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  1. #1
    3,000 rpm - starting to feel the power Grumpy's Avatar
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    Inspired by history

    First off, I don't currently have a Miata. I want one. I want one so bad I can taste it. I had one once, a NC, and regretted selling it the first nice day thereafter. When I traded it in, I thought,"it's only a car, and I don't use it like a Miata deserves." oops.
    Grumpy's Roadster as it was:



    So the quest for a new Miata has begun. I've scoured craigslist. been dealing with flakes from all over the country, california, New Hampshire, Ohio, and all sorts of other places. Ideally in silver, or white, followed by Mariner Blue. Why silver or white? It would provide the best base for what I want to do.
    Before any mods though, I plan on ensuring it's in top running shape, then the performance mods, and lastly the cosmetics, that will complete the look I have in my head.

    My grandfather was the most influential person in my life. He's a very large part of why I am the way I am, My Honesty, Integrity, straightforwardness, all came from him. He also gave me my love of new technology, and respect/affinity for Firearms. He died in 2005 and I've wanted to do something to Honor him in some way ever since. I think an NA Miata set up the way I've got in my head will be just the ticket.

    He served onboard the USS Ranger CV-4 during WWII. So I thought aircraft themed Miata. Yep it's been done before, any number of times. I have however a very specific design in mind. During the war, one of the major events for the Ranger was operation Torch, The invasion of North Africa. The Ranger lead the Naval attack on Casablanca. The Ranger's own flight squadron (not counting the additional groups onboard for the assault) was vf-41 and they flew Grumman f4fs at the time. I've found several pics of the planes from the squadron, in many different paint schemes. There was one specific to operation Torch however:



    I then had to discover the colors used. Thank god for Modelers!




    My quickie version of what I'd like to do on the exterior:



    The aviation theme will extend to the cockpit. I will not however be painting the cockpit and maintenance areas green as in the planes. LOL!



    Interior Mods-
    Roll bar- possibly double hoop, possibly Blackbird Fabworx
    Driver's seat- Considering Bride Exas III w/5pt Harness. Car will not be a DD but will be street driven frequently. some autox too!
    KG works Cluster/ revlimiter warbird gauges
    Revlimiter window switches (if applicable to car) and Hazard toggles
    Considering replacing door panels w/ aluminum, but may be too hot in the sun!
    I'll be replaceing the steering wheel with something and a quick release hub. Something for driving and then this would be cool for shows, but don't know how it is for driving:



    not sure of any other interior mods at the moment. maybe a custom made shift knob/handle to replicate the control stick in the plane.

    mechanical/performance mods:
    coilovers
    sways
    frame rails

    any engine mods are up in the air at this point. i have no experience running anything with FI.

  2. The Following 4 Users Say Thank You to Grumpy For This Useful Post:

    Greasemonkey2000 (09-13-2015),NCGreasemonkey (10-15-2015),oldgrayleather (09-12-2015),tsingson (08-07-2014)

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