1999 Mazda Miata 10th Anniversary Edition

[G_S_DB]

I had the opportunity to help out a friend that rescued this poor neglected Miata from an unloving home. The Miata had been left out, uncovered, and with the top down for some period of time. This turned out to be a serious rehab effort and wanted to share the work with you all. Enjoy!


Intake
The car was caked in dirt, covered in tree sap, and filled with pine needles. The bumper and dents will get taken care of soon, but it needed to be cleaned thoroughly before touching any of the interior surfaces for any period of time -- super gross.

























The car was pressure washed remove all the grime and tree sap, but not on the soft top.



After the first wash

The outside is looking better already. Now time to tackle the inside.




















The interior surfaces needed 3 coats of natural shine after being cleaned with APC+








I wasn't sure if the seats would ever come clean...








The first set of wheels had to be swapped out because the tires were not safe, so I got to clean the second set as well.





Test spot on the hood using the DAMF Cutting pad with D300. The swirls came out with no problem, but the water spot etching required a lot more effort.













After Shots

[davey g-force]

Re: 1999 Mazda Miata 10th Anniversary Edition

Wow, great save!

I don't know how some people could let a cool little car like that get to that stage.

[G_S_DB]

Re: 1999 Mazda Miata 10th Anniversary Edition

Thanks, this was definitely one of my more challenging jobs.

I was surprised how poorly they treated the car, but at least my friend got a good deal on it.

[Selectchoice]

Re: 1999 Mazda Miata 10th Anniversary Edition

Great recovery!

The things some people do to their cars.....

[GLOCKer]

Re: 1999 Mazda Miata 10th Anniversary Edition

Nice work! Before all of that work, I would have said that car wasn't worth the effort or money that it's going to need to be put back right. Now with seeing the after pictures, I would say it would be work spending money on some body work and replacing a few small things in the interior to make the car tip top. Great job! That must have taken a loooooooonnnnnnng time!

[Super Dave]

Re: 1999 Mazda Miata 10th Anniversary Edition

Great job! What machine and chemical did you use on the seats?

[G_S_DB]

Re: 1999 Mazda Miata 10th Anniversary Edition

Great recovery!

The things some people do to their cars.....

Thanks, it came out better than I expected. My friend said that while this car was neglected, the other car was a pristine '80s Vette. I guess the little Miata wasn't worth his time.

Nice work! Before all of that work, I would have said that car wasn't worth the effort or money that it's going to need to be put back right. Now with seeing the after pictures, I would say it would be work spending money on some body work and replacing a few small things in the interior to make the car tip top. Great job! That must have taken a loooooooonnnnnnng time!

When I first saw the car I told my friend, "I sure hope you got a good deal!" After I started, I said it a bunch more. This is my friend's second Miata and he wanted this one for the hard top and so he could track his other one.

I had the car for about 10-12 days and I would work 2-4 hours a day, since this is just a "weekend" hobby for me. I would say that 24-30 hours is a fair estimate -- I really need to start keeping track.

Great job! What machine and chemical did you use on the seats?

I have a Hoover Max Extract carpet shampoo machine that I use in the house. The seats looked like suede when I first saw them, so I assumed they were just ruined beyond. But after a little research I found out that the 10th Anniversary Editions seats are Alcantara inserts with leather bolsters. The Alcantara is a 100% synthetic material and can be cleaned well with mostly just water, lemon juice, and ethyl alcohol. http://www.alcantara.com/en/manteinance/37/index.do