By all accounts, a Barra-swapped Mazda Miata running strong turbochargers should easily be more than enough for anybody to enjoy. Would you like a good, easy 300 horsepower at the wheels of the world’s most popular two-seat roadster? We’d be just fine with that. How about 400 horses? Hey, as long as your life insurance bill is paid up, be my guest. That was the feeling when Street Machine’s MX-5 went to Summernats at the beginning of the year…wrapped in it’s Lightning McQueen livery, the Mazda was a stout little beast until it became clear that the Barra was getting a bit warmer than it should have been getting. In fact, it was getting warm enough that the tune parameters would put the engine into a bit of a safety lock-out, keeping everything from turning to dust.

That’s not what anybody wants. If you’ve got the engine, you want to make the power, right? Well, due to a combination of the fallout from the Aussie fires and the Covid-19 virus that has turned people into super-panicky health experts all of a sudden, parts aren’t being shipped out at their usual pace. So the monster intercooler that Scotty has acquired for this little Mazda is quite a treat indeed. It’ll certainly help the intake temperatures and keep the computer happy so long as nobody comes in and tries to boost the Barra to the moon.

And to anyone who ever thinks about singing in chorus about my garage exploits: I have an oxygen-acetylene torch in the shop and I will use it.