The MX-5 amplified

IT'S BARELY TWO months since I was gushing over Mazda's bone-stock 1.6-litre heritage fleet car on these pages, so the idea of replacing that engine with a 3.0-litre V6 (of more than twice the power!) seemed a bit rash. Would its inherent balance and poise be destroyed?

- Matthew Hayward

A chat with Rocketeer founder Bruce Southey quelled my fears. The MX-5 ticked most boxes on his sports car attribute wishlist, lacking only power and an exotic soundtrack. So, forced induction? A Rover V8? Maybe a Busso V6? Then a colleague suggested a hidden gem of a V6, under the bonnet of a Jaguar S-type.

The AJ-30 in question is a Ford unit, originally developed by Porsche and further developed by Cosworth. It produces 230bhp in standard form but, fully rebuilt, blueprinted and remapped, it's good for around 280bhp in the Rocketeer. It fits perfectly into the Mazda's engine bay, too, bolting up to the original gearbox and fixed to the original mounting points via Rocketeer-engineered brackets - so no cutting or modifications to the 'shell.

The best part? All-in, the all-alloy V6 weighs the same as the original four. Some time after developing the Rocketeer kit, Southey found out that Mazda had built a V6 MX-5 prototype in period, using a close relative of this engine. It was meant to be.