Garf Posted November 12, 2006 Share Posted November 12, 2006 How do all Been lingering a while, both here and other forums, trying to make my mind up as to what kit car to make. I have looked at most kits and seem to think that the SDV MX5 Westfield is the one for me from a building point of view. But I do have some questions that I am hoping someone on here can answer. How wide is the SDV? is it a narrow or a wide body.. or is there an option? Is there any reason why a 1.8 would be unsuitable as a donor car? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
perksy Posted November 12, 2006 Share Posted November 12, 2006 Welcome Good site here : CLICKY HERE Has dimensions etc HTH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mal Posted November 12, 2006 Share Posted November 12, 2006 1800 Engine A demonstrator MX5 SDV I saw at the factory a few days ago has an 1800 engine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garf Posted November 12, 2006 Author Share Posted November 12, 2006 There is a bit in the blog on the Westfield site about the 1800. But there is no details about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barry Ashcroft Posted November 13, 2006 Share Posted November 13, 2006 QUOTE A demonstrator MX5 SDV I saw at the factory a few days ago has an 1800 engine. Yep I drove it last weekend not up to my standards on power but the rest of the car was spot-on it seems a logical route to go down with sierra's getting thinner in the ground. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith@FM Posted November 13, 2006 Share Posted November 13, 2006 The MX5 cars are a widebody with a dropped floor. Yes, the 1994-97 1800 is available as an option. The stronger 1994-05 differential will fit all frames as far as I understand. A 1999-05 car (should you come across a suitable donor) is different in a few ways and probably shouldn't be considered unless you want to do a bunch of fabrication. There are small differences in the dimensions of the uprights as well - enough that while they'd bolt up and look okay, the geometry would be changed. The only thing you'd gain by going with the later model would be a more efficient head and more hassles with picky engine management. The head can be retrofitted on to the earlier block. I don't believe Westfield is planning a 1999-05 based kit at this point. If you have MX-5 specific questions (on the donor, not necessarily the SDV), ask away. I know a couple of things about them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garf Posted November 19, 2006 Author Share Posted November 19, 2006 Interesting abouit the heads... I may look into that at a later date. Ok.. here's a few more questions. On a 1800 are the only differences the brakes and the engine? (ie the uprights, gear box, diff etc the same) Does the LSD off the 1.8i S fit? Damn it's hard to find MX5s round here. I suppose I am hamstringing myself by looking for a 1.8 but I figure that I might as well build it with the enigne I want. Half thinking of getting a more readily available 1.6 scrapper and "changing the engine" to a other sourced 1.8. Would anyone know if it's possible to do this on a V5 so as it doesn't need a Q plate? PS been looking at your site. looking good. PS Good taste in 2 wheeled transport to, I spotted the Daytona 600/650 nose cowl Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam-Kit car dreams Posted November 19, 2006 Share Posted November 19, 2006 When i spoke to Westfield about a Mazda SDV they told me they could source the parts already palleted up so no need to search for an old MX5, give them a ring and see what can be done as far as sourcing the parts goes. There is also a website for Mazda parts try clicking here Not sure how much the parts are but probably worth a look. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith@FM Posted November 19, 2006 Share Posted November 19, 2006 Interesting abouit the heads... I may look into that at a later date. Ok.. here's a few more questions. On a 1800 are the only differences the brakes and the engine? (ie the uprights, gear box, diff etc the same) Does the LSD off the 1.8i S fit? Damn it's hard to find MX5s round here. I suppose I am hamstringing myself by looking for a 1.8 but I figure that I might as well build it with the enigne I want. Half thinking of getting a more readily available 1.6 scrapper and "changing the engine" to a other sourced 1.8. Would anyone know if it's possible to do this on a V5 so as it doesn't need a Q plate? PS been looking at your site. looking good. PS Good taste in 2 wheeled transport to, I spotted the Daytona 600/650 nose cowl There are a large number of small differences between the 1600 and the 1800. There were also a greater number of variations between various 1800s depending on the year. I'll stick to the 1994-97 cars for now because that's what's supported by Westfield. The uprights are the same from 1990-97. They did change in 1999, but we're ignoring that We have a little information on the 1999-05 cars in the FAQ section of our website. The diff is larger for the 1994-97 cars. It has a 1" larger ring gear and is quite a bit stronger and a bit heavier. There's a better choice of gear ratios as well. It's my understanding that the larger, stronger diff will now fit all the MX-5 SDV frames. If you do install the larger diff later, you'll have to change the halfshafts and driveshaft at the same time. The LSD for the 1990-93 cars was a viscous unit that is probably worn out by now. The 1994 and later cars had a Torsen unit that's a good 'un. Externally it's the same as the open diffs, so you'll have to do some checking to make sure you have one. The typical "turn one wheel and see which way the other goes" test doesn't work for Torsens just to make things interesting. The gearbox is the same. All MX-5 gearboxes will work with the kit including the 6-speeds. There are differences in the engine management. I haven't seen the two side by side, but I suspect most of the differences between the 1600 and 1800 SDV is in bracketry for the intake along with some cooling piping. I expect it will be possible to convert the car over to the larger engine in the future and we're planning to do just that with ours. I can't comment on the effect this would have on the V5. Don't blame me for the bike cowl, that belongs to the boss. . It's an almost perfect colour match to the Westfield though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Wood Posted November 19, 2006 Share Posted November 19, 2006 If you put it on the road with the original 1.6 engine and change to a 1.8 later on all you have to do is to send the V5 back for the engine number to be changed. If you want to initially use the 1.8 I would change the engine number on the donor's V5 first so it looks like the donor had that engine. This is a bit dodgy if you're not actually going to fit the engine into the donor first, of course. Someone may well smell a rat if the donor gets a new engine one week and gets registered as a kit car the following week! You may end up with a Q plate if the engine you have in it at registration doesn't match the donor's V5. After registration you can do what you like. Kevin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deano.1 Posted November 19, 2006 Share Posted November 19, 2006 If you put it on the road with the original 1.6 engine and change to a 1.8 later on all you have to do is to send the V5 back for the engine number to be changed. If you want to initially use the 1.8 I would change the engine number on the donor's V5 first so it looks like the donor had that engine. This is a bit dodgy if you're not actually going to fit the engine into the donor first, of course. Someone may well smell a rat if the donor gets a new engine one week and gets registered as a kit car the following week! You may end up with a Q plate if the engine you have in it at registration doesn't match the donor's V5. After registration you can do what you like. Kevin Register the engine in to the donor before you start your build, you then have the time of the build between new engine and registering as a kit! My Sierra had a Zetec engine put in it before i stripped it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dickybeau Posted December 19, 2006 Share Posted December 19, 2006 Hi I have a Mk2 MX5 1.8 complete running gear including all steering and electrics. I would be interested to know what work would be needed to fit this stuff into the sdv model. It would be possible to pick up early uprights and I am assuming that the propshaft and drive shafts need altered. It would be great news if this was a practical solution to a bind that I got myself into. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith@FM Posted December 19, 2006 Share Posted December 19, 2006 It's not all that different from the MK1, really. The later uprights will fit, it's just that the fronts have a slightly different steering arm which will mess up the bump steer. Spacing the rack upwards should fix that. The rear uprights have 10mm more track but its shouldn't cause clearance problems. The driveshafts (halfshafts) can be left alone. I expect your biggest problem is going to be little things. Things like brackets for the airbox or or air intake plumbing. Nothing that can't be sorted out but you might need a welder to sort them. Oh, and find yourself a Mk1 exhaust manifold. If the UK Mk2 had an EGR system, you'll have to alter the EGR pipe to fit the early manifold. Or you can work out your own exhaust system. I don't believe Westfield is interested in supporting the Mk2 donors, but we'll help out however we can at Flyin' Miata. Personally, I wouldn't hesitate to stuff a Mk2 into the MX-5 SDV and I expect I will be called on to do so within a year. But then again, I built a Locost and I spend all day working on MX-5s so I know them pretty well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dickybeau Posted December 19, 2006 Share Posted December 19, 2006 Thanks Keith the car is actually a later mk2 (2.5) and an import that I got myself involved with only to find that the car was crashed damaged and not registerable in the uk. Using it in the westfield would save me some earache from my wife and turn out to be a blessing in disguise. It has everything - an rs model with 6 speed box, an aftermarket air chamber and less than 3000km on the clock. The only thing is the fabric interior which is less popular in the uk. I can sell all the spare stuff on ebay once I strip the car. I'll speak directly to westfield in the new year and get some advice. As long as the modifications aren't too technical I'll cope. Anyway, your outfit will probably build one and show me the way . I'll keep watching just in case. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dickybeau Posted December 19, 2006 Share Posted December 19, 2006 spoke to westfield this morning and they said that the later 1.8 won't fit the kit. Is there a significant difference in the dimensions of the earlier and later 1.8 engines?. I take it that mine is the vvc model. will it not fit in the space or will the frame need to be modified?. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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