Short Track Build Suggestions

Nails

Nails

Greenie N00B Member
Hello Everyone, nice to meet you all.

I've got a 2008 Mazdaspeed 3 with 100k miles I'm wrenching on and prepping for another driver (brother). Picked it up bone stock now used for autox and kart track time attack; two events per month in high temps (90F+) half the year with an unsympathetic driver. I'm suggesting he focus the mod money on durability for performance use.

So far I've done;
Bilstein PSS + new top hats
Centric Rotors + EBC Yellow's + Motul RBF600 + Stoptech lines
Mishimoto oil catch can
Oil & coolant change
New CS steering wheel (old one was sticky, yuck)

The plugs were reportedly changed at approx 80k miles. Is there a suggest colder plug to get? I recently had a P0401 CEL come on, I cleaned out the EGR valve and so far no more CEL.

I am, admittedly, uneducated when it comes to turbocharged performance builds and not nearly as hip to the MS3 platform in general. I browsed a couple of forums here but hadn't seen a thread on this type of use mentioned. I'd appreciate any input by the gurus here. We live in a nanny state (CA) and need to abide by smog testing.

What I'm thinking needs to be done from here;
Whiteline sway bars [used ~$100? each]
Sway bar adjustable drop links + rear camber bars + weighted alignment
All (3) motor mounts [new ~$450?]
Aftermarket TMIC [used ~$200/new~$400?]
Schroth ASM 4 point harness (track only) [new ~$350]
HKS Hi-Power catback (he wants something as loud as possible within the letter of the law, hard of hearing + helmet makes it difficult for him) [new ~$500?]
Some sort of shifter kit? The factory unit is vague...

I see the HPFP internal upgrade [new ~$350] is important upgrade in conjunction with a Cobb AP [new ~$600] or any modification which increases power. I assume this is therefore also true for the catback and/or carb approved CAI [new ~$260]? Meaning a CAI/catback should also have the HPFP internal upgrade done even if no tune is performed. Given the tracks we're on oem power is overkill on the cheapo tires as-is but having it pull consistently to fuel cut off would be nice as he's currently short shifting it around 5k and losing a little time on the straight. I also believe this would be smog legal switching between tunes on/off track, right? My understanding of the MS3 is if it loses all oil pressure a dummy light should come on, is that accurate? Is there a preferred 'clean' or 'stealth' method to get oil pressure and temperature available to view? I'm assuming it'll be on conjunction with the adapter plate (new ~$40).

I'm including pricing MOL as that's what is on my excel spread sheet - if the number looks off or a used price can provide significant savings please correct.

Given harder use environment is there any obvious modifications or assessments I am missing? Are there any obvious performance enhancements I'm missing? Running cooler/healthier longer is what I'm after. On previous cars the track prep mods would be; add a third radiator, lower temp thermostat, more efficient waterpump, expanded/baffled oil pan, larger master brake cylinder, chassis bracing, etc. We got these two Mazda's a few of months ago and I'm still blind to the whats what on them for this sort of small track/autox duty.

So far we change oil after every 3 events and brake fluid will be every 6 since they are not as tough on brakes. Coolant will be done annually and plugs checked annually as well. I'm thinking of switching to Liqui Moly products across the board, is there a commonly used weight for track duties on the MS3? Any highly suggested trans/gear oils as well?

We are still burning off the prior owner rubber on factory wheels. Haven't crossed that bridge yet what to get as we want to keep the rubber on relative parity between the Miata and MS3. We're having a blast - we're about 0.50 second apart on the time attack track and about 1 second on the autocross. I'll try to post some videos/pictures of this months events.

Alright - way too long of a post than I intended. I appreciate any/all feedback in advance. I am sure there will be bumps along the way, will try to post all things and reviews here on the forum for knowledge share.

Best,
-C
 
What you have is a decent set up. Fuel pump internals, and an AP with a tune will wake the car way up and net you some real power.

If you really want to get on it look up an antilift kit. Front swaybar is not all that needed IMO. Motor mounts will help with the shifting a lot, so before you do any sort of shifter do those and see how you feel.
 
Maisonvi said:
What you have is a decent set up. Fuel pump internals, and an AP with a tune will wake the car way up and net you some real power.

If you really want to get on it look up an antilift kit. Front swaybar is not all that needed IMO. Motor mounts will help with the shifting a lot, so before you do any sort of shifter do those and see how you feel.
Click to expand...

Hi Maison,

Thanks for the feedback - I had no clue what the anti lift kit was, wow wow wow, sounds like some magic elixir. Going to explore it further, certainly going on the list. I should also add the bracketeer unit + fire ext. bottle.

To clarify - do you believe the HPFP internals are good insurance before doing a CAI, catback or larger TMIC? We are having a bit of a back and forth whether it should be done first - I'm of the opinion it should, he thinks it's required with the tune. My thinking is, if the car is making any more power, regardless of what is the cause of that power, it needs to flow more fuel since the power is made up of a timing of air + fuel + spark.
 
Hpfp internals is regarded as the first mod needed to increase power on the mazdaspeed stock internals have a lot of slip and pressure will drop quickly when you start adding extra fueling demand. So with tmic intake and exhaust and really any tune yeah you want those internals in there or goodbye motor. Gen1 speed are regarded as being a little more forgiving with intake only but once you start going more than that it's definitely required gen2 guys have had bad days just adding intakes without internals. As maisonvi said hpfp internals , tune (through access port and professional tuner such as freektune or purple drank)

As for shifting there are a few short shift plates out there, adapted performance is pretty good also get some solid shifter bushings in there at the very least as that will make a huge difference stock bushings are quite squishy.

Plugs are generally every 20k especially once tuned gapped to .026-.028" you can probably do stock heat, they're borderline to hot for stock, once you're talking about a DP there's usually enough flow 1 step colder can be beneficial, speaking of DP stock one is major restrictive more so than cat back, even just doing a test pipe will help flow.
 
Like Ken said, probably skip the front sway bar and do just the rear otherwise you're not likely to see near as much of a reduction in understeer.

You'll have to get an oil gauge to monitor those parameters, unfortunately; the ECU does not have PIDs for that data. The Innovate dual pressure/temp gauge is a somewhat popular choice. You're right that it will require a sandwich plate to mount the sensors in, which for a gen1 MS3 also means changing out the oil filter housing from cartridge style to the second-gen spin-on style.

I would also recommend doing the HPFP internals sooner than later given the hard driving the car is seeing, even if it doesn't ultimately see any power mods (but especially if it will). The stock hardware can be too unreliable and a failure is catastrophic.
 
That limits you to one connection, though, and may only allow a pressure sensor to fit (temp sensor is long like dong). To monitor both pressure and temp, I think you have to go sandwich plate.
 
Thanks for the input so far everyone.

Quick update - we've ran a couple of events and have one tomorrow, I keep meaning to snap some pics to share, will certainly do so tomorrow. The car has been excellent so far. No issues and loads of fun.

I've since ordered the Whiteline anti lift kit, Whiteline front bump steer bolts, Amazon Hikari LED bulb inserts (these stock halogens are downright terrible!), and am in a back-and-forth with a used Whiteline rear sway bar seller. Items to be installed next week.

Next new purchases are; CP-E rear motor mount stage 2, HPFP Internal Upgrade, adj. rear toe arms, adj. rear camber arms.

The rear camber arms - any significant differences between manufactures? The generic SPC ones look to be identical to the Eibach at a big discount. Is there a brand or feature which is highly recommended? Same story for the rear toe arms. They all look pretty identical..

Does anyone have experience or has seen anyone with a Schroth Rallye 3 ASM harness install on the MS3? There's one I've come across on a different forum started by a Adams3 which showed some good stuff on the Rallye 4 ASM but I am thinking the 3 would be more convenient for the rear passengers when not in use (no belts for the kids to sit on). I also like the straight shot back to the C-pillar attachment angle over the lower sear base anchor which the 4 would require.

And another question - my understanding of suspension setup is limited, so please bear the naive questions - for our cars wouldn't a front top strut bar be beneficial given the engine placement and design load? I'm operating under a lot of assumptions and I am no engineer (but I do have a degree in music). I know for our S2000 or my Miata for instance they don't 'do much' but look nice given the front suspension design (double control arm) and front mid-engine layout putting less dynamic load into the strut tower - I figure it would be the opposite for the MS3 given McPherson setup and simply how nose heavy and forward the motor is. Aside from the single piece bars, which are too rich for my blood, can anybody recommend a brand? I see only straight shots, are there any three/four contact bars?

A bit unconventional but has anyone run a reverse staggered tire setup here? I know Audi has ran it on the RS3 with a 255/30r19 front and 235/35r19 rear. I wouldn't be going with 19's but thinking in a similar logic whatever the max fitment is up front without rolling the fender, subtract.. uh, some amount, for the rear. I think it should influence the breakaway threshold on lift-off turn in and generally get the rear to overtake the front in a progress/organic manner and reducing the amount of toe out simultaneously. We have a mean hairpin on pit exit at the small track, coming in hot with a hard pitch and rear break would be great to rotate for that. I imagine the driving style would be similar to something like a 911 - keep constant throttle to load up the rear and maintain straight stability and be mindful of lift.

Alright - a million questions. Not much to report. Typical. Ha!

Best,
Colin
 
I've read that the eibach camber arms are rebranded and overpriced SPC's, which are in turn rebranded and overpriced AC Delco's. I definitely read that on here somewhere, do a bit of digging and you may find more info. And budget more time than you'd expect to replace them, there's this annoying little dust cover on the passenger side that makes the job 10x harder. Pro tip... Don't use one of these guys on the inboard bolt
 

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Front struts tower brace isn't needed. Mazda put a plate on both towers tying them directly to the firewall. Most people use a rear anti sway bar to get the rear to rotate. With an adjustable one you have some flexibility and if you are running the same size tires all around you can rotate them to extend the life
 
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