| Modifications/Upgrades | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap and Sweet Driving lights | |||||
 After owning my Miata for a few months, I noticed that I'm not always noticed on the road, especially by the larger cars and trucks on the interstate. I decided to increase that visibility and at the same time light up the road
more for me by installing some bright driving lights. Seem's everyone says great things about the PIAA and CATZ lights, but I can't bring myself to spend $170 to $200 on lights... especially when there's some much cheaper good looking alternatives on the market. I found a set of 55W halogen lights with dichroic reflector and 'projector' style lens for $40 including relay. I figure even if I have to replace them 4 times (not likely) that I'll still be ahead of the PIAA/CATZ in dollars spent.
I also did a custom install with them, choosing to not run wires all over my hood, thru the firewall and have toggle switch that would stick out like a sore thumb. Instead I tapped into the turn signal indicator's parking light wire for my relay's 'trigger', and an unused ignition-only 12V power source for the power. So now when I turn on my parking lights or headlights, the driving lights come on, but only if the key is in the ignition position- and everything looks factory. If anybody cares, here's
a quick'n'dirty schematic of the wiring.
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| Ease of Install: |  | Bang for the Buck: | |
Performance Increase: | |
| NGK "Blue" Spark Plug Wires | |||||
 The Miata's factory plug wires are known to be a weak link in a great little car. The insulation breaks down over time and allows the ignition spark to escape the wire and arc off the engine.
If you are developing misfires or hesitation and are still driving with the OEM plug wires, you need to swap 'em. The two most popular are the NGK Premium blue wires ($25-$35), and the Magnacore Red wires ($50-$60?). It took some wiggling to get the OEM wires off the distributor block, the plug end came up cleanly. Tools needed: hands. My total cost: $29, time: 10 minutes.
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| Ease of Install: | | Bang for the Buck: | |
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| Bosch +4 Platinum Spark Plugs | |||||
 The only indication that I needed to plugs was a slightly uneven idle, and the fact my odometer just passed 50K. I had heard many good reviews about the NGK plugs, especially the extended reach models, but could never find them around town. One day I found the Bosch Platinum +4's on sale for $5 each, and was told by the sales guy they had a "You'll feel the difference, or you money back." I figur
ed what the hell... can't hurt. The old plugs came out with little effort- tools needed: ratchet driver, extension, and 5/8" spark plug socket. New plugs installed fine, car fired right up and idle was notably smoother, and perhaps a slight increase in performance... but probably just mental : ). Total cost: $20, time: 15 minutes | |||||
| Ease of Install: | | Bang for the Buck: | |
Performance Increase: | |
| Ignition Timing Advanced to 14deg BTDC | |||||
 When I first joined Miata.net, this one mod was heralded by everyone as a 'must-do' for some quick, free power. While I was all for it, I was still hesitant to be messing with the engine as such, and I didn't own a timing light. After a couple of months I decided to try it, and bought a cheapo timing light (~$45-50) from a local autoparts store, but it's inductive pickup didn't get a signal from my
NGK blue wires. I tried a couple more they had and same result... so I found a local garage that would do it for $25. I figured it was at least half as much as a timing light, so I let them 'try' to do it. Lesson- beware timing lights with readouts that
let you set the advance with a keypad- it was picking the double ignition signal from the Miata and thus when the guy set my timing to 16deg BTDC, it was really at 8, and it ran like crap. Took it back and did it myself, this time got it right but decided
to stay with 14-15 degrees BTDC with summer coming soon. Tools needed: Timing light, *short* 12mm wrench to loosen the crank angle sensor, and a flat head screwdriver for the idle adust screw. Anyway, if I did it again, cost would be $50-60 for a decent
timing light, and time: 20 minutes to get timing and idle set right together. Full information on this worthwhile procedure can be found here and here. Feels like a few more total horsepower, and the power and torque range hits lower on in the RPM's now... if you do any kind of custom intake or CAI, this mod is a must. | |||||
| Ease of Install: | | Bang for the Buck: | |
Performance Increase: | |
| K&N Filter/Custom High-Flow Intake | |||||
 Another mod I knew I wanted even before I bought my Miata was a big K&N cone style intake- my friend has one on his Integra and I liked it very much. What I didn't like was the price of the various mounting kits, which varied from the most basic 'slap it on the airflow meter' to U-shaped intake tubing to redirect the filter to the front of the car. The nicest looking and best quality kit I was told was the Racing Beat U-shaped kit, which for $170 you got the $50 filter, a U-shaped tube, and brackets to mount the filter and relocate the cruise control module. This was the kit I wanted to emulate, so I figured I could easily reproduce the U-tube and buy the filter... but my hangup was getting the cruise control relocated. After trying several vendors, even those that make the intake and bracket, I gave up and decided to forgo the U-tube and leave the CC where it wa
s. I found a place that sold the filter for $40, so with the $10 I saved I also bought the cleaner/oiler recharge kit for down the road. I took out the massive airbox unit and connected the filter right up to the airflow meter w/ a hose clamp. I made a bracket that hard-mounted the intake to the bolt the cruise control attaches to, and fabricated a heat shield to reduce the amount of hot air getting sucked in from the headers area. Many thanks to Bob Schnider and his K&N intake page for ideas and advice for this type of setup. The result: a load, deep, throaty growl is roared out under full throttle, a type of sound I've never heard from a 4 cylinder engine. This sound is simply awesome, and worth the mod alone... but fortunately there's some great high-end power added- especially above 5000rpm, when under WOT and the intake is growling, my Miata really MOVES now- great for highway passing and all around fun. I'm seeing people really turn thei
r heads when they hear the growl and see it's a Miata making all that noise! Tools needed: 10mm socket + ratchet, screwdriver. Total cost: $65 for filter, mounting hardware, and heatshield materials. Time: 30 minutes for just replacing airbox w/ filter, another couple of hours to fabricate brackets and heatshield. I have finished the page with more details on this intake install- CLICK HERE.Ease of Install: | | Bang for the Buck: | | Performance Increase: | |
| Mobil 1 Synthetic motor oil | |||||
 When it came time for my first oil change after buying the Miata w/ 50K miles on it, I decided to go with synthetic. Biggest reason was the higher revs
I was giving this engine was really translating to a quicker and noticeable detrioration of the dino oil I inherited. I also want to protect my investment, and from what I've heard Mobil1 is one of the best choices available. I let the dealer do it this
time (brought the oil to him) and until I get ramps probably let him keep doing it. Total cost: $15 for the oil (4 quarts), and $18 labor for most places if you're lazy like me :). Update- This last oil change (done by myself thank you very much) I switched to Mobil 1 15-50 weight to see if the intermittant HLA clatter is reduced. So far, so good. Ease of Install: | | Bang for the Buck: | | Performance Increase: | |
| Miata.net Sticker | |||||
 Thanks to Keith Tanner for supplying this excellent quality (3M) adhesive backed Miata.net logo sticker. Keith supplies them in several sizes- this being the smallest. I figured the best place to stick it would be the view most enjoy of my quick little Miata, the back of it : ). The third brakelight seemed as good as place as any (I'm pro-symmetry), and the silver sticker looks great on the red lens contrasted by the Starlight blue paint. Check out Keith's site for ordering information.
Ease of Install: | | Bang for the Buck: | | Performance Increase: | (Adds .5 HP! No, really!) |
| Project Root Canal | |||||
 It took four months, but I'd finally grown so tired of looking at the ugly tiedown hooks in Miata's mouth that it overcame the imminent pain that would surely accompany removing them. If you haven't done it, and don't have ABS, don't worry- it's simple and painless. If you have ABS and your windshield washer reservoir is up by the radiator... well have fun. The passenger side is a breeze- start with that one to get the feel of what you're doing- all bolts are 14mm, and there are three of them per side. Two can be removed with a socket wrench, the third needs a standard wrench. When done, take a break and have a beer. The driver side is a PITA... there's one quick and easy bolt you can use the socket wrench for, the other two require a standard wrench. The one that sits directly behind the reservoir tube is at such an angle I had to use the wrench parallel to the bolt in combination with some locking pliers and turn just millimeters at a time. There's a lot of threads. Rest your wrist before doing the last one- you can get to it be sliding the wrench in the mouth, but it can only turn a few degrees at a time. Can you say repetitive motion injury? Then there's the knuckle cracker when you first break a bolt loose. It was worth it though - it looks sooo much better, especially with the driving lights in the mouth. Tools Needed: Socket wrench with 14mm socket, 14mm standard wrench, pliers or vise-grips. Time: 30-60 minutes depending on your patience level. Cost: $.12 bandaid for knuckle, $1.00 Beer.
Ease of Install: | | Bang for the Buck: | | Performance Increase: | (Hey- I shed almost 8lbs with the operation!) |
| Hard Top Hanger (on a budget :) | |||||
 After moving to my new house and getting rid of my old hardtop holder (dead Waverunner :), I had to come up with a new solution. I didn't like the hoists (the hardtop would sit too low) and I had no room for a cart, plus both retail options were too expensive. Instead I used the experience of two DIY Miata-netters (Regie Bryant and Gary Spray) to build my own hardtop hanger/rack. Gary's method employed hanging the rack from the ceiling and using heavy duty hooks, while Regie mounted his on the wall and used actual 'frankenbolts' from a Miata. I went with wall mounted, but just used some round headed bolts and washers that approximated the frankenbolt size. Some crude plans are HERE... no guarantees but it worked great for me. Be *sure* to anchor at least the outer two lag bolts securely into wall studs or you may be sorry. With hindsight, I would recommend the hooks method, as if you are off on your measurements, you can "toe" the hooks in or out as needed- the bolts on the otherhand require high precision measurement and drilling. Cost: $5 for the lumber, $4 for bolts & hooks.
Ease of Install: | | Bang for the Buck: | | Performance Increase: | |
| New Tires- Pirelli P6000's | |||||
 I bought my Miata with some quite used and lousy Sumitomo's so I had been looking for new tires for a while. I didn't have much to spend, so I shopped around and priced many inexpensive tires popular with the Miata crowd- namely the Bridgestone RE71's, Yokohama AVSi's, Dunlop SP8000's, and the Pirelli P6000 & P7000. I finally decided on the P6000's when I saw TireRack.com had them on "sale" for $49 a piece and getting some opinions from those that have used the Pirelli's. I ordered them on a Tuesday and they were at my door on Friday via UPS. I had them mounted locally the next day, and have been extremely happy since. My take- FANTASTIC in the wet- so good they're unbelievable. Very good in the dry- kinda loud well before they break loose, with plenty of warning. Overall I give them an A+. They also completely ridded me of the dreaded Miata 65mph shimmy, so I'm looking to get an alignment soon to keep the P6000's pristine. Cost: $199.96 for the tires, $32 shipping, $52 for balancing and mounting. Saved over $100 from buying locally!
Ease of Install: | N/A (Ask Tire Kingdom :) | | Bang for the Buck: | | Performance Increase: | |
| Stealth Garage Door Remote | |||||
 When I moved into my new house and was handed the 10 year old monster sized garage door opener that had melted from too many days on someone's dash, I decided to try to semi-permanently mount the remote in my Miata, but cleanly. I chose to put it in a small cavity behind the radio on the driver's side using the blank that was apparently something more useful in a previous life (light?). I disassembled the remote, located the the solder points that were behind the button, and soldered a wire pair to the circuit board (disconnect the 9V battery first!). I then removed the blank from the car, bought a small push-button switch from radio shack that would fit nicely and look moderately stock, and installed the switch in the blank. I ran a wire pair from the switch and put some quick-disconnects on it as well as the wires coming off the circuit board (easy removal for battery replacement). Once installed it looks clean, works great (couple hundred feet range), and no worry about the remote getting stolen while parked top down. Cost: $2.50 for switch. Time: 20 minutes.
Ease of Install: | | Bang for the Buck: | | Performance Increase: | |
| Shiny Stuff - Voodoo Baby! | |||||
 I finally broke down and had to get some dress up items for the interior. I didn't want anything too flashy, so I chose the spun finish on my magnum Voodoo shifter and emergency brake handle, as well as my MRoad vent trim rings. Shift knob installation as a breeze- just unscrew the OEM, screw on the Voodoo. The emergency brake was a bit more difficult however- the Nardi wood handle was glued on at the factory and required some serious pull/twist action after heating up with a hair dryer. The Voodoo replacement is held on with a set screw for easy installation and removal if needed. While the e-brake was apart I also installed a nice black leather shift boot to replace the plastic crap Mazda put on. The trim rings went on fine with a little silicon glue. Overall I'm very happy with the aluminum accents- really looks sharp and the big Voodoo feels great... almost like getting a short shifter kit for free. Time: 20 mins, Cost: Trim Rings=$34.99 (MRoad.com), Magnum Voodoo Spun=$24.95 and Voodoo Ebrake=$40 (Dealer Alternative),Leather E-Brake boot=$24.95 (Tommy).
Ease of Install: | | Bang for the Buck: | | Performance Increase: | |
| Shock Tower Brace | |||||
 After looking around for some time for an inexpensive adjustable shock tower brace, I came across this one from Tommy at FinishLinePerformance.com- good quality construction, great polished look. Installation went pretty smooth- the only hurdle was to re-position my factory alarm siren off the passenger side shock tower mount. The result- a more solid front-end, sharper and more precise steering, and a great looking brace. Time: 30 mins, Cost: $99.
Ease of Install: | | Bang for the Buck: | | Performance Increase: | |
| SAS Bazooka 8" RS Amplified Subwoofer | |||||
 Although I've been very happy with the factory Pioneer stereo system, it really lacks low frequency response. I went back and forth between trunk based speaker box and installing subs right in the rear shelf, and finally decided to try a Bazooka tube out for fit and sound. First model I tried was the EL 8" amplified- from standing still it was adequate, but at speed with the top down it was barely noticeable. I took it back and tried the RS 8" amplified- much louder, deeper bass, at any speed with 100 more watts than the EL. The 8" fits down in the well in the trunk leaving quite a bit of room left for laptop, groceries, etc. Hardest part was tapping into the speaker wires from behind the stock stereo (which involves center console removal). Very satisfied upgrade overall. Time: 120 mins, Cost: $349 (Sound Advice).
Ease of Install: | | Bang for the Buck: | | Performance Increase: | |
| Tranny & Differential lube change | |||||
 After clocking 65K miles, I decided it was time to change my transmission and differential oils to synthetic lubricants. I also knew from doing the above stereo work that my rubber shift boots (underneath the faux leather one) were pretty torn up and were in need of replacement, so I ordered them as well as some REDLINE brand synthetic oil from Roebuck Mazda. I chose Redline basically because everyone else uses it and I've never heard anything bad about it. You'll need two quarts of MTL for the tranny, one quart of 75W90 for the differential, and about 90cc MTL for the shift turret (underneath the afore mentioned boots). I used the shop manual as well as Gary's Hakuna site for reference, but this is very straightforward work. Time: 2 hours, Cost: $32 for 4 qts of Redline, and about $30 for the boots.
Ease of Install: | | Bang for the Buck: | | Performance Increase: | |
| K.G. Works Style Bar | |||||
 After waiting month after month and excuse after excuse for Brainstorm to ship the chrome style bar I ordered, I finally wised up and checked around for a different vendor for such a bar. This past weekend I found RSpeed had a K.G. Works bar made of polished stainless steel for approx the same price, and unlike Brainstorm, they actually have items they sell in stock (what a concept! :). Also unlike Brainstorm, they actually get back to their customers, even on a holiday weekend... and got me the bar in 3 days.
It's a great quality bar, involves no cutting or drilling of any kind- and unlike the other bars, you don't have to remove the factory rear cockpit brace- it was installed in less than 15 minutes with a 17mm socket wrench... cost: $299.
Ease of Install: | | Bang for the Buck: | | Performance Increase: | |
| Borla Catback and Jackson Racing Cat | |||||
 I had noticed an increased rattly sound from my cat from 70k miles on, and was looking for to replace my exhaust with something more sporty sounding and some increased power. Well, I found it... this combo both sounds great (read "loud as hell!" :) and delivers in the performance dept. The sound is just fantastic- a great burble at low rpms and a loud growl above 3000rpm... that alone is worth the price of admission, and that annoying rattle is finally gone with the new cat in place. It pulls hard straight thru to redline now with no flatspots or hesitation. Installation was a breeze (20 minutes) once the old OEM exhaust was removed (couple hours) - it's a direct bolt on replacement. Some tips: *Spray old cat converter bolts/nuts & rear O2 sensor with wd40 or other rust penetrant the night before the 'operation'. *Put some dishsoap & water in a sprayer and soak the rubber hangers for both removal and installation. *Remove the rear suspension brace prior to removal and installation- things go much smoother. *Lastly, if you don't have a O2 removal socket, an open-ended 22mm or 7/8" wrench works fine. Cost: $319.
Ease of Install: | | Bang for the Buck: | | Performance Increase: | |
| Project S2000 Big Red Button | |||||
 I admit it...since I first saw the Honda S2000 Roadster, I've had big red button envy. As much as I like the car though, I like my Miata and it's price tag a whole lot more... hence Project Big Red Button. As soon as I saw the plans on Miata.net's garage section by Adam Wolf I decided that was the BRB for me. His directions are excellent and detailed, and while it requires some cutting of the dash and wires, I'm keeping my Miata until it dies so I didn't mind. I ordered the button from Honda, and the relay from Radio Shack (they don't carry in store for whatever reason). Widening the hole for the button went slow and was a little nerve-racking, but was successful thanks to my Dremel. Wiring was a snap- highly recommend using a 3 1/2 floppy drive power cable for the connector to the button as was discovered by lister Roy Rappaport- I didn't know of this yet and soldered instead. For the relocation of the cigarette lighter, I took out my center console and mounted it inside - a mod that I really wanted to do long before the BRB idea because of my cellphone. I also ran a new wire for power back to the trunk and to the battery for an always on connection so I can leave my phone in the car overnight to charge. Cost- $35 for the button, $3 for the relay, & wires and connectors ~$5.
Pictures of finished install
Ease of Install: | | Bang for the Buck: | | Performance Increase: | BRB=Essense of Zoom Zoom : ) |
| Visual Radio Frequency (cellular phone) detector | |||||
 Even prior to relocating my cig lighter into my center console (see above), I've had trouble hearing my phone ring when I had the top down & radio up. While my phones have "vibration" mode, that is typically overpowered by my Miata's & the road's vibrations. This lead to missed calls, which lead to angry wife... hence the quest for this solution. A friend at work had given me a Pokemon-looking "duck" thing that he picked up at a flea market that sits on the desk and its belly flashes if it senses RF signals in the range that cellphones receive and send. I decided to see if I could take the chip and LED out, and find a place to mount it in my Miata and see if it worked with my phone in my center console. It worked, so I found a removable panel on the top of my steering column that could house the little chip/battery/LED combo. Instead of installing it with the LED poking straight up, I installed it at the back of the panel with the LED bent pointing to my face, so it shows up in daylight with no problem. How well does it work? Pretty good- some false alarms I've learned to ignore... largely due to my 2-way pager I imagine, and also my Nextel phone has mobile IP and "chats" with the cell tower every once in a while. However, a real call is unmistakable with the light flashing repeatedly, so it does what I want it to. Price? I think the duck thing was less than $10... I'm going to research where I can get some more if anybody is interested.
Pictures of LED RF/Cell detector install
Ease of Install: | | Bang for the Buck: | | Performance Increase: | |
| White Gauge Faces w/ Indiglo backlighting | |||||
 I've been looking at getting some replacement gauges for my Miata for some time, but couldn't bring myself to pay $125-150 for a few pieces of plastic. Then along came these unique gauges- white faces with red numbers and 'ticks' that look normal during the day... but the kicker is at night they're made of blue/green (switchable) indiglo material. Best of all, I picked them up off of eBay new for $62... I couldn't pass them up. These are also handy in that they "slip" on over your existing needles and gauges - you only have to remove the screws from each gauge temporarily. However, having white gauges and white needles don't work real well during the day, so I decided to paint the needles red to match the gauge markings and for great contrast. The only other trick to the install was finding a power source to run to the gauges, as you can't run them off the factory dimmer switch. I chose to use the ashtray light circuit for an easy to find source of 12V when the parking/headlights are turned on. The result? I love 'em - they given the interior a very classic roadster look (along with the polished aluminum gauge rings) that really draw your eyes to them.
Pictures comparisons of indiglo gauges at day and night
Ease of Install: | | Bang for the Buck: | | Performance Increase: | |
