I usually get around 130-160 for scrap shells. Another $50-70 more if they have OEM cats on them. Definitely separate the aluminum and steel. If the weather was nicer, the last shell I was going to separate the wiring from the shell as well, but I ran out of time (had to get my wife the garage spot back).

 

Glad you and your father are ok Ed. Looks like on a hell of an accident.

 

Just caught up reading this thread... Wow man, glad you're both ok!

 

GEICO came through--tow went smoothly and didn't cost me a penny. They even covered the 5 days of storage at the yard. Thy said they would likely not be able to cover a tow to a repair shop but I told them I am not concerned about that.

This thing is an absolute goner.



Even where there was previous damage there is even more. This wheel is not straight again:


Again with the right front fender, almost exactly the same damage as before...


I reinstalled and reconnected the battery. Cranked over fine but when it finally fired it shot towards redline and iI realized the throttle was stuck. I heard spurting sounds and looked under the engine to find this:



Looking under the hood, serious alignment issues:


The reroute tube fully contacts the throttle linkage as well, causing the aforementioned stuck throttle. Looking closer, the entire radiator is tweaked and damaged at the bottom:


I don't think the engine itself is hurt but I'm betting the oil filter has been crushed by frame rail movement.

The area between the spare tire well and the battery hole is actually bent and you can see cracking paint in several places inside the trunk area. Front bumper is absolutely mangled and not repairable.

After looking at it for about ten minutes I said to my dad: "you just had to prove you could do it better than me, didn't you?!"

I'm feeling even more grateful now that we weren't injured worse. Really incredible. I now understand more or less how the car tumbled and I believe it cartwheeled after initially hitting the ground. Somehow we never went on our lid.

I'm doing fine and although Dad wasn't quite up for karting today he is up and about with just a little ibuprofen. GEICO has been very helpful and gave us instructions for the hospital to send the bill directly to them -- we won't even see it. Amazing. Never had such a good experience.

Now to see what they'll give for it. Bets? I'm hoping for $6k after buyback and deductible but expecting more like $4k. Any less than that and there will be some fight.

Still no idea what I want to do next.

 

....Damn dude. That thing is worse than mine was. Mine was all superficial. Id definitely get the motor a proper once over with all that oil.

Also:
A-arms
Dampers
Subframes

I've got a spare PPF sitting in the garage just in case...no I will not polish it for you

Excited for what direction/path you choose.

 

Ed,
I just last night saw the updates on this new crash. So glad you and your dad are OK. Sorry about the car.
DNM

 

Let me know when you want me to come over and tear the front end off in ~30 minutes.

On the bright side, engines are much easier to remove with the core support chopped out.

After a thorough wash, looks like the wheels are all salvageable.

 

I'll buy that hardtop off you if you're ever in the area and its completely undamaged

But seriously, what about a catfish or exocet build?

That way you won't be tempted to drive in rain, it will be insane, perfect for track, and most your donor parts will fit.

 

I like this idea. One of the fundamental problems here seems to be pseudo-track driving on public roads. Public roads just aren't designed for that. If you can manage to get more time on track, your street driving will change.

Of course, easy for me to say since I live 10 miles from my local track.

 

That utterly sucks man - condolences.
I'd strip it down and go Eliminator on it - ghettocet style. https://www.facebook.com/SalvageW0N

 

Thanks again for all the thoughts and condolences guys. I appreciate it!

I really like the idea of a catfish or exo build, but I also need to be realistic about cost.

There are so many ideas bouncing around... I am really thinking that the best plan is to buy a decent running NA, swap my suspension, wheels, brakes onto it, and really learn how to drive with stock or near-stock HP. It's kinda hard to go there coming from such a bad-*** car, but I think that makes the most sense, least cost, lowest effort, highest safety, and easiest decision.

But again, still not totally settled there even if I do that route I'm probably going to acquire this LS2 setup if possible.

 

If you get a chance to watch those "Miataville" vids in my last Honey Badger post, most of the other Miatas had FI and Hoosiers or Toyo RRs. I was going much faster than they were. A well-balanced car and seat time is where it's at for me.

 

Should I just buy this?

1989 Mazda RX-7 | ksl.com

Rick, I look forward to watching those videos.

As tempting as a V8 swap is, a much more likely and economical swap would be a Kswap. I mean... WAY easier, can use most of the stock Miata drivetrain, etc. An early NA with a KSwap would be really, really sweet.

 

Think your sharpie inscriptions are going to be a problem at all?

 

jancarlo already removed them with some rubbing compound yesterday

 

He needs to cut that section out and mount it on the wall.

 

100% agree.

 

I'll have to re-write it because JC used some rubbing compound to take it off. But that's a fantastic idea.

 

We have plenty of pics

 

I'm getting seriously tired of jackass family members/friends on Facebook telling me I shouldn't get another Miata because they're "too dangerous for me" apparently.



I'm so damned sick of it.

Gonna start hitting the unfriend button pretty soon here which will **** some people off. Good.