Exocet donor advice

[bigmac]

Hi everyone,

I'm James and I've decided to build an Exocet. I visited MEV HQ in Mansfield yesterday and had a sit in Stuart's car and asked lots of questions that I'm sure he must have heard a million times before so thanks for being so patient Stuart!!

Anyway, now that I'm sure that I can fit in an Exocet (I'm 6"7' so had my doubts!) I've decided to put a deposit down on a kit and find myself a donor. I've done a fair bit of reading on varous MX-5 forums and think that a salvage or MOT fail early mk2 1.8 would be the best bet (mainly due to the extra bhp, better brakes and hopefully less rust on the subframes).

Does this sound sensible or have I overlooked something major? How easy is it to sell the spare parts from the mk2 vs the mk1. (I'm guessing maybe harder to sell because fewer mk2's were made but maybe higher prices because it's newer?) Is there a specific donor colour that I should look out for or avoid? Also, are there any optional extras that will help me to get maximum cash back from ebay (other than the elusive hard top)?

Sorry for all the questions, it's my first kit car so I want to make sure that I get the basics spot on and my budget is pretty tight as me and the mrs are saving for a deposit on our first house.

Also wanted to say thanks to everyone who's posted a build diary, it makes the whole thing much less daunting for a newbie like me!

[bazlin]

Mac,

I bought a Mk1 and have had no problem making more than I spent originally. I would suggest that you try and get the best trim model you can, limited edition would be preferred option with leather seats etc. I realised its the small items like interior trim etc where the best profits are and they are generally smaller lighter items for postage reasons. Hope this helps

Baz

[fasteddie]

Hi Baz, welcome to the confusion that is the exocet forum, like any kit car build there is are a hundred different ways to go about your build, I myself choose to go down the road of purchasing a Mk 1 1.8 with the thought that if I eventually sold bits on Ebay then that would be a bonus, there are thousands of MX5 parts for sale and buying a quality car would not necessary mean you would get greater returns for your outlay, a later model does not mean less rust, Alexander harris is a really good example of a super build then improving after the Iva, I know Stuart would dissagree but to get a car through IVA you should budget for in excess of £5,000-00 and as I`ve said before where can you get a similar completed car exoskeletal for that money? you wont, some great people on this forum with loads of help and tips, enjoy and as Frank said" I Did It My Way."

[bigmac]

Thanks for the speedy replies. The info on interior trim is really helpful Baz, hopefully I can find a donor with completely rotten sills but a mint leather interior.

Eddie, you're comment about a £5k budget is a bit worrying, I'd budgeted to spend £3k overall for the total build once I'd got cash back from selling the spare parts and then another £500 or so for IVA,MOT, tax and insurance. I understand that all the extras bits can really add up but I'd hoped that by avoiding lots of shiny bits like custom exhausts and expensive wheels I could keep within my budget.

[fasteddie]

Mac it will all depend then on how good your donor is, I suspect that a car with rotted sills ect will also have pretty rust subframes ect, dogey bushes rusted nuts and bolts, the IVA will not allow you to cut corners on safety, build quality, lighting, braking ect, if you have loads of time to strip clean refurbish everything and are not in a rush then maybe you can build an IVA car for less, I think Darth Vader`s price of £2000-00 was relating to a trackday car in all honesty, it would be interesting for others who have completed to about IVA standards to give you a ball park figure of their builds. It was not my intention to scare you, I can only relate to my costs which includes new clutch, water pump, cam belt rear calipers, new discs ect ect all of which are really good items to renew before you put your new chassis on, best wishes Ted.

[Deleted]

Mac,
you can build the car for around 3k, but thats a straight forward build using all original parts and replacing nothing. however you need to budget another 1k for the IVA, Retests and the rediculous registration and road tax fees.
I'll give you the details for mine:
MOT failure MK1 Mx5 avaerage condition £500
MEV kit £2500
plus lights and powdercoat £500

subtotal £3500

minus £500 sold parts

subtotal £3000.

add in wheels, new discs, pads, and a few replacement parts £500
IVA £500
retest £90
first reg and tax £200
insurance £160

subtotal £4400

I also had an engine rebuild plus 4-2-1 manifold and decat for £500 mates rates

subtotal £4900

plus extras ive not listed like new shocks, new bushes, copper pipe, edge trim, nuts bolts, glue, paint and materials £500.
not much change from £5500 really. totally worth every penny though!!

the thing is i went all out and stripped the car into complete pieces, de rusted, painted and totally rebuilt the whole car, replacing and adding bits as i went so there are a few corners to shave if youre on a budget.

take the must have parts. donor, kit, IVA and reg fees plus materials and your only clocking at £3000 when you sell the spares. Im sure kevins is way over that with the powder coating and attention to detail, but like i said its a personal thing. its all about taste and detail you want to put in.

I'm planning on a second, if i can shift mine for a decent price.
hope this helps

Alex

[kitcrazy]

Mac

It seems to me that the market is now floded with old mk1's that are being broken up for spares and the prices reflect this. Your interest in an mk2 insurance write off is i would say the best way to go as parts for those still seem to be holding their value and should be able to make a bit of money on the donor as well as having lower mileage components.
Get one with decent alloys and tires as this will save you a bunch and get the chassis powder coated, i psrayed my own and although it looks nice it cost a fortune in aresol paint and the finsih just isn't tough enough. You can get the powder coating done yourself which should give you a bigger choice of coolurs than mev offer.
Sadly though it will still come to £3000 plus and there are so many little things that add to the total, but it is well worth doing and if you take your time then you can spread the cost

Richard

[paultyre]

I have spent £4000 on building my Exocet and i have done a fairly basic build the only non essential purchases are steering wheel @ £60 Mr2 storage box £20 and a polycarb visor @ £30. i haven't yet iva'd the car this will be my winter project for this year but i am guessing about another £800 with the test and extra bits i need . not yet had much success with selling unused mx5 parts as there is just so much for sale at the moment .
That said the Exocet is a fantastic car and suits these dart moor roads perfectly .

[tlight]

Folks,

I don't want to sound contentious, but why buy a rusty old wreck and spend money on refurbishing parts?

I bought a Mk2.5 2004 MX-5 1.8i Euphonic Cat D Salvage for just under £2,000.

The parts sales for Mk2.5 are excellent, I have recovered over £3,700.

I have bought lots of goodies (stainless steel nuts, bolts, rive nuts, red fiberglass seats, white side panels, K&N Filter, oil filler cap, new red poly bushes, Aerolock catches, red flexi goodridge hoses, copper fuel & brake pipe, steering wheel, etc). Also, new standard parts such as fasteners, discs, pads, cam belt, etc.

I am expecting, including the IVA, to spend less than £4K, could be as low as £3K if all the parts sell. This clearly shows me that 'as Stuart built' for £2K is feasible, but I would advise go for the latest model possible.

I'll try an put a screen shot up of my spread sheet...if you look at my diary you can see my selling price history, just sold this week the "Bonnet Bulkhead Rubber Dust Seal" for £13.99 and "Windscreen Wiper Cover Trim Moulding" for £12.99 to a guy in the Czech Republic.

The key I found is not what the kit & parts cost, but how well you command a price for the parts....

Tim

[bigmac]

Thanks for all the replies folks.

I've clearly underestimated the cost of getting the car IVA'd and on the road so thanks for setting me straight on that. It seems that I'm going to have to extend my budget by £1k or so which will probably mean extending the total build schedule. Having said that, there's a long way to go till next summer so I'm not short on time.

Based on your replies, I've decided that a mk2 is the way to go as there are some decent examples around for just under a grand and hopefully I can make a bit more cash back from ebay vs a mk 1. (Plus the extra 10bhp is always handy! )

I would go down the mk2.5 route as Tim suggested, but prices are a fair bit higher and I'd have to contend with the problems of getting the VVT engine to fit. I'm also intending to use the original MX-5 seats at least initially and have noticed that the seats fitted to the 2.5's are substantially thicker than the earlier ones (although they do look the part) and this will reduce legroom which is at a premium for me.

Tim, your total from selling spare parts is mighty impressive. Is there any secret to it or is it a matter of meticulously removing and cataloging the parts and selling every last little bit?

Cheers,

Mac.

[tlight]

Mac,

The MK2.5 only has a VVT foul on the bonnet, which I plan to cut a hole in the bonnet and install (glue) an up turned stainless cooking sieve. Regarding the seats, I sold them and went for fibre glass...

For accuracy, car purchase price was £1,905.15.

Yes, regarding parts selling, strip the parts off without breaking (care is needed with the plastic). Catalogue your parts (LH & RH, Front & Back, photograph, etc, etc). Advertise clearly on e-bay. I added a sympathy vote in my text, over the professional breakers "building a kit car", some people want to ask questions (and start following your build diary...) Ship quickly and pack well.

Selling price as of today £3,798.11.

My predicted cost as of today is £3,023.89, assuming everything sells...and if i don't sell another item £4,156.36...i.e. I still have £1,132.47 of parts left...all back on e-bay at next free listing (today)....hence my comment between £3K and £4K

Tim

P.S. I reckon I have spent £1,384.02 on upgrades....could have been built for £1,639.87....

P.P.S. I did have plenty of time as I was out of work during the main selling phase to carry out all this activity...now back to full time work and every has slowed a bit...

[sspogman]

Hi Mac,

Just a thought around legroom and the 2.5 seats...

I bought a Mk1 for my build and have installed MEV fiberglass seats. In the donor I really struggled for legroom (I'm 6'5") however, in the Exocet I have to bring the seats forward a good few notches as there is now too much legroom for me! I utilised the original Mazda seat runners but obviously gained from the reduced depth of a fiberglass seat over stock Mazda ones.

Guess what I'm saying is that the Mk2.5 may still give you sufficient legroom along with all of the cost benefits that Tim has described. Also, even if you then find that the 2.5 seats are too tight, you should be able to get a good price for them on eBay and upgrade to cheaper fiberglass ones instead, making a nice little profit in the process.

[tlight]

pm me if u want a mk 2....was offered one yesterday...will provide contact details

Tim