Hello+What to buy

[Macca]

First off a quick hello to you all, from a soon to be new owner of a coldside here in the UK.
I will be taking delivery of my kit sometime in the next two/three months depending on the purchase route.

Anyway back to the important stuff, as I have a couple of months to wait I'm looking for some advice, comments on other things I need/would like to do to my car in way of preparation.
I have a 1994 1.8 with A/C+PS.

So far I think a clutch will be on the cards(haven't decided which one yet), I have a set of Axxis brake pads to fit (they receive good reviews over here) and a set of Toyo proxes have just been fitted.
Just fitted a full set of nylon bushes and I have some braided brake hoses yet to go on.

What extra gauges will be worth having, ie water temp/oil temp/AF etc.etc
Is there any point changing the radiator( it can hit 95+ here in the summer!!!)

Look forward to your comments,

Col

[Tom @ Fast Forward]

Welcome to the club. :) Looks like there might be a few kits in the UK pretty soon.

The two gauges I really like are the Vac/Boost gauge and the Wideband A/F gauge.

[bogey]

A couple things I would do...

Since its a 94, I would replace all hoses and rediator of they are originals. It is only a matter of time before you blow a hose or crack the plastic radiator top. I replaced mine with a Koyo 37mm.

If the clutch is currently fine, it will continue to work with the supercharger as long as you do not do hard starts. I installed supercharger at 85K and now have about 100K on the clutch without problems. If you do hard launches, all bets are off.

I agree that a boost and wideband AF gauge are most desirable. I also have an oil temp gauge which add a little peace-of-mind. Not a requirement, but gives a little more warning if there is a heat problem.

Good luck on your install. There are plenty of really good tips and things to watch out for in the installation forum. Be sure to go back to the begining of time to see them all.

[Macca]

Thanks for the replies.
I have been looking at the toyo rads, just waiting to see if any of the sellers on ebay will ship this way.

Regarding the gauges, I don't want to end up with lots of extra gauges cluttering up the interior as would like to keep the car looking as standard as possible.
Is there any single unit that will display multi-inputs be it temp/pressure AF etc?
I'm guessing once the kit is installed and set up correctly there are only a few parameters you really want to keep an eye on day to day.
I don't want to ring every last ounce of power out of it just keep it reliable.(200hp will do me....................for now)
Regarding the clutch, it is the original and its done 63k but is working fine, so I may see how it goes and spend my cash elsewhere for now.

Thanks again
Col

[Tom @ Fast Forward]

I'm a great believer that the more information you have on a regular basis, the better. The A/F and Vac/Boost are kind of like the oil pressure and water temp gauges. You might only need them once a year but it is good to have them where you look at them regularly. They are good 'early warning' devices. Looking at them the day after the problem occurred might be too late. ;)

-I'm guessing once the kit is installed and set up correctly there are only a few parameters you really want to keep an eye on day to day.

Thanks again
Col

[ScottA]

There are two gauges that I would recommnend for any SC setup and that would be a A/F wideband & and boost gauge. I was also trying to keep my interior stock looking and had less options than you. You might want to look at the Modifications section in this forum -- gauges install --posted by myself.

[Macca]

Well I've finally decided to go with the following, unless somebody points out the error of my ways!!
Zeitronix Zt-2 with LCD display

It will do more than I need so I can add on to it over time if I get bored of seeing the same thing over and over again, although I guess once my coldside is fitted I will be looking at the road most of the time!!
I might leave it until my vacation in May and see if I can pick one up when I visit Florida with the rest of the family, anybody know any local stockist as close to Kissimmee as possible?

I have also decided to change my radiator to a 37mm Koyo as it is the original so is getting a little old now.
I was thinking of using genuine Mazda hoses as the silicon ones are expensive and I would only want them on black anyway, plus, you never hear of the OE pipes splitting unless they have been attacked by oil etc.

Now the worst part.........................waiting for my kit to arrive.
Cheers
Col

[sbeck37923]

I have the Zeitronox unit with LCD Display. The display is difficult for me to read while driving and avoiding other cars. I have been able to get a passenger to read the gauge for street tuning. The laptop display is bigger and easier to read while street tuning.

I went with the koyo 37mm and have been pleased. I did not replace the oem hoses as they looked and felt good. They only had 35k on them.

[BlownMX5]

I have the Zt-2 and display as well and I'll second sbeck's observation. You can't really tune using the LCD display, nor should you. To log the data to a laptop you have to disconnect the display anyway. Once you've tuned (either on the street or on a dyno), the display is not really telling you anything new, unless you have some catastrophic event. I'd say save your money and don't get the display. You could always add it later if you wanted.

[sbeck37923]

BlownMX5,

I do not have to disconnect my display to connect the laptop. Mine came with a splitter thing. I just leave the laptop cable connected and coiled in the glove box when not in use.