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An automatic is out of the question for a number of reasons, the first one being a matter of principal. Auto + sports car (to me) = family/geezer car that would like to be a sports car. When they released the RX-8 I was REALLY hoping that they wouldn't make an automatic. My only joy when I found out that they did was that the auto had reduced power...hehe. The best is the 3000GT VR-4...available only in manual. Gotta love it. Alas, I digress.
Another factor is weight distribution. The EG33 isn't much heavier than the stock miata 1.6L, but it will sit a bit further back, keeping very close to the factory front/rear balance.
The last major factor is I am quite sure it would be impossible to squeeze this engine in and convert the front to hold driveline that isn't there. If there were a way, I'd make it easy on myself, just put in a 5MT and make it an AWD miata. Unfortunately, that just isn't going to happen. Though I will admit, that'd be way cooler than just putting this engine in.
I'll look deeper into the vanagon guys to see what I can come up with for transmissions. One factor is going to be not only what will bolt up to the engine, but also what will fit into the miata's tranny tunnel.
I tore down the EG33 today to basically the bare engine. I still have the lower intake manifolds on as well as the exhaust manifolds. Pretty much everything else is on the bench. With it tore down, I measured it side to side and came up with a width of about 31". This poses a problem, as the unmodified miata space is about 27" wide. I'll be able to modify it to get some more space out of it, but holy buckets will that be a tight squeeze. I'm going to have to drill holes just to be able to change the plugs. I may also have to modify the sub-frame to get the exhaust run back. I'm working with the miata guys to try to figure out solutions to this.
For a question more geared towards you guys is engine management. The engine is out of a '92, so I'm guessing (more like hoping) that some of you will have pretty tricky way for me to keep the engine and sensors as simple as possible. I know I will need (based off of common engine management):
MAF Sensor
IAC Motor
O2 Sensors
2x Crank Sensors
Cam Sensor
Throttle Position Sensor
ECT Sensor
Oil Pressure Sending Unit (unless this ONLY connects to the light, which I suspect might be the case because of the single-wire setup)
There are a number of solenoids under the upper intake that appear to mostly emissions-related, but honestly didn't feel like taking the time to look it up in All Data. I'm guessing it'll be no biggie to remove the EGR system.
I'm trying to figure out a way that I'd be able to run each bank's intake as it's own setup. For the most part this isn't too difficult, but I'm not sure how to set up for the MAF or IAC to be properly read by the computer. I'm thinking it may be possible to have those on just one bank and have the other bank sensor-free, but I'm not positive on that.
Ok, I lost my train of thought and will have to come back later. I'll let you guys poke around and discuss what I've tossed out there already. I'm gonna scrub up, eat some food, grab a drink, and kick back for now.
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