Goodbye 4-Banger, Hello LS2 – Miata Build
10-12-2011, 12:32 AM
#1
11 Second Club
Thread Starter
Goodbye 4-Banger, Hello LS2 – Miata Build Hey everyone, my names Mike. I’ve been lurking on these forums for a few months researching everything possible to swap a LS2 into my 2001 Miata.
First a little bit about the car. I bought the car new in March of 2001. I didn’t want leather and all the options so I ordered a base model with a Torsen diff and a hardtop.
Here’s a shot of it brand new still sitting in the dealer lot.
I had the car a couple months before I got the itch to start modifying things. Before I knew it I had replaced the suspension and wheels.
Now I had a great handling, rear wheel drive car but it was missing something…..power! Next I installed some bolt-ons. Intake, headers and exhaust. The car sounded good, had great throttle response but it was still slower than dirt. I think I ran a 15.7 with this setup. Not exactly a ¼ mile car but it gives you an idea of its power in near-stock trim. Here’s a shot of it on the dyno where it made a whopping 112RWHP.
To help out in the power department I traded in my NA bolt-ons for a FM2 turbo kit. After a weekend of wrenching in the garage I went from 112RWHP to around 180RWHP. At my only trip to the drag strip on OEM 195 tires, stock clutch and a rough tune I ended up running a best of 13.5@103. Here’s a shot of the turbo kit installed.
Soon after adding the turbo kit in 2003 I started auto-crossing. By 2005 I was pretty competitive in the car. I removed just about everything within the rules of the class (SM2, now SSM) including all emissions equipment, muffler (not loud with the turbo), A/C, P/S, lightweight seats, lightweight 3-piece wheels, ect.. Despite still having a full interior and the added weight of the turbo system I was able to get the race weight down to 2125lbs. At this time the turbo was now tuned better and was up to about 210RWHP@10PSI.
After the 2005 season I decided to retire the car from auto-cross. I didn’t have a trailer for the car so driving it half way across the country, racing it, and praying nothing broke so I could drive it back home was no longer an option. The downside to doubling a cars output without upgrading the rest of the drive train is that things start to break….and they did. After three 5 speeds and a trashed engine (snapped rod) I was done racing it. I rebuild another engine but this time it was going to be for the street. I’m now racing a vehicle that costs a fraction of what the Miata did, has 1/5 the tire budget and is much, much faster... And OH YEA, it fits in the back of my truck!
I still drive the car on the street. Not a daily driver but I take it on trips and run errands and stuff… Basically just a fair weather, weekend car. After seeing more than a few successful LSx Miata swaps I got the bug again for more power. This time I plan on doing it right! Here’s the car as it sits now.
Just recently I’ve started purchasing things to get the ball rolling on the swap. The first thing I found was an LS2/T56 dropout from a 2005 GTO with 43K miles. Once I got the engine home I decided to run a compression check on the engine….and it’s a good thing I did. The engine would not turn over either by hand or with a battery. After tearing the engine down to figure out what the problem was I started to wonder if the engine didn’t have much more mileage on it than the seller claimed. It turned out to be a cracked ring that was jammed up against the cylinder wall. This was all way more work that I intended, so after a couple weeks of downtime I sent the engine back to the seller and finally got refunded my money. https://ls1tech.com/forums/generatio...cs-inside.html
Since then I’ve found another LS2/T56 from another GTO. This time the engine only had 41K miles but the price was about $1K more than the first engine. Reason it was so expensive ($6.6K) was because it had a FAST 90 intake, SLP long tubes, and Billet short throw shifter on it. I figured by selling those couple things I could come close to making up the extra cost over the other engine. Unfortunately the shipping company had other plans. They decided to load things on top of the engine (that said top load only all over it) shattering the high dollar intake, MAP sensor, belt tensioner, crank pulley and a couple other small things. The good news is that this engine looks to be in MUCH better shape than the first one, and as a bonus, when I removed the T56 I found a sweet Stage 3 Monster clutch package hidden inside! Excellent, more stuff to sell off to make up for that extra cost. The seller is working with the shipping company and is expected to refund me the total cost of a new FAST and other parts. No money yet but the seller is keeping me up to date on everything. Here’s a before and after shot of the FAST 90.
Other things I’ve picked up to date:
• LS3 Intake with fuel rail and injectors
• CTS Rear 3.23 limited slip PN# 25978162
• T56 offset shift bushing for F-body from Thegearbox.org
• MaxJax 2-post lift!
More updates tomorrow!
First a little bit about the car. I bought the car new in March of 2001. I didn’t want leather and all the options so I ordered a base model with a Torsen diff and a hardtop.
Here’s a shot of it brand new still sitting in the dealer lot.
I had the car a couple months before I got the itch to start modifying things. Before I knew it I had replaced the suspension and wheels.
Now I had a great handling, rear wheel drive car but it was missing something…..power! Next I installed some bolt-ons. Intake, headers and exhaust. The car sounded good, had great throttle response but it was still slower than dirt. I think I ran a 15.7 with this setup. Not exactly a ¼ mile car but it gives you an idea of its power in near-stock trim. Here’s a shot of it on the dyno where it made a whopping 112RWHP.
To help out in the power department I traded in my NA bolt-ons for a FM2 turbo kit. After a weekend of wrenching in the garage I went from 112RWHP to around 180RWHP. At my only trip to the drag strip on OEM 195 tires, stock clutch and a rough tune I ended up running a best of 13.5@103. Here’s a shot of the turbo kit installed.
Soon after adding the turbo kit in 2003 I started auto-crossing. By 2005 I was pretty competitive in the car. I removed just about everything within the rules of the class (SM2, now SSM) including all emissions equipment, muffler (not loud with the turbo), A/C, P/S, lightweight seats, lightweight 3-piece wheels, ect.. Despite still having a full interior and the added weight of the turbo system I was able to get the race weight down to 2125lbs. At this time the turbo was now tuned better and was up to about 210RWHP@10PSI.
After the 2005 season I decided to retire the car from auto-cross. I didn’t have a trailer for the car so driving it half way across the country, racing it, and praying nothing broke so I could drive it back home was no longer an option. The downside to doubling a cars output without upgrading the rest of the drive train is that things start to break….and they did. After three 5 speeds and a trashed engine (snapped rod) I was done racing it. I rebuild another engine but this time it was going to be for the street. I’m now racing a vehicle that costs a fraction of what the Miata did, has 1/5 the tire budget and is much, much faster... And OH YEA, it fits in the back of my truck!
I still drive the car on the street. Not a daily driver but I take it on trips and run errands and stuff… Basically just a fair weather, weekend car. After seeing more than a few successful LSx Miata swaps I got the bug again for more power. This time I plan on doing it right! Here’s the car as it sits now.
Just recently I’ve started purchasing things to get the ball rolling on the swap. The first thing I found was an LS2/T56 dropout from a 2005 GTO with 43K miles. Once I got the engine home I decided to run a compression check on the engine….and it’s a good thing I did. The engine would not turn over either by hand or with a battery. After tearing the engine down to figure out what the problem was I started to wonder if the engine didn’t have much more mileage on it than the seller claimed. It turned out to be a cracked ring that was jammed up against the cylinder wall. This was all way more work that I intended, so after a couple weeks of downtime I sent the engine back to the seller and finally got refunded my money. https://ls1tech.com/forums/generatio...cs-inside.html
Since then I’ve found another LS2/T56 from another GTO. This time the engine only had 41K miles but the price was about $1K more than the first engine. Reason it was so expensive ($6.6K) was because it had a FAST 90 intake, SLP long tubes, and Billet short throw shifter on it. I figured by selling those couple things I could come close to making up the extra cost over the other engine. Unfortunately the shipping company had other plans. They decided to load things on top of the engine (that said top load only all over it) shattering the high dollar intake, MAP sensor, belt tensioner, crank pulley and a couple other small things. The good news is that this engine looks to be in MUCH better shape than the first one, and as a bonus, when I removed the T56 I found a sweet Stage 3 Monster clutch package hidden inside! Excellent, more stuff to sell off to make up for that extra cost. The seller is working with the shipping company and is expected to refund me the total cost of a new FAST and other parts. No money yet but the seller is keeping me up to date on everything. Here’s a before and after shot of the FAST 90.
Other things I’ve picked up to date:
• LS3 Intake with fuel rail and injectors
• CTS Rear 3.23 limited slip PN# 25978162
• T56 offset shift bushing for F-body from Thegearbox.org
• MaxJax 2-post lift!
More updates tomorrow!
10-12-2011, 09:01 AM
#5
Looks like a sweet build man one question though are you planning on converting to ls3 heads? Reason being is that the intake ports are different and the ls3 intake doesn't work on ls2 heads. Short of keeping the fast you best bet would be an ls6 intake
10-12-2011, 09:32 AM
#7
11 Second Club
Thread Starter
Cheapest I could find was $1900 shipped from Garage Equipment Supply. There are certainly cheaper lifts out there but with my ceiling being only 8'6" high this was my only 2-post option. I'm still working on finishing the install on it. I had a couple of the anchors pull up when I tested them so I have a couple replacements on order. Should be done by the end of the week so I can start dis-assembly of the car.
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10-12-2011, 09:34 AM
#8
11 Second Club
Thread Starter
10-12-2011, 09:47 AM
#10
11 Second Club
Thread Starter
10-12-2011, 10:16 AM
#11
There are "swap KITS" that use it. That may be the end reason. So, MX 6.0 is that why?
Welcome MX6.0, With your background, am sure the end result will be an excellent handling, high performance rocket. Good-luck w/ the build.
10-12-2011, 10:27 AM
#12
11 Second Club
Thread Starter
Yes, the main reason I went with the diff was the "kit" is designed around either the CTS diff or an 8.8". The CTS diff hasn't had any problems to date that I know of in a Miata so I went with that. The CTS rear was also the lighter of the 2 so that was an added benefit.
10-12-2011, 11:18 AM
#13
Yes, I plan on getting a set of assembled LS3 heads in the near future. I thought about getting the LS2 heads build but for the price I just decided to get new LS3's ($630/pair).
Everything I've read about these diffs on Miata's leads me to believe that they are more than adequate for my application. The failures I've read about were all from launching a 4000lb car, many of which had wheel hop issues from the factory. Also the earlier CTS diffs were lacking some extra case bracing that mine has. I got the diff shipped to my door for $290 and it only has a dozen miles on it. Worst case scenario if I break this diff I'll replace it with a 2008+ cts diff
Everything I've read about these diffs on Miata's leads me to believe that they are more than adequate for my application. The failures I've read about were all from launching a 4000lb car, many of which had wheel hop issues from the factory. Also the earlier CTS diffs were lacking some extra case bracing that mine has. I got the diff shipped to my door for $290 and it only has a dozen miles on it. Worst case scenario if I break this diff I'll replace it with a 2008+ cts diff
Porting the 243's would be around 600 and you could use your same rockers but will need new springs and they will out perform the stock ls3's by a good margin.
10-12-2011, 11:31 AM
#14
id get some SDPC CNC assembled ls3 heads. $750 each complete with springs. rocker stands and intake rockers only run about $100 on Ebay, then add in a compelte ls3 manifold. but it is a better combo and leaves lots of room for future growth and makes plenty of power without having to run a donkey dick cam.
10-12-2011, 12:06 PM
#15
11 Second Club
Thread Starter
I would honestly go ahead and get the 243's ported and worked oover. With the ls3's you will also need to track down rockers since they are different and you will also need to upgrade the stock springs so it will quite a bit more than 630 by the time u get those parts.
Porting the 243's would be around 600 and you could use your same rockers but will need new springs and they will out perform the stock ls3's by a good margin.
Porting the 243's would be around 600 and you could use your same rockers but will need new springs and they will out perform the stock ls3's by a good margin.
I found the offset rockers and rocker stands for pretty cheap.
Offset intake rockers - 12569167 $10/ea from Pace
Offset rocker stands - 12600936 $8/ea from Pace
Found the LS3 intake with rails, injectors and bolts for $300 from SLP
I might change my setup down the road but for now I just want bang for the buck upgrades. This swap is putting a pretty big dent in my wallet as it is
10-12-2011, 05:36 PM
#16
Looks like a nice swap. Got a question for you. Are you willing to sell the left over parts to the FAST intake? I have one that is all messed up as well. But mine is in the back. Willing to purchase for a few bucks. Please send me a PM if you still have it and what you want for it. I really need to fix mine.
10-12-2011, 06:05 PM
#17
11 Second Club
Thread Starter
Looks like a nice swap. Got a question for you. Are you willing to sell the left over parts to the FAST intake? I have one that is all messed up as well. But mine is in the back. Willing to purchase for a few bucks. Please send me a PM if you still have it and what you want for it. I really need to fix mine.
10-12-2011, 07:55 PM
#20
11 Second Club
Thread Starter
Sure will. One thing I can say is make sure you use a good rotary hammer drill. I started with a regular one and quickly found out that the holes sucked and took forever. Rent one or buy one and take it back. lol. (the hardware store didn't offer rental tools in my area)