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From YourSITE.com Feature Cars “Hey dude! Is that your sister’s car?”
Chris Lee is a young man, fresh from design school, living in the Detroit area and employed as a designer for one of the Big Three domestic auto manufacturers. As much as he’s trying to warm up to domestic cars (you might say his job depends on it), he’s not originally from the US and his heart still lies with the import scene, and as such he drives a 1999 BMW 323i and the 1995 Miata R you see here. All the UAW folks give him dirty looks and he’s forced to park at the very far end of the employee lot, but for now, Chris wouldn’t have it any other way. As mentioned, Chris spends a fair amount of time looking at various Japanese-market tuning and racing magazines. The Japanese take their Miatas rather seriously and the aftermarket is chock full of different tuning options. Japanese racing series N2-class Miatas (first called Eunos Roadsters and now, simply, Roadsters) are known for their extremely wide arches and this is the look that Chris knew he simply had to have. But finding a set of these wild flares in North America is no easy task. A Japanese friend named Hideki offered to search the Japanese aftermarket on behalf of his good friend, but even that approach seemed to go nowhere, until Hideki happened to come across a contact at Mazdaspeed in Hiroshima. That contact told Chris’ good friend they had an extra set of N2 Eunos Roadster flares available for purchase. Jackpot! After (much) money exchanged, a healthy wait, and a heart-felt Domo arigato to Hideki-san, the big-ass flares were in Chris’ hands.
Originally, he had a different 1995 Miata before this one, but it came with a salvage title and that fact always bothered him to some degree. This pristine black version became available and Chris bought it without thinking twice. The fact it was an R model made the decision that much easier. Having the much nicer ’95 proved to be a double-edged sword – though it was nice to have a low-mileage perfect car, the thought of cutting out the stock wheel-wells and fenders to fit his newfound flares scared the crap out of him. But it was a mean Miata and not a pristine one that he was after, so out came the plasma cutter and Chris got to work. The reality was that these fiberglass flares were meant for racing and as such did not come with any sort of instructions – the whole process was Chris’ to figure out. Apparently, he doesn’t intimidate easily, and it wasn’t long before this once rather cute little Miata sat in pieces on Chris’ garage floor. He took extra care to re-weld the inner fenders to retain structural integrity, and all work was finished and sealed to factory spec so as to keep rust at bay. Chris sourced some makeshift seals to go between the fiberglass and the body of the car, and proceeded to mount the flares to the car. There’s no doubt the new look is miles away from cute and once Chris was able to mount the wheels and tires chosen to fill those big arches it was almost time to go looking for a couple of guys in a certain vintage Vette.
Speaking of wheels and tires, when was the last time you saw a Miata with 10-inch wide rear wheels? Exactly. Chris’ Miata was now 14” wider than stock, thanks to those amazing flares and a set of Panasport C8 3-piece wheels, sized 16x9 in the front and 16x10 in the rear. 225/45 Yokohama ES100 rubbers are used up front, while 245/45 Yoko AVS Sports wrap the rear wheels. Tein all-aluminum RA coil-overs complete the aggressive stance, while FM anti-roll and stress bars help the chassis cope with more grip than any Miata was ever meant to have. To add to the Miata’s newfound aggressive looks as well as the vehicle’s ability to function, Chris carefully chose other exterior modifications. An Erebuni carbon fiber hood was used because of the style of scoop that allowed for effective heat extraction. A pair of Mid Tenn low-profile headlight housings replaces the stock antiquated flip-ups, and HID low beams were added as well. Air ducts replace the stock turn signals and help the modified Garage Vary front bumper/spoiler direct extra air into the engine bay. The roadster’s interior got some attention as well – the most noticeable additions are the Autopower full cage and red Sparco seats with 5-pt Sabelt harnesses. Additional FM gauges help Chris keep an eye on vital engine functions, while a lack of air conditioning, air bags, and carpeting help keep the over all vehicle weight down. And what about audio or video entertainment? This ain’t no Hot Import Nights kind of Miata, people.
Before any confrontations with vintage US muscle cars, Chris knew damn well that the Miata’s 1.8l and 128-hp was going to have its work cut out for it simply lugging all that extra girth around now, and that a little help in the engine bay was definitely in order. Anyone for turbocharging? Chris had no intention to build the most powerful Miata on the road – he simply wanted enough performance to at least match the exterior looks as well as the ability to hang those monster rear tires out during drift competitions and auto-x events. He decided to keep boost pressure at a maximum of 12 psi, as this would allow him to keep a stock bottom end and compression ratio. Compressing the intake charge is a Garrett GT28 turbo. After the turbo, the air is routed through an ADFX intercooler that uses a custom V-mount set-up. The I/C is something of a work of art, and was in fact the most difficult part of the project, according to Chris. He did all the work on this car himself and the fact that constructing the intercooler set-up took a full two weeks to accomplish is something for which he’s rather proud. Four 550cc injectors add fuel to the greatly increased amount of air entering the combustion chambers, and they, along with ignition spark, are controlled by an FM Link replacement ECU with keypad. Combusted gases are expelled via a custom 3-inch exhaust system. Mazdaspeed engine and differential mounts keep driveline lash to a minimum.
All these mods have given Chris some 250-whp to play with, and with the Miata’s light weight, that’s nothing to sneeze at. As a matter of fact, 250-whp has been more than enough to break a couple of 5-speed trannies – one during a drifting competition, and the other during normal(?) street use. That kind of thing will mess up your bank account pretty fast, so if the third time is a charm, then Chris is hoping the new ’04 6-speed is a lucky one at that. Big power and aggressive looks are all well and good, but Miatas have always been about handling and balance. Chris has certainly sought to improve these areas as well, but has he succeeded? Well, yes and no. The car you see here most definitely has more power, grip, and bad-ass looks compared to any regular Miata, but is it better? Is it more fun to drive? This is the part where even Chris will admit the jury is still out. He laments the car is no longer the nimble, tossable little playmate it used to be, and that navigating Detroit’s raggedy, pothole-infested roadways is something of a chore. Those monster wheels bend rather easily, and suspension travel is now more of a memory than anything else. Still, Chris had a goal in mind form the get-go, and no one can deny he achieved it and then some – this Miata will never again be mistaken for anyone’s sister’s car. He’s not done with it either. Future plans call for a bit of finesse work with the rear fender flares, a total re-spray as well as a bit of interior attention. He’s also looking at replacing the current engine with something a bit more (in Chris’ words), “interesting,” like a Nissan SR20DET or even a small-block LS1. If it’s up to us, we vote for Chris to drop the Chevy V8 in the Miata engine bay - but only if we get to tag along this August when he goes domestic-car-trolling on Woodward Avenue.
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