Its come time to list my V-8 Miata for sale as I simply don’t have time to use all of the cars and motorcycles that are sitting here at the shop. It’s done and just needs a complete “nut and bolt” once-over for your own piece of mind and an alignment to your specs.

It’s been an on-going project for me, but remains driveable. I bought it a few years back from a friend in SC and immediately began “upgrading” the car to the point it is today. Other than installing headlights(stock ones included with the car), there isn’t much more that can be done.

*** The winner of the 2003 GRM Challenge originally built by Mongrel MotorSports ***
- 1990 chassis that is totally rust-free probably because it’s been a “toy” for many years and kept in a garage.
- Ford 302 with unknown compression ratio, but revs quickly so I would guess 10.5 or 11:1 at least. AFR 165 aluminum heads. Aluminum ratio roller rockers. Edelbrock Victor Jr intake manifold converted to EFI. Edelbrock 70mm throttle body. TwEECer tuner. Meziere electric water pump. Peterson remote oil filter block. Aeromotive fuel pressure regulator. MSD 6A. Aluminum Mustang radiator with 15 or 16” electric fan. All -AN lines for fuel and oil. 3” exhaust from collector to exit in the stock Miata location. SpinTech muffler.
- T-5 5-speed transmission. SFI rated bellhousing. White Lightning shifter relocator. Driveshaft safety loops.
- Ford 8.8 rear with aluminum housing w/ Eaton Tru-Trac, Torsen or Quaife differential(can’t recall) and 3.27 gear. Martin MotorSports axles. Axle safety loops. Custom tubular mount.
- 15x9 6UL wheels with Hoosier 275/35/15 R7’s.
- 15x8 6UL wheels bare.
- 15x7 with 225/50/15’s. I can’t remember the wheel model or tire type but will check.
- Corrado front brake rotor conversion with 1.8 calipers. 1.8 rear brakes.
- Koni struts on all 4 corners. Will check spring rates too. Flyin Miata spherical hats on rear.
- Nascar style sway bars with aluminum arms and rod-ends as end-links.
- AWESOME cage made with 1.5”x0.125” DOM tubing. No side bars but I did weld in the mounting plates so they can be added in the future if necessary. Ties to firewall in several places as well as the windshield frame. Also fits under a stock gutted hardtop!
- UltraShield 17” 10* layback aluminum seat mounted to the floor and a back brace to the cage. New G-Force 5-point camlock belts. Grant 13” steering wheel with Miata Cage splined quick-release. Longacre billet shift ****. Stock carpets.
- Autometer oil pressure and water temp in dash vents, custom switch/fuse panel in center “tombstone”. Stock dash reinstalled around the cage. Looks fantastic.
- new windshield.
- custom front splitter made from 3/8” HDPE and mounted below a copy of a Garage Vary airdam. BlackBird Fab Works tinted rear spoiler reinforced and coated with 3M film on both sides. Hood has a Ford GT500 hood extractor installed. The hood is secured with 4 hoodpins and the trunk is held down with 2. Hood, trunk and rear filler panel are painted House of Colors “Hot Rod Black”.

I have used it a few times to commute back and forth from my house to the shop, around 20 miles and run to the parts store numerous times. I bought the car at the wrong time in life, it’s a long story, but with a new house and an ill fiancée, I need to spend more time at home and less at the shop. That’s why I have 5 or 6 things that need to get sold. I now spend all my free time at home playing in the yard doing landscaping!

I can go to the shop, turn the key, pull the ignition button, hit the start button and it fires right off. Starts, idles and runs just fine. Basically it’s a toy. I bought it as one, built it further as a trackday/hillclimb car but still kept it civilized enough to run around town with. To properly license it, you will need to install headlight(included with sale) and do some lighting wiring. I never looked into the wiring to be honest.

I keep a tally on all of my projects and here is my list on this car to date.

$$$ invested
Purchase price(Ted T.) $7500
Pick-up expenses(Porsche pickup & Staunton) $450
15x8 949 6UL wheels(Club Roadster Miata forum) $500
15x9 949 6UL wheels(CR forum) $550
275/35/15 tires(John Berget Tire) $480
Mounting and balancing(Pittston Tire)$80
Exhaust system tubing, bends, clamps & Spintech muffler) $210
Air dam, splitter material & hardware $210
Tow loops $40
Oil catch can(DSR forum) $60
Valve covers and gaskets(eBay & A&A) $120
Hood extractor(online Ford dealership) $135
Steering quick release(MiataCage) $145
Steering wheel(A&A Auto) $120Rollcage materials(Nivert Metal) $650
Windshield(Northeast Auto Glass) $180
Paint supplies for hood & trunk(Graziano Collision) $100
Carbon Miata flares(Planet Miata) $315
White Lightning shifter relocator(American Powertrain) $435
Carpet, console & pass seat(DB Automotive) $180
Braided lines and fittings for oil & fuel(A&A) $165
Intake rubber adapter(A&A)$26
Oil filter remote housing(DSR forum) $62
Well-nuts for dash(Two Jacks Cycle) $11
AutoMeter oil pressure sending unit(A&A) $34
Lugnuts(A&A) $22
Oil filter(A&A) $8
Split collars(Fastenal) $22
G-Force 5-pt harness(A&A) $157
Ultrashield Pro Road Race seat $414
Rear spoiler(blackbird Fab) $368
3M film on rear spoiler(JW Tire) $40
Longacre shift ****(A&A) $27
Clutch slave cylinder(A&A) $16
Vitaloni mirrors(ApexSpeed) $115

Total to date $13,967


In order to move this along to its next owner, I would sell it for what I have invested in it. I didn’t calculate any labor costs into the above list. Normally I charge $2500 for a full Spec Miata cage like what I have in this car just without the door bars. I only have the material costs in my calculations. Basically $14,000 buys the car with all 3 sets of wheels. I would be willing to keep certain items like the 6UL wheels, UltraShield seat and the trunk with the spoiler in order to reduce the price. Basically deduct the cost above from $14k.

If you have an interest in talking about any part of the car, feel free to give me a call.

Dan (570)417-5567

Link to a photobucket album with all of the pictures that I have for the car.
V-8 Miata by Daniel Lipperini Jr | Photobucket

More pix.

Here is a video from when the car was first built back in 2003.
https://www.v8miata.net/v8-miata-med...own-pass-2735/

I was a bit hasty in typing the ad and forgot to add some important information.

The car was built by Mongrel MotorSports to compete in the 2003 GrassRoots MotorSports Challenge. It was known as the Mongrel Miata and if you search for it, you can find a bunch of info from back in the day. Here is an article from GRM: https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/ar...rsports-miata/

The engine is set back 11-12”, the firewall and cowl have been cut , a new transmission tunnel has been fabricated, all custom engine/trans and diff mounts, delrin a-arm bushings, lots of fabricated and TIG welded pieces throughout. There is no heater, A/C, PS, PW, PDL or any other crap that won’t make the car lighter or faster. It was built to compete and win and that’s just what it did, it won the 2003 GRM Challenge. It won so well that the rule book had to be rewritten for future events because these guys found a number of loophole to use to their advantage.

Its better now that it was back then and is ready for the next owner to take out and have fun with.

I’ve been asked what parts I’d be will to remove from the car and how far I could get the price down. Here is what I came up with.

without the 15x9 6UL wheels and Hoosiers(-$1000) $13,000
+ without the 15x8 6UL wheels(-$500) $12,500
+ without the UltraShield seat and brace(-$500) $12,000
+ without the trunklid and rear spoiler(-$500) $11,500
+ without Carbon Miata flares(-$300) $11,200

I have a stock trunklid and drivers seat as well as the 15x7 wheels that the car originally came with.

Thanks for your interest,

Dan

As requested, here are some pictures of how the car sits today. The black center wheels are the 15x7’s, the dark silver center wheels are the 15x9 6UL’s with the 275/35-15’s.

A stock soft top will not fit over the rollcage, but since the rollcage is the same as what I’ve done in dozens of SCCA Spec Miatas, a stock “gutted” hard top will fit. Once I get some free time, my plan is to have a “bikini top” made for the car. I do have the attachment header from a convertible top that can be used as the start for a bikini top build.

As far as shipping the car, I would be happy to help in any way necessary to meet with and safely load the car with the carrier of your choice. If you were interested in all of the wheels/tires, I believe that most of them could be arranged inside the car for the trip. Worst case, a few of the unmounted wheels may need to be mailed which is no problem.

I will do whatever I can to help.

I do not have a hardtop other than the cracked/smashed one that I use when building roll cages. It is beyond repair and missing the rear window, so perfect for mock-up and building under.

Hardtops sell for $1000-1500 in my area and are difficult to find with decent paint. Most are either sun faded or chipped along the back edge. Back when we were building cars, I would grab every one that I could find for under $1000 but over the years the supply chain seems to have dried up.

Your local Miata clubs, CraigsList or Facebook marketplace would be places to look for a stock hardtop or SnugTop which is an aftermarket company that manufactured fiberglass tops for Miatas.

Great buy and what a V8Miata toy for someone to start out with! It looks great and this could never be recreated for anything near this price.
GLWS!

I haven’t posted anything lately, so I figured that I’d give a quick update.

- A few weeks back I had a guy come to take a look at the car. After a short test drive, I pulled into the parking lot at the shop and found a nice spot with some level pavement. While showing off, I proceeded to do a little rolling burnout and when shifting second gear I heard a loud “BANG”! Sure enough it broke an axle. Turns out, the DIY axle from when the car was first built 15 years ago, finally failed.

- No big deal, just a quick call to Martin at Monster Miata and a new set of axles were on their way. I threw it back together this week, a few hours here and there after work.

- Went for a drive today and no issues, so it’s ready for someone who needs a new track toy.

I will try to put together a driving video this week if it ever stops raining.............

sold.