Festiva B3 engine in a Mazda Miata

[fujioko]

Hi 'ya folks,

I started a new thread that is specific to the B3 engine. The other thread has both the G10 and B3.

I'll have some B3 and Festiva related questions in the next few days.

The good news is I was able to get the engine running this afternoon. I discovered a coolant leak moments after starting the engine.

The leak was an open hose connected to the throttle body. I have the hose caped off for now.

Here is a link to a u-tube video on the first start.

http://youtu.be/DGmWutGBPNI

I hope to have the car back on the road in a few days.

Jim

[KingFish]

Work looks clean. But I have to ask, why? MPGs? I would be worried that the extra weight would over work the 60hp B3.

[91mcnasty]

That's what I was thinking, it might over work the little guy and defeat the whole "MPG" purpose of the build. But the man is a "do-er" and has a great concept, he'll proove if it was worth it or not!

[fujioko]

Hi 'ya KingFish,

Yes, this B3 project is for fuel economy. I chose the Festiva engine because it is almost a bolt -in swap.

I have had a few Miatas and really like the way they handle and ride. I figured I would convert this car into an economy car for the daily commute.

The 63 HP engine is severely underpowered for a sports car but it should be plenty for what I need. I only hope that there is enough power left over to run the air conditioner at highway speeds.

You bring up a good point.

This sort of engine swap also requires a driver who is also willing to baby the car a little. In the real world, nobody would actually buy a car like this.

So if I push the engine too hard.. it will fail..... but I'm aware of this and plan to drive within the limits of the B3 and not to expect Miata performance.

Jim

[91mcnasty]

I'm sure you excepted that before you started.Awesome work!

[zoom zoom]

I love your threads man, very detailed write ups in there, +1 rep!

It's good to see people trying different things, even if most guys wouldn't care for it, it's custom work and sure to be respected by any real car enthusiast.

[KingFish]

I just read thru both of your econo build threads at the Miata site. Wow. You sir, are a mad genius. I look forward to updates.

[Kraig]

Have you driven it yet? How does it compare to your Metro swap? Looking forward to finding out your MPG...Nice work!

[BigElCat]

Miata On...Fujioko!

I intend to duplicate your belt drive dizzy with a bracket that fits both the Suzuki G10 and a G13B DOHC Swift GTi motor.

You might research the DOHC 1.3 G13B. Very powerful for it's weight, lots of torque for it's displacement. I have 2 of these motors waiting to be rebuilt. The exhaust manifold from a 1.6 SOHC 16 valve Suzuki has the same port size and spacing, and shares enough bolts that it can modded for use in a rear wheel drive (it looks like to me, anyway).

The Sammy 5 speed is not flimsy by any means, but the 5 speed from a 2wd Kick/Tracker would be a closer bolt-in for a Miata. It's longer, moves the shifter rearward, and has a longer tail shaft.

A Mazda/Suzuki hybrid is sorta sacrilege...but I luv it.

Off topic, but where does your screen name originate?

[fujioko]

Hi 'ya folks,

Thanks for the comments!

I haven't had a chance to drive the car yet. I burned out one of the coil packs for the ignition system and I'm waiting for the replacement.

@ BigElCat.

The Suzuki 1.3 is an awesome engine for its weight, I went with the 1.0 because I liked the idea of using the smallest engine I could find. I think there is a 600cc version of the 3 cylinder ... but that might be too small.

The Fujioko screen name is a combination of letters to form a unique ID. When I first started using it many years ago it returned zero hits on google. Anyway I continue to use it because all my projects are linked to it. I think fujioko might also be a female Japanese name.

Jim

[fujioko]

A quick update on the B3 project.

I have to sort out a few minor things but the car is more or less done and is on the road.

I got my first MPG numbers today. The car got 39 MPG on its first road trip.
The engine is still tight and I expect slightly better numbers in the following weeks.

For comparison, the original B8 engine delivered 27-30 MPG with normal driving.

Overall I'm very happy with the results. My original goal was 45+ MPG and it looks like I might get close.

Once the car is fully sorted and I'm able to get consistent numbers then I'll start with some mods.

Jim

[zoom zoom]

39 really isn't bad! How is the acceleration?

[fujioko]

The car runs great and has plenty of torque. Acceleration is probably the same as a Festiva. I have never driven a Festiva so this is just a guess. The transmission gear ratios are different in the Miata and I noticed that I can take off in 2nd gear, shift to 4th and then 5th. I modified the miata transmission with a RX7 fifth gear for a better overdrive ratio.

The B3 engine gives up at about the RPM the B8 starts making power. Otherwise the car drives normal. The only time you notice the B3's shortcomings is when you try to rev it like the B8.

I'm real happy with the B3 engine.

[FestYboy]

if you want a few more revs, you should consider the FMS cam, should push the power band up another 1000rpm and that would work better with your axle ratio (miatas tend to cruise at higher rpms than festys, even with the rx7 5th gear swap)