried...

*subscribes*

I <3 build threads

actually more of a rebuild thread really

x2

so explain to me again why the headlights are up? Scientists discovered drag is actually good now?

naa, there's not really enough drag @ autocross speeds to matter. The problem is that save the radiator inlet / front air dam, there isn't any other way for cold air to get to the engine bay (underneath...but whatever). there is some open space around the headlights where air can get in, but only when the headlights are up. Add to that, that the filter sits right behind the driver's side headlight, but adjacent to the exhaust manifold, it's really the only way to keep the intake cool.

Unless you have completely adjustable coilovers, cornerweighting the thing will be a *itch with a capital B. Even with the coilovers on my FD, it took us a good 2 and a half hours to get mine anywhere near even.

and then I couldn't tell any difference on the track anyway! :cookoo:

Yeah, that's why I'd like to get someone to lend me a set of scales.


Is this adjustable enough? :p

See how the top perch is not adjustable? If you lower your car on Ground Controls, you're also compressing the spring, and messing with the rebound of the Konis.
IMO, put a set of Ohlins or Zeals on your list (if they're legal in your class) and it'll make a nice difference in adjustability, and definitely make cornerweighting much easier. :)

But then again, I aint #2 overall this season.

Lowering it won't compress the spring. If anything I'd be compressing it by trying to raise the car. Lowering it actually drops the spring further from the body.

Holy damn it I'm glad I checked Miata.net today. 949racing's doing a limited production run of 20 sets of the 15x7.5s. Same cost / etc. Apparently they didn't have enough orders of one of the 15x7 wheels and he decided to open these up.

1 of 20 sets. Word.

http://www.949racing.com/ProductImages/6UL40ScW.jpg
http://forum.miata.net/vb/showthread.php?t=257220

those are HOT..

TY. This puts me at the absolute limit of the rulebook wheel wise, which I've been waiting for lol.

There are only 3 (now) kinds of STS/2 15x7.5s. The Rota Slipstream, which is heavier and ugly as sin, now the 949Racing 6UL, and the unobtainium SSRs. The Rotas are readily available, the 6ULs are readily available for the next couple of days lol, and the SSRs... well... I don't have a 1st born child yet to give away to get them.