90-93 Mazda Miata Mx5 1.6L B6-DOHC 192K Mile Complete Engine Teardown

[@BigKandRtv]

Eric is the "Bob Ross" of engines.

[@lelandmartineau857]

"happy little carnage"

[@pandanoff]

I wonder which Miata donated its transmission to keep mine alive? That one is probably long gone, I’d assume. However, BUY FROM THIS MAN. I’ve made a few purchases from him and all were as advertised. A year later and my 5 speed is still going strong. He’ll be my first stop as long as I have my Miata.

[@Flies2FLL]

You are getting popular among airline pilots. We talk in the cockpit up at altitude to alleviate the boredom, and I've had more than one guy mention your videos, which I watch all of. Airline pilots always have "toys". Cars, boats, farms/farm tractors, cows, horses, wood working shops, rental properties....You name it, we all do volunteer work and we all have our toy. Mine is my '14 Cayman S, the replacement for my previous Porsche 928S2 5 speed. [Hint...] So we are naturally technical people and most of us do all our own maintenance work. As a result your videos are a big hit in our world. Next time you fly somewhere poke your head into the cockpit and shake their hands; More than likely they will know who you are. Great video!

[@tetedur377]

As long as your own maintenance doesn't include the planes you fly. Or maybe you should. I'm kidding. I got my A&P after getting out of the Navy as a structural mechanic, and went to work for McDonnell-Douglas in Tulsa until the massive layoffs in the early '80s. I was doing upgrades to the F-4, among other projects.

[@chrischrismon]

Thanks for keeping us minions safe while in the skys!!

[@Flies2FLL]

@@tetedur377 I'll bolt the door closed. And then install the cotter pins....

[@MrDazana]

A teardown of a IAE V2500 or CFM 56-5 would be nice but you'll need a larger shop :D

[@ranga2050]

IT/RF folks all seem to know this channel too... Likely for the same reasons.

[@johnmoore8599]

Are you secretly a Miata restoration shop disguised as an auto salvager?

[@dennisgoans701]

Hey wonder if you have any Miata parts for sale??? Lol

[@jfan4reva]

He's a BMW restoration shop that's financed by selling salvaged Miata parts,,,lots and lots of Miata parts.... (Lol!)

[@stevebot]

Miata get a real car? I’ve always thought a 1st or 2nd gen with a rotary motor would be the balls.

[@pgtmr2713]

@@stevebot I'm partial to the KL v6 swapped Miatas. 7500 rpms. I'm sure someone's done an RX swap to a Miata.

[@bobninemire6859]

I counted 20 Miatas

[@jjalert]

Every time you chuck a water pump in the scrap bin, for some reason I want someone to pop up out of the box and be like, “Oww, dammit Eric!” Thanks for the mid-week bonus video!

[@mphilleo]

I think IMPORTAPART's motto should be, "We gotta whole lotta Miata!"

[@shook0002]

You should grab a Miata in the shop one day and do a walk around of what to look for when buying one. Common rust points, common failures, common fixes. I want to buy one in the future and that would be great from someone that knows them as good as you.

[@emmexfyv]

If it's an early Miata, check the rockers - down low ahead of the rear wheels is almost always the first and worst place for rust.

[@debbiereynolds7759]

there's like a dozen of those videos already on youtube

[@mahcooharper9577]

Sold my B6 equipped Miata yesterday after 18 years of ownership and sitting here today feeling miserable about it and now this pops up and I'm even sadder... But it was still a great video, thanks Eric

[@glenngardin3561]

Sellers remorse sucks!

[@mahcooharper9577]

@@glenngardin3561 tell me about it!

[@lerch122]

FOOL

[@hillbillysportsman5818]

Time to look for another Miata!

[@gtchalie5038]

It's weirdly satisfying as a viewer to see you get good parts off of these engines.

[@yuppiecruncher]

Dude, your attention to audio levels is greatly appreciated. When its as well done as yours, It usually goes unnoticed. Thanks.

[@davidfrank6666]

yes, i agree!

[@grenmastermike]

Sick at home, and you post a video just for me? It must be my lucky day.

[@MasterMalrubius]

@grenmastermike Hope you feel better.

[@Onewheelordeal]

My 90 has Importapart parts on it, actually ordered my first stuff from there before realizing it was Eric from this channel

[@PaulG.x]

I had a 1993 model for 22 years. Replaced it 2 years ago. In that time I replaced the clutch (didn't really need a new one) , had the rectifier fail (replaced) , two leaking clutch slave cylinders , three cam belts, a water pump and a radiator. It had 77,000km when I bought it and over 400,000 when I sold it. It used a little more oil towards the end and needed valve guide oil seals. My engine was really clean inside. I used HDEO in it (DELO 15w40 multifleet)

[@emilschw8924]

It is so good to see people sticking it to modern cars and keeping their old cars running.

[@RogerWyatt365]

Any Miata teardown is a good teardown (even if it's 1.6)! I've had my NB1 since 1999 and it's survived every bit of my "abuse". So seeing a beloved B6 or BP being torn down is like a trip down memory lane.

[@BSFJeebus]

As a Miata owner, I appreciate you.

[@carad1790]

As someone who has a short nose that broke, I was actually excited you might have a crankshaft for sale, until you said you were going to use it! My search continues, but this was still fun to watch, regardless.

[@zapcity8992]

Need to put "Blue" on a t-shirt. "Blue?! I need you."

[@cricri7066]

Everyone needs their own 'blue' prybar

[@emilschw8924]

Now that's a good idea for some "I Do Cars" tat - this way fans can spot each other in a crowd.

[@salvatoresorrentino6279]

the fact that engine still ran before you took it apart is insane

[@OperatorIHC]

Once upon a time I drove a Toyota Tercel with a 3E-E. It pretty much fogged the neighborhood for mosquitoes, it burned so much oil. It went through a set of plugs every 4 tanks of gas or so. Right up until it burned a valve from the oil burning, that is. When I re-ringed it and replaced the cylinder head, the carbon was WAY worse than this engine. The only place the carbon wasn't thick was on the piston skirts lol. This one might have smoked, but it probably had a dozen or so thousand miles before it became an issue, other than fouling plugs.

[@JulioSanchez-l7o]

Why?

[@Key-z2x]

Whats insane about it? The engine had bad valve seals, nothing else. Could've run for years that way.

[@shawnstillman736]

Ive fixed oil burners with water. Get the engine up to operating temp then spray in water at 2500 rpm. You will see steam and slowly the engine will start to run better.

[@91CavGT5]

My great grandfather was one of the first auto mechanics and he would do the same thing, except he would also do this on EVERY engine that he was going to have to do a tear down on. So this has been done for around 100 years!!

[@shawnstillman736]

@@91CavGT5 Yes it's the best engine cleaner we have. All the chemicals in the world can't touch water. I really wish I could've worked with your great grandfather imagine all the simple machinery that's meant to be fixed.

[@iamnoone.]

My grandfather showed me that too

[@91CavGT5]

@@shawnstillman736 I’ve got some wrenches that he hand made that are up in my shop. It was hard work back then with no shop manuals and no internet. You had to be a good mechanic and learn tricks otherwise you would not last. I too wish that I knew him so I could learn from him. I just have stories that my grandfather used to tell me about him.

[@kevinbelanger4134]

@shawnstillmen you are not going to fix a oil burning with water oil burning is caused by bad rings or valve guides

[@HarrySach]

Lol Eric is so happy tearing down a Miata engine

[@jeremys21]

In this video you mentioned a design element that you would have done differently... it got me thinking that someone with your experience would have some great insights into what works and what doesn't with regard to reliability. So I'm asking.... what about a series where you tear down and/or go over some of your favorite engines and why you like them so much. I'd watch that!

[@RussellBooth1977]

I bought a 1986 model Holden VL Commodore in 2002 over here in Australia which ran the Nissan RB30E engine which was a smoker,it also stalled if you idled it for 5 minutes because the rear main oil seal was chewed out so it had a crankcase air leak. It had done 300,000 Kilometres & I bought it to replace another VL Commodore which I crashed about 430,000 kilometres & the engine wasn't smoking as bad as the one in the VL Commodore which I bought which had done 300,000 kilometres but the engine was slowly on its way out. I swapped engines but it started smoking like a chimney in 2003,I did pull that engine down & the cylinders were worn out & would need to be rebored but I stripped down the 300,000 kilometre engine prior to that to build a DOHC 3 litre engine using parts from a 1995 model Nissan R33 Skyline GTS RB25DE engine, anyhow the RB30E engine had stuck oil control rings & a chewed out rear main oil seal journal which I just sleeved it to repair the scoring & groove, I used an metallised epoxy based metal filler underneath the sleeve as well. I used the Nissan RB25DE pistons to raise the compression ratio & I fitted aftermarket 0.040" oversized Mitsubishi 4G63 piston rings since they were different (thinner) than the RB30E piston rings. That fixed the oil burning except on startup sometimes due to perished valve stem oil seals which I cheaped out on,it would blow a bit of smoke after sitting for a while because it was a bare bones budget engine build but it went heaps better than the RB30E engine !

[@dans_Learning_Curve]

2003 Subaru Forester. Using 1qt of oil at around 1000 miles. ~217,000 miles on it. I pulled it down for the sole purpose of putting new rings in it. The oil return holds behind the stuck oil rings were plugged with hard brown carbon! I literally had to clean the holes with a drill! Haven't driven it enough to know if my mission was successful.

[@axispowerdiesel]

The more work I do on miatas the more I enjoy them, such nice cars to repair

[@chrisbarnes2823]

My wife’s Miata was built in May 89, it has just under 90,000 kms. Still runs great. Interesting to see the guts of that engine.

[@thecatofnineswords]

That's a low low mileage. Does she drive it?

[@chrisbarnes2823]

@@thecatofnineswords well we do live in the great white north so the car lives in the garage for 5 months during the winter. But once it’s dry enough it’s out. During the winter she drives our old 4x4 stick shift pickup.

[@emmexfyv]

My first Miata way back in the 90s was a June of 89 build- yours is very early!

[@chrisbarnes2823]

@@emmexfyv we didn’t realize how early it was until I noticed the plate on the door frame. It’s red and has a hardtop also. It’s a fun car to drive and doesn’t have the modern bells and whistles.

[@johnalees99]

I still miss my 93 1.6. It taught me so much about working on cars. I swapped out the original tired engine for a less tired JDM engine, did timing belt and water pump, gearbox, a couple of 1.6 diffs that I killed before upgrading to a rare 4.3 torsen. In the end I was sad to sell, but it had nearly 300 thousand km and I didn't have the money to maintain it properly. Geez that little B6 is a gem of an engine though, it got driven hard to redline every single day and just kept going and going. Made me a Mazda fanboy. I still have the original 1.6 big nose sitting under my house though, must dig that out and sell it one day, would be a good rebuild prospect.

[@LtJerryRigg]

B6T and BP enthusiast here, love your videos!

[@crazieman]

Midweek teardown! Thank you Eric.

[@dougsmith3353]

Thanks for the mid-week post Eric. It made my day!

[@James-vt2cb]

The deep burgundy color of varnish on the bottom of the windage tray would make a beautiful exterior paint color. Could be marketed as "Neglect Red."

[@jfan4reva]

Never owned a Miata (sigh), but this tear down did remind me of my childhood, when my Dad would swap grimy, grungy old engines in a series of 1950s Nashes, also an occasional Renault Dauphine, aka the French tin can. Oily grime caked all over everything that was exposed to the elements. Your parts washer would have been busy all day!

[@TrystyKat]

"I'm not saying Ford is bad, but the mix wasn't great." Volvo shipping with Ford was also a less than ideal pairing. I'm not saying Ford is bad, but I'm sensing a theme here.

[@timothybayliss6680]

The ford/Volvo crossover b525 with all the kung fu noises is maybe the best thing to come from the unholy alliance.

[@Fhwgads11]

I want to know why ford did so much R&D on how to make paint stick to aluminum all through the 2000s in preparation for the aluminum f150, when they could have just copied Mazdas homework since a) they owned Mazda and b) miata hoods are aluminum and aren’t known for peeling/corroding

[@TrystyKat]

@@timothybayliss6680 I have a B5234T and it makes a lot of delightful choo-choo noises

[@norcal715]

Yes! A Wednesday teardown and I am off work today. Love the mid week teardowns. Thank you Eric!

[@indianaz06]

I love me a midweek teardown! Thanks Eric!!

[@HappyHands.]

love the simpleness of that engine.

[@spikester]

The fact there are so many wrecked older Miatas goes to show how many are still actively on the road, says a lot about their reliability. Cool.

[@emmexfyv]

They are tough to kill!

[@steveblackbird]

Soooo you're saying you have a couple of Miatas?? Nice! The B6 and BP remind me of the simplicity of Toyota's 4AGE. Simple stout little engines that are a doddle to work on and can make modest power with simple engine apart mods... Great video Eric.

[@FerralVideo]

Thanks, your ending semantically satiated me on the word "Miata". Thanks for the midweek teardown!

[@WesW3187]

I love how he says what excellent condition some part is, before throwing it in the bin.

[@boots7859]

Water pump and oil pumps are automatic trash. Just ain't worth the risk if you're rebuilding.

[@nbrowser]

Whoa...a midweek teardown special...thanks Eric!

[@chadjensen1288]

It is such a treat to get a 2nd weekly teardown 🙂

[@Carcrafter7165]

Miata’s Miata’s everywhere at Nick’s Miata Emporium.

[@emilschw8924]

Eric, the Miata Guru. Well done, keep it up! Another nice teardown, glad it went well with good parts to re-use.

[@1straightcut]

Sweet! A mid-week bonus - thank you, Eric!

[@jeffgriffith7003]

I’m also a BP lover, I have a couple Ford Escorts with the 1.8 BP engine. One is a 94’ Gt and the other is a 91’ Lx with the Gt/5 speed swap except for the body plastics and took me 6 years to restore the car. A local machine shop did a bad polishing on my small nose crank and it wiped out the rod bearings in about 600 miles before i heard a slight knocking noise before i pulled the engine out. Had the crank re-polished by another shop but haven’t put the engine back together yet. I have a temporary 1,8 BP that burns oil like a 2 stroke inn the car currently just to keep it drivable. I have to push the car out of the shop before starting the engine as it smokes like crazy. Lol My 94’ Gt runs great, i just recently pulled the engine and transmission to reseal/gasket them and clean up the old oil/grease, been daily driving that car for 6 months so far without any issue, and installed new headlights yesterday. It’s an auto but still a pleasure to drive.

[@emmexfyv]

The 'Mazda' Escort GTs were fantastic. I had the teal green, about a 92, and before that a regular 'Ford' Escort GT of 89 vintage. Actually also a very good car but the later version was superior. I know someone who put over 400k trouble-free miles on another 89 GT, though, so pretty stout cars.

[@Carcrafter7165]

Nick from what I seen of the crankshaft if you are planning on getting it polished you need to get the oil ports chamfered for better oil flow as well.

[@douglasmayherjr.5733]

Pretty tough little engine. Another Great Video, Thanks.

[@raykaufman7156]

It's interesting to see you tear down an engine that you are VERY familiar with. It's obvious you have a totally different attitude and approach. Cool.

[@davidhelsem8794]

I'm glad to know that I am not the only one that talks to what I am working on. 😊

[@elialvarez2651]

Mid week videos are the best!

[@gwick358]

Hey Eric, I used to have a fantasy about asking you for a job. I live in Colorado. Anyway until recently I was a mechanic at a mom and pop shop for three years. I was also a volunteer radio DJ at the community radio station. I got hired as Music Director so I quit wrenching. I'll still watch every video you make and think of what might have been!😂🤣✌❤

[@setSCEtoAUX]

The late '80s and early '90s was a good time to work on cars. EFI allowed them to get rid of a lot of the weird vacuum emissions accoutrements from the carburetor era that had just ended. You often didn't need a lot of special tools to diagnose things.

[@mark37f]

I sometimes wonder if I should have stuck with port injection instead of going direct with my Lemans transplant. More compression for power and effiecency but another layer of complexity.

[@jasonp978]

Appreciate the mid-week drop. Nice surprise to see it after a meh day.

[@yodasbff3395]

Thanks for the mid week teardown. As usual, very interesting information. 👍

[@18Macallan]

Thank you Eric!👍

[@glenngardin3561]

Thanks for this teardown! Love your content! Please keep it up!

[@Bowhunters6go8xz6x]

There is an old trick to try if you believe that you have stuck piston rings and it (can work) but nothing is guaranteed and that is to pour WD-40 into the spark plug holes to where the piston tops are covered in fluid and let it sit and soak for a day and then turn the engine back and forth slowly (not with the starter if the plugs are installed) and let it sit for another 2-3 days checking to make sure the piston tops are covered in fluid and (each day turning the engine back and forth slowly a few times) and after about 3 -4 days suck out the WD-40 if there is any left. WD-40 will dissolve and break up the carbon crusties locking the rings to the pistons and go through into the crankcase and WD-40 mixes well with oil. I would advise doing an oil and filter change after doing this before running the engine for any long period of time like when you plan to drive it.

[@boots7859]

Apparently, you use carb cleaner first, then the WD-40 which will absorb into the carbon and make it easy to brush off. I have to do a piston soak on my Nissan 3.5, and from what I've heard/read, Chemtool B12 is the bee's knees for that.

[@jaredpaulsen3]

I just love this channel. Such a great attitude and approach to business, and even local to me. Just wish I liked working on foreign cars more, then id probably be a customer weekly, always amazingly blown up things come through my shop.

[@yeller95vette]

Mine was over 200K when I sold my Miata and it did not use a drop. It was amazing.

[@scottcass4243]

Mid week teardowns are a treat!!

[@captainkirk4514]

Eric, your infatuation with Mazda Miatas borders obsession! I kinda don't blame you, they are cool looking cars.

[@BigHeinen]

My friend, you are a sick, sick man. And I admire and love you!

[@markmosher1856]

I worked for a Mazda dealership for over 30 years (1977 to 2011), and I went to the Mazda school for these cars. I was guessing stuck rings from the beginning. This vintage Mazda had "low drag rings" in an effort to improve fuel economy. While it did accomplish the intended purpose, this was the the down side. They also were a little slower to warm up on a cold morning. One of our guys made a pretty good side business out of re-ringing B2000 trucks for a local currier company that used a fleet of them. They could get 300,000 miles out of them, but they needed rings because they would be stuck, never worn out. There was also no cylinder wear to speak of, due I am sure to the low tension on the rings.

[@tumbleweedtumbleweed]

Back in the day I bought a 1.6 for 20$ off Craigslist and rebuilt it to replace the perfectly good engine already in my 90’ Miata. 😎Thanks for the memories 😎

[@TheVespap200e]

That ending was AWESOME!😀👍

[@moneeb343]

If you have any videos of full engine removal from an actual chassis; it would've been so useful for me months ago. But this is also incredibly fun-- I just did this entire job on my miata last week. You make it look easy!

[@amanda_bynes226]

great vid but also nice recommendations in the description! That Audi v10 really accidentalied the whole thing

[@Nadi-Ger]

Yay, finally the parts-washer is back, thanks!!

[@markpinther9296]

Wait, a mid-week video? Holy crap!

[@jeffjankiewicz5100]

You sure do love Miatas Eric

[@Beybladeawsomeness]

Speaking of short nose cranks, I discovered on my current Miata, which has an escort BP from 92, it has a short nose in it. Really made my front seal replacement a massive PIA

[@stulogan9455]

Love all your videos I can’t wait for the next every time

[@jerrydwyer9057]

Really enjoyed my 95

[@Backroad_Junkie]

Eric's got a lotta broken miatas... (That could be a country tune, lol...)

[@avotius]

I recently got a heap of a NA 1.6 with a long nose crank that I'm going to rebuild into a nice weekend driver. I will be watching this video as I open up the engine to see what I suspect might be rod knock. We will see! I bet I'll need parts soon...

[@abrownm5brown339]

Nice video. I've got to do the long nose crank swap on my mates '91J limited restoration so this video comes in handy!

[@280zturbo]

This video is relevant to my interests! Currently working on a 1990 Miata engine to swap in my ‘73 Triumph Spitfire. Picked up the engine and transmission for $250. It was allegedly an oil burner as well. I’m still working on getting it mounted so no idea how bad it will be! Hope it’s just valve seals or something easy, but it’s probably oil control rings…

[@dominicbardos6449]

I turned "Miata" into a drinking game. I'm lit.

[@erichlausch9886]

It's Wednesday and Eric has caught me again ...greetings from Germany 👍👍👍👍👍

[@HannahFortalezza]

Ha, this is what happened to my old Suzuki Swift gti when I bought it years ago. Pulled it apart, oil control rings were stuck to the pistons, after removing them had to clean the holes behind them on the piston were full with carbon deposits. After some further cleaning I slapped it back together (with new rings) and it ran amazing for another 100,00km before selling it for double the price I paid. Early 90’s Japanese engines are amazing

[@dil6969]

I'm so excited to see my car's exact engine on this stand. The abuse these powerplants will tolerate both stock and boosted is incredible. It's no beast by any means, but it fits the character of the the NA Miatas perfectly.

[@DDE_ADDICT]

Mid-week specials love it.

[@wafflesnfalafel1]

lots of neglect - poor little Miata.... Thanks for the vid sir.

[@phoneguy7589]

Nice, a weekday video!!!

[@Charly_Dont_Surf]

I’m here for the tear down struggles!

[@ouch1011]

I may be biased since I’m an 80s kid, but this is the golden age of automotive engines. Older stuff is too antiquated and sacrifices too much due to old technology (old metallurgy, single camshafts, pushrods, carburetors, etc), new stuff is over complicated to try and get inherently dirty engines to be “clean.” If you were to look at a list of top 10 best engines of all time, most of them would be from the 1990s and very early 2000s.

[@509brown]

Made my Wednesday complete!

[@larryjohnson7591]

That was a simple basic engine. Too bad I didn't get a chance to work on one. Thanks.

[@JasonStover-o3v]

Anyone know where i can find parts for my Miata? Kidding aside, this is truly one of those cars where a lot of the beauty lies in their simplicity. I built up a wrecked one for a Gambler rally a few years back and to date it is still one of the most reliable things i own.

[@gregoryweber7408]

excellent collection of miatas eric, i like an easy to repair car also, great vid as always thanks

[@hondafrk]

Nice s2000 jab at the end there. Love your vids!

[@ET-cj8jo]

I have an nb1 with a 1600 engine. Travelled only 35,000km. I pamper the engine with regular servicing and the best oil available. In return I get a great ride !

[@briananderson8733]

Thank you for the mid week teardown. But this engine did not have any carnage.

[@Neil-ru7kw]

That exhaust mani is cool (when the engines not running) 👍

[@Jody-kt9ev]

Back in the late 1960s, my uncle(who liked to buy and sell cars) had a Corvair that burned oil so bad that you could not see if you followed it. A person bought it and was going to drive from Oklahoma to California in it He went 20 miles before the engine blew up. Also, we had a 1992 Ford Escort with a 1.8 Liter Mazda engine that went 240,000 miles before we got a new car. We did the recommended oil changes, timing belt changes, etc.

[@strelnikov6289]

Thanks for posting this! I have a '92 black and tan Miata with the BBS wheels. It still runs fine, but if I ever need anything for it, I know where to go! The top is original but getting kinda ratty after 30+ years...

[@chris3407]

What a great engine. Thank you

[@7MPhonemicEnglish]

I had a '91 Ford Probe. It was the best car I ever had. I bought it used in 2003 or so.

[@Falconeer55]

Love to see Miata content!