I accidentally bought "The Answer"

So at work today I was talking to a co-worker and he mentions how his car is a piece of E36 M3 and that his mechanic is robbing him. Knowing he isn't a car guy I ask what he drive.... He says the magic word: Miata!. So I ask him what he wants for it and he says he will take whatever its scrape value is worth. I paid him 300$ cash on the spot without even looking at the car. Its a 2001 Special Edition with 170k on the odo, a new top and new tires. It has a wooden shift knob and says "nardi" on the bottom spoke of the steering wheel. I drove it, no smoke and the motor sounds great. Pics to fallow! I am beyond excited as I have always wanted a mee-otter. SO tell me everything I need to know about this car, and does it have a 6 speed or a 5? I never got the car over 25 in the city here

Nice!

Call the cops, you just robbed him.

Pretty sure the 01 special editions were BRG...if so, it's a six speed.

where do I host pics for this? google drive isn't working

imgur works pretty well

nice buy!

Seriously? That looks great for $300

LOL that's a nice car by my standards.

Serious on the 300 bucks, I once bought a E36 318is for 100 lol. Drove it for years.So this car should have a torsen and a six speed? I posted the VIN so everyone can see if its the real thing or not.

Lucky dog!

The diff is worth twice that, easily.

Sure looks like a 2001 SE. It's lost the polished wheels and the wood steering wheel, but the color tells the tale. 6-speed trans, 3.9 rear end, 155 hp, Bilstein shocks (not that they'd be any good by now), Sport brakes, extra chassis bracing.

The date on the VIN tag reads 03/02. So... how is it a 01 exactly? I don't care because I'm so berkeleying excited, but once that wears off then curiosity will set in

Nice, I can't find one for less than $4K.

Blitzed306 wrote: The date on the VIN tag reads 03/02. So... how is it a 01 exactly? I don't care because I'm so berkeleying excited, but once that wears off then curiosity will set in

Good point. The VIN confirms it, that's a 2002. That's not BRG, that's Emerald Mica - hard to tell with the age and sun damage. And that means it's an LS model.

Mechanically the same as the 2001 SE.

VIN says it's a 2002 and the paint code 18J is Emerald Mica, not BRG. So yeah, I don't think it's a 2001 SE.

Still a good buy.

Awesome deal, congrats and have fun!

In reply to Blitzed306:

I'll give you $800 and be there tomorrow to pick it up.

So was anything even wrong with it that made him sell? That's a staggeringly good deal.

Congrats. That is today's deal of the day.

And to answer the question as to what is wrong with the car, it has a cracked brake fluid reservoir that the original owner got tired of putting fluid in once a month, I suspect one of the calipers may have a small leak. But that's everything other than the interior needing some cleaning

Pretty sure the top is supposed to be tan, to match the interior...

That might be one of the best deals I've ever seen. The rad isn't even brown.

Is the shift knob supposed to match the handbrake handle in these or is the shift knob from some other NB trim?

Headlights are a great candidate for a cheapo polish kit and a spritz or two of clearcoat too.