well if you’re modding it with a fan, you can also mod it with a fresh air supply

but the one thing to watch out for is for water getting in there, many of those connections aren't waterproof.
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Added the OEM ducting and ECU cooler. Seems to have alleviated the issue but I need to drive a bit more to know for sure. It's getting cooler so it probably won't be a problem until next summer. Also flipped the intake duct around to capture some fresh air for the turbo intake from the front bumper.

 

Took the car out on a hot midday stop and go drive, ECU temps stayed mostly in check. Did end up getting hot after turning the car off and letting sit and heat soak in the sun for about 10-15 mins, then driving again. I think at this point it's good enough as I don't intend to have the laptop plugged in in this sort of scenario anymore.

 

Haltech and emissions readiness. Wondering if I'm destined to fail emissions or if I am not completing the proper procedures for the readiness test. Taken emissions and failed readiness test... Multiple times. Doing some research and found this thread.

https://www.rx8club.com/series-i-eng...nitors-188078/

Wondering if anyone has any information on passing readiness part of emissions with no stock ecu? Do I need to repeat the procedure. Should I give up on passing readiness or try to spoof the settings.

 

all the emissions software is in the factory ecu. I’m not aware of there being any way to get around it without the Mazda one being piggybacked. But let me know if you find one.
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Just wanted to come with a bit of info for you. I was idling and driving around for approximately an hour on the weekend and the max ECU temp I saw was 135F. This was with my laptop plugged in the entire time. Admittedly this was during what you would probably consider a cold ambient day though at 19C (65F).

 

Finished my Dyno session. Unfortunately clutch started to slip so we called it but very excited. Everything ran fine no issues with the car. Now need to figure out power steering, I have done all the testing I can do and need to determine if the EPS module needs to be replaced for sure. I'm thinking that is the issue. Getting a new clutch soon-ish and finishing power pulls.

Also the AC wiring i can't seem to figure out why that's not working... It's winter so it fine now but would like to have that running as well

 

Couple words of advice for the PS, if you haven't already, every once in a while the Deutsch connecter for the PS rack at the front of the engine bay near the top of the rad just needs a good clean. It happens randomly on my car, I'm not sure of the cause, sometimes I just need to unplug the connector and plug it back in (even without a clean), then restart the car and it works again. Seems to only every happen on a cold start, maybe once per year.

 

Thanks. I've gone through the wiring pretty thoroughly. Tested continuity and resistance in all the connections. When I put in the EPS fuse it pops instantly so I am thinking it has to be the EPS module. I'm gonna get a replacement and hopefully that is the fix.

Replacing the clutch this weekend with ACT unit, extreme pressure plate and 6 puck clutch. Hopefully driveability won't be too compromised.

 

Clutch job is complete. I was worried about the extreme pressure plate being stiff but it feels exactly the same as the Exedy Stage 2 it replaced. Part number Z65-XTR6.

Edit. Took the car for a test drive and it went really well, the clutch felt good. Very much like and OEM clutch not stiff at all. Driveability was great on the street. Also power steering is working properly. Very surprised by how light the steering is but glad it's working now.

 

What was the issue with the Power Steering? Did it need the new module?

 

Wired incorrectly. No module needed.

Steering is lighter than I expected.

 

Scheduled my tune for flex fuel for Monday. Shooting for 475 wheel HP range on E85 and probably a safe 390 on 93.

Anyone have the AC working? I'm questioning if I have the right input to trigger from the dash. I'm expecting a 5v output from pin 4w. From the AC amplifier. I'm I off base?

 

That should be the A/C switch but I have not tested mine. Currently I have my engine pulled to fix an oil leak. Jesse may have it figured out by now. Not sure.

 

I have not. I'm still under the impression that the amplifier is not required but that is pin 5W not 4W (maybe that was just a typo?). Pin 4W and 4Z are the two AC switches, there are spliced together in the TBS jumper harness and I have these pinned to an input (personally mine is to an SPI). I only attempted to turn on the AC once and it didn't work but I am assuming it's because I have the "Active State" in the AC wiring in NSP set to 'Low' and this just needs to be changed to 'High'. I had this exact same issue with me alternator initially, it wouldn't excite, I switched the active state and alternator has been charging at my setpoint of 14.2v since.

Currently up here we are in the worst of winter that we've seen yet this season, it's been dropping to -35 essentially every night for the past 10 days, so I have not been working out in the garage much, it's not worth the energy to keep my garage up to normal working temps when ambient is getting that low lol.

 

Gotcha. And I did not make a typo and I misunderstood the diagram. Does the 4w and 4z need to be an input? I might be confused on that and 5w and what that does. I know 5aa is the relay to turn on the compressor. I was under the impression that 5w was the input from the dash to signal that the button was pressed and that was the only input needed. I probably missed something obvious but I will test again to find out.

Also got back from the Dyno. And unfortunately because I was so concerned about boost creep I did not put enough preload on the wastegate and the tuner was only about to get 11psi on which the engine made 360whp on e85. Will be able to safely up the boost to about 17psi and get the HP I was expecting.

 

Wow those are great horsepower numbers congrats.

This is my understanding of the A/C wiring:
4w - high/low AC control switch
4z - medium A/C control switch
in the tuned by Shawn by Shawn harness these are wired together to an AVI.

5aa - A/C relay which should be wired to DPO

5w - A/C amplifier which is supposed to switch between the different circulation modes. Like fresh air and recirculation.

 

Track day at Road Atlanta. My very first event and t.he car is performing extremely well. Having a great time


Edit..... I can't believe it but I managed to blow the motor. Really sad about this. Pulled the spark plugs and they are all broken. Not sure how it happened running e85 on what was supposed to be a conservative tune.

 

Damn it! at the very least, keep us informed of your findings. Were you logging data at all while tracking?

 

I'm so sorry. Unfortunately seems to be par for the course. Never dump a bunch of money into the first engine, right. Hopefully you can salvage irons.

 

Working on pulling the engine over the next couple of weeks. I should have a log. I haven't looked at it cause Im pretty sure I know what I did wrong, which is my plugs weren't cold enough. This was just an oversight on my part and I did not do enough research on plug selection for what ended up being my power/boost levels. I'm hoping that most of the engine is salvageable, only the ceramics of the plugs went through the engine none of the metal parts. Will see once I open the block. As far as the expense of the motor it was cheapish. I got this block new before the price doubled, so the money I spent went into mostly building the chassis and the swap itself.

If I'm lucky, really really lucky then maybe all I'll need are new Apex deals. Most likely I imagine the rotors are fine. Housings are likely to be damaged but could be in spec and can be resurfaced. Probably get the rotors side clearanced and a tiny street port. Put it back together myself.

I am fortunate enough to be able afford to play the game. Though I'm gonna take a little break from throwing cash at this car.

 

What plugs were you using and what boost level did you end up getting up to. I know you said you should be able to get up to 17psi but it also seems like you never actually got to tune for that level?

Do you monitor EGTs at all?

 

So the e85 tune has a boost cut at 20psi and 17 for pump gas The tuner has rotary experience and just setup everything to be conservative. EGTs should be logged. I just haven't gotten to looking at them yet. Apart of the issue was I just wasn't paying attention throughout the day that I was having a boost leak, loose coupler, which I had fixed before my last run then got too excited with the power. Denso ire01-31.

I'm gonna stick with NGK from now on though as I still feel like the plugs shouldn't have failed even if they were too hot. I don't THINK I was pushing the engine extremely hard at least way outside the capabilities. I could/ am probably wrong though. I really leaned on e85 being knock resistant and cool burning, perhaps too much.

 

Disassembled the engine and unfortunately had catastrophic failure of the rear apex seals. Destroyed the housing and rotor. Front housing and rotor looks pretty good some very minor scratches from the sparkplug failure and I can say will be reusable. Was really hoping the damage wasn't this bad. I believe the cause was bad gas, that is the only thing that makes sense in hindsight but I could be wrong.

Fortunately for me my wife is visiting Japan, so I will have her bring back a new housing at least. Maybe a new rotor but I will be looking for a used rotor.

Now wondering if I should take this "opportunity" to have the motor studded. Looking into getting it done locally. Seems like the only places that stud motors are in California which is a huge pain.

 

Only if you are going with oversized studs; Turblown studs for example do not require any machining be done.