LocostUSA.com

Time to start a build log. I'm ridiculously excited to become part of this community. Ever since I bought my first car at 16 I've been tinkering and modifying. I've always wanted to build a kit car but the initial cost of a kit scared me away. I stumbled across this website about a year ago (I don't remember how) and have spent countless hours on here doing research. I spent 2 years in Vegas doing youth ministry and just returned to PA in October. My plan was to start my build as soon as I got a job but then I put an offer on a house (settlement is in 13 days) and I thought I'd just wait to start until after I moved. Then I realized that if I waited till after I moved I would be doing repairs on the house and just never get started so I built a build table and on Christmas eve I started cutting tubing.

This is is where I am now.

I have some 3/4" square tubing that I need to cut and weld but I'm quickly realizing that I really should have a donor before I do much more. I've been watching Craigslist but haven't had any luck yet. Any suggestions on other places to look would be greatly appreciated. I'm looking for a 90-97 miata.

Here's my new house aka locost factory.

I live in Reinholds PA and would love to connect with other locost enthusiasts in the area. So if you're in the the area and would like to stop in just PM me.

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Kevin

I'm not smart enough to build a car...yet.

Welcome to our little corner of the internet, you'll like it here.

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Marcus Barrow - Car9 an open design community supported sports car for home builders!
SketchUp collection for LocostUSA: "Dream it, Build it, Drive it!"
Car9 Roadster information - models, drawings, resources etc.

Kevin,

Welcome. I'm 7 miles north near Sinking Spring. PM me if you want to see my car manufactory some time and talk cars.

Jon

Jon, one of the first articles that I read about locosts was the Car and Driver article but I forgot that it said that you were from Sinking Spring. I'll definitely have to come check out your shop some time but I'm pretty sure it'll make me jealous.

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Kevin

I'm not smart enough to build a car...yet.

Yo, Kevin-
Good choice... No, not the Miata donor, the blue masking tape!

JDK

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JD, father of Quinn, Son of a... Build Log
Quinn the Slotus:Ford 302 Powered, Mallock-Inspired, Tube Frame, Hillclimb Special
"Gonzo and friends: Last night must have been quite a night. Camelot moments, mechanical marvels, Rustoleum launches, flying squirrels, fru-fru tea cuppers, V8 envy, Ensure catch cans -- and it wasn't even a full moon." -- SeattleTom

Welcome to the forum!! I haven't been too active of late, but am ramping up some work on my car.

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Volvo 240/P1800 Based Locost
2004 Aprilia Mille Factory
1988 Volvo 240 5 Speed ( For Sale)
2002 Toyota Tacoma
1999 BMW M3

Welcome! I have some advice if you are going to title it in PA.

Save all of your receipts. Every last one of them. For things you buy on line or at swap meets keep notes or copies of emails. Check the link to My Car in my signature line if you're curious about why.

Buying a cheap donor Miata in this area can be difficult. I watched Craigslist and Ebay for about a year before finally getting one. It isn't as hard if you aren't going to title it, the problem is finding one you want that has a clear title. I kept running across Miatas that somebody bought to fix and then gave up on. I'd ask if it had a clear title and they'd say sure it does. Then I'd ask if it was in their name and they'd start mumbling about they had bought it from a guy who bought it in Maryland but they were sure it was a good title. Well it would be up to you to track down the last person that the car was titled to and get them up to PA to a notary to sign off on the title. I checked into it when I'd found the right car but no signed off title. Having the title of the donor car in your own name makes things easier when the time comes to get a title because you have to show proof of ownership of the main parts of the car. Of course, if your car is not for the street then don't worry about the title.

Since you have been reading here for a while you probably already know about Kinetic Vehicles. In case you don't, the web site has lots of good information plus some of the hard to find things you might need.

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My car viewtopic.php?f=37&t=16434
1930s Style Sports Car viewtopic.php?f=36&t=16888

Welcome and x2 on the receipts for PA when you're ready to register it. The safety inspection isn't about making sure the car is safe - its about the Commonwealth making sure you've paid taxes on the parts you've used for the car (and maybe to make sure nothing is stolen). 2015's 5% hike in turnpike tolls and $0.10 increase in the tax per gallon of gasoline only gets you so far in this state!

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-Andrew
Build Log
Youtube

Thanks run87k and a.moore. I was planning on keeping all the receipts just so I could add everything up at the end but I'm really bad at keeping paperwork organized. If it plays an important part in getting the car on the road though, that will definitely move it up my list of priorities.

I've spent some time on kinetic's website but I'm afraid that if I look at it too often Jack will end getting all my money.

I was working on designing my A-arms and was wondering what size tubing and rod ends are commonly used.

Also I guess I should also give a more detailed explanation of my plans for the car. I'm shooting for a 4" ride height. It should have a pretty easy life and spend a decent amount of time at car shows but I might have to autocross it a few times. I'd like to use as much off of the donor as possible to cut costs. Chetcpo's build is really close to what I'd like to end up with so that's the build log that I reference the most.

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Kevin

I'm not smart enough to build a car...yet.

Not such a bad thing, his prices are good and the advice is free. I'd recommend his kit for front upper control arms.

Another bit of advice on a donor Miata. If you get one of the years that has the Immobilizer be careful. Previously I'd only work with older cars and had never heard of it. I got a chance to buy the complete drive train that someone had pulled from a totaled Miata for a project that never got off the ground. It was clean, low mileage and had the wiring harness and ECU. What a deal I thought without realizing I needed the steering column and keys to make the whole thing work. This might have been part of the reason the other guy's project never got off the ground. That mistake added about a year of frustration plus a few thousand dollars to fix.

The Susquehanna Region of the SCCA has autocrosses at Hershey Park and the Harrisburg Farm Show parking lots. I ran a '79 RX7 there about 25 years ago. I know they still do as I went up to watch some friends run at Hershey last year. It's a pretty nice series. I never did any of the ones in the Philly area.

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My car viewtopic.php?f=37&t=16434
1930s Style Sports Car viewtopic.php?f=36&t=16888

I was under the impression there was a fairly simple cure for the Mazda immobilizer. Am I wrong?

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mobilito ergo sum
I drive therefore I am

I can explain it to you,
but I can't understand it for you.

If there is I wasn't able to find it and I did look. I was on LocostNA at the time and no one had an answer. I talked to the local Mazda specialist and I called Planet Miata and Flyin Miata. Both Planet Miata and Flyin Miata recommended the Hydra Nemisis ECU. Flyin Miata sells it so that was expected but Planet Miata doesn't but recommended it anyway. From what I saw online the Hydra Nemisis is overpriced compared to other aftermarket units but it was supposed to be plug and play, and I had good experience with Flyin Miata in the past. I did not want to use all of the many trick features and spend a bunch of time tuning. It didn't work out that way. I spent over a year fussing with it trying to get the engine to run correctly. The car wasn't finished so it's not like I lost all of that time but when the car was finally done it was time for drastic measures. I called the guy at Oracle Tuning (forgot his name) and paid him to drive the hour to my house and fix the Hydra. I should have done that months earlier as it took him 45 minutes with his laptop to straighten out the programming.

I have seen fixes for Honda's Immobilizer but not for the Miata.

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My car viewtopic.php?f=37&t=16434
1930s Style Sports Car viewtopic.php?f=36&t=16888

$2000 for the Hydra? plus tuning.. The Megasquirt PNP is $800 and would do anything you need. Get a wide band O2 and auto tune.

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Volvo 240/P1800 Based Locost
2004 Aprilia Mille Factory
1988 Volvo 240 5 Speed ( For Sale)
2002 Toyota Tacoma
1999 BMW M3

Well last week was a bit busier than I prefer. On Sunday I found out that I had some renters that moved out. I don't know when but my property manager noticed when it snowed and the sidewalks didn't get cleaned. On Monday I found my donor car on Craigslist about an hour away. We agreed on $1000 and I picked it up Thursday.

On Friday I settled on my new house and everything went pretty smoothly. I have a feeling that it will end up taking up a lot of my time and will keep me away from the car but at least I have a donor now.

While I was cleaning out my rental I found that my renters left behind a wedding dress so I'm thinking maybe I should start looking for a bride since I now have the dress. Can any set me up with a woman that would fit in this dress?

Just kidding. I don't have enough time or money to get married.

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Kevin

I'm not smart enough to build a car...yet.

Duuuude... NOBODY DOES!!!!

And please don't tell my wife I said that.

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JD, father of Quinn, Son of a... Build Log
Quinn the Slotus:Ford 302 Powered, Mallock-Inspired, Tube Frame, Hillclimb Special
"Gonzo and friends: Last night must have been quite a night. Camelot moments, mechanical marvels, Rustoleum launches, flying squirrels, fru-fru tea cuppers, V8 envy, Ensure catch cans -- and it wasn't even a full moon." -- SeattleTom