The performance comes dangerously close to the 2014 SRT Viper and it is because of this swipe at the Viper that the kit is called the Habu, which is Japanese for a small venomous snake.

With an eight-cylinder engine in the small Japanese roadster, you get a high-powered performance car that can keep up with many of the high-priced supercars built today for a fraction of the cost.

If this sounds familiar it is because Carroll Shelby made it popular by putting a large V-8 engine into the small AC Ace. The result of this was the Shelby Cobra, a small roadster capable of scary performance back in the ’60s.

Flyin’ Miata, a top MX-5 Miata tuner, decided to change all of this with their Habu conversion kit. The Habu upgrade works on any 1990-2009 MX-5 with a big difference under the hood. They swap out the small four-cylinder engine for a fire breathing V-8.

The Mazda MX-5 is already a fine piece of machinery. It is balanced, nimble and is capable of making for quick laps on the most twisty of track. While the MX-5 is fun to drive, one thing that nobody will say is that it is powerful.

Exterior

The outside of the Habu can be the same as the normal MX-5 for a sleeper look. Although, updated body panels are offered, including a front splitter, rear spoiler and racing side skirts.

Interior

The interior is the same as the standard MX-5, but Flyin’ Miata does offer aluminum pedals, a four-point safety harness, a roll bar and additional gauges.

Drivetrain

This is where the Habu starts to really get good. The big change is the addition of a powerful V-8 engine.

The engine options include a 6.2-liter GM LS3 engine producing up to 480 horsepower on a street legal car. The larger engine only adds about 200 pounds to the car and is put as far back in the engine bay as possible to help with weight distribution. It keeps the weight pretty well distributed with about a 54-percent bias up front. The engine is mounted using a fabricated-tubular subframe that saves 10 pounds over the stock version.

The stock transmission can’t handle all of that power, so a T56 six-speed manual transmission is put into the little roadster. The transmission is mounted to the frame rails using a brace that also adds extra rigidity.

In order to make room for the engine and new transmission, it does require some modifications to the engine bay and transmission tunnel. In spite of all the modifications, the car retains the stock power steering and you can even have functional air conditioning.

All of the extra horsepower helps launch the modified MX-5 to a claimed 0-to-60 mph time of just 3.8 seconds.

Engine Option 6.2-liter GM LS3 V-8 Engine Horsepower with Hot Cam 480 @ 5,750 rpm Base Horsepower 430 @ 5,900 rpm Torque with Hot Cam (pound-feet) 475 @ 4,500 rpm Base Torque (pound-feet) 424 @ 4,600 rpm Transmission T56 six-speed manual transmission

Brakes and Suspension

With all the power added to a car that was designed for something around 150 horsepower, you wouldn’t expect the suspension and tires to hold up to a 400-plus-horsepower V-8. To compensate, a Getrag or a Ford limited-slip rear end is used. Either unit uses custom half-shafts and hubs to deal with the additional torque.

To keep it on the road in the corners, you can pair it with an adjustable sports suspension for the road or a more aggressive track setup that also allows for ride height adjustment. With the faster car you’ll need some good brakes and they offer upgraded brakes to help keep the power in check.

Price

The price for all this fun will come in starting at about $24,047 for a 1990 to 1997 MX-5 Miata and $23,844 for a 1999 through 2005 model (installation included), minus the cost of the donor MX-5. If you want to do the work yourself, you can build one starting at about $12,000 plus the cost of the MX-5.

Conclusion

The Habu takes the small MX-5 roadster and adds more performance than you will likely ever need. In doing this it still manages to handle well and to not shred your tires, unless you want it to. The car can be built as a sleeper – until you start the engine – and can retain the original lines of the small Japanese sports car. While the purists would say that this Frankenstein’s monster of a car is just wrong, one has to admit it should be great fun to drive.