Sell the NA R-pkg, buy an NB for safety?
04-30-2016, 06:45 PM
#1
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Sell the NA R-pkg, buy an NB for safety?
The various safety threads have been weighing on my mind for a while now. Got a wife and kid, life is different now and I've already had enough close calls with serious accidents and injuries that it gets harder and harder to be quite so cavalier about risk assessment. I know when my time is up, it's up, but I figure if I can mitigate some risk without too much financial outlay, I may as well do it, right?
So, with that out of the way, I'm thinking of selling the 1994 R-pkg stinky project car and looking for a decent stock NB. The 1994 has a nonfunctional airbag system, and having tried once before on a previous NA to piece together an original working airbag system, I'm not really interested in trying that again. Nor, for that matter, am I all that confident in the safety of the original NA airbag and belt system, even in working condition. I know the NB is still a roadster with small crush zones, but it does seems like the overall safety level of a good condition NB has be significantly higher than an NA with no airbag. As I said, it's no guarantee, but at least some of the risk is mitigated.
And, if I'm going to make the switch, it seems like now is the time. I've got a good bit of the 1994 cleaned up, and I'm just about ready to pull the dash and then install the replacement carpet and put the interior back together. I haven't installed any other non-original parts so there's nothing else to remove or swap out before selling, other than putting a decent set of tires on the original wheels and putting them back on so I can keep my RPF1's.
I'd like feedback on a couple questions --
1. Does this switch make sense, or am I just making a mountain out of a molehill? Keep in mind I have no plans to track the car, and probably FI is out of the question for several years as well. I'm just looking for a fun street car, something to use as a daily during the nice weather months. I know a decent NB would cost a bit more than a ratty 1994 R-pkg, but I've got some parts that would no longer be necessary (Nardi wheel, steering wheel hub, some NA-specific stuff) that I could sell as well for a few hundred dollars.
2. If making the switch does make sense, should I (A) sell it as a complete R-pkg car intact with Bilsteins, Torsen, etc. and hope that some autocrosser doesn't care that it's not in excellent cosmetic condition, or (B) sell the Bilsteins and Torsen separately, throw some cheapo suspension and an open diff on it and just sell it as a decent regular Miata? If I did (B), what else besides the Bilsteins and Torsen have any individual value? Do people care about the hollow-spoke wheels?
tldr -- I am being wishy-washy but mostly just feel uneasy about keeping an unsafe NA and want to sell it for a slightly safer NB.
So, with that out of the way, I'm thinking of selling the 1994 R-pkg stinky project car and looking for a decent stock NB. The 1994 has a nonfunctional airbag system, and having tried once before on a previous NA to piece together an original working airbag system, I'm not really interested in trying that again. Nor, for that matter, am I all that confident in the safety of the original NA airbag and belt system, even in working condition. I know the NB is still a roadster with small crush zones, but it does seems like the overall safety level of a good condition NB has be significantly higher than an NA with no airbag. As I said, it's no guarantee, but at least some of the risk is mitigated.
And, if I'm going to make the switch, it seems like now is the time. I've got a good bit of the 1994 cleaned up, and I'm just about ready to pull the dash and then install the replacement carpet and put the interior back together. I haven't installed any other non-original parts so there's nothing else to remove or swap out before selling, other than putting a decent set of tires on the original wheels and putting them back on so I can keep my RPF1's.
I'd like feedback on a couple questions --
1. Does this switch make sense, or am I just making a mountain out of a molehill? Keep in mind I have no plans to track the car, and probably FI is out of the question for several years as well. I'm just looking for a fun street car, something to use as a daily during the nice weather months. I know a decent NB would cost a bit more than a ratty 1994 R-pkg, but I've got some parts that would no longer be necessary (Nardi wheel, steering wheel hub, some NA-specific stuff) that I could sell as well for a few hundred dollars.
2. If making the switch does make sense, should I (A) sell it as a complete R-pkg car intact with Bilsteins, Torsen, etc. and hope that some autocrosser doesn't care that it's not in excellent cosmetic condition, or (B) sell the Bilsteins and Torsen separately, throw some cheapo suspension and an open diff on it and just sell it as a decent regular Miata? If I did (B), what else besides the Bilsteins and Torsen have any individual value? Do people care about the hollow-spoke wheels?
tldr -- I am being wishy-washy but mostly just feel uneasy about keeping an unsafe NA and want to sell it for a slightly safer NB.
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05-03-2016, 06:33 PM
#14
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Yo genius, the Miata is the SAME ******' CAR from 1990 to 2005. It got a passenger side airbag in 1994 and the engine changed a few times. That's it.
From a chassis perspective, changing the stamping dies and a few body work changes aren't significant. There is a reason why everything bolts up to each other across 15 different model years: IT'S THE SAME ******' CAR.
From a chassis perspective, changing the stamping dies and a few body work changes aren't significant. There is a reason why everything bolts up to each other across 15 different model years: IT'S THE SAME ******' CAR.
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05-03-2016, 07:15 PM
#15
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Yo genius, the Miata is the SAME ******' CAR from 1990 to 2005. It got a passenger side airbag in 1994 and the engine changed a few times. That's it.
From a chassis perspective, changing the stamping dies and a few body work changes aren't significant. There is a reason why everything bolts up to each other across 15 different model years: IT'S THE SAME ******' CAR.
From a chassis perspective, changing the stamping dies and a few body work changes aren't significant. There is a reason why everything bolts up to each other across 15 different model years: IT'S THE SAME ******' CAR.
It isn't the same car. The safety equipment changed. And notably, we're talking about going from a non-working/nonexistent airbag system in my 1994 to a working dual-stage airbag in an NB.
Stop ethugging, make a cogent argument, or go away.
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05-03-2016, 07:32 PM
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I don't think you're going to make a useful WORTH IT improvement by going to an NB. An NC, sure. But not an NB. Is it better? Sure, and if you like the NB better, by all means go for it. But I don't think it's worth the swap just for safety.
My opinion.
My opinion.
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05-03-2016, 11:06 PM
#18
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I just don't want to eat a Momo because someone strayed into my lane. If selling my NA and spending another $1000-2000 on an NB with a modern, working airbag system accomplishes this, I'm not sure why it's dumb.
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05-04-2016, 03:40 AM
#19
I re-read the whole thread and I don't get what your hang-ups are. You want a street only car. You want SAFER. The NB gains you a functioning air bag on both sides and newer generation air bags at that. Ok. That is the only meaningful difference. If you truly want to do a parts shuffle to sell your NA and buy an NB2, then go for it. Just realize you are gaining some airbags and a slightly less shitty engine. That is it. If the money works out for you, then great.
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05-04-2016, 09:45 AM
#20
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It comes down to wanting an NB that is relatively safer than your NA. If you want it, go for it. Personally, I'd prefer to pick up side curtain airbags and 10+ years of materials engineering with an NC since it's only a small premium above most NB2 prices.
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