Mazda Miata is a performance coupe manufactured by Mazda. The Miata is a popular choice for customization enthusiasts, specifically those who enjoy increasing a car's stock horsepower. Two ways that you can increase a Miata's horsepower are by installing a turbocharger to the stock engine or by removing and replacing the stock engine with a higher performance one.
To successfully swap a V8 engine into a Miata, you must make certain modifications. Expand the engine subframe to make space for the V8, strengthen transmission mounts to withstand extra torque, replace axles with higher strength axles and install new clutch hydraulics for the higher tensile clutch required for the V8.
Increasing horsepower though an engine conversion instead of a forced induction option results in more reliability. Because the V8 engine was originally made to produce between 300 to 450 horsepower, there is no additional stress to it whereas forced induction changes the original design of the engine, which can reduce reliability.
Depending on the V8 engine you use for the conversion, the Miata can produce anywhere from 300 to 450 horsepower. A Miata with a V8 conversion engine is capable of a 12- to 13-second quarter mile. A quarter mile is a race from a dead stop spanning the distance of a quarter mile.
