Run home, lock your doors and bolt your windows. Chris Baker’s got his supercharged purple monster of a Mazda MX-5 out and he’s not afraid to use it!
Our buddy Chris Baker is no stranger to Jap motors. We first met him many moons ago when he owned a stripped out smooth bodied K11 Micra, but since then he’s delved into the popular world of the nimble Mazda MX-5. Chris’s first experience of Mazda ownership wasn’t exactly what you’d call plain sailing!
Keen on a bit of sideways action Chris picked himself up a MK1 modified Mazda MX-5 which he turbocharged and painted in a ratty, military spec theme. Life was good in the world of Mr Baker until bad luck dealt him a shitty hand. A dodgy oil line rubbing on the alternator caused a fire that put a pretty quick end to Chris’s plans of world domination.
Chris isn’t the sort of fella to let a small fire hold him back though “I managed to salvage a lot of the parts. Rather than giving up I stuck with a car I knew and went on the hunt for clean shell to build my perfect car” Mr Baker tells us.
After a while Chris found a car that had been imported into the UK from Japan where it had lived its life competing in Touge events. The new owners stripped the car for parts leaving a straight shell which they flogged to our mate Chris.
Things were back on track but he had a little way to go before he could sit back and relax. Bit by bit Chris started to swap parts over from the old wrecked car, into the clean new shell. First up was to sort out that ride height. The HSD Dual Tech coilovers got bolted up to their new home and wound down. Rather than completely dropping the car on its arse Chris has set it up with the perfect balance between look and performance, smart move!
Once that was done the rest came rolling thick and fast. The front end has had a full makeover with the pop up lights being swapped out for a pair of Lo-Pro versions that give the MX a much tougher look. The standard bumper has also been binned off in favour of a Mazdaspeed version that’s been combined with some ankle destroying canards, ouch!
That bonnet is pretty special too, in fact you’ve got more chance of capturing yourself a rare Mewtwo Pokémon than you have of finding another one of these bad boys! Made by Garage Vary it took Chris years of honing his skills before he bagged one for himself.
The little two seater has also been given some extra girth thanks to a set of bolt on arches which have been suitably filled out with some monster 9x15in Work Meister S12P wheels, tidy!
It’s about time we addressed the Elephant in the room, that wing! Measuring the same size as a small house it’s a wonder the front wheels ever touch the tarmac! The rear bumper has been customised so the spoiler legs can be bolted through it and onto the chassis of the car.
The MX-5’s cockpit has been sorted out too. A more modern looking MK2.5 dash replaces the older, dated looking version whilst the rest of the interior has been trimmed in black leather, very plush! The interior air-vents are from a Mitsubishi Eclipse and the headunit has been relocated to make way for a stack of AEM gauges, subtle yet really effective mods.
To liven the Purple Monster up the engine has had its fair share of fettling. The biggest change is the addition of a super winey Eaton MP45 supercharger “I did all the installation myself on my drive. My friend Law did the base tuning to get it running. Later on I travelled down to Skuzzle Motorsport for them to finish the tuning” Chris explains.
Adding an over the rad intercooler, KAVS 15% reduction pulley and 420cc injectors from an RX-8 has helped hike power to mega lol levels! Lucky he has that wing to keep the car grounded!
To help reign in the beast Chris sorted the car out with some new stoppers. MK1 1800 brake carriers have been fitted and the standard discs replaced with an upgraded set of drilled and grooved versions allowing the nippy little motor to stop on a penny.
Chris has managed to turn a bad situation upside down and build himself one of the finest looking MX-5’s in the UK. Its wide arches combined with purple paint and a good dose of Japanese styling leaves him with a monster motor fit to rule the roads.
TECH SPEC: MAZDA MX-5
Styling
Resprayed in Honda amethyst purple; aerial delete; Mazdaspeed front bumper; custom canards, splitter; Jass Performance stealth TSIs, Lo-Pro headlights; Garage Vary bonnet, rear lights; wide arches; Kanspo skirts; Zoom indicators; KG Works Ducktail; Garagestar wing; Lotus Exige Diffuser.
Chassis
9x15in Work Meister S12P wheels; 205/50×15 Uniroyal Rainsport 3; Treadwear tyre letters; HSD Dual Tech coilovers; TR Lane GPD roll cage; Cobalt front upper strut brace; P5 frame rails.
Interior
Mk2.5 Dash Conversion; seats, transmission tunnel, door cards and parcel shelf re-trimmed in leather; Mk1 door cards modified to fit Mk2 dash; Mitsubishi Eclipse air vents; AEM gauges; radio r¬¬elocated; Jass Performance gear knob, handbrake lever, stainless window switches, stainless sill covers; King Fab steering wheel; NRG short hub; billet wiper and light stalks; Gotta dash speedo fascia; custom rev limiter and gauge faces; KG Works door handles; carbon fiber door handle cups; RS Products interior mirror.
ICE
JVC KD-X220 headunit; HERTZ HSK165.5 components; FLI 300w amp.
Tuning
Eaton MP45 supercharger; TR Lane kit; over the rad intercooler; KAVS 15% reduction pulley; RX8 420cc injectors; AEM wideband; alloy radiator; custom radiator panel; Fujitsubo 4-2-1 manifold; Decat; custom centre exit backbox; K&N Filter; silicone hoses; relocated alloy washer bottle; MK1 1.8 brake carriers; dimpled and grooved discs; ferodo DS2500 pads; HEL Purple Braided Hoses
Thanks
All my friends and family; Street Elite Cruiserz; D2BD; H&S Performance; Auto-Doc; All-Trims; J’s Garage; Jass Performance; Garage Star; Rev9; Skuzzle Motorsport; BN Media; MX5Nutz; Auto-Genie.
Words Nick Turner Photos Matt Woods
