Miata went to the 1.8L engine in 1994. That only leaves three years of
Miata
with the giant 1.8L engine.
Allen - The 1.6 is the better choice in a lot of
folk's opinion (mine included).
The block is stronger than the 1.8, due
to internal webbings in the casting.
This is basically the block that was in
the venerable 323GTX from a few years
pre-Miata. In case you don't know about
the 323GTX, it was a homologation
special Mazda built for a year or two that
featured AWD and a big turbo - their
entry into GroupA Ralley if I'm not
mistaken.
Anyway - Back to Miata...the early cars are lighter, so any
slight increase in
power that came with the larger displacement is more than
made up for by hauling
around extra weight. Also, the 1.6 is NOT an
interferance engine, so if the belt
dies like mine did once, you just drag it
home (or maybe to a rental garage),
yank the radiator and covers off the
front of the engine, install a new water
pump and head out for more fun.
-
David Booker
Long Island
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