I drove down to Lewisville, Tx yesterday to pick up the MX3 I won on eBay. All in all it turned out to be a pretty good deal for the $610 the auction ended at. It is a 5sp GS (1.8L V6) and has the rare leather interior. Now the nity grity:
The body looks real good for a 14 year old car. There is a little hail damage on the hood and roof, but the car has no major damage to it at all. The paint is pretty dull in a few areas and on the drivers side rear quarter panel there are a few rust spots...nothing major though. The passenger door has some scratches and has a small dent. Im going to take it to the car wash and clean her up to see how much of it is dirt, the car is really dirty.
The interior needs a good cleaning. The dash and center consol are real dirty and the carpet needs to be vacumed. The ashtray looks like it will need replacing, and the cupholder on the center consol is jacked. The auto seatbelt for the driver is possesed by Satan. The leather seats show some wear. The drivers seat has a small tear and looks the most worn. The rear seats look pretty good though. I think with a good cleaning and reconditioning they will look pretty good. Those are some comfortable seats btw. The drivers door needs a new window switch. The guy was using a screwdriver to open and close the window because the buttons are missing. The tint looks horrible and needs to come off lol. The spare tire well is full of water, apparently there is a leaky seal on the hatch some where. The hatch works good too. The struts don't appear to be worn out at all, they hold the weight of the hatch nicely. The sunroof functions, but makes noises. Oh, and the car has no radio.
The engine leaks oil pretty bad. Looks like it's just a valve cover gasket. The belts squeal, but quite possibly from the oil leaking down on them Im sure. The bay is DIRTY! lol it will need a good cleaning. The battery is about to explode. When I started it up at Donnie's house, it started squirting acid at him. The shifter is real loose, it's hard to tell what gear you are in and the clutch is pretty touchy. Car idles pretty high at start up too. I took it around the block, and it the motor still pulls pretty good despite the bad leak and battery that is about to explode. The suspension needs some attantion, there are clunks present. Once I do some general maintenance to the engine, I think it will be a pretty good daily driver.
Despite the work it needs, I still think I got a good deal at $610. Well I guess more like $757 after you add in gas and uhaul rental.
Plans for the car:
Paint
KL-ZE Swap
Headers w/full exhaust
Mazdaspeed or Buddy Club 2 Front Bumper
FX Designs Combat or Drift Style Side Skirts
RACEON FRP BUDD EK Rear Bumper Add-on or just stick with stock ??IDK??
CF Hood
Springs (already have a set of MX3 H&R's that I bought off Darryl a couple months back)
Maybe set of rims....probly the 16's from the Pro, Im throwing a new set of the Pro.
New tint
Radio
Maybe more, IDK this will be my daily driver for now and after the gtr swap in the pro.
And as if this post isn't already too long and nobody will read it all....pictures!
Money Spent Log
- $758.00 - Cost of Car+UHAUL+Gas
- $35.21 - Wiper Blades, Light Bulbs
- $60.69 - Misc. Cleaning Supplies
- $78.00 - Misc. Items From eBay Auction (oil filters, spark plugs, wires, etc)
- $98.50 - Registration and Title Transfer
- $35.00 - Alternator (Thanks Donnie!)
- $305.94 - CV Axles, Valve Cover Gasket (less $110 core charge)
- $33.92 - Alternator Belt, Lucas Fuels System Cleaner, sea foam, hvac bulb
- $96.89 - $35 For wrong alternator, then 61.89 rebuilding old one
--------------------
- $1405.26 - Total as of 1/10/2006 ($1295.26 less core charge)
MX3 Log
12/31/2005
-Picked up car in Lewisville Texas
-Total Spent: $758
1/1/2006
- Replaced battery
- Washed car
- Removed seats and vaccumed carpet
- Cleaned seats
- Removed tint from drivers and passenger windows
- Cleaned the dash, center consol, and door panels
- Repaired door handle
- Removed "Southwest Texas University" decal from rear window
1/2/2006
- Installed 16's from Protege
- Washed car again
- Installed new headlight bulbs
1/3/2006
- Installed ZX2 sturts with Sprint springs
- Installed front and rear upper strut bars
1/7/2006
- Started removing rear tint
- Installed new wiper blades front and back
1/8/2006
- Finished removing rear tint and cleaned the window
- Installed EGT fog light switch (no fogs for it yet lol)
- Cleaned tires
- Vaccumed car again to clean up mess from removing tint
- Fixed door pin so dome light would turn on when door was opened
1/9/2006
- Transfered title and tagged car for Oklahoma: $98.50
- Replaced crappy Texas plate with a pretty Oklahoma plate
- Removed Texas inspection stickers from winshield
1/10/2006
- Ordered CV Axles and Valve cover gasket from Auto Zone
- Paid for new alternator (need to get a new belt)
1/11/2006
- Repaired cracked intake pipe and joined the "duck tape racing" team
1/12/2006
- Purchased Alternator belt and Lucas Fuel System cleaner
- Picked up axles and valve cover gaskets from Auto Zone
- Replaced HVAC bulb - I can see now!
1/14/2006
- Washed car then hit the drivers door with some rubbing compound and threw on a couple coats of wax on the whole car.
1/21/2006
- Replaced front valve cover gasket
- Replaced all spark plugs and installed new wires and distry cap
- Changed oil and filter w/can of sea foam
2/1/2006 - 2/2/2006
-Removed intake manifold and replaced rear valve cover gasket (PITA)
3/1/06
-Removed alternator and attempted to install the alt I got from Donnie. No dice, I think it was a 4cyl alt.
3/27/06
-Took alternator to a local shop to be cleaned and rebuilt (finally lol). It was full of oil and had burned out the chip. $61.89
3/29/06
-Installed rebuilt alternator
The body looks real good for a 14 year old car. There is a little hail damage on the hood and roof, but the car has no major damage to it at all. The paint is pretty dull in a few areas and on the drivers side rear quarter panel there are a few rust spots...nothing major though. The passenger door has some scratches and has a small dent. Im going to take it to the car wash and clean her up to see how much of it is dirt, the car is really dirty.
The interior needs a good cleaning. The dash and center consol are real dirty and the carpet needs to be vacumed. The ashtray looks like it will need replacing, and the cupholder on the center consol is jacked. The auto seatbelt for the driver is possesed by Satan. The leather seats show some wear. The drivers seat has a small tear and looks the most worn. The rear seats look pretty good though. I think with a good cleaning and reconditioning they will look pretty good. Those are some comfortable seats btw. The drivers door needs a new window switch. The guy was using a screwdriver to open and close the window because the buttons are missing. The tint looks horrible and needs to come off lol. The spare tire well is full of water, apparently there is a leaky seal on the hatch some where. The hatch works good too. The struts don't appear to be worn out at all, they hold the weight of the hatch nicely. The sunroof functions, but makes noises. Oh, and the car has no radio.
The engine leaks oil pretty bad. Looks like it's just a valve cover gasket. The belts squeal, but quite possibly from the oil leaking down on them Im sure. The bay is DIRTY! lol it will need a good cleaning. The battery is about to explode. When I started it up at Donnie's house, it started squirting acid at him. The shifter is real loose, it's hard to tell what gear you are in and the clutch is pretty touchy. Car idles pretty high at start up too. I took it around the block, and it the motor still pulls pretty good despite the bad leak and battery that is about to explode. The suspension needs some attantion, there are clunks present. Once I do some general maintenance to the engine, I think it will be a pretty good daily driver.
Despite the work it needs, I still think I got a good deal at $610. Well I guess more like $757 after you add in gas and uhaul rental.
Plans for the car:
Paint
KL-ZE Swap
Headers w/full exhaust
Mazdaspeed or Buddy Club 2 Front Bumper
FX Designs Combat or Drift Style Side Skirts
RACEON FRP BUDD EK Rear Bumper Add-on or just stick with stock ??IDK??
CF Hood
Springs (already have a set of MX3 H&R's that I bought off Darryl a couple months back)
Maybe set of rims....probly the 16's from the Pro, Im throwing a new set of the Pro.
New tint
Radio
Maybe more, IDK this will be my daily driver for now and after the gtr swap in the pro.
And as if this post isn't already too long and nobody will read it all....pictures!
Money Spent Log
- $758.00 - Cost of Car+UHAUL+Gas
- $35.21 - Wiper Blades, Light Bulbs
- $60.69 - Misc. Cleaning Supplies
- $78.00 - Misc. Items From eBay Auction (oil filters, spark plugs, wires, etc)
- $98.50 - Registration and Title Transfer
- $35.00 - Alternator (Thanks Donnie!)
- $305.94 - CV Axles, Valve Cover Gasket (less $110 core charge)
- $33.92 - Alternator Belt, Lucas Fuels System Cleaner, sea foam, hvac bulb
- $96.89 - $35 For wrong alternator, then 61.89 rebuilding old one
--------------------
- $1405.26 - Total as of 1/10/2006 ($1295.26 less core charge)
MX3 Log
12/31/2005
-Picked up car in Lewisville Texas
-Total Spent: $758
1/1/2006
- Replaced battery
- Washed car
- Removed seats and vaccumed carpet
- Cleaned seats
- Removed tint from drivers and passenger windows
- Cleaned the dash, center consol, and door panels
- Repaired door handle
- Removed "Southwest Texas University" decal from rear window
1/2/2006
- Installed 16's from Protege
- Washed car again
- Installed new headlight bulbs
1/3/2006
- Installed ZX2 sturts with Sprint springs
- Installed front and rear upper strut bars
1/7/2006
- Started removing rear tint
- Installed new wiper blades front and back
1/8/2006
- Finished removing rear tint and cleaned the window
- Installed EGT fog light switch (no fogs for it yet lol)
- Cleaned tires
- Vaccumed car again to clean up mess from removing tint
- Fixed door pin so dome light would turn on when door was opened
1/9/2006
- Transfered title and tagged car for Oklahoma: $98.50
- Replaced crappy Texas plate with a pretty Oklahoma plate
- Removed Texas inspection stickers from winshield
1/10/2006
- Ordered CV Axles and Valve cover gasket from Auto Zone
- Paid for new alternator (need to get a new belt)
1/11/2006
- Repaired cracked intake pipe and joined the "duck tape racing" team
1/12/2006
- Purchased Alternator belt and Lucas Fuel System cleaner
- Picked up axles and valve cover gaskets from Auto Zone
- Replaced HVAC bulb - I can see now!
1/14/2006
- Washed car then hit the drivers door with some rubbing compound and threw on a couple coats of wax on the whole car.
1/21/2006
- Replaced front valve cover gasket
- Replaced all spark plugs and installed new wires and distry cap
- Changed oil and filter w/can of sea foam
2/1/2006 - 2/2/2006
-Removed intake manifold and replaced rear valve cover gasket (PITA)
3/1/06
-Removed alternator and attempted to install the alt I got from Donnie. No dice, I think it was a 4cyl alt.
3/27/06
-Took alternator to a local shop to be cleaned and rebuilt (finally lol). It was full of oil and had burned out the chip. $61.89
3/29/06
-Installed rebuilt alternator
Comment