Start with the basics and go from there.
The most important thing we can stress is that massive weight reduction changes everything. An Exocet is a completely different experience from even a lightweight first gen 1.6 Miata, and your upgrade priorities will change accordingly. Since the Exocet is compatible with many aftermarket go-fast Miata parts out there, it’s very tempting for some builders to go ahead and buy the best Miata upgrade parts out there. While the parts are the same, we wan’t to remind you that you’re not building a Miata. Some things are just not needed, and many things will end up simply too big and heavy, leading to a car that is slower and less fun than it could be.
Moral of the story: working on Miatas is easy. Working on an Exocet is basically cheating. Build your Exocet with your stock Miata parts, then address improvements as you go. Swapping out coilovers, brakes, anti-roll bars, etc, are simple tasks on the Exocet platform.
Recommended Upgrades
The most important thing we can stress is that massive weight reduction changes everything. An Exocet is a completely different experience from even a lightweight first gen 1.6 Miata, and your upgrade priorities will change accordingly. Since the Exocet is compatible with many aftermarket go-fast Miata parts out there, it's very tempting for some builders to go ahead and buy the best Miata upgrade parts out there. While the parts are the same, we wan't to remind you that you're not building a Miata. Some things are just not needed, and many things will end up simply too big and heavy, leading to a car that is slower and less fun than it could be.
Moral of the story: working on Miatas is easy. Working on an Exocet is basically cheating. Build your Exocet with your stock Miata parts, then address improvements as you go. Swapping out coilovers, brakes, anti-roll bars, etc, are simple tasks on the Exocet platform.
Recommended Upgrades
- Any service items remaining on the donor that you’re not sure about
- Tires. High performance summer rubber at a minimum.
- For stock power, 195-205 section width is recommended.
- The stock fenders will clear up to 225
- 205-225 for turbo 1.8s
- 225 for race rubber (spec Miata tires work great!)
- 225-255 max for the heaviest V8 builds (1700-1800 lbs)
- Unsprung rotational mass matters a lot with a light car, and you will be able to reach optimal temps/pressures easier with a smaller tire.
- Lightweight wheels.
- Lightweight aftermarket seats
- Your stock Miata seats can work with their sliders, but don’t use them with a harness. Reupholstery kits look nice.
- Slider mechanisms are never going to be as safe as a solid mount.
- Pick a seat that is known to fit in a Miata. The Exocet has a little more room, but not much.
- Seatback braces should only be added if you use appropriate mounting methods. Don’t build a rear-impact impaler.
- Motor Mounts (Mazdaspeed “competition” mounts)
- Shifter rebuild kit (restoring the trademark Mazda rifle-bolt feel)
- 4-bolt big boot not required; get a kit with the tiny plastic cup (ball bushing)
- Planet-Miata will sell you everything you need in one easy to choose package
- Fresh synthetic fluids
- Do research on the best trans fluid for shifting. Miata synchros don’t like GL-5.
- Replacement clutch slave cylinder ( $14 from 949 Racing! )
- Differential Bushings (likely cracked on your donor, will reduce wheel hop)
- Ball joint and tie rod boots (cracked on most donors, inspect and re-pack)
- Wheel bearings (only if you feel play in the hubs or donor is well over 150k)
- 8 new eccentric bolts, especially on 1.6s ( Mazda Part NAY9-28-6AZ )
- Steering wheel with quick-release (not required, but nice)
- We have found the NRG Quick release Gen2 to be a great choice, since it self-aligns the wheel and gives no slop
- A deep-dish wheel and tall hub/quick release helps drivers with longer legs
- We really like the Driven 13.5” deep dish wheel
- Like in a Miata, it’s difficult to read the gauges with a tiny wheel
- Tiny wheels work fine with alternate gauges
- The inevitable loose nut behind the steering wheel (that’s you). Get some training!
Brakes
High performance pads are a good upgrade to improve feel, responsiveness, and fade resistance. Fresh DOT4 fluid is always a good idea. The flavor of pad will be determined by your requirements and who you talk to. Miata brake biases generally are way too front-happy. A bias adjuster will improve feel and overall performance; Flyin’ Miata sells a plug-and-play solution that works nicely. Just be sure that you set the fronts to lock well before the rears. Set the balance with the grippiest tires and surface you’ll run on, as that will induce the most weight transfer and cause the rears to lock easiest. This will make driving on loose or wet surfaces much safer.
No, you really don’t need that $2k massive brake kit. In fact, the little dinky stock 1.6L brakes from a ‘91 Miata can pop the eyeballs from your skull with no fade on track (the guys that run Atlanta Motorsports Park can attest to this). At 1700lbs wet with a big-boned American driver, your stock Miata brakes are going to provide plenty of stopping power for your Exocet without the worry of fade. There are thousands of Spec Miatas (2450lbs) out there running $19 NAPA blank rotors and stock 1.8 calipers. Stock rotors and calipers are fine. HardS or “Sport” brakes have more expensive parts, but look cooler. Cross-drilled rotors are bad and have a chance of cracking. Slots are okay, just make sure that they push “out” as they move through the pad.
So, since stopping power and fade is not a concern, stock brakes are the end-all-be-all, right? Not quite. “Unsprung mass” is very important to a cars handling, response, and outright speed. Also, the wheels and brakes are the furthest point masses from the center of the car, so they contribute greatly to the car’s resistance to rotation (polar moment of inertia, if you want to sound smart).
Basically, reductions in brake mass go a long way to making the car feel better and go faster. Flyin’ Miata’s Four Wheel Little Big Brake Kit (that’s a mouthful) takes away 14 lbs of unsprung mass, which is substantial. Back-to-back comparison with an Exocet with stock cast-iron calipers shows a big difference in handling.
Suspension
Suspension includes a lot of stuff. Let’s take it piece by piece:
Bushings
If your stock rubber bushings look good, your donor has less than 100k miles on it, and are less than 15 years old, they’ll probably be excellent for Exocet duty. Stock rubber suspension bushings will magically feel stiffer, because the loads they see are massively reduced. If they show any signs of cracking, it would be a good idea to replace them.
Polyurethane bushings are the traditional upgrade go-to, but there are some aftermarket upgrade rubber bushings available. Rubber requires near-zero maintenance, and the reduced weight of the Exocet will make upgraded rubber bushings feel even more direct and stiffer. If you don’t want to disassemble your a-arms every 6 months or install grease nipples all over the place, rubber is the way to go. Downside: pressing in rubber will be more involved.
Coilovers
800 lb/in spring rates? Please. Stock NB OEM-replacement coilovers feel amazing and put your ride rates right where you want to be with a car of this nature. Weight reduction is the magic cure-all for performance, feel, and driver feedback. Simple, adjustable dampers will help you extract the performance from your Exocet. Just to be extra biased, Flyin’ Miata’s V-Maxx XXtremes (Sport package) are perfect for the job. Here is a spectrum of recommended rates:
Comfortable Street: 175F/115R
Hard Street, Autocross: 325F/225R
Road Course w/Wings: 450F/300R
These numbers are for Miata-powered Exocets. LSXocets are going to require a bit of tuning and playing around. We’ll update this guide when we get more data.
