I recently overheated the engine in my 1996 track car.  “Overheated” is actually an understatement, as the head was so warped that it had to be shaved 0.016” to be useable.   Even worse, a complete valve job was necessary.  While I didn’t want to invest in rebuilding a stock engine, time was limited.  Without repairing the engine I would have to sit out for the remainder of the season. That’s unacceptable.

My goal before the start of the 2009 season was to build a motor.  Since I like to run with a couple of different clubs (COMSCC and SCCA), it is difficult to build a car that is legal and competitive in each.  To date I have focused on keeping the car ITA legal for SCCA racing, but that puts me up against well driven high-horsepower 4-cyl naturally aspirated engines in my COMSCC class (SPC).  I’ve been OK with that as most of the enjoyment I get with COM comes from the camaraderie with friends and instructing, the competition, while fun, is secondary.  That said, I have been driving Miatas for some time now and have often thought it would be a lot of fun to have some extra power under the hood.  Unfortunately, to build a “COM” engine I would have to abandon ITA, and I have struggled with letting go of that.

The scramble to get my engine repaired rekindled my dreams of building a naturally-aspirated engine with a bit more power.  Forced induction is not an option if I wanted to stay in the same COM class, so I decided to stick with N/A.  Besides, I do love the sound of a tuned set of individual throttle bodies (ITB a.k.a. IRTB).

Whether by chance or by subconscious decision, it seems appropriate that the first entry to my build blog has to deal with the cooling system.  I took a bunch of pictures and sketched a few diagrams for my ideal radiator.  I was already aware of Miata race-radiator options (I’ve had a 3” aluminum radiator in my car since I built it two seasons ago), but wanted something a bit different.  I’m after a capable radiator with integral oil cooler and one that would allow a direct path for cool air to the intake.  in other words, I’m looking for either a more narrow radiator or one with a hole in it.  I will use that hole to direct ambient (hopefully, cool) air through the mouth and directly to the intake.

I’ve spoken to a few custom radiator builders and am still evaluating options.  None could be called “inexpensive” or “quick”.

PICTURES: Here are the pictures I took and the diagrams I drew.