Warm weather at last!

[j2k4]

Geez, I thought you'd be working on it in the house, taking pictures of it in the bathroom, etc.

Your attempts at overclocking it begin with the exhaust, I see.

Seriously, good to see you back at it, sir.

Nice work/good choices on the dash; I've always been partial to Grant wheels myself, too, not the least 'cuz they were always cheaper than Momo.

I always found upgrading brakes to be comforting work...


BTW-

I'm at work; some soul hereabout has a router I'm tapping, so I probably will lose this shortly...

[/QUOTE]

.


The Ford convo in VB's pic is a good example of Ford's lack of foresight in designing that big, tall, clunky intake...it never occurred to them the a lower-profile piece (with more production utility) would fit under a variety of hoods.

GM obviously thought of it with the 'Vette piece.

[clocker]

I always found upgrading brakes to be comforting work...

I now face a quandary...perhaps you have insight.

Let me preface this with the caveat that my brakes work fine and there is no mechanical problem at all.
Stopping (especially under normal street conditions) is exemplary and should improve as the pads/rotors bed in.

That said...
I'm not enthused about the "feel"- I was hoping for something closer to the track car pedal that the Z had, very firm and progressive.

The cars that came with the larger 4-piston calipers also had larger bore master cylinders and twin diaphram vacuum boosters.
I have retained the stock components from the small caliper setup (albeit with new parts) and am trying to decide which of the upgraded parts- if not both- might get me closer to what I hope for feel-wise.
What do you think...larger MC, twin chamber booster or both?

[j2k4]

I always found upgrading brakes to be comforting work...

I now face a quandary...perhaps you have insight.

Let me preface this with the caveat that my brakes work fine and there is no mechanical problem at all.
Stopping (especially under normal street conditions) is exemplary and should improve as the pads/rotors bed in.

That said...
I'm not enthused about the "feel"- I was hoping for something closer to the track car pedal that the Z had, very firm and progressive.

The cars that came with the larger 4-piston calipers also had larger bore master cylinders and twin diaphram vacuum boosters.
I have retained the stock components from the small caliper setup (albeit with new parts) and am trying to decide which of the upgraded parts- if not both- might get me closer to what I hope for feel-wise.
What do you think...larger MC, twin chamber booster or both?

Hmmm.

In my experience (going waaaay back), capacity built from multiples (more pistons, etc.) gives feel, but any time boost is involved, retaining/refining feel becomes difficult.

That is not to say it can't be done, but I think the only way to sort it is via the old tuning routine: try different things and see.

That's where brakes get to be a pain because of the mess, but hey...at least you're dealing with fresh parts, which should speed the process.

Your break-in will certainly render you some feel; you may find this sufficient, but you are a picky fucker, so...

[clocker]

...I think the only way to sort it is via the old tuning routine: try different things and see.

Very logical, albeit expensive, approach.

I think I shall simply put this little issue on the back burner for a while and see if the passage of time doesn't change my feelings about the "feel" which after all, is totally subjective.

[j2k4]

...I think the only way to sort it is via the old tuning routine: try different things and see.

Very logical, albeit expensive, approach.

I think I shall simply put this little issue on the back burner for a while and see if the passage of time doesn't change my feelings about the "feel" which after all, is totally subjective.

Good idea; I thought 'cuz you asked about those parts you had them close to hand...yeah, break 'em in first and see what you think.

[clocker]

Grrr.

Well, here's today's exercise in frustration- gauges.
The RX's stock instrument cluster contains (among other things...) an oil pressure and water temp indicator.
Unfortunately, there are problems with both (not exclusive to my car)- the oil temp sending unit tends to wear out and gives increasingly low readings and the water temp gauge is not a real full-sweep gauge, although it appears to be. In practice, the water temp gauge only indicates COLD, NORMAL and OOOPS!

There is no fix for the water temp gauge and Mazda wants nearly $250 for the replacement oil pressure sending unit.
Enter aftermarket gauges.

I have a full set of SPI gauges (with sending units)- oil temp and pressure and water temp- and a good place to mount them.
Unfortunately, I needed a way to mount the sending units for the oil sensors as the stock location wouldn't work. Naturally, the aftermarket had a solution- and adaptor that mounts below the oil filter and is tapped for two sending units. A bit pricey at $75 but perfect for my needs.
Here are pics from the website...

And installed...

Note the positioning of the sensor holes compared to the unit that I actually received...

And here, with the pressure sender in place...

For some reason the sensor hole locations have been moved closer together and the pressure sender now blocks the second sensor hole.

I have emailed the company for an explanation of this nonsense (keep in mind that my sending unit is NOT oversized or weird- it's a standard size unit and they should design these adaptors to accept it) but, till I get a response, my gauge project is on hold.

Nothing is easy.

[j2k4]

I suppose the install is too cramped to add an m/f nipple or an ell?

It would suck to have to do that, they look all ugly and shit.

[clocker]

I suppose the install is to cramped to add an m/f nipple or an ell?

It would suck to have to do that, they look all ugly and shit.

It IS possible to Mickey Mouse the pressure sender out of the other hole's way (in fact, I've already been to the hardware store to purchase a 45° male to female adaptor) but, as you've noted- it's ugly and is only a bandaid for a poor design.
Besides, I have concerns- albeit probably unfounded- about the effect on the sensor's response if not directly in the oil's flowpath.

Meh.
For $75, this thing should just work....

[j2k4]

Meh.
For $75, this thing should just work....

Yeah.

Nice anodized piece with a chunk of brass hanging out of it.

You could probably go to a speed shop and get a matching M/F adaptor instead, if you wanted to spend another $30-$40...

[clocker]

Screwing around with a camera that came in with a bunch of recycled crap...amazingly, this cam is even shittier than my personal unit.
Anyway, some (bad) shots of recent work...
Firstly, the new gauges.

They are the three white blobs in the center console.
Not yet functional, I was road testing them to be certain that I could see them OK before finalizing the wiring. Final install should happen tomorrow and better pics will follow.
Next is a general shot of the engine bay.

This is just to remind me of what it used to look like...there are some major changes 'acomin.
Lastly is the new catback exhaust.

and...

Again, terrible pics, I know.
I'd really like the tips to be raised about 1" to better fit the bumper cutouts but this is how the system wanted to hang using the stock mounting points.
I'm looking into techniques to custom adjust the fit but it's pretty low on my list of priorities so I'll get to it whenever.
It sounds great, BTW.