[Editor’s Note: This article originally appeared in the February 2016 issue of Grassroots Motorsports.]
What is probably the least exciting part of any engine swap? We heard “gas pedal.”
Now, what is probably the one thing that separates an okay engine swap from a great one? Yes, the gas pedal.
Step 1:
We had two throttle cables to choose from. The Miata cable is a bit beefier, a bit longer, and a bit more complicated on the engine side than the MGB piece. Since the pedal side of the Miata cable is similar to the MGB’s, we decided it would be easier to adapt the Miata cable to the MGB rather than the other way around.
Step 2:
We started the process by measuring the amount of travel needed at the pedal end of the cable. We hooked the Miata cable to the throttle body and marked the location of its base. Then we made two more marks: one at the throttle-closed position and one at wide-open throttle.
Step 3:
We then installed the MGB cable on the MGB. It feeds through the firewall and into a slot on the pedal. It has a stop swedged on its end, and a split pin keeps it from moving out of the pedal’s slot.
Steps 4 & 5:
With the MGB cable we didn’t need to know the base location, but we did need to know the length between the throttle-closed and wide-open-throttle positions. We compared our markings from the Miata cable and were pleased to see that the length was the same. If the lengths had been different, we would’ve had to do some geometry to change the throttle pedal and get the right length. Sometimes we get lucky.
Step 6:
After completing our first round of measurements, we were ready to adapt our throttle cable. We inspected the MGB’s cable mount on the firewall and figured we could make a similar-looking adapter for the Miata’s cable.
Step 7:
We traced the base of the MGB adapter onto a piece of 1/8×1-inch cold-rolled mild steel strap.
Step 8:
We then used some transfer punches to mark the centers of the three holes that we needed to drill in the base.
Step 9:
We drilled the holes first, leaving the rest of the cutting for later.
Step 10:
Before starting the next part of the adapter, we took some measurements from our cable. The Miata cable has two plastic catches that snap into place on their ledges.
Step 11:
We realized we could duplicate that feature using a piece of 1-inch round tube with some “ledges” welded in. We first cut some notches for the ledges with our trusty hacksaw.
Steps 12-14:
After cutting the notches, we could weld some narrow strips of steel in place to form the ledges. We then sanded the welds smooth on a combination sander with 80-grit paper.
Steps 15 & 16
Next, it was time for some more measuring and math to determine how much we should cut down the tube for our adapter. We needed the cable end to be 1.25 inches below the firewall ledge to fit in the pedal, as the base was 2 inches from the swedged end. Our base was 0.125 inch, so our tube needed to be 2 inches minus 1.25 inches minus 0.125 inch. That equals 0.625 inch, or 5/8 inch.
Step 17:
We cut our tube with our hacksaw and welded it to our base.
Step 18:
Before cutting our base down to size, we finished one side on our sander.
Step 19:
We then rough-cut the other side of the base with a hacksaw and went back to finish-sand the whole thing to shape.
Step 20:
Once sanded and finished, our adapter could mount on the MGB just like the original one did. It could also accept the snap-in catches of the Miata throttle cable.
Step 21:
We had to account for one minor detail: The swedged end of the Miata cable is larger than the hole in the MGB firewall ledge. A stepped drill bit took care of that issue.
Steps 22 & 23:
With the adapter and the throttle cable installed, we could make our adjustments. The MGB has an adjustable stop for the throttle to provide just enough free play at the closed position. We prefer about 3/16 inch of leeway, which allows the engine to idle down but doesn’t make the pedal feel floppy. Next, we adjusted for wide-open throttle with a threaded sleeve at the throttle-body end of the cable.
These two adjustments are critical for a safe, effective and comfortable pedal setup. They’re often overlooked, but we’re always very compulsive about making them.
These two adjustments are critical for a safe, effective and comfortable pedal setup. They’re often overlooked, but we’re always very compulsive about making them.
Steps 24 & 25:
The Miata cable is quite long, and we found that it was flopping around in the engine bay more than we liked. The cable has grommets that allow supports to keep it in place, so we quickly fabricated a support from half-inch-wide, 20-gauge steel. We wrapped the steel around a bar and then used a vise to fold the other end 90 degrees. Next, we drilled a mounting hole and attached our new support to the firewall.
Step 26:
It doesn’t look like anything special, but we know our throttle cable will serve our swap well for years to come.