Installing a Turbo Miata Engine in a Caterham SV

The first steps have been taken. I traded for a Miata transmission to use as a prototype. I knew I would have to shave some width from the trans as well as remove the Power Plant Frame (PPF) mounts from the tailshaft.

The bulk of the PPF mount has been removed using a sawzall, die grinder and hand file. Once I have determined what has to be removed, a friend will use a mill to remove the excess aluminum from the trans that will be used in the finished installation. It will look a lot nicer than this one.

Flyin Miata loaned me some 1.8 engine parts to make a mockup. Thanks, Bill Cardell!

Fitting the transmission into the very narrow Caterham tunnel. So far, the trans has been in and out of the tunnel 11 times as I cut away excess metal and try it for fit. It now fits nicely, if a bit tight, but there is a little space for it to move when the engine torques over.

The trans in place, supported on a jack, ready to add an engine block and the rest of it.

The test engine bolted to the trans and sitting in place.

It looked like the engine was sitting too high to clear the bonnet, but in fact, it does, just barely. There are other, lower intake manifolds, but I would like to use this type with the VICS system.

I was worried about the turbo manifold and turbo interferring with the steering rod. Although the turbo I will be using is a little larger than this one, I don't think there will be a problem. This was one of the major problems I anticipated. The others being fitting the trans into the tunnel, bonnet clearance, wiring in the Link ECU and oil pan to ground clearance.

The oil pan hangs down 3 3/4" below the lower frame rails. Not sure what that leaves me for ground clearance. Anyone know how far down the Zetec oil pans hang and how much ground clearance they have? I considered dry sumping the engine, but that would only gain an inch since the bellhousing is the next item with clearance problems. There may be a skid plate in this car's future.

The start of this project is here