What have you done to your Miata today?

Sunday Solo cross with the Austin Healy guys
 
I decided a bracket I wanted to make would be a bit too complex & finicky to do in metal given my skills, so.... I guess I'm teaching myself some basic CAD design to make something that can be 3D printed now? lol

I checked some reviews for good freeware software suites, saw SketchUp was highly regarded, and could do what I wanted without too much trouble. The things you can do with computers if you dedicate a little time to learn them are just stupid (in the best way) :D

Yeah, it's crude, but it'll get the job done. Still in progress, but I'm getting there.

SketchUp.jpg



V2.0 should be a little stronger

Shift-i%2520Bracket2.jpg
 
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I decided a bracket I wanted to make would be a bit too complex & finicky to do in metal given my skills, so.... I guess I'm teaching myself some basic CAD design to make something that can be 3D printed now? lol

I checked some reviews for good freeware software suites, saw SketchUp was highly regarded, and could do what I wanted without too much trouble. The things you can do with computers if you dedicate a little time to learn them are just stupid (in the best way) :D

Yeah, it's crude, but it'll get the job done. Still in progress, but I'm getting there.

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-NaCqojKmhrc/U_K--GRNs2I/AAAAAAAAKXs/vWREJR2C1Pg/s912/SketchUp.jpg


V2.0 should be a little stronger

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-...AAKYM/FWAzm2JmmbY/s912/Shift-i%20Bracket2.jpg

That looks interesting, but what is it for? The LED tach bar you bought?
 
Yes, it's for the LED shift light. Unfortunately it's not completely weatherproof, so it can't be left out in an open-top car, especially when towing through the rain. So, it'll have a good QD waterproof electrical connector, and a bracket that it'll just slide in and out of.


EDIT: newer version here if you're interested, I don't want to clutter up the thread
 
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Got home yesterday. First thing this morning I pulled the injector harness. I didn't realize it also had the wiring for the coils, so I need to transfer my COPs wiring over to the replacement harness. Had a few other distractions today so I'll do that in the morning.
 
pictures of your awesome work would be great! maybe robin could take them for you?? ;)
hey chief, do you drive the car all winter in KY? i'm movin to NC for the winters and thinkin about taking the car down...i know they don;t get much in the way of snow and they don't salt the roads (apparently their solution is coal ash?) i was thinkin of maybe buying another miata for the south/winter....but really would love to drive the msm all yr round.
 
pictures of your awesome work would be great! maybe robin could take them for you?? ;)
hey chief, do you drive the car all winter in KY? i'm movin to NC for the winters and thinkin about taking the car down...i know they don;t get much in the way of snow and they don't salt the roads (apparently their solution is coal ash?) i was thinkin of maybe buying another miata for the south/winter....but really would love to drive the msm all yr round.

You sweet talker you! Sorry but I was trying to get things done so no pictures of this. One solder and/or butt connector joint is the same as the next.

Transferred the COPs wiring over this morning, as well as extending the wires for the rear temperature sensor. Got it all buttoned back up and went to cars & coffee. Might have been my imagination, but I didn't notice the gas smell as before. I did notice the AFR was lower (richer) than before, so that tells me that something wasn't kosher. Now I just have to do some more tuning. Autocross tomorrow!

As for your winter question Mark, I drive mine every chance I get when it's dry and the roads are clear. They use that sodium liquid as a pre-treatment here when they know it's going to snow, and that stuff causes rust like crazy. It's also hard for me to not get on it and with crud on the roads that tends to make things a little more interesting than I like. I would say go for it, you can experience the joy of the looks of people when you are driving top down in freezing weather.
 
Autocrossed today. I sucked. In my defense it's been a year since I have competed, and the lot had just had sealer put on it so traction was poor (of course everyone else had that same issue). I did have a pretty good spin, haven't checked yet to see if the GoPro was running or not.

I had a guy with a supercharged Fiero tell me my tires were too narrow for the wheels (I have 205s on 15 X 8). He informed me I could go 245 or even 255 on an 8" width. Every time he said something I just smiled and nodded.
 
Autocrossed today. I sucked. In my defense it's been a year since I have competed, and the lot had just had sealer put on it so traction was poor (of course everyone else had that same issue). I did have a pretty good spin, haven't checked yet to see if the GoPro was running or not.

I had a guy with a supercharged Fiero tell me my tires were too narrow for the wheels (I have 205s on 15 X 8). He informed me I could go 245 or even 255 on an 8" width. Every time he said something I just smiled and nodded.

at least you got to go...i haven't been once this yr :(
 
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