The Miata

Started by Rich, November 21, 2013, 01:16:55 PM

Secret Chimp

I've been considering the Boss Frog Frog Ribs door bars. They have a pretty unintrusive design compared to more basic one-giant-bar designs without costing much more. Supposedly they're only a bother with the top up.


Quote from: BENZ BOY15 on January 02, 2014, 02:40:13 PM
That's a great local brewery that we have. Do I drink their beer? No.

Rich

Quote from: HotRodPilot on November 23, 2013, 09:59:41 AM
Driver side:


Passenger side:


Some coating shit lies beneath the paint:



Is there hope?

Shop called, they said that there was more rust on the inside panel, as Josh was afraid of.  They said it should still be done by Friday.  I didn't think bodywork could be done so fast.  Especially on a structural member that needs new metal welded in.
2003 Mazda Miata 5MT; 2005 Subaru Impreza Outback Sport 4AT

Rich

I'm really terrified of how it's going to look.  I wish I could've brought it to Josh's shop
2003 Mazda Miata 5MT; 2005 Subaru Impreza Outback Sport 4AT

hotrodalex

Pretty much anything can be done fast if you have the right tools. Or take short cuts. :devil:

FlatBlackCaddy

Yup, poor paint and body work can be done very fast. Sometimes in as little as half a day.

Rich

Is 2.5/3 days in the body shop pushing it?
2003 Mazda Miata 5MT; 2005 Subaru Impreza Outback Sport 4AT

Onslaught

It all depends.To tell you the truth I worked on so many Miata's over the years that I can put in a rocker and quarter in less then a day. Pull it in at 8:00 in the AM and have it in paint by say 3-4 that day. Because it's a convertible and you don't have to section the quarter in at the window post and things like that. On a normal car you've got way more welding and body filler to work with. I could do a Miata quarter without any filler needed at all. And if you know what you're doing you don't need to take the soft top all the way off. If the shop has a pro spot welder then it could be done even faster then back when I was doing them with Mig welders. With a spot welder you don't even have a weld to grind down and it makes it WAY faster.

Shops also work faster now then in the past. They're so fearful of insurance ass fuckers that they work many of their guys to the bone.

Rupert

Quote from: hotrodalex on April 09, 2014, 12:26:59 PM
Pretty much anything can be done fast if you have the right tools. Or take short cuts. :devil:

Good, fast, cheap: pick two.
Novarolla-Miata-Trooper-Jeep-Volvo-Trooper-Ranger-MGB-Explorer-944-Fiat-Alfa-XTerra

13 cars, 60 cylinders, 52 manual forward gears and 9 automatic, 2 FWD, 42 doors, 1988 average year of manufacture, 3 convertibles, 22 average mpg, and no wheel covers.
PRO TENACIA NULLA VIA EST INVIA

Onslaught

You can get good and fast together. However if it's cheap then you're probably fucked. If you're good at something you never do it for cheap.

Rupert

Exactly. Any two are generally doable, but all three doesn't happen.
Novarolla-Miata-Trooper-Jeep-Volvo-Trooper-Ranger-MGB-Explorer-944-Fiat-Alfa-XTerra

13 cars, 60 cylinders, 52 manual forward gears and 9 automatic, 2 FWD, 42 doors, 1988 average year of manufacture, 3 convertibles, 22 average mpg, and no wheel covers.
PRO TENACIA NULLA VIA EST INVIA

Laconian

Compared to the smogged American boats in the late 70's, even our cheapest cars are comparatively fast and good. So, assuming you have a time machine, you *can* have all three. ;)
Kia EV6 GT-Line / MX-5 RF 6MT

Rupert

Well, you know what they say about assuming: you make an ass out of you and Ming.
Novarolla-Miata-Trooper-Jeep-Volvo-Trooper-Ranger-MGB-Explorer-944-Fiat-Alfa-XTerra

13 cars, 60 cylinders, 52 manual forward gears and 9 automatic, 2 FWD, 42 doors, 1988 average year of manufacture, 3 convertibles, 22 average mpg, and no wheel covers.
PRO TENACIA NULLA VIA EST INVIA

FlatBlackCaddy

I'm guessing they are just grinding down the rust, packing some old t shirts in the hole and throwing some duraglass over it. A quick rough sand with some 80 girt and and then 320 and spraying some paint on it.

It will be just fine, don't worry about it.

Rich

Quote from: FlatBlackCaddy on April 10, 2014, 07:33:11 AM
I'm guessing they are just grinding down the rust, packing some old t shirts in the hole and throwing some duraglass over it. A quick rough sand with some 80 girt and and then 320 and spraying some paint on it.

It will be just fine, don't worry about it.

:lockedup:  Fuck!

:lol:
2003 Mazda Miata 5MT; 2005 Subaru Impreza Outback Sport 4AT

Onslaught

Most people use news papers not shirts. And don't joke, I've seen it before.

Rich

I was reading up on rocker panel rust earlier today when I saw this:



http://forum.miata.net/vb/showthread.php?t=403330


Pants were shat.  I wonder if mine was the same.  I should have asked for some photos of it.
2003 Mazda Miata 5MT; 2005 Subaru Impreza Outback Sport 4AT

FlatBlackCaddy

I'm sure it was. Once you can see rust on the outside of a panel it has normally rotted away alot of the inner structure behind the visible rust.

If you want a rust free car I'll sell you my miata.  :lol:

Rich

Got my car back.  There are no t shirts or newpaper pieces dangling that I've found yet.

Ohhhh merrr gerrrrd I had no idea my car could feel so new in the steering.  Not sure if it's the strut brace, new shocks, poly steering rack bushings, or alignment.  Probably a combo of all of them.  The steering feels silky smooth and has good return to center force. 
2003 Mazda Miata 5MT; 2005 Subaru Impreza Outback Sport 4AT

Rich







And I now have an off-roader...
2003 Mazda Miata 5MT; 2005 Subaru Impreza Outback Sport 4AT

Rich

Next up...

Fix the corrosion on the polished part of the wheels (clearcoat chipped off)
Fix the seat tear (retrim or new seats?)
Frog arms under the front fenders
Seam welding
New top
2003 Mazda Miata 5MT; 2005 Subaru Impreza Outback Sport 4AT

Rich

The clutch is feather light now, and the engagement is more gradual.  I love it. 

I'll give it some time for a final opinion, but I probably should have stuck with stock parts on the brakes.  The effort is higher and feels a bit better, but initial bite is quite a bit less.  Maybe they just need some break in.

2003 Mazda Miata 5MT; 2005 Subaru Impreza Outback Sport 4AT

Onslaught

Quote from: HotRodPilot on April 10, 2014, 01:41:09 PM
I was reading up on rocker panel rust earlier today when I saw this:



http://forum.miata.net/vb/showthread.php?t=403330


Pants were shat.  I wonder if mine was the same.  I should have asked for some photos of it.
i've never seen one that bad before down here. But then again I live in the south and the only time you see a car that bad down here is if it came from up north. I think sometimes rust from that area comes from the drain lines from the soft top being plugged up and then water leaks into that area. It happened to my car the first month I had it, rained all day and I got in the car and it felt strange and when I went to stop I could hear and feel water splashing around on my left side. Turns out some lipstick had fallen into the drain and plugged it up and water had no place to go but into the car.

MX793

Quote from: HotRodPilot on April 12, 2014, 02:49:31 AM
The clutch is feather light now, and the engagement is more gradual.  I love it. 

I'll give it some time for a final opinion, but I probably should have stuck with stock parts on the brakes.  The effort is higher and feels a bit better, but initial bite is quite a bit less.  Maybe they just need some break in.



It typically takes a few miles before new pads are bedded in.  Once they are broken in, you'll feel a difference.
Needs more Jiggawatts

2016 Ford Mustang GTPP / 2011 Toyota Rav4 Base AWD / 2014 Kawasaki Ninja 1000 ABS
1992 Nissan 240SX Fastback / 2004 Mazda Mazda3s / 2011 Ford Mustang V6 Premium / 2007 Suzuki GSF1250SA Bandit / 2006 VW Jetta 2.5

Soup DeVille

Quote from: Onslaught on April 12, 2014, 05:04:25 AM
i've never seen one that bad before down here. But then again I live in the south and the only time you see a car that bad down here is if it came from up north. I think sometimes rust from that area comes from the drain lines from the soft top being plugged up and then water leaks into that area. It happened to my car the first month I had it, rained all day and I got in the car and it felt strange and when I went to stop I could hear and feel water splashing around on my left side. Turns out some lipstick had fallen into the drain and plugged it up and water had no place to go but into the car.

That's exactly what causes that- plugged drain lines. A lot of people don't even know they're there.
Maybe we need to start off small. I mean, they don't let you fuck the glumpers at Glumpees without a level 4 FuckPass, do they?

1975 Honda CB750, 1986 Rebel Rascal (sailing dinghy), 2015 Mini Cooper, 2020 Winnebago 31H (E450), 2021 Toyota 4Runner, 2022 Lincoln Aviator

CJ

Those are PIAA Super Silicone wipers.  Good choice.

MrH

Quote from: Soup DeVille on April 13, 2014, 12:41:20 AM
That's exactly what causes that- plugged drain lines. A lot of people don't even know they're there.
Yep.  I had a musical instrument cleaner (basically a glorified pipe cleaner on a long stick) that I would run through my drain lines on my NC miata every couple of months.  Too many horror stories of people getting clugged drains, and not noticing until they started smelling mildew.
2023 Ford Lightning Lariat ER
2019 Acura RDX SH-AWD
2023 BRZ Limited

Previous: '02 Mazda Protege5, '08 Mazda Miata, '05 Toyota Tacoma, '09 Honda Element, '13 Subaru BRZ, '14 Hyundai Genesis R-Spec 5.0, '15 Toyota 4Runner SR5, '18 Honda Accord EX-L 2.0t, '01 Honda S2000, '20 Subaru Outback XT, '23 Chevy Bolt EUV

Onslaught

An air hose blowing up from the bottom works too. Not that I ever need to do that now seeing that I don't put shit back there to fall into the drain.

r0tor

Slight thread jack but a few years ago my sideskirt on the RX8 got jammed up and removed a chunk of paint... Which now has caused a quarter sized spot of rust.  If I clean it up, is there any good rust stopping primer an average person can buy?
2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee No Speed -- 2004 Mazda RX8 6 speed -- 2018 Alfa Romeo Giulia All Speed

MX793

Quote from: r0tor on April 16, 2014, 07:01:48 PM
Slight thread jack but a few years ago my sideskirt on the RX8 got jammed up and removed a chunk of paint... Which now has caused a quarter sized spot of rust.  If I clean it up, is there any good rust stopping primer an average person can buy?

Probably your best bet would be some kind of zinc-rich primer, which would provide a sort of cathodic protection.  Sherwin Williams makes a variety of them.  I'm sure other paint-makers also have similar products.  Then apply touch-up paint over that.  Another option would be a cold-galvanizing compound (typically 90+% zinc).  Rustoleum makes a spray-on cold-galvanizing product, you can also get brush-on.  A company named ZRC makes a line of cold galvanizing products.
Needs more Jiggawatts

2016 Ford Mustang GTPP / 2011 Toyota Rav4 Base AWD / 2014 Kawasaki Ninja 1000 ABS
1992 Nissan 240SX Fastback / 2004 Mazda Mazda3s / 2011 Ford Mustang V6 Premium / 2007 Suzuki GSF1250SA Bandit / 2006 VW Jetta 2.5

Rich



I liked my ride height before.  A bit of googling tells me the spring perches on the bilsteins may be a different height than the stock shocks.  Anything I can do about it?
2003 Mazda Miata 5MT; 2005 Subaru Impreza Outback Sport 4AT