I came across an ad for these little matchbox drift cars. You mount them to your dash, and they move when the vehicle turns, giving the appearance of a ‘drift.’ At first, I thought, ‘That’s silly.’ Then it became, ‘Eh, kinda cool.’ Which quickly turned...
The minimalist chassis of the Miata Exo Car (aka ‘ghettocet’) makes it the perfect platform to test ideas. Complex designs become relatively easy, like mounting the radiator in the rear. And very early in the build process, I decided on such a rear mount design. As I near the end of the...
The ‘ghettocet’ Miata affords plenty of opportunity to take things back to ‘old school.’ With that in mind, let’s explore hockey puck motor mounts on this project. It’s something I built years ago for the CA18DET swapped 240sx. And something very fitting to...
At this time of year, I usually write a farewell to (insert previous year here) message. And that is sort of what this is. But seeing as I did a pretty good job documenting 2024, I want to focus on this new year, 2025, instead. Let me paint a picture. It’s the beginning of January, and...
The internet has a way of making direct answers challenging to find and unnecessarily complicated. Unsurprisingly, removing the power steering from a Mazda Miata is no exception. The back-and-forth on the pros and cons is confusing and somewhat comical. That is why I am here to say resolutely that...
I have been building and racing racecars for a long time, and one of my favorite things is removing unnecessary crap. In a 1.6l equipped Miata that spends its life at wide open throttle, the ISC or Idle Speed Control System just so happens to fall into that category. In this guide, I am going to...
In the Southern United States, the race season takes a distinct nosedive during the mid-summer months. This downtime is perfect for working on projects like the ‘ghettocet‘. But this year, I wanted to do something a little different. Namely, I want to venture out and explore the other...
I find it hard to believe, but I have been here for two decades, writing about my passion for motorsports. Am I getting old(er)? While this site has ebbed and flowed with the ups and downs of my journey, one thing remains constant: this will always be the original/OG Driftopia. I say that because...
Mechanical tube benders need to be mounted securely to the floor for operation. Typically, a hammer drill and concrete anchors are used to secure the mount to the floor. This time, though, with the JD2 bender being converted to hydraulic, I am free to mount the bender in a mobile configuration...
I have a bit more work to do before starting the roll cage on the exo car build. One of those tasks is converting my 15-plus-year-old mechanical tube bender to hydraulics. To risk sounding like a broken record, my workspace is small and not tube-bender-friendly. I can save space by converting the...
Racing doesn’t just happen on the track; much preparation goes into each event. But if you can’t stay cool in the racecar, no amount of physical or mental prep will salvage your results. Overheating in the racecar can lead to poor performance and results, unnecessary incidents, DNFs...
The old adage goes something like this: You can build your car fast, cheap, and reliable. Now, pick two. This principle seems to hold true with racecars and most things in life. But occasionally, a product comes along that seems to laugh in the face of this principle. I actually got excited when I...
