farpolemiddle

Ok you guys talked me out of it. I really like the car and would still buy it if they went lower on the price but I do not think they will.

My new plan is to look specifically for a stock or stockish 1994 or 1995. Preferably with a hard top. I have to deal with Emissions here in Portland and I have had much better luck with OBD1 sniffer tests. I will start off with adding a megasquirt and later add a turbo kit from FM. Better idea?


Here is a example of what I am looking for.
1994 Miata

bahurd

iTrader: (8)

That '94 would've already sold here esp with the HT.

farpolemiddle

Yeah, It is worth buying for the parts at this point. It is either destroyed up close or they do not know what they have. No phone number which I hate (do you want to sell your car or not?!). The ad has been up less than a day. I sent an email saying I have money and I want to see it. I am sure I will be getting an email back in a few days discussing which scam I prefer to fall for to send my money to Africa.

slowcarfast

Yes, that seems like a really good deal with the HT, even in Florida, the magical land of cheap Miatae.

turbofan

iTrader: (1)

OP, where in Portland is this NB? If it's still around Sunday I could potentially go take a peek at it with you. I'm curious about it, and I know my way around these cars fairly well. I also do have a compression tester....

BUUUUUT that white '94 is a REALLY good deal if it's not beat to ****.

farpolemiddle

It is lower N Portland near the train yard. I would be down for that. The dude is cool about it and is giving me back my deposit in a few hours. His mom who actually owns it gets back Sunday and has access to the receipts. If you have time Sunday I would not mind revisiting it again. Either way I wouldn't mind buying you beers and picking your brain. I am going to go this Turbo Miata route in one way or another and you are probably a good guy to know. We can discuss the devil DEQ. I am out in the hood Lents, Powell and the 205.

farpolemiddle

1995 miata hardtop

Maybe something like this as a starting point as well. $4,500 with the hard top is doable.

farpolemiddle

so I just picked up my deposit and I looked at few more things real quick.
The turbo is stamped T24 A/R .70 and it is a monster. The MAF does looked like it is rigged into the new intake somehow. It must be working somehow because it does run decent. I took a closer look and there are some things that definitely stand out as half ***. Zip tie holding on vacuum line and hose clamps left super long. I think I would only take this car if it was half what they are asking and then pull most of the turbo and Nos crap off and start over. You guys are super helpful. <br ><br ><br ><br >

turbofan

iTrader: (1)

It's definitely worth way more than half the asking price, $6k really isn't terrible if it actually has a low mile built motor. But it isn't a good idea if you don't already know the platform and are familiar with FI applications.

codrus

That looks more like the 99 factory air intake temp sensor than the MAF sensor. 2-wire connector, shape, etc.

--Ian

farpolemiddle

Any ideas on how this thing is running without a MAF?

Ivan

The MAF was probably moved closer to the intake and is not visible.

farpolemiddle

So you guys are going to love this. I currently have Disabled Veteran plates on my landcruiser. These are permanent plates in Oregon and never expire. I just have to pay a fee to transfer them from car to car. My landcruiser is a 1970 so it does not require emissions. Obviously any Miata I buy will be newer than 75 and require emissions. I just got off the phone with the DMV and they basically said that if I buy a car here in Oregon or Washington I can transfer my permanent non expiring ever plates to that new car WITHOUT getting an emission check and it will never require an emissions check unless I sell it or transfer the plates off the car. There are plenty of counties around here that do not require emissions so I can sell it someday unlike CA. That my friends is what we call a game changer.I can by whatever Miata I want and boost the crap out of it with whatever computer I want. My check engine light can shine bright and proud for all I care.

codrus

Blowing the turbo through the MAF? That sounds like a terrible idea to me.

But yeah, it might work well enough to get it to start/idle. Hot-wire MAFs need to be temperature calibrated though, and the air temp after the turbo is going to be significantly different than that in the pre-turbo intake, even if the intercooler is working.

--Ian

Monk

iTrader: (3)

That's a pretty great workaround.
What branch?

farpolemiddle

Was regular Army. Now I am Guard. I am going to call back again in a few days and talk to someone else and see if they give me the same answer since DMV usually makes up answers to this kind of stuff on the spot.

farpolemiddle

So I bought that white 94 I linked in post 21. The dude was not a car guy and had no idea what he had. It is pretty damn clean. 145,000 miles and has had some maintenance like new clutch and timing belt. Runs strong. Soft top is in perfect shape and the hard top is 9 out of 10 with just a little pain flaking by the rear window seal. Interior is black with leather? I think it is leather but no rips or anything. Really clean. Body has a scrape on the front bumper and a couple of door dings but other than that it is straight. I was able to test drive it without the owner so I dropped the clutch on a turn to see if it had a Torsen and I think it does. Also has the rubber coupler between the drive shaft and rear end. He was asking $2,900 and I almost felt bad when I talked him down to $2,700. Only thing about it I do not like is the ugly heavy looking 14" rims. Washed about 5 years of moss and tree crap off it and still need to clean out the very full of **** front fenders.

I will be following Monk's advice.

1.ECU (probably megasquirt but not sure which yet)
2.replace wheels because they hurt my face.
3.Wide band O2 and possibly slightly larger injectors
4. Either piece together a turbo kit or buy the FM kit if I have the cash.

My new goal is 250 HP so I can hurt STI and Musting feelings. My budget depends on how many of my guns I can talk myself into parting with.

I can take pictures of her tomorrow if anyone cares.

Monk

iTrader: (3)

1. MS3x from Brainiac or Reverent
2. 6UL, Advanti, Jungbloed
3. Take your pick, mtxl is one good option
Get either flow force injectors from trackspeed or ID 1000s, also from trackspeed
4. Get a good clutch first. FM is a well regarded clutch, especially on the street
5. Can't go wrong with an FM kit, but Trackspeed's new kit is quite nice if you want to be a baller or track your car regularly.
If it's going to be a primarily street car, look at the MKturbo kit from Shiuend, if you're on a budget.
If going used, look for AR tech or BEGI as well.

slowcarfast

Sound like you got a fantastic deal! Megasquirt really is the only choice. Do all the stuff Monk said.

Places to save money if you want: Buy megasquirt from the classifieds. You don't need ID1000s unless your plans include E85, the 610s will be fine. Buy quality turbo bits from the classifieds (begi, fm, artech, absurdflow). Use a properly sized Chinese/ebay turbo, it doesn't perform as well as a Garrett or efr but they have proven reliable.

Don't forget to think about suspension upgrades budget bilstein setup or xidas if you've got the cash. Deals can be had buying used on these as well.

turbofan

iTrader: (1)

congrats once again, great buy. Post some pics!

+1 on getting suspension done ASAP.