New Miata owner on MICO

[gwoods]

Hey gang,

I finally joined the club and bought a 1992 Miata today.

Its kind of rough but I paid $400 for it so I am happy with my purchase.

Plus
Only 148k miles
Price
No top
Super clean interior
Rest of paint is in good shape
New radiator
New Rack & Pinion

Negative
No top
Front fenders bare metal
Seized engine (1.6)
Automatic
Rear bumper bare plastic

I pulled the plugs and valve cover tonight.

Tried gently (short nosed crank keyway issue) to turn with breaker bar doesn't turn.
The timing belt looks good.

I will pull the starter tomorrow and test it.

So I am leaning toward swapping the 1.6 for another I found one for $80 with 88k miles they are unloved. Driving it while I figure out what I want to do.

My ultimate idea is swapping in a 1.8 and manual transmission. What would you do with a pretty much free Miata??

[gwoods]

Why do Miata's attrack small children??

[nissangirl74]

Welcome to the club.

[NolimitZ32]

What would you do with a pretty much free Miata??

Rotary

[Bubba1]

What would you do with a pretty much free Miata??

Put in a roll bar, swap to a manual, install Toyo RA1's and then two words....spec Miata.

[frapjap]

Welcome to the club! Now join Miata Club Version 2.0
Buy that $80 1.6, swap it in over an afternoon (seriously, it can be done by yourself) and buy a Flyin' Miata turbo kit to bolt on.
http://flyinmiata.com/index.php?deptid= ... LK%20GAUGE
I suggest the above no frills kit. Then convert to IAT sensor (easy) along with a MSPNP, some later model injectors, and a wide band.
You'll be making a very happy, very quick Miata.

If you absolutely want a top, Moss Miata had Robbins tops on sale last month. They may still be on sale.
http://www.mossmiata.com/sitegraphics/r ... _tops.html

Miata.net can be your friend when looking for historical answers, or I'm sure any one of us can get you in the right direction.

Also, don't buy anything from Bell Engineering (BEGi) for your Miata unless you want it to come weeks later, not fit, and be told its your fault that their product is poor when you go to (and you will have to) complain. This is one of many, many stories:
i-just-absolutely-unloaded-on-someone-f ... ing%20begi

[gwoods]

Alot of great advise.... I am leaning toward just getting it running so I can enjoy it so probably going to fix the 1.6 in it or swap in another for $80.

For later manual swap is a must I am thinking a 1997-1999 1.8 & 5spd will be the easiest and best if I still want more power (always do) a a FM turbo kit.

And Frap I bought a Miata specifically to avoid BEGi. Do I have to order a part that doesn't fit to complain or can I just go off everyone elses experiences?

[dre1507]

You could always "ruin the perfect balance" with an aluminum block v8 from the government.

[Kompresshun]

AWESOME. Congrats on the sweet deal!

Wanna swap seats? MOMO CORSE racing buckets and 5 point harnesses

[gwoods]

You could always "ruin the perfect balance" with an aluminum block v8 from the government.

The thought did cross my mind repeatedly. I have checked out the monstermiata and flying miata sites. I read the magazine review of the vette swapped Miata and really did some thinking. I have a 1965 Cj-5 with a 327 V8 in it that I am still still still working on and the extra work that comes with motor swaps is not fun even when you spend $4,000 on the kit to 'do it right'.

and 0-60 in 3.8 seconds is only about 2 tenths faster then my Jag

[gwoods]

AWESOME. Congrats on the sweet deal!

Wanna swap seats? MOMO CORSE racing buckets and 5 point harnesses

Thank you, I'm going to try to keep it like it is for a while and enjoy top down driving during Phoenix's 80 degree "winter". Next summer I may work on things like racing seats and paint and 1.8 turbo + 5spd swaps.

First got to get it running. I soaked the cylinders in PB blaster last night via the spark plug holes and then tapped the pistons with a hammer and very long screw driver this am. I broke a 3/8 breaker bar on the crank pulley nut trying to turn the motor over. I'll give the PB blaster a bit more time.

[frapjap]

First got to get it running. I soaked the cylinders in PB blaster last night via the spark plug holes and then tapped the pistons with a hammer and very long screw driver this am. I broke a 3/8 breaker bar on the crank pulley nut trying to turn the motor over. I'll give the PB blaster a bit more time.

HOLY CRAP! Was it a real brand or a Harbor Freight bar? Sounds like that engine had catastrophic failure. Pull the drain plug for the oil and see if what condition its in, or if there is even any in there. It may have a blown HG and hydrolocked and rusted the rings to the walls.


Go buy the cheap 1.6 replacement for the mean time. Then take the oil pan and head off of the current engine to see what really went wrong.

[gwoods]

Harbor freight but in its defense I also had a four foot lead pipe over it

[gwoods]

I'm buying the 1.6

The car is super clean engine and underside!

[frapjap]

Harbor freight but in its defense I also had a four foot lead pipe over it

JEESH. And it still wouldn't turn?
Can't wait to see what the issue is after removal.

[gwoods]

I bought the 1.6 ...

Here is how clean this car is.... don't get jelly eastcoast nico/micos

[gwoods]

Poking around under the hood I noticed a sticker proclaiming the car has been retrofitted to R-134!

[Looneybomber]

So AZ cars. No rust, but the paint, plastics, tops, and interiors all bake to a crisp. Trade-offs with everything I guess.

[NolimitZ32]

true, but i'll take baked paint to rusted body any day.

[gwoods]

This cars interior is great I have done nothing to it since I bought it and this is how it looks. This WAS a car someone took care of.

[nissangirl74]

So AZ cars. No rust, but the paint, plastics, tops, and interiors all bake to a crisp.

Not always. Lots of AZ cars are very well maintained.

true, but i'll take baked paint to rusted body any day.

[AZhitman]

THAT is a solid score. Rust destroys cars. Cars can run forever without rubber trim.

[NolimitZ32]

Now I want a Miata, but I'm not 40 yet, not even close .

[gwoods]

Yep. Don't cruise craigslist for one like I did all these Miata threads killed it for me.

My motor should be delivered today and it was $50. It's a long block ( no accessories) it has crank key way damage on a 4/10 scale and is glue able. BUT it comes with a good undamage crank so I will swap them and the bearings. Would you replace the head gasket? It has a new timing belt. The guy found the key way damage when he was changing his timing belt. He picked up a good used crank. Then decided to buy a new long block direct from Mazda. Someone who does things that way will have kept this motor maintained.

Do you guys think I should swap the crank or glue the marginally damaged one?

[Kompresshun]

Yep. Don't cruise craigslist for one like I did all these Miata threads killed it for me.

My motor should be delivered today and it was $50. It's a long block ( no accessories) it has crank key way damage on a 4/10 scale and is glue able. BUT it comes with a good undamage crank so I will swap them and the bearings. Would you replace the head gasket? It has a new timing belt. The guy found the key way damage when he was changing his timing belt. He picked up a good used crank. Then decided to buy a new long block direct from Mazda. Someone who does things that way will have kept this motor maintained.

Do you guys think I should swap the crank or glue the marginally damaged one?

The Miata threads killed it for me too. I bought one nearly a week after Jesda made his thread.

For $50, I would do the head gasket and i'd go ahead and swap the crank before you put the engine in the car. It's definitely worth it to do it right the first time. I'd go ahead and replace any gaskets needed while you're at it too.

Oh and order a OEM Mazda water plug for the back of the cylinder head too. It's a common failure and it's much easier to get to while you have the engine out.

[gwoods]

Sound logic why not rering the pistons since I have the head off and the crank out?

[Jesda]

So AZ cars. No rust, but the paint, plastics, tops, and interiors all bake to a crisp. Trade-offs with everything I guess.

And fried rubber hoses, brake lines, tires, and electronic components as discovered after buying a Buick and Cadillac there.

[nissangirl74]

So AZ cars. No rust, but the paint, plastics, tops, and interiors all bake to a crisp. Trade-offs with everything I guess.

And fried rubber hoses, brake lines, tires, and electronic components as discovered after buying a Buick and Cadillac there.

Pretty common knowledge around these parts. You have much to learn, Grasshopper.

[AZhitman]

And fried rubber hoses, brake lines, tires, and electronic components as discovered after buying a Buick and Cadillac there.

Geriatric cars tend to sit, idling, with the A/C on, and no airflow through the grille. The 50-lbs of heat/sound insulation around the engine doesn't help matters one bit. We saw this a lot with early Q's, but it's the case with big German cars as well.

[Jesda]

After how quickly that '93 Lexus from Beverly Hills sold and how nice it turned out to be, I'm focusing on Southern California. All of the rubber and all of the electronic displays were still in excellent shape after 20 years. The backlit LCDs that Toyota used in the 90s tend to go bad in hot climates.


As for other warm regions, Miami is full of shady title washers as are Atlanta and Houston. Dallas-FW is a possibility.