He does favor the BMW crowd. It's obvious by the A-arm penalty and the fact he owns one too doesn't help the assumptions. I'm not the only one who agrees with this too. Multiple TT guys have agreed, ie. Matt Huffman, Edgar, I mean even DJ who loves BMWs, etc.
Maybe if there weren't multiple classes BMWs could run there would be more in ST. Penalizing cars to try to make other cars more prevalent and prove they are just as fast is back-asswards. It's like saying well a Porsche has a flat plane crank and has been winning a ton. There really hasn't been many vipers out there racing but tons and tons of Porsche's. A viper doesn't have that flat plane crank. Therefore the Porsche has a more sophisticated engine design. We must penalize the Porsche as they are much faster than the Viper based off current data. When in reality there are just no ST/TT5 BMWs running just a lot of a-arm cars (S2k, Miata, FRS/BRZ, etc.). They are running other classes like GTS or higher ST classes. It would be like penalizing the new ND in STR auto-x and making the NC not the dinosaur. I'm hoping we see some well built TT/ST5 BMWs with good drivers at Nats to change this mindset because seriously an a-arm suspension design does not make more double the difference in lap times than fucking full aero or remote/large diameter shocks, etc.
Anyway, on to the Miata. I got it back from Flim Flam today after a much needed week vacation in New England area.
Negative:
Car got dropped off at Delta V for alignment and the battery somehow died there. Never had a problem before and has sat 3+ weeks without being charged. They for sure left ACC on or something. Kevin got it back. Charged it for an hour to start it and move it but died again the next day due to not being charged long enough. Cool so the battery has been damaged twice now from being drained lol. He left it on the charger overnight and all is well. Still a little frustrating as that for sure will hurt the battery life on the car. I guess I'll be moving on to a small lithium battery with super cool kit sooner than later.
Car only makes 154whp peak. A lot of people/shops like Goodwin advertise with STD correction vs SAE of the NASA dyno which are inflated 4% or so. This would put the car on par with their numbers if it was in STD. Car has a nice smooth power curve though. Remote tuner knows what he is doing. Kevin commented on the graph saying it looked good, "More power everywhere along the curve than my stock miata". His car made 143whp stock. His is a NC1 which was advertised 170hp. Mine is NC2 which was advertised 167hp.
![[Image: dFnLQYw.png]](https://i.imgur.com/dFnLQYw.png)
That will probably be close to 148-150whp average. I need another 20+ average whp or 175ish whp peak for enough power in 5 unless I start going gram strategy on weight instead....
1. I need to call Moto-East/Dynotronics and see what they say is a good route to take and most cost affective. They know NC Miata's. My assumptions are
a) Keep 2.0, add 1.8 header, ECUTek dyno tune (~3-6whp I'd estimate for those two) and port intake side runners, add ITB style manifold like a stock S2K or other Honda's...
![[Image: intake-plenum.jpg]](http://www.moto-east.com/store/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/9df78eab33525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95/i/n/intake-plenum.jpg)
Add in a larger throttle body from Gram's and maybe a small cam grind/stiffer springs if needed from Moto-East. That should get me there I'd hope.
Benefits: Keep the higher revving nature of the engine
Cons: Probably more money overall, not as much torque as a 2.5 swap
b) 2.5 swap, 1.8 header, and ECUTek dyno tune should get me close. If not at needed power level add the manifold from Moto-East and de-tune if needed. Change to euro 3.73 FD from the 4.1 FD as the 2.5 doesn't rev as high.
Benefits: A lot more torque, flatter power curve overall, a little cheaper
Cons: Not as rev happy, more time consuming
Who knows what those two shops will say but based on current power levels, those are just some guesses. Fun stuff to try to be competitive in TT/ST5. For now I'll just stay in TTD this season completely uncompetitive at 8 points under class max and +3.5 weight to hp over class minimum. 17.7 of my car vs 14.25
Positive:
Car was dialed into the alignment specs requested and bushings were successfully installed.
Front:
-3.2, -3.26
-1/32" toe total
Like 6 degrees of positive caster lol
Passenger:
-2.2, -2.2
+1/32" toe total
Still have more camber that can be added at current height. They couldn't get the passenger side front back to less camber of -3.2 on the dot.
Initial impressions after one downhill on ramp - noticeable difference even not anywhere near full speed/limit. Car pushes on the outside front nice. It feels weird. Turn a little more and add power and the car rotates nicely. Can't wait to see the difference on track. Hoping for some good oversteer and slip. Damn I missed driving this car for a few weeks. I was so happy on the way to work!
Decided to pick up some Simpson racing shoes, AIM SOLO 2 DL, and new subscription based lap timer from OG Racing with instructor discount. Need to install the lap timer before VIR some time. The wiring length given is gonna be hard to follow the instructions of mounting the race key inside the vehicle so it will probably be mounted somewhere inside the engine bay like the transponder.
I would like to also pull the soft top before VIR to lose some weight... I have an abundance of OEM Miata parts I need to sell along with selling my regular AIM, and some parts from my previous Mazda3. Need to get my ass in gear!!!
Maybe if there weren't multiple classes BMWs could run there would be more in ST. Penalizing cars to try to make other cars more prevalent and prove they are just as fast is back-asswards. It's like saying well a Porsche has a flat plane crank and has been winning a ton. There really hasn't been many vipers out there racing but tons and tons of Porsche's. A viper doesn't have that flat plane crank. Therefore the Porsche has a more sophisticated engine design. We must penalize the Porsche as they are much faster than the Viper based off current data. When in reality there are just no ST/TT5 BMWs running just a lot of a-arm cars (S2k, Miata, FRS/BRZ, etc.). They are running other classes like GTS or higher ST classes. It would be like penalizing the new ND in STR auto-x and making the NC not the dinosaur. I'm hoping we see some well built TT/ST5 BMWs with good drivers at Nats to change this mindset because seriously an a-arm suspension design does not make more double the difference in lap times than fucking full aero or remote/large diameter shocks, etc.
Anyway, on to the Miata. I got it back from Flim Flam today after a much needed week vacation in New England area.
Negative:
Car got dropped off at Delta V for alignment and the battery somehow died there. Never had a problem before and has sat 3+ weeks without being charged. They for sure left ACC on or something. Kevin got it back. Charged it for an hour to start it and move it but died again the next day due to not being charged long enough. Cool so the battery has been damaged twice now from being drained lol. He left it on the charger overnight and all is well. Still a little frustrating as that for sure will hurt the battery life on the car. I guess I'll be moving on to a small lithium battery with super cool kit sooner than later.
Car only makes 154whp peak. A lot of people/shops like Goodwin advertise with STD correction vs SAE of the NASA dyno which are inflated 4% or so. This would put the car on par with their numbers if it was in STD. Car has a nice smooth power curve though. Remote tuner knows what he is doing. Kevin commented on the graph saying it looked good, "More power everywhere along the curve than my stock miata". His car made 143whp stock. His is a NC1 which was advertised 170hp. Mine is NC2 which was advertised 167hp.
That will probably be close to 148-150whp average. I need another 20+ average whp or 175ish whp peak for enough power in 5 unless I start going gram strategy on weight instead....
1. I need to call Moto-East/Dynotronics and see what they say is a good route to take and most cost affective. They know NC Miata's. My assumptions are
a) Keep 2.0, add 1.8 header, ECUTek dyno tune (~3-6whp I'd estimate for those two) and port intake side runners, add ITB style manifold like a stock S2K or other Honda's...
Add in a larger throttle body from Gram's and maybe a small cam grind/stiffer springs if needed from Moto-East. That should get me there I'd hope.
Benefits: Keep the higher revving nature of the engine
Cons: Probably more money overall, not as much torque as a 2.5 swap
b) 2.5 swap, 1.8 header, and ECUTek dyno tune should get me close. If not at needed power level add the manifold from Moto-East and de-tune if needed. Change to euro 3.73 FD from the 4.1 FD as the 2.5 doesn't rev as high.
Benefits: A lot more torque, flatter power curve overall, a little cheaper
Cons: Not as rev happy, more time consuming
Who knows what those two shops will say but based on current power levels, those are just some guesses. Fun stuff to try to be competitive in TT/ST5. For now I'll just stay in TTD this season completely uncompetitive at 8 points under class max and +3.5 weight to hp over class minimum. 17.7 of my car vs 14.25
Positive:
Car was dialed into the alignment specs requested and bushings were successfully installed.
Front:
-3.2, -3.26
-1/32" toe total
Like 6 degrees of positive caster lol
Passenger:
-2.2, -2.2
+1/32" toe total
Still have more camber that can be added at current height. They couldn't get the passenger side front back to less camber of -3.2 on the dot.
Initial impressions after one downhill on ramp - noticeable difference even not anywhere near full speed/limit. Car pushes on the outside front nice. It feels weird. Turn a little more and add power and the car rotates nicely. Can't wait to see the difference on track. Hoping for some good oversteer and slip. Damn I missed driving this car for a few weeks. I was so happy on the way to work!
Decided to pick up some Simpson racing shoes, AIM SOLO 2 DL, and new subscription based lap timer from OG Racing with instructor discount. Need to install the lap timer before VIR some time. The wiring length given is gonna be hard to follow the instructions of mounting the race key inside the vehicle so it will probably be mounted somewhere inside the engine bay like the transponder.
I would like to also pull the soft top before VIR to lose some weight... I have an abundance of OEM Miata parts I need to sell along with selling my regular AIM, and some parts from my previous Mazda3. Need to get my ass in gear!!!