Project Free Mazda: A Pretty Eventful Day (NEW WHEELS!!!)

"Luc - The Acadian Oppo" (luc5)
09/15/2014 at 01:08 • Filed to: PROJECT FREE MAZDA

I took the beast out to go for a parts run. Here I am cruising down the freeway minding my own business when POOF! The left rear tire essentially exploded.

It gets worst. So I grab the tire wrench and go to put it on the lug and guess what? It doesn't fit. But I was one lucky SOB, Since I was going to the Pick-N-Pull Scrapyard I had my tool kit with me. without it I would of been screwed. (note to self: go buy the proper tire wrench)

But wait it gets even worst. So in the trunk I find this old rusty bottle jack, I go to slip it under the car and guess what? it's too tall and it doesn't fit. But luckily I was with my sidekick so what do I do? I lean back against the car grab the car by the back fender and lift like no man has lifted before. I was able to lift it just enough for my wife to be able to slide the jack under.

I damn near had a stroke while lifting the car so my wife kindly started jacking up the car while I caught my breath.

I knew I married her for a reason!

Here is where it gets AWESOME. So here I am sitting in the car with a busted tire while I'm thinking to myself "now what do I do?" do I try to get just one matching tire from a tire shop even tho most tire shops will only sell in multiples of 2? so while I'm sitting in the car with the donut on the car I whip out my phone and jump on the local classifieds just to see if there was anything that I could make work.

What do I find 3 results down? a set of 4 MINT 14" MX5 Miata wheels with center caps & tires for $100.00 bucks! I call up the guy right away and to my surprise he still had them. It gets even better the guy only lives 5 mins from my apartment. So on my way back from the city I stop by his house and he had what looked like a Nascar pit stop. He had a 3 ton jack ready to go and an Impact on standby. So I put one wheel on just to make sure it fits and it doesn't rub. then I thought to myself we have everything out already why don't I put them all on? I ask the guy "do you mind if I put on all four while we are at it?" and he had no objections so about 20 mins later I was rolling on my new RIMZ YO!

It looks pretty awesome. The tires are pretty bald but for $100.00 I would of been a complete fool not to buy them.

Even the wife thought it was a steal so I felt like a total king! it's not always easy to get the go ahead to buy car parts. (This is where I learnt that sometimes it's easier to ask for forgiveness than to ask for permission)

Car Purchase $1.00

Valve Cover Gasket $28.99

Thermostat $7.99

Thermostat Gasket $1.49

Overpriced Coolant $10.99

Radiator Fan Switch $37.99

Coolant Temp Sensor $26.99

New o'rings for the injectors $2.58

Toggle switch and related hardware $9.00

Throttle Body Cleaner $7.99

14" MX5 Miata Wheels $100.00

Total invested so far : $235.01

DISCUSSION (18)

lonestranger > Luc - The Acadian Oppo
09/15/2014 at 01:14

Those look awesome!

Sweet Trav > Luc - The Acadian Oppo
09/15/2014 at 01:16

That's fantastic your wife tags along for trips to the scrap yard and project car stuff. My parents restored his and hers Camaros in the 80's. Working on them together helped forged their relationship and they are together 36 years later.

Jordaneer, The Mountaineer Man > Luc - The Acadian Oppo
09/15/2014 at 01:20

YOUR TIRES COST MORE THAN YOUR CAR!!! Anyway, looks really nice, I wish I could have got my car, even a not real nice one for a dollar.

Luc - The Acadian Oppo > Sweet Trav
09/15/2014 at 01:25

Yeah she a pretty good sport! 4 years and counting so far.

Luc - The Acadian Oppo > Jordaneer, The Mountaineer Man
09/15/2014 at 01:26

that's correct my tires cost 100 times more than my car. I'm not very bright when it comes to money as you can tell.

Luc - The Acadian Oppo > lonestranger
09/15/2014 at 01:26

I love it!

Kat Callahan > Luc - The Acadian Oppo
09/15/2014 at 01:27

Those Miata wheels look really good. I can't wait to see this thing brought back to pretty.

Jordaneer, The Mountaineer Man > Luc - The Acadian Oppo
09/15/2014 at 01:29

Haha, yep, I need to replace the tires on my car soon, but looking on craigslist, there were only about 3 tire sets that were the right sizes in the entire area, and it was less expensive to buy them new off of tirerack.

Luc - The Acadian Oppo > Kat Callahan
09/15/2014 at 01:31

Thanks! it's a work in progress I plan on giving this car a new rattle can paint job eventually. the interior is in great shape and the body is super solid. just the paint that needs work.

Luc - The Acadian Oppo > Jordaneer, The Mountaineer Man
09/15/2014 at 01:32

that's often the case. I new I was essentially just buying the wheels and that the tires are scrap but this will keep me going while I get some new tires it's better than driving with the donut that's for damn sure.

Jordaneer, The Mountaineer Man > Luc - The Acadian Oppo
09/15/2014 at 01:37

I'm not looking forward to spending $400 to replace my tires, and sadly I have to replace all 4 because it's a 4wd car. But that seems like a really good price for 4 wheels

Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies > Jordaneer, The Mountaineer Man
09/15/2014 at 02:09

I wish my 4 tires only cost 400... *quietly sobs in the corner..."

D > Luc - The Acadian Oppo
09/15/2014 at 03:14

Nice price. Gotta love common bolt patterns.

BJ > Luc - The Acadian Oppo
09/15/2014 at 07:17

Those wheels look great on that car - nice find!

At $235 you're approaching an amount where you need to sell or stop fixing if you want to make some money on this thing.

Also, you forgot to tag this post. Please take the time to edit and add your tag.

Luc - The Acadian Oppo > D
09/15/2014 at 09:38

It was a total steal. it's the right bolt pattern, right hub size & right tire size. It could not of been more right!

The Real Dacia Sandero > Luc - The Acadian Oppo
09/16/2014 at 10:43

$100 for mint daisys with bald tires is about average. They're essentially worthless in the Miata community. Which is good for you, as you get a 12 pound wheel for dirt cheap.

Luc - The Acadian Oppo > The Real Dacia Sandero
09/16/2014 at 11:05

I thought it was a steal but I guess how often does someone look at 14" wheels as a major upgrade? for most these would be used for winters only so I can understand your logic.

That Bastard Kurtis - An Attempt to Standardize My Username Across Platforms > Luc - The Acadian Oppo
10/05/2014 at 17:33

That looks fantastic. The whole car is fantastic, really. Can't beat it for the price.