Did some good work this weekend. Moved the thermostat housing to the back of the head to even out temps through the block with a clever kit from 949 racing, also put in a massive overkill radiator so I never have to worry about temps. My old radiator had a brown/green color to the tanks and was a little questionable. This one is roughly twice as thick, is a side flow unit, and makes 3 passes before exiting; aka, hella cooling capacity. I may do a little ducting in the future, but for now I think I'm good. I'll run an OBD DAQ when I get the chance to cane on the car a little. Also a new timing belt, water pump, accessory belts, spark plugs, fresh FL22 Mazda coolant, and several new hoses in the cooling system.
The really cool thing is the reroute kit I used works with a completely stock car. I've retained all emissions hardware, including the EGR! No CEL from removing equipment from the car.
Also got a nice little axleback muffler that makes happy roadster noises to go along with the happy roadster smile. I'm hoping to get a GoPro and external mic set up soon so I can start taking video of some fun roads here with some decent audio to go with it. Since I sold the Scion, I've really missed having a car that makes quality exhaust noise. This one seems to do the trick without being offensive. It's a little boomy in the bass though, so I'm hoping it mellows after a few heat cycles. Boss lady is already a little displeased by the fact that I bought it in the first place.
The car is getting a roll bar soon, much to my displeasure, because some of the events I want to do require them. There's a newish time trial event with the SCCA I'd like to try out, along with knocking down some cones... I mean autocross... Oh well. I'm not thrilled, but I'm going to suck it up and do it. I'm not really loving the idea of seats and harnesses and a rollbar for a street vehicle, but I will give it a shot. I'm a skinny dude so it would be nice to have a seat that keeps me centered for a change.
Stock suspension and brakes while I learn to drive this thing! Likely next year I'll get some higher end dampers for the car. XIDA, Fox, Ohlins, something along those lines. I really want to put an emphasis on keeping ride quality while improving body control. Between the mountain bike and the truck, I'm very spoiled by suspension right now and I'm really wanting something for the Miata that can keep tires on the ground for rough stuff, control the body movement without stiff springs and sway bars, and not ruin my back on expansion joints from excessively harsh single rate damping. $$$$$$. Some day.
Know what's sad? My truck weighs 4800 lbs and is a full second quicker to 60...