Page 1 of 12 1234567811 ... LastLast
Results 1 to 15 of 180

Thread: Blueiii - the search, the build. . . the miata journal

  1. #1
    3,000 rpm - starting to feel the power Blueiii's Avatar
    Drives
    '91 Red (aka "Camber")
    Location
    Toledo, Ohio
    Join Date
    Feb 2012
    Posts
    604
    Thanks Given
    5
    Thanked 133 Times in 76 Posts

    Blueiii - the search, the build. . . the miata journal

    5/6/2012

    Total Cost:
    $0.00

    I've decided to start my build thread a bit early. Too many times, after having a car for a while, we forget about all the time we spent searching and looking at junk trying to find the "right car." I figured I would start my miata story now, the most appropriate time called simply "the beginning," when as of yet I do not own a Miata.

    I've had a few decent cars that I've loved and worked on over the years. A few DSMs, a pair of mustangs, and a BMW that was my baby. It was the BMW that got me started into autoX and eventually led to my decision that I should probably just break down and buy one of those "chick" cars. The BMW was a lot of fun in autoX, but I felt as though it was outclassed against the Cooper-S. Sadly, I never had anyone with the same car that I could compare my own times to in order to see where to put the most emphasis. This lead to a great deal of frustration, and regionally I noticed that there were always a lot of miatas running around the track, comparing apples to apples.

    To be continued....

  2. #2
    3,000 rpm - starting to feel the power Blueiii's Avatar
    Drives
    '91 Red (aka "Camber")
    Location
    Toledo, Ohio
    Join Date
    Feb 2012
    Posts
    604
    Thanks Given
    5
    Thanked 133 Times in 76 Posts
    5/7/2012

    I realize that this is a non-miata build so far, but you almost have to start at the beginning. This was my first "modified" car from when I was 19. I stumbled across it years later at a junkyard. RIP the Incredible Hulk.





    I've always wanted to paint another car that color, and have strongly considered it for a miata as something of a throwback, especially since the 'hulk was a '92. Here I am, some 14 years later, looking for a car from the same year range. My only hope is that its in better shape than the ole' boy

  3. #3
    3,000 rpm - starting to feel the power morr's Avatar
    Drives
    1990 Classic Red
    Location
    Okinawa, Japan
    Join Date
    Dec 2011
    Posts
    968
    Thanks Given
    33
    Thanked 87 Times in 38 Posts
    Interesting way to start a build thread! There was a Miata painted a similar green, and it looked pretty cool. Good luck with your search
    RoadsterLife<3

  4. #4
    Idling - Listen to it purr... s0verybored's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2012
    Posts
    19
    Thanks Given
    0
    Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
    Yea, I found my very first car at my local junkyard about 5 years after I sold it. It sucks because I didn't really even want to sell it in the first place. I would see it around town more torn up than the last time.

    Good luck finding a clean NA.

  5. #5
    3,000 rpm - starting to feel the power Blueiii's Avatar
    Drives
    '91 Red (aka "Camber")
    Location
    Toledo, Ohio
    Join Date
    Feb 2012
    Posts
    604
    Thanks Given
    5
    Thanked 133 Times in 76 Posts
    6/7/2012

    About 3 years ago I had been saving up for some time and had looked at a few Miatas. I even put an offer on one but the owner wouldn't budge on the price. In retrospect, that's probably a good thing since I really didn't like the car to begin with. It had been driven for a few Ohio winters, and although it hadn't completely rotted, it would have been inevitable. Plus his son had smoked in it. When he called me back a few weeks later to agree to my price, I had already had more time to change my mind.

    I ended up deciding to postpone things for Graduate School and ended up graduating in December, 2010 at the top of my class. Unfortunately the job market was still terrible, and I spent another 5 months trying to land a job. The savings account was completely drained and I ended up taking a job for significantly less than I had planned.

    Jump forward a year, and I've tried saving. Its hard to plan to buy a new car when your existing winter "beater," which is also your primary form of transportation, breaks a few times. The end result is that the Miata budget is considerably less than what I may have wanted and may put a low (<75k) mileage, well cared for, accident free, rust free, 94-95, any color other than red (I suffer from a red-car curse) miata out of reach of my $3000 budget.

    Sometimes, though, trade-offs can be made.... more to come soon!
    Last edited by Blueiii; 06-07-2012 at 09:30 AM.

  6. #6
    3,000 rpm - starting to feel the power Blueiii's Avatar
    Drives
    '91 Red (aka "Camber")
    Location
    Toledo, Ohio
    Join Date
    Feb 2012
    Posts
    604
    Thanks Given
    5
    Thanked 133 Times in 76 Posts
    6/16/2012

    And more is here. I've been looking for a while, but it seems like every time I find a car that I like, either the price is too high or I find some major defect. Think of it this way. . . You find the PERFECT woman. She's smart, she's pretty, she's ambitious and makes you laugh. Then, on the first date, she busts out a crack pipe. My miata search has been kind of like that. When I find one that looks decent, the more I look at it the more I realize its a wreck underneath. Shiny paint with no rust? That's because its been repainted, and is rotting out from underneath. No rust? The owner thinks the price should be triple the market rate. Low mileage? Frame is twisted.

    If all goes according to plan, however, next weekend I will have more pictures of this:




    Garage kept, 1990. The owner doesn't know what package it is and the mileage is a bit high. Okay, really high. But the price is almost right, though, and since I'm going to be be autocrossing it, the mileage just means I won't feel as bad replacing the new $100 shocks, brakes, etc. that often come with a higher mileage car. The big concern is that virtually no maintenance has been done on it other than a few must-do repairs after things broke. Its way past due for a water pump / timing belt, will need brakes, shocks, and I'm sure most of the bushings are shot. On the plus side, if I pick it up I will probably be buying another used motor to go through and replace gaskets / seals / etc. and keeping it on standby for the inevitable.

  7. #7
    5,000 rpm - there be torque here! WASABI's Avatar
    Drives
    1991 British Racing Green
    Location
    Amesbury, MA
    Join Date
    Dec 2011
    Posts
    3,864
    Thanks Given
    6,206
    Thanked 1,464 Times in 795 Posts
    She looks clean! AND, because there was no maintenance, no one screwed up the crank (short nosed car). Good luck.

  8. #8
    3,000 rpm - starting to feel the power Blueiii's Avatar
    Drives
    '91 Red (aka "Camber")
    Location
    Toledo, Ohio
    Join Date
    Feb 2012
    Posts
    604
    Thanks Given
    5
    Thanked 133 Times in 76 Posts
    The lack of maintenance is a blessing and a curse in a way. I've talked to the owner a few times as the car is about 2 hours away. He bought it 8 years ago and only uses it for summer weekend cruises with his wife. He's an older guy, so zero mods. (At least there won't be any racelands I have to suffer through while saving up for something decent!) He did have a shop put in a clutch and a new soft top was installed last year.

    These are the only pictures he sent me before he had to head out of town, and I've been really trying to figure out what wheels those are. They look really "flat."

  9. #9
    3,000 rpm - starting to feel the power Blueiii's Avatar
    Drives
    '91 Red (aka "Camber")
    Location
    Toledo, Ohio
    Join Date
    Feb 2012
    Posts
    604
    Thanks Given
    5
    Thanked 133 Times in 76 Posts
    6/21/2012

    I'm super excited to go look at the Miata and, quite possibly, drive it home this weekend. One of the nice parts about a higher mileage miata is that you know you'll be replacing a bunch of parts with "better than new." The more research I've been doing, the more I've found smaller bits I wouldn't have thought of like the shifter boots, so I posted a thread to start getting together a definitive "these are the things to start replacing" thread.

    Link to thread: http://mazdaroadster.net/showthread....7474#post47474

  10. #10
    3,000 rpm - starting to feel the power Blueiii's Avatar
    Drives
    '91 Red (aka "Camber")
    Location
    Toledo, Ohio
    Join Date
    Feb 2012
    Posts
    604
    Thanks Given
    5
    Thanked 133 Times in 76 Posts
    6/23/2012

    You'll perhaps notice that the picture the miata owner sent me showing the side is at a strange angle. . .

    5 hours round trip to look at a car that was "clean" and "rust free."

    I really didn't even need to get out of the car when we arrived, however the owner was in the driveway when we pulled in (my dad drove me in his white 91.) Needless to say, I was super pissed. Rust free does not include rotted rockers. In all fairness to him, he isn't a miata guy. He didn't even know the rockers have drain holes, which in the past 8 years had never been cleaned. He made a point of telling me that he was firm on the price, and that if I offered less he wouldn't take it, so I didn't even bother.

    3k for a 91 with 179k. At minimum, it needed brakes, timing belt, water pump, seals, tires (they were shot), different wheels (crappy, heavy aftermarket 15s), rockers both rotted. . . If it weren't for the rot, I would have driven it home. . . Maybe for around 2k, it would have been a buy, but not at 3k. . .

    The only selling points were the new clutch and a new top, however the top was down and the window wasn't unzipped when we arrived, so I'm sure it was soon to be a mess, too.

    The search continues!!!

  11. #11
    3,000 rpm - starting to feel the power Blueiii's Avatar
    Drives
    '91 Red (aka "Camber")
    Location
    Toledo, Ohio
    Join Date
    Feb 2012
    Posts
    604
    Thanks Given
    5
    Thanked 133 Times in 76 Posts
    7/2/2012

    I spoke to a gentleman last night about another miata for sale that I'm very interested in. The owner is a "car guy" and seemed to know a decent amount about the Miata. He and I emailed back and forth a few times, and then he emailed me, "I've got someone coming tomorrow to look at it, so I'll let you know if it sells."

    OH CARP!!!

    Despite the fact we were getting pounded in the worst hail storm I've seen, I picked up the phone and called him immediately. I offered to drive to him (over an hour away) right then with a cash deposit, since today I work my regular job followed by giving a 3 1/2 hour lecture (I teach at the community college part-time.) He and I chatted for a while - I can tell he's loved this car just from the conversation. Its a girl. It has a name. Its been put into storage in the winters. Rocker drains have been cleaned regularly. He could tell that it will be my pride and joy, and that I've been looking for the right miata for a while now.

    And then he said it....

    "I want this car to go to someone who will take care of it as well as I have. Tell you what, I'll show it but will let the other guy know that I can't sell it until you've had a chance to make an offer, since you contacted me first."

    He earned my complete respect right then and there, and if it checks out, I won't be haggling at all.

    Details to come!

  12. #12
    3,000 rpm - starting to feel the power Blueiii's Avatar
    Drives
    '91 Red (aka "Camber")
    Location
    Toledo, Ohio
    Join Date
    Feb 2012
    Posts
    604
    Thanks Given
    5
    Thanked 133 Times in 76 Posts
    7/3/2012

    2 pages of a build thread . . . Several miatas viewed and walked away from.

    That is, until today.

    Because of the holiday tomorrow, I was able to leave work early. I drove about an hour to go look at the car I mentioned above, half expecting it to be garbage.

    It wasn't.

    Steering was tight, engine was smooth. Few dings here and there, but I really had to look for them. The front and rear bumpers have some spidering and the paint is a little oxidized.

    I snapped 2 quick pictures with my camera phone while the owner was inside.

    Gentlemen, I give to you. . . . "Baby" (<- Her name from the owner. I'm thinking I might add to it, making her full name "Baby Camber.")



    I gave him a deposit, we shook hands, and I'll be picking it up on Sunday. In fact, I gave him his full asking price and, as promised, didn't attempt to offer him less.

    Here's the details:
    1991
    A Model
    103,000 miles
    Clutch replaced March, 2011
    2 owners. I bought it from the second owner, who bought it from his brother.
    Stored winters.
    VERY light rocker rot. I had to get underneath the car to find any. . . This will ultimately need to be addressed. Its a Michigan car, though, so its almost impossible to avoid. I was surprised to find any with how clean the suspension bolts were.
    Visor deletes
    Shorty antenna
    Factor cassette player (lol)
    Stainless cat-back exhaust (sounded decent - wasn't at all loud enough for my tastes.)
    15" aftermarket wheels on Kumho Ecstas (the cheaper version. . . ASTs?)
    It also has some cheesy seat covers, but the owner wanted to protect the factory original seats (cloth.)
    Has a red shift boot and an aftermarket shift know, neither of which I cared for. . . but the car is CLEAN.
    Nearly new looking tonneau cover.

    I picked up the daisies tonight. They have tires on them but they're rotted. I might repaint them for autocross wheels. (Still undecided. I hate the way the 15s photograph, but they look decent in person. Perhaps if they were bronze....)

    The beauty of it?

    I paid $2395.00.

    I was ready to drop $2800 on a car just two weeks ago, but it was junk. $400 left to begin working on this one!

    And. . . there's a surprise in store! Pictures of the surprise will be posted after I have the car in my possession.
    Last edited by Blueiii; 07-03-2012 at 06:16 PM.

  13. #13
    6,000 rpm - mere mortals would shift I<3flippyheadlights's Avatar
    Drives
    1990 Spirited Green Miata!
    Location
    Tampa FL
    Join Date
    Dec 2011
    Posts
    4,380
    Thanks Given
    60
    Thanked 74 Times in 54 Posts
    I'm so glad you found a car man! This one seems like a good place to start your journey in Miata land! Does the A package come with the VLSD? That would be awesome!
    1990 Miata, she was red but now she is Spirit Green!

    http://mazdaroadster.net/showthread....d-a-love-story <--- build thread!

    Also check out the facebook page http://www.facebook.com/IHeartFlippyHeadlights !!! Its a facebook page dedicated to the awesomeness which is flippyheadlights! Not me, but the actual headlights! High time someone noticed how awesome these things are; check it out!

  14. #14
    3,000 rpm - starting to feel the power Blueiii's Avatar
    Drives
    '91 Red (aka "Camber")
    Location
    Toledo, Ohio
    Join Date
    Feb 2012
    Posts
    604
    Thanks Given
    5
    Thanked 133 Times in 76 Posts
    Thanks!

    The A package in '91 included crank windows, power steering, leather wrapped steering wheel and a cassette deck. A/C and VSLD were both options. This one has a/c, which I actually appreciate. I'm not sure if this one came with the vsld or not. . . I guess I'll find out on the 15th when I put her around some cones at the regional autocross.

  15. #15
    Ninja Messiah kung fu jesus's Avatar
    Drives
    1999 White
    Location
    Atlanta, GA
    Join Date
    Dec 2011
    Posts
    15,852
    Thanks Given
    2,791
    Thanked 7,202 Times in 3,433 Posts
    Long nose or short nose crank?

    Count the holes on the perimeter of the face on the crank pulley.

    4 = short nose
    8 = long nose.

Page 1 of 12 1234567811 ... LastLast

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •