LS1 Miata question
Thread Starter
On The Tree
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 159
Likes: 0
From: Kaneohe, Hawaii
LS1 Miata question I am buying a 4th gen f-body for a donor car to swap into my 1999 Miata. What parts would I need from the car aside from:
Engine
Transmission
Wiring harness
Clutch pedal assembly
Front accessory drive
Thanks for the imput, getting psyched for the swap!
Engine
Transmission
Wiring harness
Clutch pedal assembly
Front accessory drive
Thanks for the imput, getting psyched for the swap!
11 Second Club
Joined: Sep 2011
Posts: 390
Likes: 2
From: The Burnie, MD
You don't need the clutch pedal. You can use a different clutch master to use with the stock pedal.
Might be ok with the F-body accessories but CTS-V/G8 accessories are the preferred set-up. They don't stick out as far and it puts the alternator on the drivers side down low.
Wise choice on the swap, you're gonna love it!
Might be ok with the F-body accessories but CTS-V/G8 accessories are the preferred set-up. They don't stick out as far and it puts the alternator on the drivers side down low.
Wise choice on the swap, you're gonna love it!
Thread Starter
On The Tree
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 159
Likes: 0
From: Kaneohe, Hawaii
You don't need the clutch pedal. You can use a different clutch master to use with the stock pedal.
Might be ok with the F-body accessories but CTS-V/G8 accessories are the preferred set-up. They don't stick out as far and it puts the alternator on the drivers side down low.
Wise choice on the swap, you're gonna love it!
Might be ok with the F-body accessories but CTS-V/G8 accessories are the preferred set-up. They don't stick out as far and it puts the alternator on the drivers side down low.
Wise choice on the swap, you're gonna love it!
Plan on running no power steering or A/C, still advise the CTS-V pulley set-up?
Can I use the f-body radiator?
Not sure the size or dimensions of the F-body rad. The LSX specific swap radiators for the Miata are nice in that they put the inlet/outlet in the right place. Obviously the f-body rad would too but none of the current swappers I know have indicated it was an option and we are some cheap bastards so someone had to have tried it.
When I originally did my swap I was using an aluminum upgraded radiator but I had to snake the bottom coolant hose all over the place to go from the WP outlet to the rad.
You'll still want the CTS-V front pulley setup and C5 balancer to give you more room up front for the rad clearance to fit puller fans and for the sway bar to clear the balancer.
When I originally did my swap I was using an aluminum upgraded radiator but I had to snake the bottom coolant hose all over the place to go from the WP outlet to the rad.
You'll still want the CTS-V front pulley setup and C5 balancer to give you more room up front for the rad clearance to fit puller fans and for the sway bar to clear the balancer.
I suggest you review the conversion section of the miata forum and google swaptastic. 99.9% of any miata swap questions are addressed over there.
Btw, f body radiator is huge in those cars.
Btw, f body radiator is huge in those cars.
You can check out my friend musanovic's thread for some tips:
https://ls1tech.com/forums/conversio...ight=musanovic
Here is what we used for the accessories (CTS-V Setup):
ACDelco 12560115 Harmonic Balancer - About $60 on Amazon
ACDelco 12568996 Main Idler Pulley - About $32 on Amazon
LS3 Water Pump 19180610 - Crate Take-off - About $110 on eBay
He is currently running an upgraded Miata Aluminum Radiator but as stated above the hose had to snaked from the water pump outlet on the passenger side below the sway across to the entry into the radiator on the drivers side. He built a small bracket in the middle of the radiator support to hold the hose so it wouldn't hit the balancer
The clutch pedal is the stock Miata one nut the clutch master has been upgraded to a Toyota Land Cruiser one with a bigger bore. The Land Curiser master has bolt spacing that is about 1/4 inch closer than the Miata but once shaved out a bit bolts right up
Are you going to be Drive-By-Wire or Drive-By-Cable?
https://ls1tech.com/forums/conversio...ight=musanovic
Here is what we used for the accessories (CTS-V Setup):
ACDelco 12560115 Harmonic Balancer - About $60 on Amazon
ACDelco 12568996 Main Idler Pulley - About $32 on Amazon
LS3 Water Pump 19180610 - Crate Take-off - About $110 on eBay
He is currently running an upgraded Miata Aluminum Radiator but as stated above the hose had to snaked from the water pump outlet on the passenger side below the sway across to the entry into the radiator on the drivers side. He built a small bracket in the middle of the radiator support to hold the hose so it wouldn't hit the balancer
The clutch pedal is the stock Miata one nut the clutch master has been upgraded to a Toyota Land Cruiser one with a bigger bore. The Land Curiser master has bolt spacing that is about 1/4 inch closer than the Miata but once shaved out a bit bolts right up
Are you going to be Drive-By-Wire or Drive-By-Cable?
Teching In
Joined: Oct 2012
Posts: 26
Likes: 0
Good to see a new Miata LSx thread on here! Also just starting to gather my parts for a hopeful LS2 swap (sold my recently-acquired LS1 engine last Friday). I have never seen the donor radiator used for these swaps, but am curious what existing rads would be good Miata swap candidates. Have a FM radiator on order - just so I have proper cooling and hose placement. Didn't want to chance it with the upgrade Koyo that I just removed...
Trending Topics
I used the BF kit. For a Rad I went with a Griffin Thermal Products. I asked that they make it to Miata dementions and include all the stand offs for the Miata fans, but make it thicker and with inlet/outlets in the LS locations. I ended up with a 3" thick Miata rad. I had to move it forward and down but it has not let me down even when pushed hard in hot weather.
For hoses I took a coat hanger and bent it to the shape I needed. Then I went to the local NAPA and matched up my bends to existing hoses. My upper hose was off the shelf but cut to length, the lower is made with 2 hose connectors to get the bends oriented. Have not had an issue with these either.
The rear diff is where I would offer that you use the most caution. I used an aluminum diff from an 04 Cobra. With the BF lower plate mounted I have little room to get the exhaust pipes through past the axles. My exhaust was being done as part of a car swap so I couldnt be overly picky. I ended up flattening out larger pipes to get the volume I needed and the clearence to go under the diff. Its tight and the car bottoms on hard dips with two large adults and luggage. I plan to reroute to a 2 into one pipe later.
For hoses I took a coat hanger and bent it to the shape I needed. Then I went to the local NAPA and matched up my bends to existing hoses. My upper hose was off the shelf but cut to length, the lower is made with 2 hose connectors to get the bends oriented. Have not had an issue with these either.
The rear diff is where I would offer that you use the most caution. I used an aluminum diff from an 04 Cobra. With the BF lower plate mounted I have little room to get the exhaust pipes through past the axles. My exhaust was being done as part of a car swap so I couldnt be overly picky. I ended up flattening out larger pipes to get the volume I needed and the clearence to go under the diff. Its tight and the car bottoms on hard dips with two large adults and luggage. I plan to reroute to a 2 into one pipe later.
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On The Tree
iTrader: (11)
Joined: Jan 2011
Posts: 123
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From: The forsaken tundra of Minnesota
I'm one of the cheap bastards that have tried it and the F body radiator is WAY too big.
I too would caution you on what rear end to use but most of all I would not use a boss frog hanger. They are very well made but not worth the exhaust headache IMO and everyone has trouble with them.
The things that trip most people up is wiring and exhaust so do what you can to make those easy. There is tons of great build threads on Flyin Miata and V8Miata.net. I would suggest you just read and read and read some more on those sites before you spend a dime on anything. Oh and yes google swaptastic as that is an epic build but keep in mind how old it is. There is lots of new parts out there now.
Please post up a build thread over on V8miata.net too. I would very much like to follow your build!
Good luck!!
I too would caution you on what rear end to use but most of all I would not use a boss frog hanger. They are very well made but not worth the exhaust headache IMO and everyone has trouble with them.
The things that trip most people up is wiring and exhaust so do what you can to make those easy. There is tons of great build threads on Flyin Miata and V8Miata.net. I would suggest you just read and read and read some more on those sites before you spend a dime on anything. Oh and yes google swaptastic as that is an epic build but keep in mind how old it is. There is lots of new parts out there now.
Please post up a build thread over on V8miata.net too. I would very much like to follow your build!
Good luck!!
Last edited by charchri4; Mar 13, 2013 at 04:08 PM.
