The Bogan

As I haven't heard from MX5 Mania IRT the roof I say I've missed out as they are as rare as hens teeth and sell fast I am still looking though, as yet I haven't found one though 😪

Maybe later, I'm currently just enjoying the car

OK, slight problems with the cams, they weren't actually installed, LOL and Fark at the same time...... After looking at the curve, and, talking to MX5 Mania on the phone, and talking to the tuner, and then everyone talking to each other, and then looking at the quote, which had the cams included, and then looking at the work done, and the final bill for what work and parts I actually paid for and what was actually done, i.e. no bill for the cams or their installation, the cams were apparently missed during installation, and hence no bill for them.....fark I really should have looked at the itemised bill when I picked the car up, and probably checked on it more when at the shop during installation They did apologise profusely for missing it on the initial quote they sent, and asked if I wanted to go ahead with the cams anyway, which I did when the engine was out, and the car was in the shop for a week, now, not so much In the end though, the car goes so much better than it did before and I'm happy with the work that did get done As for the money that would have gone on the cams, well that will get redirected to the detachable hard top budget, and/or beer... Mark is still slightly jaded though, as you would expect

The older I get the more mellow my music has become I grew up listening to 70's and 80's punk and heavy metal, nowadays it's to pointlessly angry Now, I'm more classical music, hell, me and the Mrs go to the Opera house now I do on occasion listen to some old punk stuff, but it is rare

I really dislike the look of them with a PRHT, hence me trying to find a detachable hard top It does have more power everywhere Whilst is only makes 125kw, that is at around 6500 rpm, to get the 120kw in the 2.0 that was at 7250 rpm Basically 30 torques everywhere through the power band I just got back from a run to Goulburn and back, Hwy fuel economy hasn't changed

Yes mate, still wrapped up and stored indoors

Picked up up the MX5, WOW, what a difference 0.5 litres and some little cams make Car pulls great, way way better than the 2.0, and whilst the car is only making around 5 kw more up top, the added torque down low and the midrange is a huge difference, I was actually shocked at how much of a difference it made, the car also sounds better I think Win Win Well worth the effort and coin I also may be lucky with getting a OEM detachable hard top for it, one of the guys at MX5 Mania knows a guy, who knows a guy, that is selling a OEM detachable hard top for a NC, I've been on the hunt for one since I picked the car up, but with no luck, fingers are crossed

I cannot believe the amount of power required to keep the interwebs full of stuff The more connections with the interwebs, more power is required to keep those data centre buildings full of stuff, and from what the googles say, the power to run AI systems is massive Nuclear power seems to be thing to keep the interweb lights on, what would we do if we couldn't doom scroll funny cat videos, ohhh, the humanity

People remove sunroofs and manage to make it look like it was never there, welding up a small hole in the roof is a simple job The illegal rebirthing and stolen car parts industry is a real thing, from full body swaps to just swapping interiors, the other parts and panels are then sold on, just look at the steady supply of parts in the classifieds, and the "wanted to buy whole car" adds from some wreckers where they advertise they will buy wrecked or damaged high end cars Hell, when I was thinking about getting a new Coulson style interior for the SS I replied to add in the classifieds for a full interior, I turned up at a joint in the industrial area of Ingleburn, it was full of stripped and chopped up JDM and Commodores, the shady looking characters were more interested in what was under the bonnet of my car and where I lived than actually selling me the "full Coulson" interior that was in their warehouse area that was full of stripped car parts, my spider senses tingled and I got hell out of there High end, high demand cars and parts shopping lists for crime is a real thing, it a profitable business, these thieves aren't stealing cars for joy rides Fun fact about some stolen cars: Western Sydney crime gangs, and other hard core crime areas, are holding stolen "kill cars" that they use when the shoot each other up, and every second top tier gang member has some form of 1000hp mint nut and bolt "resto" classic, JDM, ADM or Euro thing parked up

Meh, once you swap all the JDM parts onto a ADM shell you wouldn't really notice Whilst there was a few things that the ADM required for compliance here, it's all bolt on stuff really isn't it The only tricky work would be the cut and shut on the firewall where the stamps are The rest is basic nut, bolt, respray if you use a donor for the body numbers, block and other parts

Do conveyancing, I cannot be arsed trying to actually buy a house and do all the legal stuff you need to do to purchase myself I pay cash now, you make happen.....

Sounds like a fun guy In other news, I'm picking up the MX5 from MX5 Mania tomorrow, yeap, another car that I said I was keeping stock, but didn't Weirdly, it is all set up for taking it to the track, which I said I wasn't going to do Meh, I'll be living in Goulburn soon, so maybe that's a sign of my symptoms Yes, I know, it's a sickness, a fun sickness, but a sickness none the less

This happens more than people know, there's lots of money to be made rebirthing cars Lots of rusted hulk or crashed "collectable" cars are "refreshed" this way

I come here now to live vicariously through others, well, I do spend too much money on my cars, but my cars are still working......typically... Times haven't really changed alot though, the build cars, run the cars hard, then break the cars, rinse and repeat, has been going on from when I first joined SAU Good times

I assume some busted arse rusty one may be getting a new lease of life Are the chassis numbers stamped on the JDM/AUD models? Or just the riveted on plate?

The big block.....LOL

Oh, oops, yeah, I'm getting the cams in the 2.5 replaced, so the above factory 2.0 cam specs don't mean 5hit, but, after alot of googling it seems the factory 2.5 cams don't like to rev So, yeah, there is that 🤣

It's basically the same platform, hence why everything bolts to everything else Kelford camshafts were recommended by Mania after they asked me what I want the car for, I said "I'll thrash it around daily and maybe take it to the track for fun" 🤣 Factory NC 2.0L cam specs: - Adv. Dur. 256 /256 - Dur @ .050 205 /190 - Lift 9.42mm/8.13mm So, as I know nothing about cam specs, all I can say is the numbers are different and it should get a little bit of lope....🤣

MX5 goes into MX5 Mania tomorrow for the "camed 2.5 big block" swap 🤪 A week later than expected, but they found a lower Km engine than the first one and needed time for it to be pulled and inspected I did take it for its last spin with the 2.0 today, great day for top down driving, drove it to Altitude 1148 to lunch with Jackie Took the long way home down Bulli Pass, then home via the Nasho, lots of traffic, but typical for a weekend/public holiday, I had to time some sections to get "free air" for some of the twisties though, but a nice little cruise none the less, the car is handling great, and it sound awesome when I'm up it Looking forward to seeing the difference that 0.5 ltrs and some cams make

Heaps of historical info on this, a quick Google gave dates back to 2012, all talk about identification markings, dimples, shapes of mounting surfaces, washers, that are concave or something to match the fasteners mounting surface, which ARP states that if the washer, if it uses a washer in its application, isn't the right way around, it can cause premature failure, even if it was torqued up correctly with whatever lube is meant to be used There is even talk about getting the bolts Xrayed to check the structure, one was about some builder getting multiple sets of bolts, having them Xrayed, and picking from those results Nowadays identical "looking" fake parts, in identical looking fake packaging are everywhere, with all the markings and stuff, the only way you know they are not legit is Xray or when they fail I assume if you don't want fake parts, and don't have a Xray machine handy, is to get them directly from ARP in the USofA, aftermarket rod and head bolts aren't something to take for granted Imagine building a big dollar build only to find you lunch it because of an inferior fake fixture let go 😫

If they are a standard parts that have been replaced with a new, or better part, they mainly go in the recycling bin at home if there's room, or into the metal or big rubbish bin at work Saying this, I have gifted or sold some random stuff over the years, but, if they don't sell, or aren't given away within a month or so, they hit the bin I use to keep everything, to give away when I sold a car or bike, but typically people didn't want the parts, and the garage, shed, and other storage areas would fill up with parts, that got old and keeping stuff for the sake of keeping stuff was not the best use of space I do still have a big box full of all sorts of nuts, bolts, washers and brackets though, which come in handy... "every few years" and typically only for other peoples projects

I find I am using the MX5 for everything except long overnight cruises with Jackie, or, if picking up the kids to go somewhere, the SS has so much more room inside, and is much more comfortable if your going to be doing Hwy driving for 6-8 hours And the MX5 isn't bad in stop go traffic for a manual transmission car, whilst the clutch kit has been upgraded from stock, it is still light, and also not having a stupidly light flywheel in it helps as well, I've spent alot of time sitting on the M5, M4 and M7 stuck in traffic when plodding around the Greater Sydney Region in it Another benefit is MX5's are not really a car that gets stolen, you can pretty much park it anywhere, and it will still be there when you return

1. The MX5 is small, light and fun to throw around at low speeds 2. Fuel economy is great 3. There's more than enough room for my day bag, and enough room in the boot for some shopping 4. I like looking at it My daily commute takes about 10 minutes of suburban streets, mostly 50kph, with about 6 roundabouts and minimal traffic Whilst the SS is a big comfy cruiser, that's all it is, and the fuel economy is about 3 times as much as the MX5's around town

New dampening settings are much nicer or crappy roads, I've also noticed no difference when throwing the car around on smooth twisty roads In other news: Idle hands are the devils play things, or, more correctly, my typical while we're in there 5hit, and too much time on my hands with online shopping Some new purchases for the 2.5 swap Fancy pants new 32mm triple flow radiator, because the old radiator is old and needs to come out for the 2.5 swap anyway Gates fancy pants water pump, because recommended with the new radiator Plus a new silicone coolant hose kit, because old hoses are old And a sump baffle thingo, because while I won't track the MX5, I'll probably track the MX5, maybe, probably......but, while we're in there anyway, as the FWD 2.5 sump needs to gets replaced with the RWD 2.0 sump, so, yeah I am loving driving the MX5 around everywhere, the poor old Bogan Cruise Ship hasn't really moved in months