96 Miata worth the price and turbo'ing?
 

Hi everyone i have been doing some research and i finally found the miata thats clean and that drives really well. Its a 96 miata with 190k Miles on it. the link to the craigslist is here 1996 Mazda Miata . I have negotiated with the buyer to sell me the car for $1800 Do you guys think its worth that much? i looked up the kbb and it said to be around 1700 on excellent condition. This is my first miata so i really dont know much about what i am getting into besides that its really fun to drive and a bit underpowered. Which brings me to my next question as i was researching im looking for about 2k-2.5k for a turbo build but wondering if that engine with 190k miles will be reliable to do a turbo upgrade on?...what do you guys think any opinions will be much appreciated. Thanks!

just a quick answer would be much appreciated bro im meeting him tommorrow

thanks for all the help you guys

I'm surprised that you found THE Miata that's clean and drives well. I thought there were a lot of them, but I digress, I didn't have done research.

shoulnd't that google screenshot be upside-down?

1800 for a running miata seems like a steal. You'd be lucky to get one like that for under 3k round these parts, 5-6k if its actually clean and mostly rust free.

wow that's sad.

around here miata's like that go for 1200 tops.

You dont have the rust monster down there.

You guys paid for your Miatas?

It is, isnt it?

Dann

Leak down test the engine before buying it. Or at a minimum run a compression test.

:vash2:

This is the worst forum choice ever for this question.

Indianapolis uses lots of salt on their roads in the winter. Bought my mini from a guy there, had surface rust out the ass on the underside, and paint was bubbling below the tail lights (all the moisture and salt accumulates on the back of minis pretty hardcore)
Check over it all, if there is no rust, Buy it. $1700-$1800 is a steal if its all good. Mileage is no concern with miatas for the most part, as long as they took care of it, and everything checks out

Thanks you for all the responses guys I think I'm gonna go for it but the compression test that was mentioned where can I get that done any local shop?

Any shop should have the necessary equipment

Thank you

This test will also prove of the head gasket being okay?

It has the potential to, but also other things affect compression... piston rings being worn or not, valves seating.

So if you have bad compression, it really isn't definitive what's causing it, just definitive sign not to buy lol

You can sometimes find a bad gasket by applying pressure to the coolant system

Awsome man thanks for your help

No problem

If you go to a shop have them leak down test it. Or you can compression test it yourself with a rental tool from autozone (very easy to do with youtube video guidance)

Compression test will give you an general idea if the engine is healthy or if its on its way out.

Leak down will give you a much better idea of engine health and is used to diagnose why compression is bad (ie: bad valve seating, piston rings, head gasket)

So a new thing i noticed today was there was a lot of oil resedue that was coming out from inbetween the engine cover bolts like from the sides and it looks like it was leaking down from the back as well. Im going to do a leak down test from a shop im really not that tech savy plus its not my car so i dont wanna risk doing something wrong to it. but what do you guys think when oil is leaking from the sides of it and around the back...it could be the valve cover gasket..

Thanks for the link OP! Been looking for a cheap daily beater for awhile now!

It's a used miata with 194,000 miles on it. It needs new seals. CAS o-ring and valve cover to start

This. And if no service history then timing belt and water pump to be safe.

Then it should run forever assuming compression is good.