My dual-purpose Mazda2 build

wunderdog

Member
:
2014 Mazda2
Hi all, new to this forum, but no stranger to Mazdas. Bought my 2014 mz2 last year as a practical daily, but with adulthood forcing me to sell my track car NA Miata, I'm focusing on making the 2 a dual purpose track/autox and daily driver.

Bought the car completely stock with only 5k on it. In a year of ownership I've put about 20k miles on it (did a lot of driving back and forth at one point). It has held up beautifully. I love the car because it is practical, and the best looking economy car out there (in my opinion). It is definitely slow and the gearing sucks but it doesn't take away from the fact that this is a very fun to drive car.

20d737b85d9902af629f38d31b25e531.jpg


So far I've done the following:
Corskport springs
Corksport torsion bar
SPC camber bolts
Axle back straight exhaust
15x7s on 195/50 Toyo R1Rs (daily set)
15x8s on 205/50 Dunlop Direza ZIIs from my Miata for track use

Most people would laugh at the prospect of a Mazda2 used for racing. For me, that's what makes it great. It is definitely an underdog, but is definitely no slouch in settings like autocross where momentum matters more than power. Back in December 2015, I took the car out for s**** and giggles on a used set of RA1s and ended up finishing 26th (23rd excluding karts) out of a field of about 115 cars. It felt really good to beat a lot of "faster" cars and be in the top 25% in a car not really meant for performance.

https://youtu.be/UPvvOf4HXIA

In March, I took the car to Musselman Honda circuit in Tucson, AZ where I took 4th fastest out of a field of about 25 cars.

https://youtu.be/om8q7vjmhds

bce458b844a1bb49675ee021013618c2.jpg


I'm excited about the potential of this car. I regret not getting coilovers and settling for springs, but I was not intending for this car to do anything much outside of daily driving. Now that things in my life have changed, it's impossible for me to quit racing so now my full attention goes to the Mazda2.

I just bought an ECU off a wrecked car in a junkyard, so next on my list is getting the ECU reflashed for a tad bit more power. I'll be updating this thread with modifications and my racing exploits of this underdog. Thanks for reading!
 
Last edited:
do not forget to ask about immobilizer disable on ECU u got for reflash. immobilizer mz2 included in ignition key chip, instrument cluster and ECU. replacing any of the parts prevents engine to start. state inspection in NY reads VIN number and odometer reading from ECU memory vs OBD2 connector (NV maybe differ)
 
Last edited:
Your 2 looks great! Welcome and I look forward to more posts about mods/track/autox!
 
Haven't been keeping this thread updated. Bought an S2K a few months ago so money has been tight. Took a short hiatus from racing but went out to a local night autocross recently where I placed 11th overall, 1st in STF (by .02 seconds!) and 2nd in PAX with zero changes to the car. Surprised a bunch of people and myself. :) Sorry for the bad quality video! My gopro is pretty old.

1255d5e1e3aef321906eea02ce6a7552.jpg


https://youtu.be/WxHNNuBJ2ZI

Results: http://live.axti.me/results/VJNCVBVsZ
 
Last edited:
Back