Miata Noob from San Diego
 

Hey all,
Veteran car guy, total Miata noob! Unless you count all the youtube videos i've watched, but I seriously doubt it. A little about myself: My first car was a Nissan 240SX, did big brakes(300zx) and a Redtop SR20DET install and absolutely fell in love with japanese 4 cylinder turbocharged engines. After an N/A FWD car (BOOOOOO!!!) i'm back to a turbo AWD Mazdaspeed 6.

I'm currently looking for a project car that does not need to be a daily driver and I do like the Miata: price point, manual, rwd and legal CA turbo kits. Yes I live in the state of allegedly clean air that doesn't want people to work on their cars, but the weather is nice! I also like the Exocet "diet" kit so I may be looking for a cheap donor with a "who cares" body/paint job. If i don't go Exocet I'd be looking harder at the 04-05 MSM. Manual is a must, though for the right price i'll swap it myself.

I look forward to posting more once i've sorted out which Miata I end up in. If you know someone not too distant from SD getting rid of one feel free to PM me.

If I had to do it over, 94, no question. 1.8 + OBD1 makes things so much easier...

Thanks for the advice. I definitely would prefer the 1.8, is there any reason not to go OBD2? I like the cheap engine monitoring of BT or WIFI OBD2 adapters. I'm looking at a car now that's worth more in aftermarket parts but it is a NA6 turbo. Thanks for weighing in.

Do you mean easier in regards to smog in California? 1.8 would definitely be a better platform for boost.

Yes, since the OBDI gathers less sophisticated data, there are less chances of the CEL firing off. I guess it sorta depends on your long term plans for the car. I like to tinker, and it takes an OBD2 car longer to get the car in ready status. I'm not sure if I'd just buy a car based on the the ability to connect a BT adapter though. Also, just because an OBD2 reader can collect certain info, doesn't necessarily mean your ECU furnishes it. So make sure you know what data you want to watch. Good luck with your search!

So I finally purchased my first Miata! Got a '91 with a 1.6.
Pros:
turbo'd via an FM2 kit.
Link ECU, or is this a Con?
Comes with FM coilovers (haven't investigated which ones yet).
Hard Dog rollbar
Wheels look good enough to not swap immediately
Seat speakers work
Cons:
Body has a fair amount of damage (but I bought with the idea I probably won't be keeping it)
Driver seat is destroyed
Driver side visor missing
Interior needs massive TLC/parts
Hood vibration
Headlights are cracked, as well as windshield

Well I wanted a project car and she's got that in spades! Love to hear recommended mods, free, cheap, and $$$$, especially replacement seats.

If you got a good price for it, you could drive eventually go 1.8.
The main pro of OBD1 in smog states like California and Nevada is that they have to do the tailpipe sniffer.
I don't know enough about the Link to speak to it, but you could read about it in the ECU forums section.
Looks like more pain than it's worth, but you can read for yourself. Here's a teaser https://www.miataturbo.net/ecus-tuni...h-mspnp-61065/ (takes 5 seconds)

My advice if you want to learn about mods, read build threads. That's the most valuable source of knowledge, Mom and Dad don't do spoon-feeding here.

It seems to happen to many of us, that we end up with a car that's mechanically sound, but is ailing in the body (rust or collision-damage); or vice versa. I ended up also with a '91, in excellent condition for the locale and circumstances, but with an engine that's better to replace than to rebuild. Perhaps in Daniel's case the best approach is to drive the car in its current condition, without attempting to improve its cosmetics or body, but instead to learn about the idiosyncrasies of the drivetrain and engine, of tuning and so forth; and then maybe to buy a car in nicer physical shape, but mechanically stock (or worn, or ailing)... and then to swap the good parts from the one to the other.

San Diego miata
 

I am in San Diego and may be selling mine

99 Miata with Flyin Miata turbo kit, fully built motor o. E85 makes close to 300whp. Pm me and you can come drive it and see if you like it !

How much?

PM sent on Monday. Sounds like a fantastic opportunity!