Lewis7789's 2003 Protege5 build thread

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Just bear in mind cutting/stripping spark plug leads isn't exactly the same as other wires. There's other things in there, so if you know that you'll be fine. Personally, I have no problem having Magnecor make mine. The total cost of the custom wires is less than the "correct" crimping tool so it's worth it to me. That and I think your turbo KL won't be quite as sensitive as my built 13B when it comes to the ignition. It's VERY important to still get a full, consistent spark when the engine is turning at speeds upwards of 9,000 RPM...
 
Just bear in mind cutting/stripping spark plug leads isn't exactly the same as other wires. There's other things in there, so if you know that you'll be fine.

What do you mean? On this set at least, it's pretty easy to tell what is and isn't a wire.
IMG_6554.jpg


I remember one guy tried it, but got the wrong set of universal wires and there were no metal strands in the core of the wire. It was some weird black synthetic line that didn't look like it could transmit a spark. I was pretty full of wtf at that point.

It's VERY important to still get a full, consistent spark when the engine is turning at speeds upwards of 9,000 RPM...

Unless the wiring is frayed or something, how could it deliver an inconsistent spark? I never got the big deal with plug wires, they either work, or they don't. Haha, maybe I'm over simplifying things? After I replaced the wires, the car ran 10x better. The old ones were causing it to miss under load on the low end of the rpm band, and when it rained it was all but undriveable. They were fine all the way up over 7k, but I didn't take it quite to 9k..

ps- I think there is a member who might be interested in buying your MS PNP for his boosted KL P5.

Pm'd him. Thanks for the heads up!
 
What do you mean? On this set at least, it's pretty easy to tell what is and isn't a wire.
I was more or less getting at the fact it wasn't just a simple "cut and strip" job.

I remember one guy tried it, but got the wrong set of universal wires and there were no metal strands in the core of the wire. It was some weird black synthetic line that didn't look like it could transmit a spark. I was pretty full of wtf at that point.
Not sure about that one. Maybe it was a solid core wire with some kind of sheath around it?

Unless the wiring is frayed or something, how could it deliver an inconsistent spark? I never got the big deal with plug wires, they either work, or they don't. Haha, maybe I'm over simplifying things? After I replaced the wires, the car ran 10x better. The old ones were causing it to miss under load on the low end of the rpm band, and when it rained it was all but undriveable. They were fine all the way up over 7k, but I didn't take it quite to 9k..
If it's not a very good electric connection there could be breakup issues at high engine speeds, loss of power (voltage) transmission, and/or excessive resistance. I don't think "undriveable" and "inconsistent cpark" are necessarily synonomous. As long as your air/fuel mixture is reasonable you'll get combustion, but whether it's complete or efficient is the real question. Think about how many times the spark plugs are firing at 9000 RPM? For each time they fire the coil has to power up and discharge. If you're relying on a certain amount of electrical power to correctly ignite your air/fuel mixture any inefficiency is going to hurt that. You could get excessively lean/rich spots, which will really increase combustion temperatures.

In high-RPM rotaries it's not uncommon for the engine speed to "outrun" the spark. It's more of a coil issue but if you're spending tons of money on an expensive coil pack and ignition system wouldn't you want the best wires possible (i.e. properly cut, stripped, crimped, and covered)? Like I said, I don't think this will be an issue Evan, or even I run into, but it was worth mentioning.
 
I can't say, the electricities are not my field of expertise. Not that anything else is..

This was the picture from the wires that I was talking about. I don't know what's up with these things, but after he followed my tutorial, his car was not running well, as there was a problem with the spark getting to the plugs. I have no idea how they're even designed to work.

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[Quote from thread]
"Core is fiberglass + Kevlar which explains why I can't find wires, they're basically tiny green hairs.
Is Kevlar an electrical conductor? No, it's an insulator.
Is fiberglass an electrical conductor? No, it's an insulator.

"So having a spark plug wire with a fiberglass & Kevlar core does what?!?! Seriously it says it's a fiberglass and kevlar core right on the box. I'm obviously missing something here because it has to hold a spark somehow but from what I've seen of the innards it won't be much.

"On the box the last black plastic coating says "Conductive High Resistance Carbon Graphite Supression Material". OK so is it conductive or supressive... these are spark plug wires I bought right? Oh what a disaster.

"I really love the yellow wires just for the color scheme but starting to get the feeling these wires are absolute s***. I'd be better off using speaker wire."
 
Got my goods evan, thanks!
(2thumbs)

wish mine were here.. i need something to do
You can come over and help me with the wiring. (wink)

I've been debating skipping the N/A step and just building it for boost. It will take a bit longer (I need moniez for turbo, piping, intercooler and LSD, etc) but there are pros/cons to each direction. Hmm...
 
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Hey, hey, hey. I'm 34, thank you. lulz.


Yeah, temporary de-railment there. It's just fun when all your friends have MSP's, MSM's and Speed3's and their cars are fast as balls. I can't wait for boost. It will be a freaking blast. But I'll stick to N/A until 2013. Get all the bugs sorted out and everything buttoned up then boost.

Mishimoto coolant and PS reservoirs are on their way, thank you once again CR3! Then I'll scuff them up and paint them wrinkle black like JT suggested. Looking forward to getting more done this weekend. I love this car.
 
Smart choice. Baby steps are always smarter, especially when it comes to a swap like that. That's my plan as well but I'll be doing supercharged.
 
I almost bought it, upon further inspection I saw part of Nemo wedged in there and couldn't bare to take it home. I know if I used that thing It would have bored a hole straight through into the door pocket lol

Lolol. I know that rubber wheel thing, Josh used one on my truck. If you still need one, you could PM him and ask where he got it. Josue6WGN is his name on here.
 
7th swap total. ;) But yeah, 3rd KL swap. Though the Milly shouldn't count since it wasn't technically a swap. Stock to stock is easy peasy.

Got my Mishimoto reservoirs today (Thanks again CR3). I am hesitant to paint them black now the finish is so nice on these. I am always surprised by the amazing quality of Mishimoto parts, especially for the price. Off to Summit Racing tomorrow for a PS cooler and hose.
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should work for a quick-n-dirty KL swap.

Just pay attention to the prep-work. Nothing like getting it all bolted in and saying "Ahhh sh!t.....I forgot <insert partname here>".
 
The KLG4 is the 2000+ Mazda 626 V6 and it's got all the best parts Mazda offered. Better lifters, the coil pack, MAF and best breathing IM. If you can get the whole motor, 5-speed trans, and wiring harness you should be set. Don't forget the MAF and O2 sensors.

It came out in 98, with the 5th gen of the 626. It has a lighter crank than the DE, but from the general consensus on PT, most think it's not forged, like the DE's is. Unfortunately unless you actually go test these things yourself, you'll not get past the "hearsay" phase of much of the info on PT.
 
That's sweet, Cam.

Well, made a nice little discover today. The power steering hose on the bottom of the P5 PS reservoir has a built in hose reducer that pits perfectly on the KL low pressure line on the steering pump. Now the rest of the power steering lines will be the same inside diameter. I just need a male to male coupler (from McMaster-Carr or HD Racing). My last swap didn't have a perfect PS hose adapter and it was slowly leaking I later found out. This should make things much easier. It even bends to match the KL motor.

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Off to Summit for a PS cooler. Should fit nicely where the windshield fluid reservoir was.
http://www.summitracing.com/parts/DER-13212/

And I couldn't get the front Energy Suspension bushings to line up for the MSP front sway. The brackets, bushings and bar are too thick to mount up so I'll just order some stockers from Mazdaspeed, not a big deal. I don't want to risk modifying the bushings too much.
 
Cres, I did drop the subframe. Getting to the bolts isn't the problem, it's the larger MSP (25mm) sway bar, brackets and bushings that were. There's just no room between the bolts location to get all that polyurethane and bracket in there without heavily modifying the bushings and brackets. And I prefer the OEM engineering of MSP brackets and bushings to my ghetto-rigging to make it fit engineering. Ya know?

And the PS cooler I picked up, the barbs are too little. Figures. Haha. I'll take it back tomorrow and try a different one and double check the inlet/outlet with my hose before I leave.
 
So I picked up a different PS cooler and the inlet/outlets were still too small. Gotta return that one too. Would I be able to just use an oil cooler? I don't see why not...
 
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