its not a ford exactly

Topic: its not a ford exactly (Read 3730 times) previous topic - next topic

its not a ford exactly

February 14, 2009, 03:46:08 AM

So in November I decided to give the bird a rest b/c she's pushing 170K mi. So I found a 86 F150 with 125K on the clock, 302, with a posi rear for $700. Riiiiight before Christmas, within a couple days infact, I got rear ended. The car that hit me was a Hyundai Elantra, about a 99-00. I infact learned to drive in a 99-00 Elantra. IRONY. Well the 17 year old kid wasnt paying attention and hit me at about 60mph. I remember very well that Hyundai Elantras DO NOT STOP. my neck still hurts. the bed was wadded up and the car bounced off my right rear tire. the bed hit the cab totaling it, and the rear ladder frame on the passenger side was twisted to the point that the right rear leafsprings didnt work at all. At any rate. other than my neck, i was ok. the kid in the elantra had 2-3 passengers who all left in an ambulance. after the police were done with everyone, i just drove the truck home while the car was hauled onto a flatbed... so i sat around for 3 weeks in limbo about what the ins company was going to do. i talked to them.. got $5,000 dollars for the truck. i had just put new tires on it, and i was about to have them taken off, replaced with used bout-to-pops. but for 5K i let them have them.

Well, I had been looking through craigslist for about 2 weeks. I was watching good deals come and go so when I got my check, i jumped on my new car. a 93 mazda miata 1.6l 5spd with 90K miles for $3400. The car is NOT perfect. The owner before the guy i bought it from had a supercharger on it. the jackson racing ID sticker is still on the underside of the hood. plus i can feel in the shifter where the guy obviously used 3rd a LOT. cruise control doesnt work and if you mess with it, it'll blow a 10a fuse that kills 3 guages and my blinkers. im still chasing that. also the cooling fan doesnt kick on when it starts to get hot, say at a drive thru or heavy stop n go traffic. its either a solenoid, the fan itself, or the thermostat. im ganna replace all but the fan (i shorted the fan on with a screwdriver, and it works.) untill i do all that, all you have to do is crank the A/C which turns on a fan the same size right next to it. also i've busted the front lip... i'm thinkin about just using some aluminum bracing to basically clamp the thing together making it stronger. if i HAVE to, i will replace it. i have replaced the battery too.

its a fun car.. great on gas. i havnt spent more than 18 bucks to top the tank off even with prices in the $1.70's and $1.80's. it's been lowered.. actually i'd say slammed. i still havnt come out of a corner NOT thinking i could have taken the corner faster. everyone says it looks like a race car.. you be the judge. :D

since the sport is just sitting in my yard right now.. this website really intrigues me.. http://www.monstermiata.com would a stock HO break a 7.5 rear if you never try a burn out or hard launch?

its not a ford exactly

Reply #1 – February 14, 2009, 04:18:30 AM

MONSTER MIATA IT!

wait you beat me to it. I like it. I mean if you stay the way it is now you will have a lot of money for the Bird that you arent spending in gas. Monster would be amazing though.

I like it

its not a ford exactly

Reply #2 – February 14, 2009, 05:49:27 AM

thanks :D im really pleased with it.

the thing about making it a monster miata is the price.. $4,000 not including engine and drivetrain. i also have read on that site that swapping in a 302 only adds 250lbs to the car, and it has more of a tendency to push, where stock the car is tail happy. well stock anyway. this thing has too much grip with the nittos that are on it to get it sideways without one hell of a snap back, and it doesnt push what so ever. i need to take some pictures and put them on a miata forum and ask what parts i have on the thing. i already know i have a racing beat roll bar. i have no clue on the rims, springs, or shocks.

its not a ford exactly

Reply #3 – February 14, 2009, 06:56:19 AM

Aaaaah,it looks so cute with those bulgy little fenders.I just want to pinch it on the cheek.LOL.Seriously,neat little car.It does look like a fun ride.

its not a ford exactly

Reply #4 – February 14, 2009, 09:29:05 AM

the show "gearz" on the speed channel,did a whole episode on that 302 swap,about 2 weeks ago.

its not a ford exactly

Reply #5 – February 14, 2009, 12:49:20 PM

I bet that thing would be fun as hell with a 5.0 in it!

its not a ford exactly

Reply #6 – February 14, 2009, 05:26:23 PM

I saw that show.Most everything was a bolt it.They even installed an IRS from something.Locker 8.8.That car was wicked.

its not a ford exactly

Reply #7 – February 15, 2009, 12:55:06 AM

its actually a very popular modification. there are also kits to swap in a LSx chevy motor. I've been reading about this mod a lot. as far as drivetrain all im missing is a t5 trans and most likely a custom length driveshaft. gearz always has interesting stuff on there, i should have been watching it. to see the steps and everything to put it together on tv is a bit different then pictures and reading. DOH

i was just thinking.. did they make a 7.5 IRS system? thats why the 8.8 irs is so popular, the rear of the miata is IRS so its that much easier. to be completely honest... i've never heard of anyone actually using a 7.5 except monster miata.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vKjNBS9pHtU <- that'll get ya started :D

its not a ford exactly

Reply #8 – June 23, 2009, 09:27:55 PM

Updated pictures!

just washed it and refinished the fender flairs. i need to claybar and wax.

its not a ford exactly

Reply #9 – June 23, 2009, 09:45:56 PM

I love the gunmetal UltraLights and the rollbar but you need a new top/window. I always secretly wanted a Miata its my guilty little secret, I have a hard time believing I could cram my 6'5" frame in it without lowering the seat though.

its not a ford exactly

Reply #10 – June 23, 2009, 10:59:25 PM

The rims are actually "XXR 002 Old School JDM" and they're aluminum. and yeh the problem with the rear window was one day i let the top down, but when i let it back up the window popped when i locked it down to the windshield header. the plastic was in the shape of how our headlights can get, making it brittle. the replacement windows are $176.95. and they have to be sewn into the soft top. i might be able to get my mom to do it, but they say it takes a professional to sew the new one in, which would cost as much as getting a whole entire new Vinyl roof. Im ganna go hardtop and wont have to worry about how weather effects the Vinyl. it can make it stretch and contract causing problems. i might go the route of finding a good replacement used top minus the foldable structure, i see them around for sale every so often.

as far as the rollbar, its actually a style bar. it helps in making the car stiffer like a strut tower brace would i'd assume, but it wouldnt save my life if i rolled it. so im looking at a 4 point double diagonal SCCA approved roll bar with door bars making it a 6 point.

i keep meaning to get pictures with the top down so the style bar is visible, but i forget and i like the top up look anyway.

The first car i looked at, and wanted for my 16th birthday, was a miata! it was small, RWD, and most have a 5spd manual. that and there were cool body kits for them that a 14-15yr old would like.

I dont get why people say its a girl car EVER. i know more GUYS that own miatas than women! a 2 door Mitsubishi is more girly than a miata is any day of the week.

one cool thing about miatas is there are a LOT of them around. i joined a forum for miata owners who live in and around atlanta. i've even already set up the first "SouthSide Meet'n'Greet" for this friday.
in part to prove that this is really my car b/c you know how people can doubt you when you post about your car.

on a sour note.. i have to sell my thunderbird b/c its unregistered and uninsured and the county has said that i need to do something with it or it'll be confiscated. i didnt even know they could do that, take a vehicle from you like they made it sound. im ganna take some pictures and put it up for sale here.. if it doesnt get sold here i have a friend's yard that gets a lot of traffic to sell it from.

its not a ford exactly

Reply #11 – June 23, 2009, 11:01:40 PM

oh, my cousin is 6'3" and he sat in my car. to sit comfortably he had to make the seat back basically straight up and down with the seat bottom all the way back, and even then his right knee would have been riding right on top of the ebrake handle. it would work, but it wouldnt be comfortable. i feel like it fits me like a glove and im 5'11''- 6' which i think is the tallest one can be to really be comfortable in a miata

its not a ford exactly

Reply #12 – June 24, 2009, 06:21:25 AM

My wife used to have a Miata. Nice little car, something like an adult go-cart! Just be careful when you do that quick-over-the-left-shoulder glance to check before changing lanes. I smacked my head on the driver's window a couple of times while doing that maneuver.

I always thought a supercharged Buick 3.8 from a Pontiac Bonneville SSEi would make for a killer engine swap in one of those!

Oh, her's was an auto. I had to look far and wide to find one with an auto as she has MS and cannot drive a stick.

Shiny Side Up!
Bill

its not a ford exactly

Reply #13 – June 24, 2009, 09:53:42 AM

Man, I'd sell two of my cars to get one of those little buggers. I think they are pretty sweet, not to mention the car mags are always pouring over them and how well they handle. That would more than likely be a car I could only drive on a sunny day with the top down and even then I'd look like a freaking giraffe :D.

its not a ford exactly

Reply #14 – June 24, 2009, 12:54:17 PM

top down and some goggles, you're set. I've had a number of them come to my shop from time to time...usually just for routine maintenance...one had a jackson racing s/c and a SERIOUS roll cage in it as well as a long tube header, no cats and a really free flowing exhaust...I had a hell of a time getting in and out of that thing...I honestly think that at 6'1", there is NO getting comfortable in that thing.

Good luck,
Don