The answer to my "LMS Right Miata" thread turned out to be a 2000 SE.
Funky purple, horrendous tan/wood interior.
97k miles, zero rust, $2300. It's scruffy but will clean up nice.
Goal: Drive it and beat it as hard as I can. Autox, backroad burner, hpde, hillclimb, etc.
Pics to come.
Pix nao.
So you did get that one? Neat. I've seen it. Its pretty.good for.the price.
That one?
What one?!
PIX NAOOOO!!!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EK_LN3XEcnw
97k miles, zero rust.
Things broken:
1) Interior is gross because the top is ripped. Most of it will have to go away
2) Leaky driver's rear brake caliper. Scary to drive.
3) Driver's front hub is bad. Noisy and enough play that it feels bad.
4) Fog lights don't work. (Surprise!)
5) Passenger headlight apparently periodically goes out about once ever 3 months. Will investigate wiring gremlins.
6) Top is destroyed
The good:
1) Zero Rust
2) Did i mention zero rust?
3) Very strong and dead quiet motor
4) Lucked out and managed to find yet another extremely slick-shifting 6spd. (2 for 2!)
5) Torsen works. (Big smoky 1st gear burnouts!)
6) Strong clutch
7) Heater is ridiculously strong
8) Bose stereo sounds awful, but it's funny, because huge bass. Definition of "ghetto blaster."
Plan: Install all the parts i have in the garage, and purchase minimal things.
Ready to install:
1) All new NB sport brake setup (will fix the caliper)
2) Swank Force Racing custom coilovers
3) Hardtop (soft top will be permanently removed)
4) Boss Frog Cleaview Roll Bar
5) Boss Frog harness bar
6) Autopower 5pt harnesses
7) Corbeau A4s
8) MiataRoadster tall angled short throw shifter w/ Carbing High Grip shift knob
9) Boundary Engineering Frame Rails
10) Carbing front shock tower brace
11) Boss Frog Frog Arms
12) Custom homebrew coolant re-route
To Purchase:
1) Jongbloed 15x9s
2) 225/45 of whatever flavor
3) CSF 42mm radiator
4) Stainless brake and clutch lines
5) All fluids
6) AWR 70A mounts
7) Delrin diff mounts
Eventually this will be an i/h/e/megasquirt/headshave car in an effort to hit 150whp, but for the moment i'm focusing on simplicity, weight reduction, bulletproof-ness, and driving it hard.
Does have a dent. I'm reasonably sure i can pull 90% of this pretty easily.
3) Stainless clutch and brake lines
Unless you've tried the A4 and liked them, I'd recommend rethinking that. They're not great seats and sit pretty high. We actually had a customer pay us to put them in, then pay us to pull them out.
Keith Tanner wrote: Unless you've tried the A4 and liked them, I'd recommend rethinking that. They're not great seats and sit pretty high. We actually had a customer pay us to put them in, then pay us to pull them out.
I don't like them, but they're $free.99 and not moldy cracked tan leather 2000 SE seats. 
They're a stopgap. I kept them from the turbo 95 i sold yesterday. They're eventually destined for the MX6, and the Miata will end up with some Sparco buckets. 
I figured there was a bunch of free/already in hand parts there.
Yep, all of the first list is already on hand. 
Looks rust free. Can you confirm?
ScreaminE wrote: Looks rust free. Can you confirm?
Looks that way to me too. I wonder if it is.
The worst potential rust spot is hidden by that tupperware in front of the rear wheel.
Rust free.
I think I'm one of the very few that dig the purple/tan scheme of the 2000 SE.
Swmbo and i love the paint. Interior is nice looking if in good shape if you embrace the throwback. I'm going to go all black interior, i just think it fits better with the build i have in mind.
Oh. So you bought that.
JamesMcD wrote: Oh. So you bought that.
You weren't the guy that was "maybe coming Sunday night" to see it, were you?
Dude said he had a TON of bites the first time he listed it in October, ended up going through about as much fail as Scott did.
Three people before you on the other forums already said they were keeping an eye on the car haha.
Just got a call that there's a 2002 with a nice black interior in the junkyard. On my way.
Keith, is it worth trying to grab the replacements just for the tan parts of the dash? Or do I really just need to grab the whole dash?
I think that color was listed in the Mazda Brochure as "Purple Drank"
Swank Force One wrote: Just got a call that there's a 2002 with a nice black interior in the junkyard. On my way. Keith, is it worth trying to grab the replacements just for the tan parts of the dash? Or do I really just need to grab the whole dash?
Get the whole thing. The dash isn't really something you can disassemble easily. Plastic welded together, IIRC.
Make sure you swap your VIN plate on to the new dash before you install it.
Thanks Keith!
Grabbed the whole thing. And by that, I mean, the entire interior. It all fit in the Cherokee quite nicely. $138 out the door.
Pretty sure I can sell the ugly wheel from the SE to more than offset that to a m.netter.
Everytime I read one of these miata threads i laugh.
I'd love one probably. but no fitty.
good luck.
Swank Force One wrote: Pretty sure I can sell the ugly wheel from the SE to more than offset that to a m.netter.
You sure you couldn't get one of the yoloswag kids on ClubChoadster to pay a premium for a wood steering wheel?
ScreaminE wrote:Swank Force One wrote: Pretty sure I can sell the ugly wheel from the SE to more than offset that to a m.netter.You sure you couldn't get one of the yoloswag kids on ClubChoadster to pay a premium for a wood steering wheel?
Possibly... i'll auction it between the two and see what i can get. 
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