Rather than building up my Miata, I'm wondering about the feasibility of finding a used Spec Miata and converting it to be street legal. I'm thinking that would be cheaper and easier than building up my current Miata to similar levels. Just the addition of a roll cage, seats, harness, and hard top would be rather expensive.
I'm just wondering what would be involved in such a conversion.
This would not be my DD. This would be my second car and track toy.
Lights, catalysts, action! (Make sure your belts are streetable, too)
Bryce
Well, what sort of specification are you looking for? Do you want a cage in a street car? Do you want Spec Miata suspension on the street? How much of the Spec are you going to keep?
Theoretically, a Spec can be a street legal car. In reality, nobody builds them that way.
Keith wrote: Well, what sort of specification are you looking for? Do you want a cage in a street car? Do you want Spec Miata suspension on the street? How much of the Spec are you going to keep? Theoretically, a Spec can be a street legal car. In reality, nobody builds them that way.
I don't think I'd mind a cage, since this is not my DD. It's primary purpose is "track toy". About the only change I would likely make would be to swap out the springs for a bit lower rate.
Otherwise, in building up my car I'm looking at eventually doing: Bushings, hard top, Seat/Harness, more aggressive shocks/springs. I have a rollbar, but a cage seems like it could be beneficial on the track.
And then, once I learn to drive the crap out of it in HPDE, I could be ready to go right into Spec Miata.
It might be that it makes more sense to just do a little more prep on my current Miata and keep it a bit more streetable. I'm just kicking around the idea of if it would make more sense to pick up a car that someone else has done 90% of the work I'm interested in.
What do you think is a legitimate budget to get your current street Miata to where you want it to be?
Most Spec Miatas I see for sale are $8000-$12,000. Given that you already have a Miata to start with, it might be cheaper to simply prep your street car.
dyintorace wrote: What do you think is a legitimate budget to get your current street Miata to where you want it to be? Most Spec Miatas I see for sale are $8000-$12,000. Given that you already have a Miata to start with, it might be cheaper to simply prep your street car.
Yeah... I'm now thinking converting might be easier. Or maybe a better option would be buying another used street car that has been more fully prepped.
I figure my car would sell for around $4k (maybe a bit more). $250 for bushings. $1k for a hardtop. I could easily do suspension for $1k (probably less). I'm not sure what would be a proper budget for seats and harnesses, but it shouldn't make up the rest of the difference. Let's say I also throw in braided brake lines. That's only another $250.
And I have a '94. Which I have not seen any '94-'95 cars for $8k. So I'm thinking building my current car to my needs might be better. I'd only save money if I really wanted to field a Spec Miata, which I'm not ready for yet. And Spec E30 tickles my fancy a little more (for some reason).
Salanis wrote: I figure my car would sell for around $4k (maybe a bit more). $250 for bushings. $1k for a hardtop. I could easily do suspension for $1k (probably less). I'm not sure what would be a proper budget for seats and harnesses, but it shouldn't make up the rest of the difference. Let's say I also throw in braided brake lines. That's only another $250.
You might be able to finagle a hardtop for less. It's not common, but drivers with hardtops are starting to pop up for $1500 with some regularity. Buy it, keep the top, sell the car for $1k (or more) and there's your hardtop. 
I've done the street legal spec Miata thing.
Conservatively budget $7500, plus your Miata and a hardtop. That was with a bolt in cage so I could keep my windows. Most spec cars that you will find have had their doors gutted and windows removed.
I was never completely comfortable driving the caged car without a helmet, which is completely rational, as it's stupid to do so.
Salanis wrote: And Spec E30 tickles my fancy a little more (for some reason).
Torque maybe? ;)
Norcal spec e30 is growing pretty rapidly. Now's the time to get in on the ground floor!
Cage + bare head = squishy mess, should you ever crash it on the street.
If it's going to be driven on the street with any regularity, stick with a rollbar.
For a track-toy, just do a mild build on the car you have. Sell it for a race-car when you are actually ready to race. Mild build = shocks, springs, swaybars, rollbar, hardtop, harness, seat.
A Spec Miata will usually need the following to be legal (or usable): - catalyst - driver window (may not be possible, depending on door bars) - seat belts (may not be easy, depending on cage location) - possibly lights (they should be there, but might not work) - muffler - tires/wheels (track tires suck on the street) - brake pads (track pads suck on the street)
laz wrote:Salanis wrote: And Spec E30 tickles my fancy a little more (for some reason).Torque maybe? ;) Norcal spec e30 is growing pretty rapidly. Now's the time to get in on the ground floor!
I think because Spec e30 is growing, and people haven't figured out how to manipulate the rules, so it won't cost me as much if I want to be competitive.
Also helps that the first race-type car I rode in was being prepped for Spec E30. That ride opened my eyes to what the limits of a car on a track could feel like, and the light when on of just how much harder I could push it. I'm pretty sure it was a friend of your's who gave me the ride.
Yeah, the E30 didn't turn me on as much as a track/street car, but the first time I read about Spec E30 as a race series, it just sounded right.
Salanis wrote: I think because Spec e30 is growing, and people haven't figured out how to manipulate the rules, so it won't cost me as much if I want to be competitive.
Erm..I've heard engine builds for Spec E30 racers are getting as cost prohibitive as engine builds for Spec Miata. Guys are rapidly figuring out ways to be winners in any spec class.
Check this web site out as they specialize in Spec Miata's. http://advanced-autosports.com/HOME_PAGE.htm They have a deal " Miata in a box" Everything you need to build a legal Spec Miata.
jimbbski wrote: Check this web site out as they specialize in Spec Miata's. http://advanced-autosports.com/HOME_PAGE.htm They have a deal " Miata in a box" Everything you need to build a legal Spec Miata.
I really hate sometimes how everyone on this board likes to ruin my dreams by making them a reality. It's always been "oh there's no way i'd have the dedication to piece together a spec miata over two year and THEN still want to race it."
That's now shattered, and now my dream doesn't have that safety net anymore. Great.
93celicaGT2 wrote:jimbbski wrote: Check this web site out as they specialize in Spec Miata's. http://advanced-autosports.com/HOME_PAGE.htm They have a deal " Miata in a box" Everything you need to build a legal Spec Miata.I really hate sometimes how everyone on this board likes to ruin my dreams by making them a reality. It's always been "oh there's no way i'd have the dedication to piece together a spec miata over two year and THEN still want to race it." That's now shattered, and now my dream doesn't have that safety net anymore. Great. Your welcome! The owner is a good friend of mine and got into Spec Miata's when they were first raced.
jimbbski wrote:93celicaGT2 wrote:jimbbski wrote: Check this web site out as they specialize in Spec Miata's. http://advanced-autosports.com/HOME_PAGE.htm They have a deal " Miata in a box" Everything you need to build a legal Spec Miata.I really hate sometimes how everyone on this board likes to ruin my dreams by making them a reality. It's always been "oh there's no way i'd have the dedication to piece together a spec miata over two year and THEN still want to race it." That's now shattered, and now my dream doesn't have that safety net anymore. Great. Your welcome! The owner is a good friend of mine and got into Spec Miata's when they were first raced.
Haha, i'm glad that was interpreted the way it should have been. When i re-read it i was scared that it looked more negative than intended. 
I can't believe i haven't heard of that before for Miatas.
My buddy and i threw around the idea of trying to put together some basic "Stage" mod setups for 4-6th gen Celicas and market them, but the start up cost was prohibitive, and as a stereotype, that demographic doesn't really keep enough cash on hand to really make it worthwhile. It's awesome to see that someone has successfully done it.
Xceler8x wrote: Erm..I've heard engine builds for Spec E30 racers are getting as cost prohibitive as engine builds for Spec Miata. Guys are rapidly figuring out ways to be winners in any spec class.
At the national level, I'd believe it.
It's not a problem here in Norcal yet. Everybody is running junkyard blocks, maybe 1/3 of the field has a rebuilt head. We had the top 3 cars dyno'd after a race last year, they were all within 10hp and 10tq. The highest hp car had the lowest tq and vice versa. Maybe it'll hit Norcal in the future. There's talk of a "max dyno" rule to combat the engine build race, but it's fraught with problems.
Regardless, with how good I am, I could have +10hp on the #1 finisher's car and still not win. I've gotta work on the driver a lot more than the motor ;)
laz wrote: At the national level, I'd believe it. It's not a problem here in Norcal yet. Everybody is running junkyard blocks, maybe 1/3 of the field has a rebuilt head. We had the top 3 cars dyno'd after a race last year, they were all within 10hp and 10tq. The highest hp car had the lowest tq and vice versa. Maybe it'll hit Norcal in the future. There's talk of a "max dyno" rule to combat the engine build race, but it's fraught with problems. Regardless, with how good I am, I could have +10hp on the #1 finisher's car and still not win. I've gotta work on the driver a lot more than the motor ;)
There goes one excuse not to race of mine.
"Why race in a spec series?! I'd have to have new tires for every race just to be competitive. Don't even get me started on $10k Miata engine rebuilds for a stock series..."
spec...does not equal stock (though it could reasonably be inferred).
More importantly, "spec" does not equal low cost, thought that is usually the pretense under which a spec series is conceived. Strange, huh?
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