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Just moved to St George UT and bought a Miata for my dad. I bought this car sight unseen... and that's a good thing, cuz I might have chickened out had I seen it first.
'04 MSM in Titanium gray (sortof), 76k miles. There's a problem with the engine (I knew that). I anticipated engine replacement. Um... yeah.
Nice and clean in here.
What's this? Let's get a close up of those cam journals:
OOOOO YEAH! Just like new. I bet they used synthetic Royal Purple for extra protection.
How 'bout the cap that came off that?
Some degreaser ought to fix that up eh?
Just for fun, the cap from the next journal over:
Those look like the original weld marks from when they originally welded the cam caps together! Minty fresh!
More gratuitous varnish/sludge photos:
Alright, so my engine is utterly wasted. That's OK, I expected that.
I knew it had been repainted and that the paint job wasn't great. However, I didn't realize how not-great it was til I saw it.
Take this photo, for instance. Not a great paint job, poorly done.
WHAT THE ACTUAL **** WERE THEY THINKING?
Not bad enough? How about this paint ahead of the rear wheel?
The interior is totally baked:
Prep work next to the headlights:
There were more, but I lost patience with photobucket. You get the idea.
So far, I've purchased some FCM billies with adjustable damping and 550/350 rates, an FM front sway, and a roll bar. So basically nothing to fix the awfulness you've just witnessed.
The plan is to get it running again and put the parts on it. Eventually repaint or reshell. But for now, we just won't be afraid to hit it with things or rock chips or whatever. Tis a beater.
As far as I've seen, the underside of the car looks perfect. Not a spec of rust.
There is also quite a lot of value in lots of low-mile parts. 76k miles on MSM 6-speed, Torsen, and billies. Sport brakes. MSM headlights, front and rear bumpers, turbo setup, etc... It all adds up. It wasn't a super crazy screaming buy but was a good one.
Just need to put some more money together and decide what to do next. It's tempting to reshell... We will see. For now it went in the storage unit with my hardtop while I finish moving.
Happy to listen to suggestions/ideas.
I think I figured out a name for the car though. It's the same name as my first Miata but more appropriate on this one: Remy.
Haven't forgotten about this build, though it does seem like it. Still waiting for the wrecked donor to come up for sale (auction is pending) so I can snag it.
Lol I hope not or I super overpaid on the MSM! Couldn't pass up GWR's sale on the Helix, I'd been eyeing them. The spokes stick out more than I'd hoped for, but still a good looking wheel.
Anything in the oiling system is trash. Block, crank, rods, pistons, head, cams, oil/water cooler, and turbo are all bad. From the engine you can pretty much only keep the oil pan and valve cover once they're both completely disassembled and cleaned.
Your best bet is probably a 99-00 or MSM long block for $1000, and a new/used MSM turbo.
That being said, I do have a good condition VVT long block for sale, if only you were local...
Thanks for the input Josh! Incidentally, those were the only parts I intended to keep. I didn't really think of the turbo at first but definitely makes sense.
I found a nice white 94 with hardtop for $3200. Tempting to pick that up and part the MSM.... Decisions.......
I really want to make it go on stock ECU so I can sortof decide where to go from there. You know full well I am no tuner, nor am I capable of any significant wiring.
Looking at the new Continental Extremecontact Sport. Will be $320 after rebates (or less) at discount tire, but it's not on their site. Here's a link to the tire's site on TireRack: https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires...R5ECS&i1_Qty=4