You Need This revisted: another FM-built V8 Miata

It never rains but it pours. This is the third FM-built car to come up for sale recently. The first one sold before we could list it. The second one sold in three business days, right after GRM pegged it as You Need This. And this one probably won't be on the market much longer, so don't delay.

Let's get this out of the way - it's not a Z06. A Lotus Evora has a Toyota Camry engine, and is somehow not a Camry. This thing is lighter, smaller, more nimble and less common than a Z06. It's a handcrafted 2600 lb roadster with 400+ horsepower. Think of it as a TVR that won't kill you, is reliable and can be serviced in any town in America. If you want a Z06, then this for sale ad is not for you because it is not a Z06.

Anyhow, this particular car has a history. It was actually purchased new by Flyin' Miata back in 1998, and at 18,000 miles it was turned into the first customer V8 car. It's now got 49,500 on the chassis and is looking better than ever thanks to a program of continual upgrades.

480 hp engine option. For full details, please see the ad. In the meantime, bask in the photos.

This is not the green nb from Minnesota, is it?

Nope, Scuba Steve still has his as far as I know.

Good deal. Scuba Steve is a good dude.

Damn it Keith. Quit putting all this temptation out there. Only way I can justify not just screaming take my credit card is because they have all been NB's. If an NC came up, I'd have a hard time resisting.

Ohhhhh I really like that green!!'

I love these, but I lack the driving skills to truly use that much horsepower with that little weight.

My favoritist part "If you want a Z06, then this for sale ad is not for you because it is not a Z06."

No radio???? I am out

I can't be the only one who thinks $36k is a great price.

Alas, if you live in California, this car is not for you because there's no way to smog it.

It's really too bad the E-rod exemption only applies to pre-OBD2 cars.

mazdeuce wrote: I can't be the only one who thinks $36k is a great price.

But it's a car that runs, drives, is sorted, and is anvil simple. You ready for that?

Hey guys, who doesn't have 36k for the first Shelby Cobra of our time? Car 001 sounds pretty awesome to me.

I'm half way through acquiring the parts for an Ls swap into my 94. I'd give a kidney for a flyin miata built car, and I have really healthy kidneys if anyone's interested.

Please note that Flyin' Miata does not take body parts in payment. You will need to find a kidney broker.

We may have a way to make this CA legal in the future, but it will require a fair bit of work to get it to that specification including an engine-out cam change. Best to call this a 49 state car.

Mazdeuce, if this isn't enough of a challenge I can try to arrange for some unusual and creative failure that will require months of work. Might be tough, but there's got to be a way.

It's been fun seeing all of our cars develop a story. They're all dream cars for their owners. Of course, there's the original history of this chassis as the first FM NB R&D car, which was actually featured in Sport Compact Car at one point if memory serves. It spent most, but not all, of that period turbocharged. The fellow who commissioned the V8 build actually brought us a 1991 BRG to convert but it was in rough, rough shape. He bought this car instead. After the conversion, he made some more changes to the car to suit his style. He sold it after about four years to buy a twin-turbo Bentley. The green 99 then moved on to Mark's father, who enjoyed it for another four years or so and had us tweak it with some updates and further customization. When Mark's father passed on, Mark wanted to keep it but it can't move to California with him.

That's the same price as a salvage Elise.

To be fair, the salvage Elise is $9k cheaper

By the way, take note. If you want to sell a dream car, these are the sort of pictures you want. I can't take credit for them, they were provided by the seller. I almost want a poster of a couple of them.

Keith Tanner wrote: To be fair, the salvage Elise is $9k cheaper By the way, take note. If you want to sell a dream car, these are the sort of pictures you want. I can't take credit for them, they were provided by the seller. I almost want a poster of a couple of them.

Yeah, someone put a lot of time and effort into those photos. They missed the one with the big smoky burnout, though!

I'm interested to hear about possible CA legalities on post-95 cars, perhaps I'll call FM tomorrow. :)

In reply to Keith Tanner:

I've finally matured into someone who can appreciate a car for what it is, and not destroy my marriage by dragging it home. Usually.

Will it catch fire is you do a burnout? If not I'm not interested.

Zomby Woof wrote: Will it catch fire is you do a burnout? If not I'm not interested.

If you run it into a concrete barrier, run it up through the gears stay in it till something breaks then yes, it'll eventually catch fire. If, however that's what you really want. Send me a check for $36K along with your address and I'll come to your house and set your current car on fire.

Nope, it's not a Z06. It is really, really cool, though. And, yes, the photos look amazing.

Unless it will pass an OBD-II test, you can't drive it in Maryland, either.

If it's not throwing codes, it'll pass. If it doesn't just wait three years and tag it historic.

It does return OBD-II codes. It does not monitor all emissions systems, however. The GMPP PCM and harness that it uses doesn't monitor evap or catalytic converter efficiency. Those particular codes return n/a. Some states have no problem with this, some do. It does have cats, though.

Does this car have six additional gauges in the center console?

Considering it still has the stock 5 gauge cluster, I can't even think of 6 additional things you would need gauges for, particularly in a normally aspirated vehicle.