What is my VVT Swapped C30-84 NA Miata worth?? (Paging Keith)

Hey guys, 

As some of you know I've been throwing around the idea of hoping to another platform for some time. Basically I have given up competitive driving for now and will just be focusing on having casual fun at HPDE's and such. Thus, sweating my balls off in a shady, no ABS, no headlight, NA miata that requires a trailer to go anywhere might not be the way forward. I believe I would be much happier grabbing a car that I can still drive on the street/to work on nice days. 

So I am throwing around the idea of selling my Miata. The car has ~84,000 miles and I'm the third owner. (Clean title). 100% Rust Free. What do you guys think it's worth both A. As is or B. As is BUT without the Xidas/Rotrex...

Mod list: 

-1.8L VVT Engine, 33,000 miles. Oil changes done every 2,000 miles OR after every, yes, every track day. 

-TDR C30-84 Rotrex kit with smaller pulley

-Skunk2 Intake Manifold

-RB Headers w/ TDR Exhaust Blanket

-Yonaka 3" Cat-back

-Delrin Diff mounts

-Blackbird Drop-mounts

-TDR Oil Cooler

-TDR Radiator

-Gen 2 Xidas 800F/500R

-Extended lower ball joints

-Full corner balance and tweaked 949 racing alignment based on pyrometer readings

-15x9 Advanti Storm S1 w/ 225/45/15 Rival S 1.5 ~75% life

-Megasquirt 3 Pro with full NLS, LC, safety limiters etc. Tuned by Aaron @ Pure Tuning

-Full flex fuel tuned via Contential Sensor

-Singular Motorsports hood Louvers and Headlight Delete

-Hard-dog Double Diag Rollbar

-949 Racing 1.8L Clutch kit/Flywheel combo

-Miata roadster shifter + K Miata shift knob

-Innovate Wideband

-OEM Hardtop

-Sparco Evo Seat + 5 Point

-Sparco Suede Steering Wheel + Airbag light delete

*Edit*

-Stainless Steel Lines, ATE Type 200 fluid

-GLOC R10/R8 w/ Centric prem. high carbon rotors

-Torsen 4.3 LSD

(Probably way more). 

Details: 

The car is well taken car off. All fluid are changed religiously. Waxed every season. Minor blemishes here and there. Car is way quicker than SCCA SM times at Gingerman, M1, (matches them at Waterford). Far as I know it's the quickest street tire NA Miata at Waterford Hills. 

Pics: 

Add up what the parts cost to build it. Cut that in half. 

dean1484 said:

Add up what the parts cost to build it. Cut that in half. 

No doubt I'll take a hit on parts. That's how the game works. However, I got years of fun out of them. Thus, I'm asking what the car is worth as per the OP. 

I'll give you $2018 for it 

Realistically, I've been seeing cars like that asking around $8k- I don't know if they're getting full price, but they are selling.

Without the Xidas and Rotrex, and with anything making it not street legal "un-deleted" probably more like $5-6k.

Just curious, what kind of numbers did you make with that kit on the VVT engine? I'm wondering how much of a difference the VVT makes versus my BP-4W. I am also now fully sold on the Rotrex blower after 6000 miles with mine on the car.

NickD said:

Just curious, what kind of numbers did you make with that kit on the VVT engine? I'm wondering how much of a difference the VVT makes versus my BP-4W. I am also now fully sold on the Rotrex blower after 6000 miles with mine on the car.

Lemme dig up the dyno sheet. I made 243 whp on 93 and 287 whp on E85 on a local Mustang Dyno.  It hasn't been back to Pure Tuning since the clutch install, so those numbers might be up. 

I don’t know.... maybe 6,000 with the supercharger?  Maybe 4500 without?  I could be off base here but that’s what I would expect to see?  Also, I live near Waterford hill, maybe I’ve seen you there!

joey48442 said:

I don’t know.... maybe 6,000 with the supercharger?  Maybe 4500 without?  I could be off base here but that’s what I would expect to see?  Also, I live near Waterford hill, maybe I’ve seen you there!

Why am I seeing 10K+ for similar cars on MT.net? Are these people crazy or is that what their worth? 

goingnowherefast said:

joey48442 said:

I don’t know.... maybe 6,000 with the supercharger?  Maybe 4500 without?  I could be off base here but that’s what I would expect to see?  Also, I live near Waterford hill, maybe I’ve seen you there!

Why am I seeing 10K+ for similar cars on MT.net? Are these people crazy or is that what their worth? 

I don’t know?  Like I said I’m probably way off base, but I bought my 96 with a garret 2560 or whatever turbo and ms2, flying Miata springs and sways, tokiko shocks, Bridgestone re whatever tires and a hardtop for 3500. Now, clearly your car is much much better, and probably built to a higher standard but I don’t know that it’s 3 times better.  If you think it’s worth 10k, list it for that much and see what kind of offers come in. Awesome if it sells for that much, but I suspect the offers will be a bit lower. 

In reply to goingnowherefast :

Are the $10k+ cars you're seeing still for sale?  If yes, then there's your answer.  If they sold, see if you can dig up what they went for.

When I installed the 1.8L and Rotrex kit on my Miata last winter, I came to the realization that I am essentially married to this car, because if I ever tried to sell it, I would take such a financial hit on it that its not even funny.

NickD said:

When I installed the 1.8L and Rotrex kit on my Miata last winter, I came to the realization that I am essentially married to this car, because if I ever tried to sell it, I would take such a financial hit on it that its not even funny.

LOL... I know that feeling! 

goingnowherefast, your car is set up very similar to mine, minus the blower.  What you've really got going for you is quality parts, and attention to detail througout.  Only thing I don't see on your list is upgraded brakes. This will be very attractive to a particular buyer, but that buyer is a rare bird.  You need to find someone that wants exactly what you built, and at the same time has the cash to buy it.

The other problem, is it's not really a street car, and it's not a race car.  Also narrows the field...

IMHO, cars like yours sell on MT.net because the folks there understand what they're worth, but we rarely see the actual purchase amount.  I don't think an $8k ask is unreasonable, whether you get it depends on the right buyer being out there at the time.  

Common market value because it's not streetable due to no headlights etc 5-6k despite the parts. Not saying it's not worth 8k but I don't think it will sell for 8k

You're in the same situation that Docwyte was a month ago with his M3, so I'll give the same advice - use your own club & track network. The easiest sale is to the guys you competed against/drove with who are looking to move up or down the ladder for next season.

Your car is better set up, tuned & proven than any of the alternates posted here so far, but not being street legal makes it hard to market to anybody not already familiar with it. So again - zero in on the locals who know it.

I suggest you list your compression & leakdown #'s too, that's always a concern with a boosted track car.

From a distance I'd say a $10K ask is not out of line at all (coming from a guy who sold his turbo track Miata a few years ago).

Good Luck!

In reply to Dashpot :

Which brings up a good point... maybe adding headlights back and the other bits to make it driveable on the street may help value a lot...?

Don’t do it. Don’t sell that Miata. I’ve owned 38 cars now. All sports cars. This miata I’ve bought has been my first. I can say this- it’s head shoulders above everything else I’ve ever driven. This includes the GTR and Lame-bo I drove on track. 

This is just my personal opinion

¯\_(ツ)_/¯ said:

In reply to goingnowherefast :

Are the $10k+ cars you're seeing still for sale?  If yes, then there's your answer.  If they sold, see if you can dig up what they went for.

One of the really well built turbo cars ($25,000+ invested) just sold for $6000 over at MT.net

My M3 was street legal, still had AC even.  That said, it appealed to a very specific group of people...

You take a car that stock would be worth 2-3k and put 15k worth of parts on it and people still are not really going to pay 10k for it. That's the problem with miatas and selling them is the parts value far outstrips the car even if performance wise your car would smoke an E36/E46 M3 on the same budget

My "creamsicle" is at 7-8k all in and doesn't even have Xidas or power mods. And I started with a copart run and drive and I know it's not as nice as yours. But salvage title car all set up for track work I bet I could not even barely get 4500 for it. I pretty much expect if I wreck it I should just buy another miata and move all the surviving parts over

I’m embarking on a similar build and you guys are seriously bumming me out.

In reply to Jaynen :

Let's look at it from the perspective of the target market. The OP's car is going to be ~2 seconds a lap faster than any other Miata on the ground that day (if your area is like mine - that's 40% of the field). Everybody looks at the results and everybody knows what they have into their own car. 

If you have a choice of building another mid pack high mileage salvage car for $8K + considerable development time, vs a turn-key front running car with the latest/greatest suspension & engine goodies for another grand or two - which would you choose?

Unless you enjoy wrenching & development over track time (nothing wrong with that) you're going for the finished, faster car. I'd be all over that red thing if I was in the market. 

In reply to icaneat50eggs :

It's still worth building. My 245whp Miata is one of the most psychotically fun little cars I've driven, and other people who have driven it (including a shifter kart driver, a Z3 M Roadster owner and a guy with an STR-prepped S2000) or ridden in it, all agree. I just knew that when I went down this road, I was investing money that I wasn't going to see back and that this would be a long-term commitment

NickD said:

In reply to icaneat50eggs :

It's still worth building. My 245whp Miata is one of the most psychotically fun little cars I've driven, and other people who have driven it (including a shifter kart driver, a Z3 M Roadster owner and a guy with an STR-prepped S2000) or ridden in it, all agree. I just knew that when I went down this road, I was investing money that I wasn't going to see back and that this would be a long-term commitment

 

What you're describing is a perfect reason to buy somebody else's completed (or mostly completed) car though. That way you get the enjoyment with a fraction of the financial outlay.

STM317 said:

NickD said:

In reply to icaneat50eggs :

It's still worth building. My 245whp Miata is one of the most psychotically fun little cars I've driven, and other people who have driven it (including a shifter kart driver, a Z3 M Roadster owner and a guy with an STR-prepped S2000) or ridden in it, all agree. I just knew that when I went down this road, I was investing money that I wasn't going to see back and that this would be a long-term commitment

 

What you're describing is a perfect reason to buy somebody else's completed (or mostly completed) car though. That way you get the enjoyment with a fraction of the financial outlay.

Yeah. In my case, I just don't trust anyone else's work and I actually wanted the experience of building and swapping an engine and installing a supercharger. I was considering selling the car instead of supercharging it, but I basically got told that investing $6-8k into a $4k car had only bumped the value to $5k and said "Nuts to this, I might as well keep it and go wild."

In reply to STM317 :

I bought the Manic Miata, complete and running great, for not much more than the new cost of parts for the supercharger setup and ECU it has in it.  The rest of the suspension, big brakes, rollbar, and catalog of other little improvements were pretty much free, let alone the rust-free (though far from perfect) Miata that is hosting them all.

There's a flip side of that, though:  I have a very incomplete understanding of how the car actually operates, how everything is routed and wired, how the ECU is programmed, etc.  It makes me very wary of messing with anything.  If I had built the car it would have cost twice, if not three times as much - but I would understand and trust everything about it (or at least know all the sketchy bits).  That has definite value.