1996 Mazda Miata

The perfect formula for a budget-friendly endurance racer car? We try stuffing a GM LFX V6 into an NA-chassis Miata.

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1996 Mazda Miata

Latest updates

Dec
14
Dec 14, 2024 | Mazda | Miata | Mazda Miata | MiataHubs.com | Wheel Hub
Bomb-proof hubs for our endurance race Miata? Yes, please.

Having to constantly tighten a car's wheel hubs during a race is less than ideal, so we sought out a more permanent solution for our V6-powered Miata.

Dec
12
GRM+ | Dec 12, 2024 | Mazda | Miata | Mazda Miata | V6 Miata | Wilwood Engineering
The biggest brakes yet for our V6 Miata endurance racer

We fit bigger brakes to our V6 Miata (again).

Dec
09
Dec 9, 2024 | Mazda | Miata | V6 Miata | Hood Vents
How to improve our V6 Miata’s cooling? Hood vents.

After our most recent event, our LFX V6-powered Miata was running hot. Could the solution be as simple as adding hood vents?

Dec
04
Dec 4, 2024 | Mazda | Tire Rack | Hankook | Lucky Dog Racing League | Lucky Dog
Why did we switch our V6-powered Miata to smaller wheels and tires?

What do you do when your tires are out of stock? Downsize!

Nov
16
Nov 16, 2024 | Mazda | Miata | weight | V6 Miata | Intercomp
What's it weigh? LFX V6-swapped Miata edition.

How much does our LFX V6-powered Miata race car weigh? We weigh it in its final form to find out.

Oct
28
Oct 28, 2024 | Mazda | Miata | Mazda Miata | lfx | V6 Miata
Broke a CV Joint: This is how we will prevent that from happening again

A broken CV Joint prematurely ended our race weekend, so these are the measures we're taking to prevent that from happening again.

Oct
22
Oct 22, 2024 | Mazda | Mazda Miata | V6 Miata
When a project car becomes a team bonding exercise

A bigger shop means more space for helping hands–just what we needed so we could properly clean up our V6 Miata after its latest outing.

Sep
20
Sep 20, 2024 | Mazda | Mazda Miata | Carolina Motorsports Park | Lucky Dog Racing League | V6 Miata
This weekend: Come see us race Lucky Dog Racing League at CMP

We're competing in Lucky Dog Racing League’s Southern Dawg Delight at Carolina Motorsports Park this weekend. Be sure to stop by and say hello if you're in the area.

Sep
17
Sep 17, 2024 | Mazda | Mazda Miata | lfx | Carolina Motorsports Park | Atlanta Motorsports Park | Lucky Dog
Haste makes waste: What happens when you rush to race

In the scramble to get ready for a Lucky Dog endurance race, we cut corners. It didn't end well. We'll put those lessons to good use this weekend at Lucky …

May
14
May 14, 2024 | Mazda | Miata | Lucky Dog Racing League | Atlanta Motorsports Park | V6 Miata
May 18-19: V6 Miata to race Lucky Dog at AMP

We're racing our LFX V6-powered Mazda Miata at Atlanta Motorsports Park with the Lucky Dog Racing League on May 18-19.

Jan
15
Jan 15, 2024 | Mazda | Mazda Miata | roll cage
Why did we rip out our roll cage and build a new one?

The roll cage that came with our Miata was less than ideal. Here's why and here's how we fixed that problem by building a new roll cage.

Oct
17
Oct 17, 2023 | Mazda | Hard Top | Endurance Race Miata | Treasure Coast Miata | Maita
A brand-new NA Miata hardtop for less than $800?

Why add a hardtop to our V6-powered Miata? Better aerodynamics and more safety.

Jun
19
Jun 19, 2023 | Mazda | Miata | lfx | Carolina Motorsports Park | Lucky Dog Racing League | Endurance Race Miata
What you learn from your first time racing a new car

For our V6-swapped Miata's return to competition, we headed to Carolina Motorsports Park to run with the Lucky Dog Racing League. Here's how it went.

Apr
27
Apr 27, 2023 | Mazda | Miata | v6 | Aerodynamics | lfx | aero | Nine Lives Racing | Endurance Race Miata
Giving our Miata the aero edge that it really deserves

With great power, comes a need for great downforce. So we contacted Nine Lives Racing.

Apr
18
Apr 18, 2023 | Mazda | Miata | Mazda Miata | lfx | Endurance Race Miata | PCV | RX Performance | Catch Can
How to upgrade an LFX’s PCV system for track use

As great as the stock LFX PCV system is, we'd need something beefier to handle track use–and wide-open throttle.

Mar
29
Mar 29, 2023 | Mazda | Miata | Konig | Nankang | Good-Win Racing | Fender Rolling | Fender Pulling
Which creates more fender clearance: rolling or pulling?

We need more room for our V6 Miata's wheels and tires–but is the answer rolling or pulling the fenders?

Mar
17
Mar 17, 2023 | Mazda | Miata | Holley | Endurance Race Miata | SmartWire | Racepak
What you need to know about the Racepak IQ3 Logger Dash: Our experience

What's it like to install and use a Racepak IQ3 Logger Dash? We'll tell you.

Nov
04
Nov 4, 2022 | Mazda | Miata | brakes | Mazda Miata | Good-Win Racing | V8 Roadsters | Singulär Motorsports
How much brakes for an endurance racer Miata? | Project Endurance Race Miata

After our brakes failed during testing, we made our setup bigger, better and cooler.

Sep
21
Sep 21, 2022 | Mazda | Miata | Mazda Miata | lfx | Endurance Race Miata | SPA Technique | Fire-Supression
A new season means an updated fire-suppression system

A required service interval is the perfect excuse to upgrade a fire-suppression system, right?

Aug
17
Aug 17, 2022 | Mazda | Miata | Mazda Miata | 3m | Vinyl Wrap | Side Effects Custom Graphics and Wraps | Project Endurance Race Miata
How to easily give a race car a livery | Project Endurance Race Miata

Our V6 Miata walked like a race car and sounded like a race car–all it needed was to look like one, too. Enter the vinyl wrap.

Aug
11
Aug 11, 2022 | Mazda | Miata | lfx | Engine swap | Flyin' Miata | Good-Win Racing | Caliper Garage | Very Cool Parts
How to sort a rebuilt race car | Project Endurance Race Miata

What do we need to test before our V6-powered Miata's racing debut? Pretty much everything. So, we started with the drivetrain.

Jul
22
Jul 22, 2022 | Mazda
Can upgrading safety also improve comfort? | Project Endurance Race Miata

Now that our LFX V6-swapped Miata runs, it was time to update the safety gear.

Jul
19
Jul 19, 2022 | Mazda
Does a LFX V6 swap fit under the hood of an NA Miata? | Project Endurance Race Miata

Does an LFX V6 really fit under the hood of an NA Miata? Depends on the hood.

Feb
18
Dec
06
Dec 6, 2021 | Mazda
How to pick the right tires for endurance racing | Project Endurance Race Miata

One key step before stepping back out on track? Picking the right wheels and tires for the job.

Feb
19
Feb 19, 2021 | Mazda
How To Refresh Your Race Car’s Interior in One Day | Project Endurance Race Miata

Before we could rewire our now LFX-powered Miata, we needed to address the car's interior: clean-up, paint, lightweight steering column and Racepak display.

Apr
06
Apr 6, 2020 | Mazda
Project Endurance Race Miata: Big Brakes, Stronger Hubs and a Full-Race Suspension

We knew we needed to upgrade the rest of the Miata to properly take advantage of its upcoming power increase, and two areas stuck out like sore thumbs: The brakes …

Feb
27
Feb 27, 2020 | Mazda
Project Endurance Miata: Fitting Our LFX V6

After years of developing our turbocharged endurance Miata, it was time to kick it up a notch with a LFX V6.

Jan
16
Jan 16, 2020 | Mazda
Project Endurance Miata: Trading a Turbo for a V6, but Do We Install a Honda J35 or a GM LFX?

Endurance racing is hard. Doing it on a budget is even harder. Doing both while shooting for a podium finish? That’s nearly impossible, as we proved with our Miata.

Apr
10
Apr 10, 2018 | Mazda
Project Turbo Miata: We Survived ChampCar Daytona!

We finish second in class at ChampCar's Daytona event.

Apr
06
Apr 6, 2018 | Mazda
Meet Our Turbo Miata at Daytona This Weekend

We're entering ChampCar's 14-hour enduro this weekend. Come on out to the track!

Apr
04
Apr 4, 2018 | Mazda
Project Turbo Miata: Post-Race Maintenance

Every race takes its toll on a car, and ours is no exception.

Mar
22
Mar 22, 2018 | Mazda
Project Turbo Miata: We Survived Road Atlanta

Going into our very first American Endurance Racing event at Road Atlanta, we didn’t have high hopes, but we left pleased.

Mar
05
Mar 5, 2018 | Mazda
Project Turbo Miata: Adding Some Vinyl

We add stickers to our now-pretty Miata.

Feb
16
Feb 16, 2018 | Mazda
Project Turbo Miata: We're Going Racing!

We're entered in an American Endurance Racing event at Road Atlanta this weekend.

Feb
14
Feb 14, 2018 | Mazda
Project Turbo Miata: Cutting Springs

We corner-weight our car the hard way.

Feb
13
Feb 13, 2018 | Mazda
Project Turbo Miata: Track Testing

We hit the track to see if our freshly-rebuilt Miata will explode again.

Feb
12
Feb 12, 2018 | Mazda
Project Turbo Miata: Making It Pretty

We strip the Elastiwrap off our Miata and go back to basics.

Feb
11
Feb 11, 2018 | Mazda
Project Turbo Miata: Engine Number 4

We put yet another engine into our turbo Miata.

Feb
10
Feb 10, 2018 | Mazda
Project Turbo Miata: What Did We Break This Time?

We do a compression and leak-down test.

Oct
10
Oct 10, 2017 | Mazda
Project Turbo Miata: We Broke It (Again)

We had three simple goals: Finish the race, have fun, and don’t blow up the car.

Sep
19
Sep 19, 2017 | Mazda
We’re Racing at Sebring This Weekend

Think you’ve got what it takes to best our often broken but never forgotten turbocharged Mazda Miata?

Sep
05
Sep 5, 2017 | Mazda
Project Turbo Miata: Differential Teardown

Check your fluid levels, kids

Aug
08
Aug 8, 2017 | Mazda
Project Turbo Miata: Investigating Our Differential Failure

Why are our rear wheels locked?

Jul
31
Jul 31, 2017 | Mazda
Project Turbo Miata: Track Testing!

Our low-buck racer project hits the test track with its new engine.

Jul
24
Jul 24, 2017 | Mazda
Project Turbo Miata: Hitting the Dyno With a Fresh Engine

After getting a new engine, our turbo Miata project rolled onto the dyno.

Jul
17
Jul 17, 2017 | Mazda
Project Turbo Miata: A Fresh Engine for Our Endurance Racer

Our turbocharged Mazda Miata racer gets a new heart.

May
17
May 17, 2017 | Mazda
Our Miata Needs a New Engine

Our Mazda racer heads to Treasure Coast Miata for a new heart.

Apr
03
Apr 3, 2017 | Mazda
Project Turbo Miata: Things Get Heated at Daytona

Our race at Daytona doesn't exactly go as planned.

Mar
31
Mar 31, 2017 | Mazda
Project Turbo Miata: Fire Fighting

We transfer the fire system to our new Miata.

Mar
30
Mar 30, 2017 | Mazda
A New Heart for the Turbo Miata

We swap a fresher engine into our Miata.

Mar
21
Mar 21, 2017 | Mazda
Our Turbo Miata Goes Boom

Engine swap and suspension revamp before our race in two weeks? Challenge accepted.

Mar
13
Mar 13, 2017 | Mazda
Fresh Rubber For Our Endurance Racer

We just got a nice fresh set of track tires just in time to race at Daytona.

Mar
08
Mar 8, 2017 | Mazda
Come Race With Us at Daytona!

We have our Miata entered in ChumpCar’s RVA Graphics 14 Hours of Daytona on April 1.

Mar
07
Mar 7, 2017 | Mazda
Crapcan Miata: Our Wheel and Tire Selection

What do we run on our crapcan racer?

Feb
10
Feb 10, 2017 | Mazda
Recap: 24 Hours of LeMons 'Shine Country Classic

We spent two days racing at Barber Motorsports Park in our crapcan turbo Miata.

Feb
06
Feb 6, 2017 | Mazda
All Stickered Up

We lay down some stickers to look like a real race car.

Jan
11
Jan 11, 2017 | Mazda
Miata Turbocharging 101

We add a junkyard turbo to our crapcan Miata.

Aug
16
Aug 16, 2016 | Mazda
Drop It Like It's Hot!

We port our race car to a new chassis.

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