Following this project what a development delight to see well done so far ……
Can’t wait to hear/see how it performs when all is completed - my other car is a full EV, (but I still like the MX-5 revs!)
Well done so far.
Big step forward today. We have bench tested the Nissan Leaf motor and got it running under VCU and DCU control Will upload some links to YouTube videos later.
Some videos on our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@OSSEV
We have now stripped down our bench test set up and the focus is now on stripping the MX-5e of everything we don’t need, including the wiring loom, ECU, brakes assistance, power steering, air con, exhaust, fuel system, cooling system, etc.
We have built our own vehicle scales, so we weigh the car today and everything that comes out and goes in from now on: OSSEV - Vehicle Scales Project
Weighed the car at 987kg today. That’s pretty good given we have added an Apple CarPlay head unit, sub-woofer, and big rear speakers. As an EV, we hope to get even lower. We are going from a 90bhp + auto box to a 165bhp/350Nm We are having to upgrade the older 6" diff to a newer 7" crown wheel diff with brand new LSD inside. With software update, we can get to 185bhp. A new inverter will take us to 215bhp.
Next month we strip the car completely. New light-weight wiring loom, new light-weight dash, Tesla iBooster, etc. We lose the cooling system, exhaust, heat shields, engine, gearbox, alternator, air conditioning, power steering, etc. Looking for new light-weight seats that allow us to keep the existing belts but also add 6-point harnesses.
Hi Rob,
Interesting Kanji !
雷 かみなり kaminari -thunder, lighning bolt…
Also
雷 いかずち、いかづち、ikazuchi, ikaduchi - God of Thunder, God of Lightning,
稲妻、電 いなずま、いなづま、inazuma, inaduma - lightning, flash of lightning, lighning bolt
I think your Kanji sticker looks great!
Ofiaich!
We started emptying the engine bay today and the MX-5e has been SORN’d. We removed the air intake system (3.7kg), battery and clamps (11.5kg), main radiator and fans (8.1kg), most of the air con system (7.8kg) and the exhaust system (19.9kg). This is a total of 51.0kg
Even more stuff out of the engine bay today. We are going to completely strip it, so that it can be cleaned and also resprayed. We have committed to a completely new wiring loom in the engine bay and dash. We are also removing the brake pipes, so we can properly restore the underside of the car. We will fit new brake pipes later. The time consuming bit today was draining the fuel tank. This will come out when we remove the subframes to be cleaned and powder coated. The steering rack is coming out to be properly de-powered too.
If you’re thinking of regenerative braking, this adjustable brake bias valve might come in handy. I have it on my eunos without abs. They are notoriously front biased so lock up easily. But with this, you can go up to 50% rear bias if needed. https://bofiracing.co.uk/running-gear/brake-hydraulics/bias-valves/adjustable-brake-bias-proportioning-valve-kit-for-mazda-mx-5-na-nb/
Thanks. I will take a look. I think the Tesla iBooster supports front/rear bias control but I will have a look. It certainly has the fronts and rears as separate circuits.
This 1.6 is for sale. Runs sweetly and comes with an automatic gearbox. All the ancilliaries are left attached. Any reasonable offer considered, buyer to collect from Ipswich.
Because we have limited space in our garage, we are concentrating on the front half of the car first. Once stripped, we will complete the restoration of the underside and then we can start fitting the freshly powder coated subframe and suspension arms. We have new ball joints, bushes and alignment bolts too.
The engine and gearbox are up for sale on eBay: Mazda MX5 NA mk1 1.6 engine + automatic gearbox Eunos Roadster 1992 84500 miles | eBay
We have a new Super Fuji 3.6:1 ratio LSD for the MX-5e. This has the right ratio to give a better top speed of 109mph. It’s also much stronger because it has a 7" crown gear instead of a 6" one. The internals are being upgraded to make it even stronger and we are gettoing the arms welded up to strengthen them too. It will be refitted with new poly bushes.
We have pretty much finished depowering the steering rack and the whole process is described here: OSSEV - Mazda MX-5 EV Steering Rack Modification
We have finished refurbishing the driveshafts.
The car is currently up on ramps, whilst we remove all the old underseal, treat any rust found and them prime it and re-underseal it all. We can then fit the new subframes, suspension arms, ball joints, polybushes, etc.
Then we move onto the best bit, which is rebuilding it all as an EV. The plan is to have the car on the road by spring.
Pretty much completed both side of the floor now
Dropped the front subframe to get full access to all the chassis parts that need treating. Remarkably little rust on this 1992 Eunos Roadster!
This wide angle view shows the whole inside. This will look like new by the time we have finished.
We have primed the floor using a Buzzweld glass reinforced primer. This should see the car last another 30+ years
We have totally stripped the engine bay now and are bust cleaning it all up and treating any rust we find. Very little really. You can look down the chassis legs and see the clean original paint and just a bit of dust. The whole engine bay, front of the car, chassis legs, etc. is going to be repainted in black.
We finally got to trial fit the Bosch/Tesla iBooster today. It fits well, with the outlet ports in just the right place and the connectors easily accessible.
Exciting times ahead
Indeed. Thanks for continuing to post your updates.