Mazda3 MPS upgrades, part 2
05/08/16 11:26
I've also done some under-the-bonnet upgrades on my 2006 MPS - wow! Very happy with the results.
[3] COBB Gear Shift Weight
Wasn't sure what the result of this was going to be … was it going to make the gear shift feel sloppier rather than a nice, solid shift? But I'm very happy - it's made shifting much nicer!
This is the stock shift weight …
And here is the shiny new COBB weight. Changing the weight to a smaller, lighter one was worthwhile for a later mod I did …
[4] COBB Turbo Inlet
Here's the stock Mazda turbo inlet (black, right) and intake (left) in situ …
It was quite difficult to get out, in that I had to remove the battery box (which I had to do for the gear shift weight anyway). Here's a comparison of the stock (left) and COBB Blue inlets:
If you're going to do this as well as the COBB turbo intake, I recommend doing them at the same time.
This is the COBB turbo inlet with the stock air box all back together
[5] COBB Turbo Intake
As I was doing the upgrades as I could afford them (i.e. after each monthly pay), I upgraded the turbo intake the following month which meant pulling the battery box out again. This was the hardest install as trying to get the intake to slip onto the turbo inlet pipe was extremely difficult (a *very* tight fit). It's much easier, I think, to do both the inlet and intake at the same time, fitting them together outside the engine bay.
But I managed to get it on … I ended up using a thin flathead screwdriver to ease the intake pipe onto the inlet. Here's the final result:
You can definitely hear it as the turbo sucks air in! Cool.
Here's a side-by-side comparison:
There's only one small problem … where I live (NSW, Australia) the intake has to be boxed. I asked my Highway Patrol police officer friend why and the conclusion was "because that's the rules". Unfortunately COBB no longer make the complementing air box for my Gen. 1 MPS so its day were numbered. According to my police friend, it's highly unlikely that a cop would ask to inspect my engine (true, in ten years it has never happened when I've been pulled over for breath testing) because I don't "fit the profile" (i.e. teeny bop P-plater with an obviously souped up Skyline, etc.). But I'm too much of a goody-goody to knowingly break the law.
[6] COBB Knob
A very simple upgrade … and I love it too. Feels very nice in the hand and looks much better than the scratch (from my wedding ring) stock knob!
[3] COBB Gear Shift Weight
Wasn't sure what the result of this was going to be … was it going to make the gear shift feel sloppier rather than a nice, solid shift? But I'm very happy - it's made shifting much nicer!
This is the stock shift weight …
And here is the shiny new COBB weight. Changing the weight to a smaller, lighter one was worthwhile for a later mod I did …
[4] COBB Turbo Inlet
Here's the stock Mazda turbo inlet (black, right) and intake (left) in situ …
It was quite difficult to get out, in that I had to remove the battery box (which I had to do for the gear shift weight anyway). Here's a comparison of the stock (left) and COBB Blue inlets:
If you're going to do this as well as the COBB turbo intake, I recommend doing them at the same time.
This is the COBB turbo inlet with the stock air box all back together
[5] COBB Turbo Intake
As I was doing the upgrades as I could afford them (i.e. after each monthly pay), I upgraded the turbo intake the following month which meant pulling the battery box out again. This was the hardest install as trying to get the intake to slip onto the turbo inlet pipe was extremely difficult (a *very* tight fit). It's much easier, I think, to do both the inlet and intake at the same time, fitting them together outside the engine bay.
But I managed to get it on … I ended up using a thin flathead screwdriver to ease the intake pipe onto the inlet. Here's the final result:
You can definitely hear it as the turbo sucks air in! Cool.
Here's a side-by-side comparison:
There's only one small problem … where I live (NSW, Australia) the intake has to be boxed. I asked my Highway Patrol police officer friend why and the conclusion was "because that's the rules". Unfortunately COBB no longer make the complementing air box for my Gen. 1 MPS so its day were numbered. According to my police friend, it's highly unlikely that a cop would ask to inspect my engine (true, in ten years it has never happened when I've been pulled over for breath testing) because I don't "fit the profile" (i.e. teeny bop P-plater with an obviously souped up Skyline, etc.). But I'm too much of a goody-goody to knowingly break the law.
[6] COBB Knob
A very simple upgrade … and I love it too. Feels very nice in the hand and looks much better than the scratch (from my wedding ring) stock knob!