For whatever reason last night I thought of the most recent (there’s been two) Maserati powered Mazda Miata project and decided to check up on its progress.
As a quick refresh this car —originally posted in January of 2015— is somewhat local to me and is being built with help from MT Motorsport in Richmond Hill. At last check things had just kicked off with this project and the owner has chosen a BMW transmission and rx8 rear end.
Now in the recent (undated) posts the stock motor has been pulled in order to mock-up fitment of the 4.2L Italian v8.
The Maserati motor and BMW transmission were then test fit into the waiting NB chassis.
The unit was then popped back out so some sub frame modifications (spacers) could be made that allowed for clearance between the motor and steering rack. While the motor and transmission were back out the owner fabricated mounts for the motor accessories, including air conditioning.
I suppose with a luxury motor you need all the trimmings.
In the most recent update the motor fit in the engine bay and the hood closed which means there would be nothing visually tipping you off about what lurks within.
From that point there have been no further updates. Not sure if that’s because the project is now dead, the owner is taking a break, or what, but hopefully things pick up again soon because I’d really like to see someone take this idea through to the end.
