How (and why) to Ramble on your goat sideways
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I checked out the car today. Rocker panel rust is starting on the passenger side and the rest of the body was rough. It did start up and run decently once we got the battery charged some. It is leaking brake fluid up in the at the reservoir. It also needs a slave cylinder as there is no clutch pressure right now. I think it would be a perfect car for lemons/chump itself. Pull out as much weight as possible. Weld in a cage, throw on 1.8 brakes, ms3, then sell off as much other stuff as possible from the car. Do basic maintenance and then go race.
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Could you build a reliable decently bone stock 1.6 miata for chump car in a year on a reasonable budget? Plan would probably buy the Hard Dog bolt in cage, but actually weld it in. Then swap on the 1.8 brakes from my other miata. I got the seats and harnesses from my other car. Then with whatever money I have left I build an MS and then just race.
If the MR2 is clean mechanically, that's really not a bad price though. They are supposedly pretty reliable but maintenance is kind of a pain with the MR layout. So with a recent engine refresh, and a few appropriate mods, it could be a good deal.
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Really? My Toyota was a breeze to work on. Very well laid out. Granted, it wasn't a mid engine, which could be a packaging nightmare. $5k isn't way out of line, just a little high. They are pretty cool looking cars. Never saw a lot of them around here, which is surprising. Toyotas are like cockroaches in this area.
Anyone know the zipper pull size for a soft top with a glass window? I tried the pull from my top with the plastic window but its too small. Also have a ykk #10 from a jacket and it wont fit either
Edit: zipper is a lenzip but not sure what slide size
Edit: zipper is a lenzip but not sure what slide size
Last edited by mellowout; 11-12-2012 at 03:14 PM.
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Really? My Toyota was a breeze to work on. Very well laid out. Granted, it wasn't a mid engine, which could be a packaging nightmare. $5k isn't way out of line, just a little high. They are pretty cool looking cars. Never saw a lot of them around here, which is surprising. Toyotas are like cockroaches in this area.
MR2 supply != Toyota supply. They made and sold very few of them in the USA. I've always wanted one but was turned off by the relative price and complexity vs alternatives.
If you don't mind working on the car in painful configurations or can get quick at dropping the engine, I say go for it.
Last edited by Scrappy Jack; 11-12-2012 at 02:26 PM. Reason: Too many 'r's.
It's a long shot at the moment -- with the upcoming surgery, it'd only be financially prudent if the Focus sells or if the MR2 seller decides my trade offer is attractive.
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Speaking of the hydraulic clutch, why the hell isn't it cable operated and why do I have to constantly replace the master and slave cylinders? I've replaced the master twice and the slave 3 times in the past 3 years!
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You have bad luck or something. I think I have swapped the slave on my turbo car once in the 7 years I have owned it, and that was more out of was swapping in built motor and figured it would be easy to change it then.
Driving to indianapolis tommorow to go pickup a hardtop, man those things are few and far between around these parts. and everyone around wants and arm a leg and your first born child for them.