We Put Carbs On A Miata, And It Kicked Ass

"whatuptkhere" (whatuptkhere)
08/20/2019 at 10:13 • Filed to: miata, mazda miata, mazda mx5, mazda, carburetor, carby

You might be thinking, hey, TK, you’re crazy!

But no! The car’s owner, Evan, was able to source everything required for a carby conversion for under $1500, because he’s some kind of savant at dealing in car parts.

We chucked on a circuit to help the ECU get the timing sorted, and were rewarded with the most delicious of induction noises from the quad-throated Webers.

Getting on the road was even better. It’s not the road to go down if you’re chasing out and out power, but if you want a bump above stock and an engine that sings like an angel in orgasm, this’ll do ya right.

Oh, and the throttle response is heckin’ good, too.

If anyone truly understood this build , it’d be you, Oppo <3

DISCUSSION (38)

Echo51 > whatuptkhere
08/20/2019 at 10:32

Dig the MAF to MAP conversion, that’s some proper next-level DIY work there.

HammerheadFistpunch > whatuptkhere
08/20/2019 at 10:37

Tis a good noise and looks nice.

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > whatuptkhere
08/20/2019 at 10:42

Oh lordy yes

DutchieDC2R > whatuptkhere
08/20/2019 at 10:51

I was thinking, when I had my NB, of putting ITB’s on it, but for a daily, that wouldn’t be the best idea.

Cash Rewards > DutchieDC2R
08/20/2019 at 11:06

There are lots, but they ain't cheap

Tripper > whatuptkhere
08/20/2019 at 11:36

+1 for twin Webers. That sounds great. I’ve got twin 40mm DCOEs on my 75' BMW, and an ANSA exhaust with a tiny can. It sounds amazing.

Highlander-Datsuns are Forever > whatuptkhere
08/20/2019 at 11:43

Side drafts s ound great. At idle or low throttle they are almost not perceptible , bu t open it up and it BAAAAAAAAA.

AC-97miata > whatuptkhere
08/20/2019 at 11:53

You had me at "sings like an angel in orgasm..."

benn454 > whatuptkhere
08/20/2019 at 12:02

Sounds great.

WiscoProud > whatuptkhere
08/20/2019 at 13:16

Very interesting. Wondering why you went that route instead of individual throttle bodies?

Galileo Humpkins (aka MC Clap Yo Handz) > whatuptkhere
08/20/2019 at 13:37

Kinja'd!!!

Carbs on a Miata! Seriously though, sounds great and looks fun!

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > whatuptkhere
08/20/2019 at 14:10

Why not just do itb’s? Why carbs? I am g enuinely curious. From what I hear they just seem to be a hassle, but I haven’t looked into them tbh.

Eric @ opposite-lock.com > whatuptkhere
08/20/2019 at 15:15

What in the name of Ned Ludd is going on here?

Mercedes Streeter > whatuptkhere
08/20/2019 at 18:21

I was going to say I’d never ruin a perfectly good efi for a carb, then I heard that noise..

I’ll be in my bunk......... watching vintage racecars.

Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo > whatuptkhere
08/20/2019 at 18:34

Edit: whoops

Saracen > whatuptkhere
08/20/2019 at 19:49

I love this.

Saracen > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
08/20/2019 at 19:50

Easy to tune.

Sound friggin glorious.

Corkscrew'd > whatuptkhere
08/20/2019 at 19:52

Read the article on Hackaday! I love this idea! I also heard from someone that you could take the factory ITBs from a AE86 and use an adapter plate for the Mazda B6 1.6L Engine to give it that glorious ITB sound.

Alas, I live in California, so I can’t do it to my NB lol.

Dinkster1972 > Tripper
08/20/2019 at 20:09

I imagine it does! I know t he t win 45 dcoe’ s with velocity stacks on my ‘79 320i w/ M10 sounds incredible when pulling to 7500 rpm.

whatuptkhere > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
08/20/2019 at 20:37

Yeah, tuning and money.
This carb and mani set up were already tuned for a Miata and cost less than $1500 AUD second hand.

ITBs would have been similar for the throttle bodies themselves, and maybe even a mani, but then you need an ECU ($500-1500) and tuning on a dyno ($500+), plus some sort of TPS or MAP solution as well.

whatuptkhere > Corkscrew'd
08/20/2019 at 20:37

You can! ITBs tend to get bought and sold a lot here as people get halfway through the project and give up.

whatuptkhere > Tripper
08/20/2019 at 20:38

oooof, that’d be dope

whatuptkhere > Highlander-Datsuns are Forever
08/20/2019 at 20:38

slurpin’ that air down!

whatuptkhere > WiscoProud
08/20/2019 at 20:38

Cost - the carbys don’t require an ECU swap or dyno tuning!

whatuptkhere > HammerheadFistpunch
08/20/2019 at 20:39

Evan did a great job on the car, for sure.

whatuptkhere > AC-97miata
08/20/2019 at 20:40

what can I say, sex sells!

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Saracen
08/20/2019 at 20:53

Ah ok they are easier to tune than itbs. That’s a plus. Don’t carbs do worse with more revvs, leading to needing rebuilds?

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > whatuptkhere
08/20/2019 at 20:57

S o you sidestep most of the tuning needs. They sound pretty cool too. The only thing I here about carbs are that they need rebuilding every so often. And isn’t it more often with higher revving?

gmporschenut also a fan of hondas > whatuptkhere
08/20/2019 at 21:52

dammit, now you have me down a rabbithole of carbing a miata

Tripper > Dinkster1972
08/21/2019 at 08:49

What cam are you running with those big boys, 304 ? Mines got a Schrick 292.

Snuze: Needs another Swede > whatuptkhere
08/21/2019 at 09:05

That car sounds amazing ! Nothing like velocity stacks at full song! My desire to build a Miata speedster is increasing daily.

T he video was great as well. I love the Op-Amp solution to provide a signal for the ignition timing. Very clever.

Did you all consider a vacuum canister? That would have helped some with the inconsistent vacuum signal at low RPM, and would have probably given you enough vacuum to retain power brakes.

Dinkster1972 > Tripper
08/21/2019 at 12:35

Close , a 302 from Top End. Also JE Pistons @ 91mm bore w/ 10.75:1 compression , ported polished head, 7# flywheel, full length header, etc, etc. though, I am thinking I would like to try their 316 at some point down the road

Tripper > Dinkster1972
08/21/2019 at 12:59

Is this a racer, or just a fun car? I’ve driven another 02 w/ twin 45mm DCOEs and a 304 and it was agressive for the street. It was also amazing and I would have no issue with it. Either way, any more aggressive than what you have has got to be tough to run to the grocery store in.

I didn’t do the build on mine. I bought it in November from a guy in The Netherlands and shipped it over. It’s a 1502 with a 1.8L M10, beyond the webers and the cam, there’s high comp pistons (I don’t know the compression), a mystery clutch and flywheel, and spax adjustable dampers.

Sampsonite24-Earth's Least Likeliest Hero > whatuptkhere
08/21/2019 at 14:13

it does sound really good

Dinkster1972 > Tripper
08/23/2019 at 13:27

Its a fun “ weekend” car. Its really not as unstreetable as you might think though it might also be me as I’m much more tolerant than most. I drove it to SoCal vintage meet last year and that was 500 miles each way (I live in Reno) and that wasn’t too bad.

I’ve been building it for over ten years so I know every nut and bolt on it. It been completely gone through (except the trans, thats next) with 5 spd from a 83 , limited slip rear, everything new in the suspension w/ BC Racing coilovers, full poly and adjustable camber and toe front and back, new interior and had the front bumper removed and filled as well as side markers and trunk lock smoothed over then sprayed in Laguna Seca Blue.

whatuptkhere > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
08/24/2019 at 23:02

I... haven’t really heard of that? Cleaning sure, which I guess can involve a disassembly/reassembly process. But that’s more if you’re not using them often and they’re getting gummed up with old fuel.

whatuptkhere > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
08/24/2019 at 23:03

I’ve never really heard of high revving causing more frequent carb problems. The carb doesn’t care, it just flows more fuel.

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > whatuptkhere
08/25/2019 at 17:26

Ok makes sense. I mean if high revving Ferrari’s can make good use of carbs, then why not a Miata? So really you want to be revving them and using them often to keep them clean. Cool cool.