Project: 1990 Mazda B2200
This was my 1990 Mazda B2200. I bought this old thing from an auction for $300 with 306k miles and a blown engine back in 2016. It caught my eye because it was unmolested, plus the blown engine and low price made it perfect for version two of my previous build (I put together a different turbocharged B2200 a year prior which I'll post about separately).
On my yearly birthday trip to one of my local self-service salvage yards, I found a first-gen MX-6 turbo with 116k miles on it. I pulled the engine short block and dragged it home. After ordering a bunch of gaskets and other necessary parts, I bolted the stock cylinder head to the MX-6 block using a new Mazda gasket and ARP head studs and dropped it into the truck. I chose the turbo short block over a naturally aspirated version since I planned on turbocharging the truck, although that never came to fruition.
Once it was running, I fixed a bunch of the cosmetic issues it had. I also did a few mods, like the NB Miata gear reduction starter so it no longer sounded like a tractor on startup. The stock stance was all wrong, so I lowered it by cranking the torsion bars up front and de-arching the rear leafs (I very much dislike lowering blocks).
This was an awesome truck to drive. It had good power for its age, averaged 25 mpg, and was fun to drive. The transmission is actually very closely related to the unit found in NA Miatas, so the shifting action is more reminiscent of that than, say, a Toyota truck. If you've never driven a Mazda truck of this generation, let me tell you, these trucks feel way sportier than any of the other mini trucks of this era.
I got the 15" Pathfinder wheels you see in the pictures for $8/ea on sale at the local LKQ yard. If I remember correctly, the tires on there were 195/65R15s, which closely matched the overall diameter of the original 14" rolling stock. I also lucked out on one of my junkyard trips and found a "bubble" hood in matching red off a B2600i and bolted that on.
Fast forward to the summer of 2017. The little Mazda was the least used in my fleet and frankly I was a little bored and wanted something new. I got $2,000 for it and off it went to a new home. I do still miss it sometimes, though.
1990 Mazda B2200
