How to Build a High-Performance Mazda Miata MX-5


Book Description

The Mazda Miata is one of the most popular sports cars on the road today. In production for more than 20 years, the Miata’s popularity has grown, and the number of aftermarket components available to the Miata enthusiast has grown, too. This immense selection of parts has made it difficult for many would-be modifiers to choose the proper combination that will help them reach the goals they have set for their two-seaters. Author and Miata expert Keith Tanner has been modifying, repairing, building, and racing Miatas for years, and he will guide you through how to best modify your car to suit your needs, starting with an explanation on how everything works and how the various parts will interact. You'll not only learn what upgrades will help you reach your goals, but also how to adjust or modify what you have to make your car work at its best. From autocross to cross-country touring, the Miata can do it all. Keith Tanner tells you how to make it happen!




Mazda Miata Performance Handbook


Book Description

Without a doubt, your Miata is a special car. By reading Mazda Miata Performance Handbook you can learn how to make it a GREAT car! This is the first hands-on guide to modifying and performance tuning your Mazda MX-5 for street or track. Garrett runs through your Miata component by component, offering keen advice on increasing performance and reliability. Covers aftermarket parts, and includes MX-3 six and Ford 5.0 V-8 engine swaps.







Mazda MX-5 Miata


Book Description

With its arrival in the United States in 1990, the Mazda Miata inspired the return of the open roadster. Though other makes and models followed, the Miata remains the convertible sports car of choice for budget-conscious enthusiasts, as popular in autocross and amateur racing circles as it is among pleasure drivers. This book shows readers how to make the most of any Miata: what to look for in a used model and how to perform common maintenance and repairs, as well as over 15 projects to improve performance and appearance. Focusing on the engine, wheels and tires, suspension, body kits, interior, and more, the projects include full details on required parts, cost, time, tools, and skill necessary for completion. With easy-to-follow directions and clear illustrations, this handy guide is a virtual road map for taking the Miata the full distance.







How to Restore Mazda MX-5/Miata Mk1 & 2


Book Description

An easy to follow guide to restoring a classic Mazda MX-5/Miata - the world's favourite small sports car. This book takes you step-by-step through choosing a project car, looking the car over, planning the restoration, and buying parts and tools to perform the work. The comprehensive text is fully supported by high-resolution photographs, guiding you through stripping the car down, cutting out and repairing rust, restoration of interiors, replacing the hood, refurbishing the underside of the car including the floor pan, suspension, brakes, undersealing, reassembly, replacing the cam belt and waterpump, replacing engine seals and gaskets to cure common leaks. It also provides a guide to handy upgrades as you go along. Whether you are looking to restore to original condition or build an out-and-out track weapon, the techniques described in this book will assist you in getting the right base to start with. The book is based on an actual restoration of a vehicle carried out by the author, with before and after shots.




Race Tech's Motorcycle Suspension Bible


Book Description

The suspension expert’s illustrated, comprehensive troubleshooting guide for dirt, street, and supermoto—with a solution to virtually any problem. Suspension is probably the most misunderstood aspect of motorcycle performance. This book, by America’s premier suspension specialist, makes the art and science of suspension tuning accessible to professional and backyard motorcycle mechanics alike. Based on Paul Thede’s wildly popular Race Tech Suspension Seminars, this step-by-step guide shows anyone how to make their bike, or their kid’s, handle like a pro’s. Thede gives a clear account of the three forces of suspension that you must understand to make accurate assessments of your suspension’s condition. He outlines testing procedures that will help you gauge how well you’re improving your suspension, along with your riding. And, if you’re inclined to perfect your bike’s handling, he even explains the black art of chassis geometry. Finally, step-by-step photos of suspension disassembly and assembly help you rebuild your forks and shocks for optimum performance.




How to Build a High-Performance Mazda Miata MX-5, 2nd Edition


Book Description

Build the Miata of your dreams with this all-encompassing, photo-illustrated modification guide. Across four generations and for more than three decades, Mazda’s Miata MX-5 has proven itself one of the most popular and versatile sports cars ever created. Its ability to fulfill any goal from street cruising to on-track competition has spawned an extensive performance aftermarket, making it possible for owners to build their dream Miata. In fact, the selection of parts is so broad that it can be difficult for many would-be builders to select and tune the proper combination to achieve their MX-5 goals. Enter author, MX-5 expert, and Flyin’ Miata co-owner Keith Tanner and How to Build a High-Performance Mazda Miata MX-5. This thorough manual—revised and updated throughout to cover the fourth-generation Miata—will guide you through how to best modify your car to suit your goals. Key chapters in the book cover: Engine management systems, intake/exhaust, and forced induction Clutch and transmission Suspension and handling Braking, wheels, and tires Body and chassis Engine swaps Beginning with a modification philosophy, Tanner then discusses which upgrades will help you reach your goals and how to tune your MX-5 to maximize its potential. From cross-country touring to autocross to track racing, the Miata can do it all and How to Build a High-Performance Mazda Miata MX-5 ensures you know how to make it happen!




How to Build and Modify GM LS-Series Engines


Book Description

For gearheads who want to build or modify popular LS engines, How to Build and Modify GM LS-Series Engines provides the most detailed and extensive instructions ever offered for those modding LS engines through the Gen IV models. The LS1 engine shook the performance world when introduced in the 1997 Corvette. Today the LS9 version far eclipses even the mightiest big-blocks from the muscle car era, and it does so while meeting modern emissions requirements and delivering respectable fuel economy. Premier LS engine technician Joseph Potak addresses every question that might come up: Block selection and modifications Crankshaft and piston assemblies Cylinder heads, camshafts, and valvetrain Intake manifolds and fuel system Header selection Setting up ring and bearing clearances for specific uses Potak also guides readers through forced induction and nitrous oxide applications. In addition, the book is fully illustrated with color photography and detailed captions to further guide readers through the mods described, from initial steps to final assembly. Whatever the reader’s performance goals,How to Build and Modify GM LS-Series Engines will guide readers through the necessary modifications and how to make them. It’s the ultimate resource for building the ultimate LS-series engine! The Motorbooks Workshop series covers topics that engage and interest car and motorcycle enthusiasts. Written by subject-matter experts and illustrated with step-by-step and how-it’s-done reference images, Motorbooks Workshop is the ultimate resource for how-to know-how.




Inside Shelby American


Book Description

In the late 1950s, a young John Morton was transfixed with sports car racing. His dreams of competition eventually led him to enroll, in 1962, in the Shelby School of High Performance Driving. In a bold moment after the last class, Morton asked Carroll Shelby if he might come to work for the newly formed Shelby American. The answer was “Yes, here's a broom.” Thus ended Morton's college career and began his long racing career. Over the next three years, Morton would be a firsthand witness to the evolution of one of the most iconic sports car builders and racing teams of the 1960s. Inside Shelby American is his personal account of a company overflowing with talent, from designer Pete Brock to fabricator extraordinare Phil Remington to drivers like Dan Gurney, Ken Miles, Bob Bondurant, and Phil Hill. The cars were equally captivating: AC Cobra, Mustang GT350, Ford GT, Daytona Coupe. In this book, Morton’s story is intertwined with the memories of other Shelby staffers of the period, revealing through historic photography and an untold perspective the rousing story of America’s most legendary racer and car builder.