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What do you guys think about buying a slightly pre-riced NB?   Not that I want it this way, but it's just the bumper and taillights and no other crimes against the humanity such as fart cans or bling-bling interior. Obviously a I'd prefer a clean stock car, but this one has everything else going for it that most other Miatas lack here, it's a 1.9 with AC, pretty low mileage, and very clean. Would it be difficult to swap this crap for stock parts? I assume unloading the remains to some aspiring ricer wouldn't be too difficult. The next best one I could find looks almost exactly the same (down to  ) sans the bumper/lights.  The problem is that it's 400km further away, making for a roundtrip that's probably doable, but at the expense of spending any time in a cool city I haven't been to before, or shelling out for a place to sleep.
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Jun 24, 2011 00:20
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Ziploc posted:I want a better picture of that bumper on the riced one. Never seen it before. Here it is, I don't think it's too terrible compared to all the other poo poo I see on cars all the time:  To be honest I didn't notice the mismatched paint, it just looks to be due to lighting angle, but it's hard to tell in those photos. Yeah the ad for the unriced one says 15" wheels, and as I said, I do prefer it in every way, I was trying to figure out if it would be enough to offset the probably literal pain in the rear end of driving so much in a Miata.
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Jun 24, 2011 08:14
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Ziploc posted:Who makes it? The brit in my club wants one. I have no idea, but maybe somebody else would know though, otherwise I'd gladly take it off for your friend there if he wires me the cash for the car  cantfly posted:Looks like the riced one is 99-00 and the non-rice is 2001+. Also the non-rice doesn't have those round fender lights The ads say they're both 2001, but maybe that's the first registration or something (or they're lying). I think you're right either way, the riced one has blue gauge dials while the other one has white onces, which according to wikipedia is a sign of the 2001 facelift. Based on the comments above about the coil packs and fuel filler, I assume the 2001 would generally have stuff like that sorted out? I'm now pretty firmly on the side of the stock car and I'll try to arrange everything next week, hopefully I'll be able to join the  club soon.Do '99 cars generally go for $3,000 in the US? These are almost €6k 
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Jun 25, 2011 23:20
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IOwnCalculus posted:Before the stars aligned and I ended up trading my '99 to my mother-in-law, I was going to list it for somewhere around $5k give or take - with an oil change past 100k miles, a three-year-old Robbins top, an okay interior and some oxidized silver paint on the hood and windshield frame. Still would've been the cheapest NB on Craigslist locally. Thanks, this makes me feel like I won't be overpaying, both 1.9 and AC are pretty rare and it seems to be in good condition. Since the car I'm looking at is pretty far away (like 600km total), what should I ask the seller before I head out there? It's looks like a pretty big seller and they have a 12 month warranty on everything so it should be pretty safe, I think. How do I figure out what rear-end does it have? Could rust be an issue in Hamburg? It's a harbor, but then it doesn't seem to go below freezing too much so they won't have to salt the roads like crazy... I have a few backup options if this one doesn't work out for some reason, like this 2002 Phoenix edition or this clean 2002, though I'd need a small loan to cover the extra €1k without ending up penniless until the next payday. Feel free to have a look at those cars if you notice anything of interest/fishy.
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Jun 28, 2011 10:15
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Dunno how useful this could actually be, but here's a video of Edd China changing the top on their NA: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GTLedcD06lY&feature=player_detailpage#t=203s
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Jul 3, 2011 09:46
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  Does this look like the Phoenix edition to you guys? The exterior and interior colors, wheels, and the equipment seem to suggest that it is, so with the 1.8 engine it should also have torsen rear end. It's a bit more expensive than I was considering, but once I add all the costs of a 1500km trip and other import-related expenses, it's about the same but 2 years newer (2003), has 1/2 mileage compared to my previous pick, plus is just 1 hour away from me. Anything particular I should ask the seller before I go for a test drive?
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Jul 29, 2011 15:43
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mobby_6kl posted:Just got back from checking out this car. There was some cosmetic damage that wasn't listed in the ad like a few scratches on the door and side mirror, but mostly as described - evidence of the front right wing being replaced, and a small dent in top of the trunk, nothing else major except the following that I found:
 It was along this join, except on the opposite side. Probably just some gasket/seal? They'll change the belt for like 30 bucks, but what about the rest? I'm not worried about the oil right now, but how much of a pain in the rear end could it be if it gets worse? Thanks to these discoveries they agreed to drop the price by just over $300, and an extra set of tires. PS. The tranny felt good, but seemed to take a bit more effort to get it into 5th, when pushing it to the right. Probably reverse as well, but I didn't try it. Is this normal?
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Aug 9, 2011 18:43
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That's good to hear, thanks. I have no idea, maybe it wasn't along the whole length, but I distinctly saw a split and could push on one closer edge of the belt without the other edge moving. Both my dad and the mechanic who was there (who tried to upsell me on a 2006 mini convertible for 2x the price) said they saw it as well after I pointed that out, so I don't think it's just me being retarded.
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Aug 9, 2011 19:17
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Well I got the NB that I've mentioned previously here, as there weren't any sings of serious damage anywhere and if having a few scratches on the door and mirrors means I can can get a good price on it, then that's just great. I'll post a few photos to show off once I get it washed and dive out somewhere nice with my SLR. The first impressions is that it's completely awesome despite being a very different experience compared to the relaxed and cushioned ride that my Omega has. I do seem to sit too high, higher even than in the Omega, relatively speaking, which is quite ridiculous. I guess as a result of that, all the mirrors are right in my face, and I end up having to turn my head a lot. Is this just how it is? Also, it turned out that the PO still had the broken antenna mast, however the end that goes in the car is obviously hosed up, and I'm trying to determine if I could stick it back there with some straightening. The problem is that I have no idea how the end is supposed to look like, and if straightening will do the job:  PS. The cable isn't broken.
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Aug 18, 2011 19:03
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I'd rather fix it if I can do it for free or cheaply since I listen to the radio occasionally (traffic/cop info is nice), but either a small fixed antenna or a plug would do the job if I can't. It does seem that there's part of the broken mast still in the car, so a disassembly will be in order once it stops hailing (thankfully the car is in the company garage). Are there any instructions available on wiring in an aux-in to the standard radio?
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Aug 19, 2011 15:52
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Phone posted:The one I did had a switch and some wires soldered onto the back of the stock headunit. I had a jack out that I could plug my iPod into and when I flicked the switch mounted on the cubby, the headunit went into LINE and would play off of the iPod. I could certainly buy some lovely Sencor unit that would play MP3s directly from USB or SD cards in addition to line in, but this sounds more like what I'd want to do, since the stock radio works just fine and an aftermarket one would be a theft magnet (it's a national sport here).
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Aug 19, 2011 23:03
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Thanks kimbo, I don't think I'll be sticking this one back in  I'll just get a new mast from ebay if I don't get used to it missing by then. You're right about the price, they seem to go for under $50. And here are some photos as promised. Not that you guys haven't seen an NB...   and a few more   
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Aug 22, 2011 18:34
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The pop-up headlights are cool of course, but the NB kind of looks like a baby Viper, at least with a few basic tasteful mods. Maybe I'm just biased though. Unfortunately, it looks like I have a first potential problem on my hands. I started to notice a rather quiet whine/rattle noise when idling with transmission in neutral. It goes away completely when I fully push in the clutch. I can't hear it when actually driving in gear, but that could be just because of all the other (normal) noises. Any ideas what this could be or what to check?
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Aug 26, 2011 00:11
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IOwnCalculus posted:Unless it's really loud, it's nothing unusual. My NB did it practically from day one at 42k miles and currently is closing in on 110k. My MS3 does it, and my Ranger does it. It's not very loud at all, probably mostly my paranoia of something being broken. I'll try to grease the pushrod as Meltie suggested once it's not dark outside and I'm not too lazy. Also, that's a ridiculous deal on the two Miatas for 2 grand, congrats!
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Sep 1, 2011 21:10
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Neither the booklet that came with the car nor the workshop manual I got match what I actually have. This is the replacement assembly from the kit that was in the car, the actual part looks similar but I think the bulb has a slightly different shape (and has some crap smeared on top of it):  There's nothing to unclip, and I can't remove the bulb from that thing. The installed part has the wires going directly into the opening seen on the bottom right here, and they don't seem to be eager to be removed. Well gently caress me, this was solved by applying some more brute force to the wires. I just expected something to unclip properly like the part apparently is supposed to. mobby_6kl fucked around with this message at 16:12 on Oct 8, 2011 |
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Oct 8, 2011 15:46
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dreesemonkey posted:Well to be fair I guess if you're over 4k in 5th you're not going to get great gas mileage anyway, but I'm sure you can gain a few mpg by not having the ECU 4k in 5th is ~130km/h, or exactly where I need to be if I don't want to become a rolling roadblock. The engine does sound pretty nice when accelerating around those speeds, I guess that's the sound money makes when burning. I need to take note of the mileage next time I fill up, it's been too much fun driving to care about this so far. What kind of winter tire size would you guys recommend? I'm probably going to also buy an extra set of steelies or cheapo alloys so it can be any size, with lower price being preferred. I also see a brake pad replacement in my near future, but how can I tell which pads do I need? There seem to be about a hundred different types even once I drill down to the NB in the various catalogs. The brands also don't tell me anything, there's Bendix, ATE, Nipparts, Valeo, ICER, Ferdo, and Bosch  . Well I'm sure Bosch is solid, but also most expensive of the bunch.
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Oct 21, 2011 00:33
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I had a bit of a scare today with my NB. Basically, within about a minute of driving off in the morning (it was pretty cool, but not below 5-8C), a rather horrible and loud squealing noise started coming from the engine bay. It was still present in neutral, and the pitch and volume varied with engine speed. No other signs of problems. By the time I came to a stop the noise was gone, and hasn't appeared since. I checked that the belts and everything attached to them was spinning ok, as that was my first idea and it's pretty much the only thing I could do anyway. Any ideas what the hell this could be or how to track it down? Unfortunately I doubt it fixed itself.
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Oct 25, 2011 00:46
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So I was driving my FL NB today, and noticed that I was actually doing exactly 0km/h the whole time. Apparently the speedometer is hosed somehow, though occasionally the needle jumped up a bit, and eventually it seemed to fix itself one I got up to some decent speed. Any ideas what can I check to diagnose this? I really need to fix this, as although this might be a good excuse for a cop, the cameras are loving everywhere and give no fucks about anything. Edit: Never mind, this is apparently a common issue that's caused by dirt/corrosion on the sensor contacts. The issue also hasn't reappeared so far, so I'll leave it safe from my intervention for now. mobby_6kl fucked around with this message at 11:43 on Nov 10, 2011 |
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Nov 9, 2011 13:28
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This keeps happening unintentionally, though usually only when it's at least a bit wet. I dunno if it's just the PO's lovely winter tires, or me sucking at driving, but giving it any amount of gas sufficient to get the car to move also causes me to peel out (and puts a grin on my face).
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Dec 14, 2011 23:55
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For gently caress's sake, if the squeaking clutch and only occasionally functional speedometer weren't enough on my 2003 1.8 NB, today the CEL came on. I filled up a full tank before parking at work, and it came on when I was driving from lunch. Under these circumstances it seems possible that i didn't tighten the gas cap properly... I checked and it seemed fine, but I unscrewed and replaced it anyway. If it doesn't go away now, am I correct in suspecting the EGR next? My scanner hasn't arrived yet so I'm only guessing, and I don't know of any place that does a free scan. How do you guys generally proceed if CEL sudennly comes on without any other symptoms?
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Dec 22, 2011 15:29
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Nope, I'm not in the US and none of the big stores that I know here offer that. The CEL didn't disappear, but apparently it has to be explicitly reset by pulling the battery or a fuse, so I'm gonna do that in the morning. Otherwise there's a Mazda dealership near where I work so I might try that.
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Dec 22, 2011 19:15
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Well, my strong belief in the "it'll fix itself" school of maintenance has paid off once again - after a few more start-stops the light doesn't come on any more (and it's not even because the bulb burned out). The dealership service wanted 30 bucks for a scan and I was going to do it on Tuesday, but now I'll just wait for the scanner. Is this the MSM seat?  Seems pretty similar to what I have in my regular 2003 NB, except that they're single color leather. They are very nice though, seem to hold me well in place at least during normal driving, and I didn't have any complaints after a ~4 hour drive. This is the closest I have to a photo of them.
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Dec 23, 2011 20:39
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I think my NB has ABS, although I haven't seen it working yet because I can brake properly  The Miata truly is a wonderful machine, late last week the CEL was back on and the speedometer was stuck at 0 more often than not, but now everything is fixed! I do hope the Chinese hurry up with my ODBII scanner though. That said, now that it gets down to about -10C in the mornings, it cranks significantly slower than normal. Is it just a dying battery (too  and cold to go measure anything) or is there anything else that could be causing this?
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Jan 30, 2012 21:23
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FatCow posted:The frakenmotor in my garage disagrees. Does it disagree on the non-interference part or it being a good idea to replace the belt part? 
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Feb 1, 2012 20:15
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So I couldn't get started yesterday morning, it'd just crank slower and slower, with no result. Before I pull the battery, does the stock NB CD/radio have a code or a PIN that could get reset, preventing it from being used? None of the papers I got with the car mention it, but the Phillips unit in my Omega had that and I'd prefer to avoid any unnecessary complications.
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Feb 4, 2012 13:34
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Ziploc posted:If the anti theft is flashing, it does. Thanks! That's the light in the gauge cluster with a little key on it, right? Because it does come on with the ignition for a second but then turns off. The manual I got is useless and shows popup headlights and zipped read window, among other things such as rear seats and doors, so I put off the battery replacement to do a bit of investigation. I did however measure the battery at 12.2-12.3V at the terminals, would this be low enough to cause issues, or should I also try to check the starter as well, as suggested earlier?
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Feb 4, 2012 18:54
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Protip: use old, balding snow tires for extra doriftu. How do you guys do the underbody cleaning? It's only snowed properly once so far this year so there wasn't much salt/crap on the roads but now they're covered with this disgusting salty slush. If I'm driving home->work->home mostly, I do have a hose outside I can use to wash the car down. But if it's below freezing, I'll just end up with a bunch of ice on the car, driveway, and the street...
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Feb 14, 2012 14:39
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What could possibly go wrong?
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Mar 18, 2012 18:18
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So the cheapo bluetooth OBD2 scanner arrived and I was able to pull the code that was causing CEL to come on from time to time. The code? P0500, speed sensor fault. I kind of figured it might be related to the speedometer not working from time to time  From what I've seen this could be either a broken cable, or poor electric contact on the speed sensor. How does this actually work on a 5-speed NBFL? I'm having a hard time imagining how both options are possible on the same car. I think I sometimes can hear some speed-correlated noise from behind the dashboard, but it's really difficult to tell with all the normal Miata noises.
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Mar 21, 2012 20:04
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The nicer interior was what convinced me to go for the NB, but I was generally looking for something newer and ended up spending more on it as well. Speaking of which, now that the weather is nicer I want to catch up with any maintenance that the PO could've neglected. It's a 2003 NBFL with about 60k km, so based on the age and the kms, here's what I came up with based on the workshop manual: code:I'd also flush and replace engine coolant, gearbox, turret and diff oils. What about other fluids or wear items that would be worth doing "while I'm there"? Or is something that I'm planning to do unnecessary at this point?
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Apr 9, 2012 15:55
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Yeah, I'm no expert by any means, but if it really did idle at like 50rpm, I don't think it would be either smooth or stealthy.
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May 28, 2012 09:50
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I.L. Motorsport have some nice looking and reasonably priced leather seat covers: http://www.ilmotorsport.de/shop/article_detail.php5?aid=419&oid=1411&depth=3&page=1&count=15&PHPSESSID=a419de8aa97d3f5ad6b5a98a4c43e23f
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Jun 20, 2012 10:10
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Sockington posted:My 2002 NB just randomly died on the way home. It cranks over but won't start. Was it a hot day? When it cranked, did it seem like it might catch? Any CEL? Because it seems like you're my lovely CAS buddy   . Mine just died on me for the first time a last week in light traffic, and then again a few days later on the highway. Both days were hot as hell, and apparently repositioning the CAS on VVT engines to the rear of the valve cover caused them to heat up more and poo poo themselves prematurely. Letting it cool for 30 minutes or so always allowed me to start as if nothing happened.My replacement part literally just arrived too, it's this little bitch that cost like Ł80 to order from England:  See the Mitsubishi logo there? That's why it's a common fault! Seriously though, it's a bit disappointing that this one crappy part already left me stranded twice while my 3 years older GM car leaked oil and coolant but never once failed to run or start. By the way, what are all the places where I can find the paint code on a 2003 NB? The door sticker only has tire information, while the plate on the firewall only has the VIN and weight information. I really need to order a few other parts and want to get the touch-up kit as well. The problem is that it's titanium silver or something that has two codes associated with it. Edit: Ahh and another question. What sort of things do I need to replace the stock double-DIN modular radio with a single DIN Pioneer unit like this one? I initially wanted to just add AUX in, but seeing as how I'd be out of at least 100-150 bucks and end up with an awkward setup, might as well replace the whle thing. Besides the stuff that comes in the box, will I need this brace or some additional cables? mobby_6kl fucked around with this message at 09:48 on Jul 3, 2012 |
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Jul 3, 2012 09:09
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Yeah, it's the NB non Bose unit. A bit small to see but it's there:
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Jul 3, 2012 15:24
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I'm looking to get one of those as well, it should increase the storage capacity of the car by about 30%  I found this page which states that I'll need the mounting bracket and a wiring adapter. Well, I'll take care of maintenance first and the radio situation will become clear when I try to stick it in with whatever I'll have!Any ideas on the paint code location though? I'd really like to get the touch-up kit to fix the little scratches before going to the people who know what they're doing for the larger ones.
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Jul 3, 2012 16:41
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That's where I thought it should be, but I only have the tire pressure information there:
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Jul 4, 2012 08:31
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Sockington posted:It was hot as gently caress that day and felt like a sauna when I popped the hood. It drove fine later in the evening when it had a chance to cool down. What you describe sounds typical for the cam sensor failure, from what I've read, and also matches my experience with it. It took all of a minute to swap it out in the middle of the road when it died again yesterday (it was raining before so I didn't bother to replace it). Afterwards starter right up and had no signs of the previous problems. I think Mitsubishi was the OEM for this sensor, and I really wouldn't risk installing something sketchy with a part that can single handedly leave you stuck in the middle of nowhere with no warning. Still, if you can find something significantly cheaper, you could just keep the old one in the trunk for backup. streetlamp posted:Ah NC, mines a NA. I would just call Mazda and give them your VIN. It's most definitely an NB, but if those two letters in the corner are supposed to correspond to the model, the PO must have replaced the sticker for some reason 
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Jul 5, 2012 09:22
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Yeah, you definitely wouldn't want this to happen!
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Jul 29, 2012 11:32
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I don't have a motorcycle. Or a garage  Is this a recognizable Miata connector? Found it just resting somewhere near the PS tank, disconnected an with the wires cut, while cleaning my engine bay a few days ago. Everything works fine so 
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Aug 8, 2012 10:33
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Savington posted:Just FYI, everyone I know who races an NB-powered Miata carries at least one spare CAS. I personally carry two or three spares. They fail on a regular basis. It is somehow both reassuring and maddening to learn that a $100 part that leaves you stranded randomly can be expected to fail regularly Phone posted:Is the NB a Mitsu unit as well? Dies due to heat? Yes, and apparently yes. One of my previous posts has a photo of the replacement unit I got:
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Aug 14, 2012 23:09
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