Bert's Exocet Chassis # 273

[exocetjunkie]

Well after looking at the Exocet for the last 6 years I have finally decided to build one.
Went with the mid-grade race chassis with pretty much all the bells and whistles.
Chassis 273 has a home now and should arrive around late September.
My Donor is a 1999 1.8 5spd.

NOW!!!

On to the tear down.

Any advice from the community.

I will be doing a highly detailed build video log detailing every bolt and wire that I will upload to my YouTube Channel
(Pixel Armory) so that future builders will have a video reference guide to use. I plan on building more than one of these so I figured I might even help me build my future ones.

This build will be basic track spec's non turbo and were going for cost effectiveness, resale potential and reliability.

[buildercg]

Jun 9, 2017 19:06:19 GMT exocetjunkie said:

Well after looking at the Exocet for the last 6 years I have finally decided to build one.
Went with the mid-grade race chassis with pretty much all the bells and whistles.
Chassis 273 has a home now and should arrive around late September.
My Donor is a 1999 1.8 5spd.

NOW!!!

On to the tear down.

Any advice from the community.

I will be doing a highly detailed build video log detailing every bolt and wire that I will upload to my YouTube Channel
(Pixel Armory) so that future builders will have a video reference guide to use. I plan on building more than one of these so I figured I might even help me build my future ones.

This build will be basic track spec's non turbo and were going for cost effectiveness, resale potential and reliability.

Welcome to the community.

Learn from others mistakes. Don't trim the electrical harness back before having the car running. Don't get rid of parts (e.g. selling them/giving them away) before the car is titled/registered. If you want the car to be street legal expect that the entire emissions system, including charcoal canister, must be present. Do a lot of research. Don't be afraid to ask questions but understand that every Exo is different so you might not get an answer. Gwnwar's advice is golden. Invest in good drill bits. Take pictures of every electrical connection before and after disassembly. Mark both ends of connectors with permanent ink and keep a paper record (about half of my paper labels fell off/were illegible after sitting in a box for a year). If you want the stock speedometer to work using the existing Miata cable don't forget to drill the hole before installing the motor. Build mounts for your fuel/brake line layout before installing the skate with the chassis (it'll be much easier; I did it the hard way). The transmission tunnel is not fun to get right. Study your state's RMV/DMV/DOT requirements (again, if street legality is your goal). Keep all your paperwork (receipts, title/VIN documentation for donor and major parts) together.  McMaster Carr is a good place to get replacement high quality hardware (nuts an bolts) at a decent price though they don't have the some of the specialty bolts the Miata has (specifically the 2 long bolts on the lower rear control arm).

Have fun, don't hurt yourself.

[exocetjunkie]

Thanks for the advice. I plan on retrofitting my entire garage to accommodate the build as well as design any parts I need for brackets.
I specialize in 3D printing so any parts that I need to design I will 3D print and send to Exocet for them to include in their kits as per my agreement with them.
Should prove interesting to do since my donor car is in perfect shape and it almost seems cruel to tear apart such a nice donor.
But that means less work for me on the back end.
What all can I part with at the beginning of the build to remove debris from the shop and recover some costs?

Thanks,

Bert

[buildercg]

Jun 11, 2017 5:35:48 GMT exocetjunkie said:

Thanks for the advice. I plan on retrofitting my entire garage to accommodate the build as well as design any parts I need for brackets.
I specialize in 3D printing so any parts that I need to design I will 3D print and send to Exocet for them to include in their kits as per my agreement with them.
Should prove interesting to do since my donor car is in perfect shape and it almost seems cruel to tear apart such a nice donor.
But that means less work for me on the back end.
What all can I part with at the beginning of the build to remove debris from the shop and recover some costs?

Thanks,

Bert

I made about 2/3rds of my donor cost back via craigslist.
Obviously, all body parts and lighting. Dash, console, instrument cowl, radio, heater core, A/C, vents, glove box, mirror can all go. Note on the dash: it has your donor's VIN on it and you may be required to scrap it vs. sell it. In my state, I had to scrap it. You have the race chassis, so the footrest can go as it won't fit due to the rollbar. If you're replacing seats, suspension and brakes then those parts go too. If you're putting in harnesses then seat belts can go but check your state requirements...some states require 3 point harness and getting new ones that are DOT certified can be very expensive. There's only one model of DOT certified harnesses available in the US that I know of and they are $399 each. Some people run with both 3 and 5/6 point harnesses. FYI, most harnesses are only rated for 2-5 years, so if you're replacing wait until the end of your build to purchase them.
I had three large storage bins sitting around for most of the build (one with my electrical harnesses and two with odds and end pieces). I wound up giving away the odds and ends parts to a local Miata specialty shop near where I live as I couldn't find buyers.

[exocetjunkie]

Time to start looking for parts.

[exocetjunkie]

Well we have finally begun acquiring parts for our build.
Tire Rack was kind enough to send us an awesome set of wheels and tires and we also managed to find a 4.1 Torsen 1 LST and larger breaks for our Exocet project.

[gwnwar]

exocetjunkie.. Were are you located. It would help if you added a signature line to your profile.
See my red white blue in post.

[exocetjunkie]

Thanks Gwnwar, I have added the requested information to my profile.

[gwnwar]

Thanks for the add. Were are you located..

[exocetjunkie]

We are located in Harrisburg Pennsylvania.

I am having trouble moving most of unneeded parts. My local area seems flooded with parts due to local miata parts dealers.
Any ideas?

[dnr]

I've sold about $1500 worth of parts from my donor on eBay. A lot of work though. USPS Padded flat rate envelopes are the best deal for shipping heavy small parts. I was surprised that there is demand for about 75% of the parts. I just sold the power steering pump bracket for $20. I've sold a bunch of the big stuff on Craigslist.

[exocetjunkie]

Thanks, I want to use EBAY but they have been difficult to deal with. BUT THE BUILD MUST GO ON.

[buildercg]

I used craigslist to move quite a bit of the larger parts but it was a lot of work and I had a few encounters I'd prefer not to have again. I made about 60% of my donor's price back and still have a few large parts left to sell almost 2 years later. I also traded two boxes of smaller parts to a local dealer for some parts I needed.

[gwnwar]

Are you on.. www.miata.net/ Try listing parts for sale in the classified section.. If not a member with over 6months
and 200 posts you can pay a small fee to be a supporting member.. Price parts for 2/3 of what is asked for on ebay or less plus shipping.. You can get cost to ship on both USPS and FedEx sites.. UPS cost to much..

[exocetjunkie]

I've gotten to the point where the tub is ready to come off. What all do I need to keep for registration to make this thing street legal?