THOR
Fearless Prophet
Well here it is, my car will be the ONLY 1.6 Miata in North America with this on it. It is an R.S. Aizawa IRTB kit from Japan.
I got it from a guy who works for Rspeed, a big Miata shop in Georgia, it was on his car. Comes with the IRTB's, all the lines and hoses etc. and an HKS F-Con Pro ECU. One of the biggest parts of my decision was the fact that there is an HKS dealer with a dyno 2 hours away from me that can tune everything once I get it installed.
In the end I paid right around what I would have for a mid-range turbo or SC kit. I have a valve cover being powder coated chrome right now as well and my hood is at the painters having the underside painted. I think it will take us more time to clean up the grungy engine bay then it will take to get the kit installed.
As to the whys of this over a FI system? Well my car's odometer says 180,000 + miles but we have no idea what has been done to the engine. It doesn't burn or leak oil, after 3,000 miles the oil is as clear as the day it was changed. Motor runs strong with no problems. But it is an unkown. If money wasnt an object a motor rebuild, upgraded drivetrain and a coldside supercharger would be the ticket but that's not ever going to be realistic for my wallet. So since an FI system would strain the current drivetrain who knows what might go, especially probably the clutch and rear end. Also an FI system introduces a whole bunch of new moving parts and I like the simplicity of the IRTB's.
I did a lot of research over the past few months and basically there is HP and torque available the INSTANT you press the pedal with IRTB's. While it is not so much increased HP it is more the the throttle response and tourqe is better. Which is what I wanted not more top end speed which was the deciding factor against a turbo. Then there is the sound which communicates something vintage and raw. There is a bling factor and the bragging rights associated with these as well but the deciding factor was they fit exactly what I wanted to improve in my car.
I got it from a guy who works for Rspeed, a big Miata shop in Georgia, it was on his car. Comes with the IRTB's, all the lines and hoses etc. and an HKS F-Con Pro ECU. One of the biggest parts of my decision was the fact that there is an HKS dealer with a dyno 2 hours away from me that can tune everything once I get it installed.
In the end I paid right around what I would have for a mid-range turbo or SC kit. I have a valve cover being powder coated chrome right now as well and my hood is at the painters having the underside painted. I think it will take us more time to clean up the grungy engine bay then it will take to get the kit installed.
As to the whys of this over a FI system? Well my car's odometer says 180,000 + miles but we have no idea what has been done to the engine. It doesn't burn or leak oil, after 3,000 miles the oil is as clear as the day it was changed. Motor runs strong with no problems. But it is an unkown. If money wasnt an object a motor rebuild, upgraded drivetrain and a coldside supercharger would be the ticket but that's not ever going to be realistic for my wallet. So since an FI system would strain the current drivetrain who knows what might go, especially probably the clutch and rear end. Also an FI system introduces a whole bunch of new moving parts and I like the simplicity of the IRTB's.
I did a lot of research over the past few months and basically there is HP and torque available the INSTANT you press the pedal with IRTB's. While it is not so much increased HP it is more the the throttle response and tourqe is better. Which is what I wanted not more top end speed which was the deciding factor against a turbo. Then there is the sound which communicates something vintage and raw. There is a bling factor and the bragging rights associated with these as well but the deciding factor was they fit exactly what I wanted to improve in my car.