What have you done to your MS3 today?

[blackmsp003]

I will be on the hunt for an AP for it. If anyone knows anyone selling one cheap please let me know. I would like to be able to monitor things due to it being modified and not knowing exactly what is done or how it was treated. It was a technicians car and had all services kept up to date so that was a plus.

 

[ericrapp]

Eric, you are almost correct. I took the center armrest plastic off only a year or so ago. The Speed still takes me to work and home (15.6 miles round-trip, four days a week). My wife doesn't like the way it rides, so we use the Ram and the 300C for trips.

: )

 

[ericrapp]

Got my Corksport radiator/ ram air rerouting shrouds Friday. put those on shortly and heading to the track for the swap meet.
The warm weather is here! mostly

 

[Rotus]

Still driving it everyday, but haven't had the time to look after a few things. The worst that needs attention is the suspension. I blew 2 dampers on the old Yellow Speed coilovers. Didn't have the cash to go coils again, so I went with CS springs and shocks. I'm still trying to get used to them, but I think there might be something wrong with them. Seems like I have to crank the damping way up to get any control and the springs seem way too soft. I also had to replace a front roll bar end link as one of them got bent (!). Went with a cheapie, regretting it.

 

[ericrapp]

Did they offer different spring rates ?
My K sports asked me what springs i wanted and the did the valving to match. Its nice because i can switch springs and they will rebuild the valving for me.
I cannot recall what rate i got f/r but its was some stupid rate like 510 in front and 360 rear. damped a midway both front and rear for now
But i like the harsh ride. Motor mounts and chassis bracing keeps the accessport shaking. but i dont get body roll or nose diving.
Maybe give Spencer at CS a ringy dingy and tell him your issues? I have had some very good customer service from them over the years : )
Sorry to hear of your troubles.
I know about unhappy Mazdaspeeding : (

 

[Rotus]

I think they only come one was. I'll give him a call next time I take a day off. I'm going to replace both front endlinks with a matching set, readjust and tighten my exhaust, inspect the brakes and suspension and clean it.

I also need to get a line out converter so I can use my subwoofer again. I got a Caska headunit from a friend and it didn't like the way I had it wired before.

 

[boosted1]

Installed A CorkSport Leather shift knob last night. Nice weight ,feel and looks great.

 

[ericrapp]

reporting on my CS radiator redirect for FMIC.

So my fan was kicking on around 219. and the car was hitting that temp while cruising. the fan would knock it down but it was disturbing to me.
i have yet to get the fan to kick on with the new install but the ambient temps have been cool still. under boost or loading the car i have seen 210 now. but then a short bit of cruising is even at 40 mph takes the temp down to 187 or less.
simple little things like this amaze me

I have removed all my under hood ducting ( gen 1). When i went through the car wash the steam was rising off my hood ! I am either going to jack the rear of the hood or add some vents to exhaust hot air at some point.

looking to buy an oil cooler. any one have one plumbed in? any recommends?
I was thinking post turbo , but thats a tricky concept if its a gravity drain line.
heat is my enemy. I have wrapped my downpipe and my feet dont get so hot anymore.
also any here do their own alignments ? i need to take a class i think : )
Glad to hear about the nice shift knob boosted1!
keep me apprised Rotus. driving unhappy sucks. My exhaust is clanking out back again and drives me nuts

 

[boosted1]

You will see me here. Thanks Eric.(burnout)

 

[Rotus]

Last 2 things added to the car. Caska HU and Sure shift knob. I had a Cobb knob on there. I really like the way the Cobb knob looks and the feel of it. Just wanted to switch it up a bit. The anodized ring on the Cobb was fading too :-(

 

[MikeHTally]

Vacuum, wash, wax and Rain-X. I'm gettin' too old for this.

 

[ericrapp]

Vacuum, wash, wax and Rain-X. I'm gettin' too old for this.

: )

i missed my UPS delivery.
New Corksport turbo and injector seals. blew out another seal a couple weeks ago.
when i take the intake mani apart i am going to install the JMF intake. might as well since i need to retune for the turbo anyways.

i hate taking the car down during driving season
: (

it takes me ten time as long to do the work as anyone else. The injector seals are a difficulty of 5/5. and 4 hours
which means a month for me
i have done the turbo a couple times so thats just a weekend and some bbq ing.

 

[blackmsp003]

Right there with you. Mine went down right when the weather started getting really nice. I got the parts today and decided I'll just be doing the vvt replacement and just pray thats all. But of course while I'm in there decided to do the BSD and oil baffle. Also think I'm going to do fuel pump internals since they recommend removing it. Should be an interesting learning experience. But I refuse to pay the dealership price and risk them screwing another one of my cars up. Luckily I have another vehicle.

 

[ericrapp]

Right there with you. Mine went down right when the weather started getting really nice. I got the parts today and decided I'll just be doing the vvt replacement and just pray thats all. But of course while I'm in there decided to do the BSD and oil baffle. Also think I'm going to do fuel pump internals since they recommend removing it. Should be an interesting learning experience. But I refuse to pay the dealership price and risk them screwing another one of my cars up. Luckily I have another vehicle.

I would rather do the work myself.
But occasionally in the interest of time i will overpay for someone else to do it. My Mazda demands i have another car in the stall. its just a summer car. its awesome when they both need work !!!

going to load the ATR onto my laptop this weekend. ( i loaded it onto the PC first time ) Doh!
Once i up and in place i have to pull that smoky K04 again. last time i took good picture so should not be too bad.

absolutely do fuel pump internals . major safety net!!!
if you need help let me know.
again i took lotsa pictures when i disconnected, which was smart because it took me a couple weeks to do it and restart the car..due to other commitments

very satisfying results

 

[blackmsp003]

I would rather do the work myself.
But occasionally in the interest of time i will overpay for someone else to do it. My Mazda demands i have another car in the stall. its just a summer car. its awesome when they both need work !!!

going to load the ATR onto my laptop this weekend. ( i loaded it onto the PC first time ) Doh!
Once i up and in place i have to pull that smoky K04 again. last time i took good picture so should not be too bad.
absolutely do fuel pump internals . major safety net!!!
if you need help let me know.
again i took lotsa pictures when i disconnected, which was smart because it took me a couple weeks to do it and restart the car..due to other commitments

very satisfying results

I agree. And yea In the past i never had another car and had no choice but overpay. So it will be nice to finally be able to take the time and fix it myself. Found a really good detailed write up on how to do it so I'm confident. But will definitely be nerve racking haha.

Unfortunately the previous owner did modifications to it without the internals, so that is definitely getting corrected. Oh and PMM. Especially since I'll have extra money from doing the work myself. Win-win lol. I'll definitely let you know though. And good idea about still taking lots of pictures. I'm also investing in zip lock bags and tape to label everything for once haha.

 

[ericrapp]

I agree. And yea In the past i never had another car and had no choice but overpay. So it will be nice to finally be able to take the time and fix it myself. Found a really good detailed write up on how to do it so I'm confident. But will definitely be nerve racking haha.

Unfortunately the previous owner did modifications to it without the internals, so that is definitely getting corrected. Oh and PMM. Especially since I'll have extra money from doing the work myself. Win-win lol. I'll definitely let you know though. And good idea about still taking lots of pictures. I'm also investing in zip lock bags and tape to label everything for once haha.

You sound well prepared. These kinds of challenges i enjoy. Being able to be patient and thorough !!
for sure let me know and feel free to PM me anytime : )

 

[blackmsp003]

Haha I hope so, because once I get the Mx-3 out of the garage hopefully this week, I'll be pulling the Speed 3 in to start the tear down. Ordered fuel pump internals that should be here Wednesday so have to wait for those anyway. Hopefully within the next two weeks I'll be done. If anyone has any tips or what not to do for any of this let me know please. VVT replacement, autotech hpfp internals, bsd and oil baffle are the biggest things I'm doing. Oh also replacing the no name brand recirc tube that was hacked to pieces.

 

[MSMS3]

If you have the intake manifold off, clean the back of those nasty, carbon crudded intake valves. Mine need it now, but I've been putting it off. Shame not to do it if you are in there anyway.

My most recent maintenance was replacing the left strut bearing a week ago. Stupid alignment shop moved it when doing a front camber adjustment, rotating it away from the spring curvature (its base is sloped to match the spring), and it quickly started making noise. When I got it out, it was beat up badly and misshapen. I suspected as much and had a new one on the bench ready to swap. I also put in new plugs while I had the hood up, as they were due for change.

 

[ericrapp]

downloaded the race tune app to my laptop, instead of my PC
DOH!
play with that a little then think about installing the CS turbo, going to 3 port interrupt. jack the rear of the hood and add some DEI heat reflective foil to the firewall. my feet get hot ( i know boo hoo for me)

any body have an oil cooler installed? been thinking about a universal one but not sure where to plumb it in yet? any ideas or exp would be appreciated

 

[Domino81]

Driven it almost every day. Life is ...going to be different. I might be forced to sell it. Wife and I are separating. I'm trying to hang onto the one thing I own.