THSCC Forums

It takes me longer to get to the filter in our Toyota, then it does for me to do every other part of the oil change, including resetting the stupid little reminder light that shouldn't be in the car.

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In need of car.

Oil filters: passenger side a-arms on Miatas will never rust. Gotta keep them lubricated!

STF: I really don't want to do this because 1 project car is enough. Bilsteins, 15x7.5 wheels, Toyos, some crazy ECU flash to spin to 7200rpm OR spend that money on HPDEs and split a set of R-comps with Milko.

Jason, that sounds like the eighth gen Civic Si which was definitely not originally designed to house a K20. The filter was almost impossible to reach even if you're a contortionist with the tiniest of hands. I'm sure James and Shawn don't miss this either with their's.

The filter isn't really hard to reach, except for the panel that they put in the way of it. It has to be removed, and in order to remove it you have to lift the truck. If it wasn't for that, I wouldn't even have to use a jack.

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In need of car.

Hands down, big ass rear sway bar.

http://www.corksport.com/corksport-mazd ... aybar.html



Your suspension is VERY similar to mine. Nothing is easy, no camber bolts (you will understand when you see how the strut attaches) Corksport will be your new Bimmerworld.

http://www.corksport.com/corksport-mazd ... lates.html

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02 Focus SVT
STF 9

So much for economical economy car.

I'd swear you said you were planning on scaling back on AutoX Rodney. You know they make meds for your condition right?

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BenchWarmer Motorsports

another one of those damn LeMons heads

just another Chump

we are an Autocross Club Dammit............

yeah.... but I choose not to take them....

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Rodney

'08 Bullitt mustang, CAM 7
Autox VP '09-'10, President '11-'12, interim President 2nd half of ‘14
proud recipient of the Bowie Grey service award '12
Now just a guy driving a mustang....

I give him 4 months into AX season to start looking for another Mustang/BMW car w/o sunroof. If I had to bet a ZHP will start going "Rodney, buy me" "Rodney, look no sunroof" "Rodney I'm your favorite color" and he will succomb to the call of the siren and yet another car will be added to his list.

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1990 Faded Reddish CSP Lite Miata
2002 Electron Blue Corvette Z06
2005 Mazda 6 Wagon
2003 Nissan Pathfinder DTV (Dog Transport Vehicle)

I know I am different in this regard, but I have always thought my car handled better with a big FRONT bar than with a big rear bar. At least with R compounds, I had no problems tripoding it, so I always figured that the added roll stiffness in the front would do me more good in terms of allowing me to put power down and prevent it from going to positive camber so readily.

Racing beat makes a GIGANTIC rear bar (since its designed to go with a gigantic front bar also).

If you decide you are interested in mazdaspeed goodies, let me know, my motorsports discount is valid and it certainly wouldnt raise any flags with them if they saw me buying things for an '04 Mazda3. For example, mazdaspeed coilover kit, instead of $1700 list, is $1100. I got my stock mazdaspeed3 bar for ~$100 IIRC.

Jeb actually would be a decent person to ask about modding a mazda3. He had his pretty well set up to what would be STF legal back in the day. He had all the power adder mods. I have the Mazdaspeed/AEM CAI, and definitely saw an improvement around town with it. I know he did header and exhaust as well as some sway bar mods and camber plates.

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2012 MX-5 Sport SUV

Cartridge filters are available readily now for the same price if not cheaper (I got purolator pureOne filters for ~$4), not to mention it takes a while to recoup the conversion cost. I bought a tool for changing mine for ~$10 IIRC. I actually don't even use the drain plug anymore, I just unscrew it and let it drip for a bit. Sure, I get a tiny bit of oil on the tool, but its that or get oil on your hands with a spin on, right? I can still fill the cartridge almost completely with oil just like you would a spin on.

I've heard all the arguments for spin on conversion, and just never really thought it was worth the effort, and the payback isn't there from a financial perspective.

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2012 MX-5 Sport SUV

Sure, I get a tiny bit of oil on the tool



heheeheheheh... Brice said tool .... hehe

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BenchWarmer Motorsports

another one of those damn LeMons heads

just another Chump

we are an Autocross Club Dammit............

I just did a quick review of the money burn path of HS/TIR and STF. Let me say the STF path is out and I have to agree w/ Andrew, just not what I want to do right now to keep my primary focus on getting finances in order. Don’t mind spending a little money to have fun w/ car, just not down the STF path…. Sorry Ryan..

Now, which bar to purchase. Conventional logic w/ front wheel drive was to always stiffen up the rear of the car, but Brice states different. So Brice, what bar did you swap on the 3?

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Rodney

'08 Bullitt mustang, CAM 7
Autox VP '09-'10, President '11-'12, interim President 2nd half of ‘14
proud recipient of the Bowie Grey service award '12
Now just a guy driving a mustang....

I have tried both a front bar and a rear bar. I ran the rear bar when I was in ST. When I converted back to stock class, I switched to a front bar, b/c a rear bar wasn't allowed at the time. I ran a progress 22mm rear sway bar. I now run a 26mm front sway bar (stock mazdaspeed3 bar with poly swaybar bushings).

I'm one who has never really had a lot of complaints about getting my FWD car to rotate, so take this advice from that perspective. I prefer the improvement in tire wear from the front bar, and feel that b/c its such a nose heavy camber challenged FWD car it improves front end grip considerably, as opposed to making the car pushier like a larger front bar can sometimes. The conventional wisdom is big rear bar, but for a camber challenged, nose heavy strut car, I think it might be different.

That said, the fast people tend to run a rear bar. The guy I bought my wheels from, Clay McCool, said he couldn't stand running with a big front bar though, and he was very competitive (trophied in a 3 in H-Stock at a tour event). Feinberg runs a gigantic rear bar on his integra and picks his inside rear tire a foot off the ground (although on a double wishbone front suspension, going to positive camber isn't as big of a concern for him). My recomendation, drive my car, and see if you think its too pushy. If so, get a rear bar, if not, get a front bar. My car isn't stock legal, but the only things that make it illegal are the intake and the wheels being too wide.

The current running debate on stock class swaybars for mazda3's. I will warn, a lot of the opinions in this thread are flat out wrong, so read at your own risk. . .

http://www.mazda3forums.com/showthread.php?t=396129

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2012 MX-5 Sport SUV

Brice,
Did you have wheelspin problems?

And to Rodney, I understand the issues. I am much farther down the rabbit hole than I anticipated. Its only 1 more part and 1 more part and then, really this is it. Part of me wishes I would have kept it stock but that's just not how I roll

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02 Focus SVT
STF 9

Not really, but 2nd gear is pretty tall on the 3 and I was on R-compounds so maybe thats why. I probably would be able to get on the gas earlier coming our of steady state cornering with a rear bar, but we tend to have so many more transitional elements than steady state, I always felt the front bar worked better.

At the course in Fayeteville, coming into the diagonal 4 cone slalom near the end of the "lap" it did seem like an eternity before I could get back on the gas.

That said, I'm probably doing it wrong.

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2012 MX-5 Sport SUV