best exhaust for '91 MX5 turbo?
Discussion
it will be used with a de-CAT pipe i already have, unless a system comes with its own. Ideally i would like something with a larger pipe diameter than the standard pipes but don't want an especially big exhaust tip.
Have been looking at Magnex / Janspeed and I can get an N/A CAT-back system for under £300 - would i be able to get anything for anywhere near comparable money - would i have to go to powerflow or whoever else to make me a one-off?
suggestions please!
TIA
Have been looking at Magnex / Janspeed and I can get an N/A CAT-back system for under £300 - would i be able to get anything for anywhere near comparable money - would i have to go to powerflow or whoever else to make me a one-off?
suggestions please!
TIA
Worth asking the question on the MX5 Owners Club forum (link below). Plenty of opinions and good advice there....
www.mx5ocforum.co.uk/
www.mx5ocforum.co.uk/
I had a powerflow made for mine... I was very happy with the results. Mine was not a turbo, but as the make to order - you just need to specify the right diameter (so that its not toooo loud!). IIRC Flyin' Miata are the only supplier for a turbo spec. off the shelf rear exhaust. I think they are available from Performance 5
www.performance5.com
>> Edited by jazzybee on Wednesday 8th June 16:18
www.performance5.com
>> Edited by jazzybee on Wednesday 8th June 16:18
The answer to your question is, without a doubt, the Flyin Miata Turbo Single or Duels.
P5 and tracktec are the authorised dealers in the UK www.performance5.co.uk or www.tracktec.co.uk .
The truth is you get what you pay for. I am sure the powerflow one will be cheaper, but I have heard that the quality of their exhausts differ hugely from franchise to franchise.
P5 and tracktec are the authorised dealers in the UK www.performance5.co.uk or www.tracktec.co.uk .
The truth is you get what you pay for. I am sure the powerflow one will be cheaper, but I have heard that the quality of their exhausts differ hugely from franchise to franchise.
I have found a powerflow supplier in Swindon, will go hopefully tomorrow and see what they are like - if it all looks ok and they sound like they know what they are talking about, and if they can quote me a price comparable to the stock exhausts of janspeed and magnex then i'll go with them (guess i can always sell it later if i don't like it). little bit dubious of an exhaust firm that drapes a girl from a max power ad over the exhausts in each picture tho...
otherwise, i'll have to wait a few weeks for delivery and part with 405,00 of my hard earned pennies for the FM.
otherwise, i'll have to wait a few weeks for delivery and part with 405,00 of my hard earned pennies for the FM.
los angeles said:
Best by far is the one designed by Mazda R&D for the MX5: the Jackson SS Exhaust. And it sounds great!
Not on a Turbo MX5, if you want it to sound like a 1.3 Escort Popular Plus go right ahead
I should add, on a supercharged/NA 5 the JR makes a lovely sound, it's just too restrictive for a turbo application.
FM or custom made is the only way to reduce back pressure.
>> Edited by benjc on Thursday 9th June 12:54
Los Angeles said:Agreed, those wonderful U.S.Aers are far more advanced when it comes to sorting MX5s, look at BRP, FM, and Racing Miata, they are the guys to talk to when you if you want a 5 that will surprise most cars
There isn't a single UK aftermarket item I'd recommend. While the dollar is so low against the pound buying original designed bits for your MX5 from the States is sooo cheap, even with VAT added by the Customs.
. Los Angeles said:'tis true, Bob Hall and the like have never been fans of FI they feel that modest tweeking of the 5 is sufficient to make it perfect..to quote Bob.."if you cant go fast with 90hp, 900hp isn't going to help".
When the MX5 first came out it was derided by the Brits (not by the motoring press) but taken to heart by the Americans. The team who developed the car were a mixture of Americans and American Japanese, As soon as they realised they had a winner they set to work developing key after-market add on, of which the supercharger was one, followed by the exhaust, lighter flywheel, tougher plug leads and a stronger battery. Then they started experimenting with wheels and came up with the Panasport 16", as light as the stock alloy.
Having said that Norman Garrett (co-developer of the 5 author of "performance miata"
had a huge leaning towards superchargers, even in his book turbos only get a fleeting mention . Los Angeles said:
There have been very few developments since the mid-ninties better than those created by the Mazda engineers who knew their car inside out. All the rest is cosmetic: alloy bezels, gear knob, extra-cabin lights, that sort of stuff. I do recommend the Merc quality hood with glass rear window. It transforms the visual quality of the car immediately. It can be bought and fitted by Hoods galore of London. Jackson Racing is on the web.
Sorry, no.
FM have taken the MX5 into a different league, it is blinkered to think that mazda engineers are the only ones who know the car inside out. Have a look at the FM catalogue (www.flyinmiata.com) to see the improvements you can purchase. Ranging from built engines giving you 300hp, to rear shock mounts that give you 2" more travel.
The shop bought MX5/Roadster/Miata is still a compromise, there IS room for improvement for the focused driver.
Mind you, you could do a lot worse as a starting point.
In summary the FM exhaust is the best off the shelf option if you have 400 notes
.los angeles said:
Most car makers show a concept that is one hundred per cent ideal. But when it comes to production they pull it back ten per cent in order to err on the safe side. It's that ten per cent gap that allows the after-market boys to make a living.
Mazda engineers feel - I obviously agree with them - improving your car up to nine per cent is good, eleven per cent or more is bad. You cross the line and ruin the car's good characteristics, or you cancel some out in favour of something new.
Their choice of items to develop, then farm out to various trusted companies to manufacture and sell, keep within that ten per cent tolerance. Other after-market companies, however, have no such restraints. And that's why I stick with the experts advice, the guys who built the car.
Have you seen this months Evo? A BRP stage 2 MX5 is tested against some serious machinery, on track and in the real world it is allegedly comparable to an Exige
. Also, LA, Mazda USA have used FM products on their concept cars......so does that mean that an FM tuned MX5 is the Holy Grail, the 100% car? :wink:
Also, just out of interest, how is straping a dirty great supercharger (as in the A-spec Eunos Roadster) on an MX5 only 9%??
los angeles said:
just out of interest, how is straping a dirty great supercharger (as in the A-spec Eunos Roadster) on an MX5 only 9%??
The supercharger was designed by the chief suspension engineer, Norman Garrett, which is why it is so perfectly mated to what the chassis can take.
As you know, you can stuff a V8 under the bonnet - there's a USA company, Monster Miata, does just that - but you need so many alterations to the car it isn't an MX5 anymore. Even in that configeration it isn't any faster than a Lotus Elise, nor is it half as nimble. (Yes, I've driven one.) It's a roadster with a ton of torque and an anchor between the front wheels. Better buying a real V8 sports car.
As you've gathered, Benjc, I'm not a great fan of the never-ending search for gratuitous power. The Lotus Elise is the way forward. All it needs is durability.
I won’t dispute that a Monstermiata loses the essence of what the car is meant to be, IMO a lazy V8 is not what these cars are about, like you say, if you want a V8 sports car buy one in the first place.
My aim with my car was 200RWHP per ton, which personally is perfect for me. I neither have the skill nor the balls to push it much further.
Also, I can confirm with that configuration it is quicker than an Elise around Donnington, but I won't deny that an Elise out handles a 5 with or without up rated suspension, but then I can’t get my golf bats in the back of an Elise.
This is what I love about PH, we can have a reasoned chat about a car's attributes without it degenerating into a slagging match/case of the "handbags".
See you in the twisties....
los angeles said:
I should add Garret knows the engine, the 1.6 or the 1.8, can take more power, but he also knows anything over 190 bhp reduces its longevity ... no matter what the after-marker power boys claim.
I hope Skinny is learning from all this.
Without a doubt, I have made the power as safely as I can. A full replacement ECU (including a knock sensor that if it detects knock in a certain row it will pull timing in that row for the rest of the journey) keeps everything in check and alerts me if there is the slightest anomaly.
Also the oil/oil filter and all other consumables get changed religiously.
But yes, mine is a 14 year old car with 80k on the clock and at the end of the day and the engine will go pop at some point....but then £600 for a dressed 1.6 isn't a massive deal in my book.
Best roadster in the galaxy.
los angeles said:
I should add Garret knows the engine, the 1.6 or the 1.8, can take more power, but he also knows anything over 190 bhp reduces its longevity ... no matter what the after-marker power boys claim.
I hope Skinny is learning from all this.
eh?
:grin: well in the end i thought that £400 for the FM turbo, tho it probably would have been the absolute best exhaust i could have got (better than the one i eventually went for) was too expensive at what would have been over £430 fitted. Also, given the FM is a CAT back, i would have had to use my de-CAT pipe which is a slightly smaller diameter than those either side as far as i know.
I had an all day meeting on friday in a town that had a powerflow centre who were able to fit me in that same day, so i got them to make me a system with 2.5" diameter (same as downpipe from turbo) fitted forwards to lose the CAT, and freeflow muffler. I have no doubts the FM is better but for £260 fitted i'm not really gonna complain! Seems ok.
In terms of mods, i don't want to go too wild, i could (if i had any money) give it over 200 bhp, but i don't really want it, it's more fun for me where a cars limits are similar to your own. have done the brakes, now just a bit of new suspension to go on and i'm done i think.
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