Roadtrip home from Miata purchase - Opinions? [Archive] (2024)

P90Puma

23rd January 2007, 23:26

Hey guys,

Heading across the border to purchase a 94 Miata next week. Getting all the import stuff ready now. I am not a stranger to working on cars (and on the side of the road), nor roadtrips home after purchase. Already printed off the used miata checklist and will be going over the car.

The car has a leaky slave however, I am considering driving it home 400+ miles on the semi-working slave, or I just might swap in a new one. Car runs and drives fine besides the poor clutch release.

I am used to DSM's and the only tools you needed were a 10mm,12mm,14mm,17mm and you could take apart the whole car basically. What are the common miata sizes? Should be the same since it is a Japanese car?

Probably going to take a greyhound bus down and drive the car back.

Things I know I am taking down so far:

Money :) + VISA for those unexpected surprises.
Passport
GPS
Ipod + Belkin FM transmitter.
Printed mapquest directions
Printed Miata.net Garage FAQ's incase of roadside repair
Ducttape
Wrenches,Pliers,Hammer, (basically a homebrew toolkit) anything else?
Extra Clutch/Brake fluid will probably be purchased at local Autozone/NAPA or whatever you guys call it down in the USA.

Car is apparently in really great shape, and pretty low mileage. Owned by a 50 year old gentleman and his wife as an extra car. His mechanic told him 800$ to replace the clutch, but I am 100% certain it is the slave after what his mechanic said and what he told me.

Any miata specific advice I should know? I have driven my friends 90 w HT for a couple hours and loved it alot more then my much faster Turbo Colt, hence why the turbo colt is with a new owner and I am picking up this 94.

TheVin70

23rd January 2007, 23:39

Diamond Dave

23rd January 2007, 23:43

Why not just bring an extra slave cyl? It's not a fun job, but you can do it by yourself with a one-man bleeder. I think the fluid runs out pretty quick if it's the slave (I've replaced mine recently). I'd rather be stuck at a rest stop with tools and the replacement part as opposed to without it.

Also, I think you should be able to continue driving without the slave. you just need to rev match and hope you don't need to come to a complete stop.

Your list of tools sounds about right though. Add some clear, flexible tubing just in case you do the slave before your drive.

Other than that, if the car runs, it should be fine overall. I bought my 92 in LA and drove it back to Portland in the same fashion. I took an extra day before the trip to do some basic maintenance and check out the systems. Make sure you have enough oil and water in the car before you start the trip ;)

mywong23

23rd January 2007, 23:51

jdmartin

23rd January 2007, 23:59

As long as fluid's not gushing out, you can drive for quite a long time and a long way on a leaking slave. The key is constant bleeding and/or not using the clutch any more than necessary. Shouldn't be a problem on the way back if you're on interstates, which is what I would do in order to keep shifting to a bare minimum. Plan your return time away from any rush hours. Pop 'er into neutral rather than sit on the clutch in gear when necessary.

I had a Jeep with a leaking slave hydraulic bearing (yes, it had no accessible slave cylinder - the whole tranny had to be pulled for replacement!) that I drove like that for a few months until I had the funds to do the whole clutch, rear main seal, tranny seal, etc. I just had to plan out where I was going because I usually only had maybe 15-20 shifts before there wasn't enough clutch to use the clutch. I kept a big bottle of brake fluid in the back and a bar long enough to jam between the seat frame and the bottomed-out travel of clutch pedal so I could bleed it myself in parking lots, etc. I got to where I could do it on my own in a minute or two.

P90Puma

24th January 2007, 00:05

I would negotiate a deal on the phone, conditioned upon your approval of a PPI, paid by you. Ask local owners for reference to a miata repair shop that will do the PPI.
Tell owner that you promise not to renegotiate, unless a major repair is needed.

PPI? Personal XXXXXX Inspection?

Miata Shop? I'm pretty sure that's FM in colorado, and its a bit out of the way :D

Honestly, if the car is as described. It's a STEAL not a deal. Similar miata's up here in canada sell for 10-12k, I am paying much less.

I am most likely going to pickup a slave here in Canada before I leave. Why is it a PITA to do on a miata? I have done it on a DSM and it wasnt too bad, other then the fact that you need one extra person with you to pump the clutch while you bleed.

BTW Clutch fuild remains in the slave when you pop it out, and pressing the cylinder is not a good idea in close proximity to the mouth. Don't ask me how it tastes, because you don't want to know. :cry:

P90Puma

24th January 2007, 00:06

As long as fluid's not gushing out, you can drive for quite a long time and a long way on a leaking slave. The key is constant bleeding and/or not using the clutch any more than necessary. Shouldn't be a problem on the way back if you're on interstates, which is what I would do in order to keep shifting to a bare minimum. Plan your return time away from any rush hours. Pop 'er into neutral rather than sit on the clutch in gear when necessary.

This is what I was thinking, exactly.

chem42

24th January 2007, 00:48

Gene-M

24th January 2007, 01:13

I drove my Miata home from souther NJ, through Philadelphia construction and bumper to bumper traffic; across the entire state of Pennsylvania to Upstate Central NY, a 6 1/2 hour trip (because of traffic), with a bad clutch master, and a battery so dead that if I stalled the car it might not have started again. :D

At times my heart was pounding trying to get through Philly without stalling the car. FWIWW, this was totally unexpected as I had just paid the local Mazda Dealer close to $500 to hand me over a car in perfect running order. :rolleyes: (For the record, it had been stored for 9 years, and paying to have the work done locally seemed to me to be the most expedient way to get it back on the road.)

So anyway, there's a good chance you can make the trip on a bad slave. ;)

mywong23

24th January 2007, 02:10

PPI? Personal XXXXXX Inspection?...
PPI = Pre- Purchase Inspection

Referring to the situation where a miata mechanic reports to you the condition of the car, so you have no surprises when you get off the bus...

Of course, since you think you're getting a steal, you wouldn't chance the Seller finding out that his problems might cost him much less than he thinks - which might cause him to become more greedy with his sales price.

nor would you want the mechanic to buy it - cutting you out of the deal :(
********************

good luck to you. Road trips in a dream car can be so fun !!!

BTDT - I'm in CA; and have flown to NY to drive a car back that I regretted :(
I have flown to Texas to drive back a car I still love;
I have flown to LA and flew back when the Seller misrepresented the car...

roja_dude

24th January 2007, 13:17

GaryS

24th January 2007, 13:28

I drove my Miata home from souther NJ, through Philadelphia construction and bumper to bumper traffic; across the entire state of Pennsylvania to Upstate Central NY, a 6 1/2 hour trip (because of traffic), with a bad clutch master, and a battery so dead that if I stalled the car it might not have started again. :D

At times my heart was pounding trying to get through Philly without stalling the car.
It sounds like you had a good time.:)

As Yvon Chouinard is quoted as saying:"Adventure is never fun when it's happpening."

slottcar

24th January 2007, 13:41

moparmiata

24th January 2007, 13:51

Mk1Maddness

24th January 2007, 13:52

Honestly, if you can...fix it, it shouldn't take more than an hour.

deep well 10 12...14 bottle of brake fluid...oil....some rags. About the same stuff you mentioned...there was a discussion about this on miataturbo.net but I can't seem to find the thread..

Jerry & Cootie

24th January 2007, 13:53

Sounds great P90Puma, you are taking an interpreter, eh? :D

Good luck with the car and weather and so on. I'm under the impression that you can't carry a lot of cash anymore. The Cops and/or Robbers will take it away from you.

PS Don't forget an 8MM for the bleed screws.

Gene-M

24th January 2007, 14:08

It sounds like you had a good time.:)

As Yvon Chouinard is quoted as saying:"Adventure is never fun when it's happpening."

Oh, but I was pissed. :realmad: They caused me to miss a fun weekend with my bud by failing to call me to say that the car would be ready on that Friday. I had to cancel all my plans and go on Monday... But what infuriated me was that never in my phone conversations did they tell me that I'd be picking up a car with a battery that couldn't hold a charge. I had a spare battery at home that I could have brought along, complete with a travel handle!! :rolleyes:

To add insult to injury, I got to the first traffic light and discovered I had no clutch. :mad: How could they not have noticed that if they test drove it?? I pulled over briefly, concluded it was my master, and just kept going. There was no way that I was about to turn back and have that dealer work on my car anymore.

Anyway in retrospect it was funny, and is a good story to tell.

Sorry to hijack, but if you're anywhere near Central NY, (middle of I-88) and are having any problems getting home, you can always contact me. ;)

Loren

24th January 2007, 14:13

Add a 15mm to your pile of wrenches, there are a couple oddball 15's here and there, though nothing you're likely to have to fix on the road. Bring screwdrivers and pliers (needlenose, too!) in case you have to change one of those nasty little hoses under the intake manifold.

Slave cyl can be changed in about 10 minutes if you can get under the car, but if it's a highway trip, I'd just drive it if you can manage a smooth clutchless shift.

Oh, and you can do the slave 100% by yourself if you get a speedbleeder for your replacement slave cylinder.

Gene-M

24th January 2007, 14:29

wooo

24th January 2007, 14:42

Gene-M

24th January 2007, 14:48

P90Puma

24th January 2007, 14:52

No, not if he has his paperwork in order. I think you get 30 days to change out the inner bumpers and install DRLs, which I believe are the only equipment requirements for cars newer than 15 years old.

Paperwork is being processed now, 30 or 10 not sure which, and yep, but this one is younger the 15 so I have to dish out the cash.

P90Puma

24th January 2007, 14:53

Add a 15mm to your pile of wrenches, there are a couple oddball 15's here and there, though nothing you're likely to have to fix on the road. Bring screwdrivers and pliers (needlenose, too!) in case you have to change one of those nasty little hoses under the intake manifold.

Slave cyl can be changed in about 10 minutes if you can get under the car, but if it's a highway trip, I'd just drive it if you can manage a smooth clutchless shift.

Oh, and you can do the slave 100% by yourself if you get a speedbleeder for your replacement slave cylinder.

Awesome, this is the kind of info I need. I would have never thought of a 15mm, even if i dont need it, it might come in handy.

P90Puma

24th January 2007, 14:57

Oh, but I was pissed. :realmad: They caused me to miss a fun weekend with my bud by failing to call me to say that the car would be ready on that Friday. I had to cancel all my plans and go on Monday... But what infuriated me was that never in my phone conversations did they tell me that I'd be picking up a car with a battery that couldn't hold a charge. I had a spare battery at home that I could have brought along, complete with a travel handle!! :rolleyes:

To add insult to injury, I got to the first traffic light and discovered I had no clutch. :mad: How could they not have noticed that if they test drove it?? I pulled over briefly, concluded it was my master, and just kept going. There was no way that I was about to turn back and have that dealer work on my car anymore.

Anyway in retrospect it was funny, and is a good story to tell.

Sorry to hijack, but if you're anywhere near Central NY, (middle of I-88) and are having any problems getting home, you can always contact me. ;)

Gene, I will be travelling mostly on the I-90 not sure how close this is to the I-88, if it is PM me your number, chances are I wont need it but you never know.

Thanks!

P90Puma

24th January 2007, 14:58

Sounds great P90Puma, you are taking an interpreter, eh? :D

Good luck with the car and weather and so on. I'm under the impression that you can't carry a lot of cash anymore. The Cops and/or Robbers will take it away from you.

PS Don't forget an 8MM for the bleed screws.

Thanks for the 8mm tip, another DSM size, also used on the bleeders, didnt even think about it!

I'm probably going to take a cheque and not a big wad of money, not sure yet.

Kenny

24th January 2007, 15:11

Silver Bullet

24th January 2007, 15:19

slottcar

24th January 2007, 16:25

All you need is a bill of sale and a title. I drove my 10AE back from Florida with no tag and got pulled over. Showed the Trooper the bill of sale and explained I had just bought it one hour ago and was on the way home with it and he let me go.

Find that hard to believe since you driving an uninsured vechicle.

P90Puma

24th January 2007, 16:57

Good Luck!!
Could not find one in Southern Ontario?

Wayyy too expensive in southern ontario + rusted. This car was never winter driven.

Finalized the plans: :D

Fill out paperwork this week. Just US border stuff left, and ontario temp plate.

Leave 3-4 AM on Sunday Feb 4th with mom's DD with dad. Split driving 50/50

Get ther sometime in the afternoon. Check the car over, I had the owner purchase a slave for 40 USD at the local NAPA. Swap that in the guy's garage.

Head home part of the way, with the 2 cars.

Spend the night at a random motel.

Come back to the NY/Canada border between 8am-4pm Monday (they only operate during those hours in the week and no holidays) [There is no US holiday on the 5th right?]

Do all the border stuff, pay 206$ for RIV stuff, and 6.1% for duty + 7% for GST.

Drive it home and have some fun with it :D!

Then do all the required RIV stuff and federal and provincial inspections and store the car till the spring.

Thanks Guys! Wish me luck. :wave:

Any extra tool advice would be appreciated (I have a garage full so I can take whatever i need). So far

8mm,10mm,12mm,14mm,15mm,17mm socket+ wrench
Hammer, pliers, ducttape (its a tool), wd40, brake/clutch fuild.

Loren

24th January 2007, 17:11

Vice Grips, adjustable wrench, don't forget screwdrivers. Pick up a gallon or two of water at your first gas stop.

If anything at all gives you problems, the most likely things (other than the clutch slave that's already toast) are probably belts, hoses and plug wires.

Um... really, that's about as prepared as I'd bother to be.

Ed Cruz

24th January 2007, 17:12

Sounds like you got it all covered. Best of luck and Godspeed! Have a good time and tell us all about it when you get back.

Oh....I just thought of something.....bring a digital camera so that you can take pictures to post here.....

P90Puma

24th January 2007, 17:22

Oh....I just thought of something.....bring a digital camera so that you can take pictures to post here.....

I KNEW I forgot something. Thanks!

evolorange

24th January 2007, 17:26

P90Puma

24th January 2007, 17:29

When I had to drive 8 hours to go pick up my 2000 Evolution Orange, we found it cheaper and more convenient to rent a car for a one way trip for 24 hours. For us it was cheaper to rent a car then it was to have the double gas coming back. Plus we were able to switch drivers on the ride back. Just a suggestion.

Unfortunatly thats not a possibility, As I am coming from Canda to the USA. Can't leave the car in the States from a US rental car company.

Formula_Ron

24th January 2007, 17:51

P90Puma

24th January 2007, 17:53

Whenever I caravan it on road trips (i.e. more than 1 car), I bring along those FRS radios/walkie-talkies. It's a great way to keep in contact with the other vehicles and it saves your cell/mobile phone minutes, assuming you even get service on the interstate or back roads. They're really inexpensive too. Over Christmas, I bought a pair at Radio Shack for $20. They have a 14 mile range and came with a recharger.

Yep, allready have a set (actually a few, I use them when going fishing at the cottage) Forgot to mention them in the thread though. Driving in Tandem without walkies sucks period.

moparmiata

24th January 2007, 17:58

Find that hard to believe since you driving an uninsured vechicle.

It was insured. I called my insurance agent two days before I left and he gave me a temporary insurance card so I was covered until I got back home.

mywong23

24th January 2007, 19:35

what else to bring?

latex gloves
cleanup rags
piece of cardboard (to lay on)
can of tire inflator (fix a flat)

P90Puma

27th January 2007, 00:40

Post of the Day:

US Border Guards have a superiority complex over the phone. I get it, I am Canadian, inferior to the US Citizen. Sounded civil up until the point I mentioned I was from Canada not the USA.

Anybody see "The Good Shepherd" recently? With Matt Damon, good movie. A quote comes to mine.

Joseph Palmi: You know, we Italians have our families and the church, the Irish have the homeland, the Jewish their tradition, [edited out the last part] . What do you guys have?
Edward Wilson (Matt Damon): We have the United States of America. The rest of you are just visiting.

Very Apt Quote.

Hopefully the US side doesn't pose problems when I actually cross. On a more positive note the deal is 100% finalized and I am picking up my new 1994 Miata on this wednesday!

old Bill

27th January 2007, 01:20

hacgumyu

27th January 2007, 05:08

Your story is very similar to mine.. This summer me and my GF fly to Vegas brought the 91 NA, it had leaking slave (which I didn't know). On the way to home drive, the car broke down at Idaho cuz it leaked all clutch fluid out and I can't shift into gears. I had to spend the cold night with my GF in a miata outside of the closed auto shop, that's my first night sitting in the miata can't really sleep.

So my advice is please fix it before u leave the town, very cheap. cost me $130 included parts and labor at that Idaho shop.

Another TIPS: buy EAR PLUGS

tom4416

27th January 2007, 08:05

If you are going to do a field repair, you need some way to support the car other than the factory jack. You need to come at the bottom bolt from underneath and don't want to be laying under a car not properly supported.

Have a great trip, hope you don't come across any of that white stuff falling from the sky :D

meatta

27th January 2007, 09:12

Back In Black

27th January 2007, 09:51

Find that hard to believe since you driving an uninsured vechicle.

As mentioned all U.S. Customs wants is the bill of sale and title I assume so they can verify the car isn't stolen or have any liens on it. They didn't even leave the counter to look at the car. Note: They do require this paper work 3 days before you arrive at the border with the vehicle. Some states will accept a fax of the info from the seller in advance (Mich.) but most want the original documents in advance (N.Y.). I drove an extra 3 hours to come back through Mich. to take advantage of faxing option.

Canada Customs wants the same info to process the RIV forms and charge the taxes. As with U.S. Customs they didn't come out from behind the counter to look at my vehicle although it was on a trailer. They asked if it had A/C and I had to run out and check.

The time to bring the car up to Canadian standards is 45 days.

Paul

jay dub

27th January 2007, 13:07

1994M

27th January 2007, 13:34

I forgot to add before that you might want to buy a flare nut wrench. I think you can get one with 10mm on one end and 12mm on the other and they cost about $12. It's well worth having for working on the clutch lines. Now I've never done a slave, I'm just assuming it has a flare nut on the end. But if I had not taken the time to run out and buy one for my master cylinder work, I might have well been screwed.

Gene...Sorry It's a "Line Wrench" and best to use on ANY lines that might require one...be it brake or clutch.

jdmartin

27th January 2007, 17:16

First few hours you'll notice every noise and wonder what's going wrong. You're just "bonding" with your Miata.

! Ain't that the truth ! I go through this same ordeal, no matter what car it is. I wonder in amazement at those that can obliviously drive off into the sunset and not notice the little cracks, creaks, tics, and snarls of an unfamiliar car...

safeharbor

27th January 2007, 21:02

mywong23

27th January 2007, 21:37

did anyone mention radar detector?

have fun !!! enjoy bonding with your new car and your father.

If you need a KM speedo, a friend of mine may still have one, as we did a CAN to US conversion a couple years ago. PM me.

I love a good road trip :D

jay dub

28th January 2007, 00:31

Gene-M

28th January 2007, 01:12

Gene...Sorry It's a "Line Wrench" and best to use on ANY lines that might require one...be it brake or clutch.

Ooookay... The Enthusiasts Manual is where I found the advice to use a "flare nut wrench" (http://www.shop.com/op/~Wilmar_Metric_Flare_Nut_Wrench_Set-prod-17013698-23915960?sourceid=3) to loosen the nut that holds the hydraulic line on to the master cylinder. That's what I bought and that's what I used.

If you do a search for "line wrench" (http://buy1.snapon.com/catalog/search_keyword.asp?keyword=line+wrench) in the Snap-on website, it brings you to the flare nut wrench page. ;)

Either way, it saved me a lot of greif; I'll never again attempt to remove a hydraulic line with one.

P90Puma

28th January 2007, 01:37

did anyone mention radar detector?

have fun !!! enjoy bonding with your new car and your father.

If you need a KM speedo, a friend of mine may still have one, as we did a CAN to US conversion a couple years ago. PM me.

I love a good road trip :D

Thanks for the offer, but the US Speedo is needed for registration and that is what has to be legally on the car. Radar detectors are illegal here in Canada :realmad:

Dicer

28th January 2007, 01:50

Hopefully the US side doesn't pose problems when I actually cross. On a more positive note the deal is 100% finalized and I am picking up my new 1994 Miata on this wednesday!

If you're crossing at the Queenston-Lewiston Bridge you'll want to be there a good while before 4.00pm or the US Customs won't see you. Canadian Customs will do it 24/7.

I'm not sure it matters as far as registering it in Ontario. Last year I imported a bike and they wouldn't see either. The Canadian Customs said they couldn't care and they processed it anyway.

I did offer to the US Customs that I would bring the bike back for them to inspect (a 150 mile trip) but they were so rude and obstructing that I decided to forget about it.

-Clive

P90Puma

28th January 2007, 01:59

If you're crossing at the Queenston-Lewiston Bridge you'll want to be there a good while before 4.00pm or the US Customs won't see you. Canadian Customs will do it 24/7.

I'm not sure it matters as far as registering it in Ontario. Last year I imported a bike and they wouldn't see either. The Canadian Customs said they couldn't care and they processed it anyway.

I did offer to the US Customs that I would bring the bike back for them to inspect (a 150 mile trip) but they were so rude and obstructing that I decided to forget about it.

-Clive

You mean Canada side doesn't care if you export it out of the USA or not?

Any repercussions to this?

just me

28th January 2007, 03:07

Dicer

28th January 2007, 13:45

You mean Canada side doesn't care if you export it out of the USA or not?

Any repercussions to this?

That's what they told me. But I'd try to get it inspected if you can just to keep things in order. I got the bike inspected, certified and registered OK.

In my case, when I offered to bring the bike back for inspection to the US Customs, they told me they had no record the faxed title and I'd need to send it again then wait another 3 days. (I already confirmed that they'd received the title.)

Then the guy told me that if I didn't do this, I'd be stuck with a useless vehicle that I could never register. Go figure.

-Clive.

jb welda

29th January 2007, 14:02

i dont know if anyone mentioned it, but as a british car owner i know for a fact that the most important tool in my tool kit is actually in my wallet: my AAA Plus card!!! dont leave home without it!

one love
jah bill

LeoDLion

29th January 2007, 14:24

stinkonamonkey

29th January 2007, 14:39

I owned 2 DSM's a few years back and know where your comming from. But this is a miata. In stock form you can weild the hood shut they are so reliable. I drove mine 1200 miles home after buying it sight unseen.

Sure take your tool kit, standard sized metric sockets. You'll be fine.

MiatasRUs

29th January 2007, 14:40

P90Puma

29th January 2007, 14:45

I owned 2 DSM's a few years back and know where your comming from. But this is a miata. In stock form you can weild the hood shut they are so reliable. I drove mine 1200 miles home after buying it sight unseen.

Sure take your tool kit, standard sized metric sockets. You'll be fine.

Thanks!

P90Puma - radar detetors are only illegal in some parts of Canada. In BC they're still ok.

Must be nice!

Brika

29th January 2007, 15:36

jdmartin

29th January 2007, 15:53

Ooookay... The Enthusiasts Manual is where I found the advice to use a "flare nut wrench" (http://www.shop.com/op/~Wilmar_Metric_Flare_Nut_Wrench_Set-prod-17013698-23915960?sourceid=3) to loosen the nut that holds the hydraulic line on to the master cylinder. That's what I bought and that's what I used.

If you do a search for "line wrench" (http://buy1.snapon.com/catalog/search_keyword.asp?keyword=line+wrench) in the Snap-on website, it brings you to the flare nut wrench page. ;)

Either way, it saved me a lot of greif; I'll never again attempt to remove a hydraulic line with one.

Thanks for posting this Gene - I suspected as much, but given my limited knowledge of Miatas (not to be confused with automotives in general ;) ), I didn't want to say anything. You say to-may-to, I say to-mah-to.

Ron_H

29th January 2007, 19:44

...I had to spend the cold night with my GF in a miata outside of the closed auto shop, that's my first night sitting in the miata can't really sleep.

That brings back a memory. I think the only thing I liked better on my old '69 MGB than the Miata were the seats (ok, *maybe* the transmission, too, just don't remember it all that well). Back in '70, on a return trip from Colorado to the Bay Area, we did 14 hours straight from Durango CO to Bakersfield. At about 3:00am, we pulled off the highway onto a side road, dropped the reclining seat backs all the way down, took a 3 hour nap (very warm summer nights in Bakersfield) and then drove the rest of the way home. Man, I loved those seats!

Ron

P90Puma

30th January 2007, 20:57

Ok guys, This will be my last post before I head down and pick my new baby up. Here's hoping everything works out as planned.

Will post pictures and stuff when I get back. (Thursday)

Wish me luck!

P90Puma

1st February 2007, 16:55

Back, Bought the car. Have to do some assignments or my prof's will disown me. Post pictures and a writeup later.

PS: For those of you who live in Vermont, I envy you. You have an amazing state!

jay dub

1st February 2007, 18:47

ajp240

1st February 2007, 19:06

97montego

1st February 2007, 19:27

There is also the 72 hour export wait to consider at US customs. Yes, they expect you to stop at the US customs office on the way out of the country. There's no way they can make you do it, and I don't recall any way in which the Canadian Customs would have known if you stopped or not, but I did stop, and left the car overnight, parked on a side street in a small town, to complete the 72 hour wait. If you pre-arrange you can fax the US customs the paperwork as soon as you've purchased the car to begin your 72 hour wait (it took me two days to drive from San Diego to the Canadian border).

I also purchased a temporary insurance policy and permit from ICBC using the fax machine at a ups store, I'd pre-arranged that with my insurance agent before I left to smooth things out. I kept the Cali plates on the car, so I didn't get hassled by any LEOs.

Edit!!!
OOPS! just realized they OP is already home with his new car.

TikiTorch

1st February 2007, 19:36

P90Puma

2nd February 2007, 20:35

http://img245.imageshack.us/img245/1381/miata100ng3.jpg
http://img112.imageshack.us/img112/5994/miata101rv4.jpg
http://img78.imageshack.us/img78/7282/miata110wd9.jpg
http://img58.imageshack.us/img58/5835/miata111gz5.jpg

Few quick pictures.

Full writeup coming. A Few stories to tell.

Trip was made without any major issues.

I had to fix the slave to get moving, however there are some issues with the car.

The main one is a LOUD noise ( a deep hum or rumble , not a clank, buzz, knock or ping), My intial thoughts were driveshaft but was told it is probably a wheel bearing.

Noise gets really loud upon accelration from 30+ mph, and on fast braking, it goes away if you keep a constant speed or slower acceleration.

What would you guys have paid? 94 with 63k miles, mint interior, awesome softtop, bad rear window, kinda poor paint, NO RUST, and the noise I mentioned.

EDIT: And yes i know it has 90-93 wheels, it is a base model with no options whatsoever besides floor mats. Aftermarket: Autopower rollbar and a Pioneer head unit.

P90Puma

4th February 2007, 16:36

Ok, Here's how the story went:

Tuesday night go to bed at 1am. Wake up Wednesday morning 4.30 am. Smart. Pack everything into the suzuki esteem 1.6 sedan. Head off with my dad towards the border. Fill up with 5$ worth of gas here in Canada, since gas is much cheaper in the USA. Garmin GPS guides us without issue to the lewiston bridge.

Potential disaster Averted: Dad is driving and for some reason he always seems to get pulled over by US customs and get the car searched, and the car was packed with tools, food and some electronics. I tell dad to speak clear and consice, we pull up. First question the border guy asks is where we are born, I see my dad pause for like 3 seconds (which is a long time) and then i blurt out Poland! and respond to every question after. After he sent us on our way, my dad mentions he couldnt understand a word the guy said, I'm like dad thats the way americans talk. We would have been pulled over for sure and lost at least an hour and our free lunch.

Head out a few more miles, pay the toll, and press find nearest gas station on the Garmin GPS C330, this thing is golden it basically knows everything in all of north america, but sometimes it sends you on interesting adventures (more on this later) sends us to some kwik fill. We fill up the tank at 2.6xa gallon I think. http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/miata%20031.jpg

Head off to I-90 which we are on for 300 miles, not much to mention except it was a long and boring drive at the beginning and the roads were a bit wet, so wet that we ran out of recently topped up windshield washer fluild from using the wipers that much.

Few pictures from I-90:
http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/miata%20032.jpg
http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/miata%20037.jpg
http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/miata%20041.jpg
http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/miata%20044.jpg
http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/miata%20045.jpg
http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/miata%20046.jpg

1st *** Moment: http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/miata%20048.jpg
This town or village was called Canadaigua , There was a few interesting town names but this one took the cake.

The saviour of the trip:
http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/miata%20053.jpg
Belkin FM ipod transmitter + 4gb nano.

Finally started to see some mountains:
http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/miata%20055.jpg

http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/miata%20056.jpg
http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/miata%20057.jpg
http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/miata%20058.jpg

Finally a city: Albany, New york. Saw my first Miata of the trip, a grey NC
MX5
http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/miata%20063.jpg

Pass through albany without any issues, then finally get to some curvy roads on route 7. We were supposed to keep going, but I didnt have cash on me to pay for the car, we were supposed to go to a bank of america and get a check for it. I look on the garmin and it is telling me everything is back in newyork and nothing is in the direction of where we are going. We still had about 150 km to go. So we pull over in some junkyard to stop and decide what to do, I saw 2 red NA's in the junkyard from where we were. Anyways, so we decide to continue but the garmin puts us on this side road that has huge rally style jumps and some steep off camber corners, and then the garmin puts us back right where we started and tells us to continue. :bang:

P90Puma

4th February 2007, 16:38

We head a bit futher into the next town and pull into a TD waterhouse where a very nice lady working there, logs onto the bank of america website and finds us a branch 10km from the guys house in New Hampshire. We ask where we are and she tells us we are in Vermont! We were suprised as there was no Welcome to vermont signs or anything. So we continue on our way a bit and pull into a car wash as the car had never been this dirty, the 500+ km's on the dirty and wet highway took its toll. I didnt take any pictures however, but i found an amusing sign on the wall of the carwash:

http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/miata%20075.jpg

It's under the US flag.

Speaking of flags, I couldnt even count the number that I saw throught the trip.

Then we end up on VT-9 for 100km, simply the best road I have ever driven in my life. Awesome route through the mountains, long sweeping corners and a few off camber ones that were very fun. My dad was at the wheel, so I only got to drive it once on the way back, and he got two tries at it!

http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/miata%20081.jpg
http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/miata%20084.jpg
http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/miata%20085.jpg
http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/miata%20090.jpg
http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/miata%20091.jpg

Then we made our ways to the next short highway stint, and ended up in battleborough new hampshire. First roundabout I have seen in a long time! Stop at KFC and order buffalo chicken snackers, good value for the money but I wasnt expecting them to be so hot! (spicy wise) must have drank half a liter of co*ke to fix my burnt mouth. Go to the post office and send out a few packages, and make our way to keene newhampshire, on the way there spotted the second mx5 of the trip a grey NB with leather interior and snow tires. My dad exclaims to me look at the size of the tires on that miata! We end up next to it at a stop and my dad reads me the size which was 195/xx/R15, and I'm like dad those are normal size, its just a small car. Make our way to Keene, and go to the bank. Call the seller and ask if a cashiers check is ok, get the money and end up at the guy's house around 4pm.

The miata was parked outside. First of all I was told that the top was yellowed, he never mentioned it was cracked, and the paint was ok at best. A few minor dings but it looked like it has never been in an accident (it had a clean carfax), rang the doorbell and talked to the guy. I have never met someone so cheap in my life. His slave cylinder broke, so he had been driving around with no clutch. Car was 3k miles overdue for the 60k service. Interior was suprising mint, but a bit dirty. The seats were still black. I told him if the car drived as described after we fixed the slave I would give him his money.

Guy starts the car in gear and pulls it into the driveway, after i repeatdly told him I'd prefer to push it in. Whatever. Jack up the car, and check it out underneath and doesnt seem to have any rust at all. Pull out the old slave and it was toast, and put in a new napa one according to the miata.net garage instructions (thanks whoever wrote those), bleed the system and go and take the car for a spin. Not 1min into the test drive an LOUD noise as described in my previous post (that noone commented on, thanks guys :bang: ) starts to occur, and my dad looks at me like ***, I tell him its probably the driveshaft, and it will be ok. We come back to the guys house and I tell him I'll take the car if he gives me back 100$ from the check. He agree's, but he doesnt have 100$ on him, he gives me 30$ and writes a check for 28$. I was like ***, he was like the clutch slave was 42$. I'm like fine whatever, I said id pay for it earlier.

We give the guy a lift into town and drop him off at his other car. Tank up the miata and the suzuki and head off on our way. At this point I still hadent driven the car, only for about 30 seconds when we dropped off the dude, as my dad had told me my mom would have killed him if anything happened to me while driving the still unknown issue in the miata. We get back on route 9 in vermont and we have walkie talkies. I radio a few times asking to drive my OWN car that I paid for, and my dad radio's back each time laughing and telling me I am driving the van from now on. :D I'm glad he enjoyed himself, because he usually doesnt enjoy driving. He wasnt driving very fast, at or under the 50mph limit, and he told me he kept it under 3k rpm the whole time. I was doing the same in the suzuki, but at times needed to go to 5-6krpm to catch up when the miata got ahead. He was probably at 2/10ths and I was at 5/10ths at times catching up. Fun ride!

Second Police encounter of the trip: First was a speed trap I avoided on the I-90 but this one I thought was going to end up worse. At one point VT-9 becomes a 45mph road, and I was going around that speed when I saw another car coming up behind me, this was unusual because there was almost no traffice whatsoever on VT-9, was just me and my dad for the most part. I thought to myself those look like impala headlights, but I couldnt be sure. I radio my dad up ahead telling him I think a cop is following me. No sooner do I say that then I see the car's interior lights behind me light up and what looks to be someone looking over at a laptop.

P90Puma

4th February 2007, 16:39

At this point I knew it was 100% a cop and I was going to get pulled over and questioned and asked what a car with ontario plates was doing 500km from home. The cop had numerous opertunities to pass me, and he didnt, everytime he didn't I got a bit more nervous. The miata pulls over 500m down the road and I signal to pull over too and change lanes and slow down, as does the cop! But thankfully, I guess he decided better and headed on his way without bothering us. But we kept at least 1-2mph under the limit for as long as VT-9 lasted, incase he setup a speed trap.

We get back to civilization and end up at some random burger king in Troy, i think it was. I make my order, and the guy asks me to repeat it 3 times before he got it right. And then I ask where I am (as in what city), and another girl working there looks at me like ***? I tell her I'm on a roadtrip and would like to know where I am, she goes oooooooooooooooo, Troy. As I was walking away all I hear is like *** why was that guy asking where he was. Anyways get back on I-90 and make it back all the way to Little Falls ny before crashing at a best western.

http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/miata%20100.jpg[/rl]

The room was COLD! Dad turns up the heater but I couldnt sleep for like 3 hours because it was too loud, so I turned it off and fell asleep. Woke up around 7am and my dad was pissed, telling me he woke up shaking from the cold a half hour earlier. :rolleyes: Oops. Take showers, and head to the cars to make our way home. There was some snow on the parking lot so I experimented with some rwd drift for a few seconds, but wasnt 100% with the car and wanted to make it home safe so I desisted.

Finally I drive the miata:

[url]http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/miata%20101.jpg
http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/miata%20102.jpg
http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/miata%20103.jpg

Head on I-90 for 2 hours, and pull into a service station. I'm like hey good opurtunity to do a 180* powerslide. Did it, left 2 black semi circles, on pavement and my dad starts yelling at me once I get out how I am risking myself and the car, and how he was driving the car super slow to make it home safe and how i just risked that. Oops. He didnt talk to me for hours after that. Ate a McDonalds egg/cheese/bacon bagel and headed home. Avoided a few speed traps, and at one point in a daydream I went 100mph and the car would have pulled harder, but didnt want to risk it, and while dreaming was only there for a spilt second. More boring highway driving. did 345 miles from keene where we tanked up and filled 10.9 gallons. 31.5mpg not bad.

http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/miata%20106.jpg
http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/miata%20107.jpg
http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/miata%20108.jpg

Oil pressure was between the 30 and the 60 the whole way. Made it to the border, and picked up two bottles at the duty free and went to export the car at US customs, man US border guys are ****** **** (censored for the children), people treated me like I was less then an insect or something. Got that done and headed back home to canada. Crossed the Canadain border and went into customs where everyone was nice polite and pleasant. paid my fee's and headed home without any issues.

Total distance covered by me 1100km's about the same by my dad.
Time left: 5.15 am wednesday
Time home: 3pm thursday
Total spent: Gas: 3x Suzuki fill 27ish a pop.
2x Miata fill same.
(both still have 3/4 full at home, gas is cheaper in the usa or else i would have managed with just 2x and 1x tanks.)
Toll routes: at least 30$
Hotel: 70$
Food: 25$?
Customs: 500$
Car: ???? What would you have paid?

Few pics of car in neighbours driveway:

http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/miata%20110.jpg
http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/miata%20111.jpg
http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/miata%20112.jpg

http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/zamek%20007.jpg
http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/zamek%20010.jpg
http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/zamek%20011.jpg
http://www.cas.mcmaster.ca/~jakubos/images/Miata/zamek%20013.jpg

Cardinal2B

4th February 2007, 17:25

Great story! I especially like the part where Dad (see I am the Dad in our 2 Miata HH) is driving the new Miata you haven't even driven yet, and he's laughing on the radio and won't let you drive!
So...soon he'll be thinking "you know those Miatas are sure fun...and they sip gas, and we could maybe find another one down there..."
Just like what happened to me! Bought mine yesterday. :wave: :p

VT is full of good roads for these cars. Oh yeah, and it is Brattleboro, VT, not NH. Rte 9 is a real good one east-west. When you have the chance though, Rte 100 runs the length of the state N-S; plan a summer drive on that one!

Ed Cruz

4th February 2007, 17:56

mywong23

4th February 2007, 18:39

congratulations on returning home safely, without incident.
you had the normal runaround and foreigner treatment, but you expected that.
the car looks good - hope it is everything you hoped for and more.
go ahead and take care of all the maintenance stuff, then enjoy your new ride.

thank your father for accompanying and supporting you on the road trip.

welcome to the wonderful world of miatas...

element51

5th February 2007, 01:13

i bought mine for $4900 .. similar condition: it had 61k on it, everything was good except 3 dings, and rear bumper nicked from nyc parking.. the slave was good when i bought it but i have to replace it now b/c its slowly leaking.. the 60k service still isnt done except for plugs/wires, ill do the accessory belts in the summer but the timing belt will wait until 85k.

p.s. watch your coolant, i have to add some every other month, waterpump having a good time with it

Back In Black

5th February 2007, 14:54

I have fond memories of driving the Utica to Albany stretch of I90 a couple years ago when I purchased a Da'Lan hidden hitch and trailer for my NA. The seller was nice enough to meet me in Albany, saving me a couple hours on my trip, so I had to install the hitch in an Albany truck stop. On the return trip I wasn't watching the exits like I should so I missed the Utica exit for my trip north to Canada. My Garmin GPS showed me an alternate route through Rome, to the campground I was staying at, that saved me needing to back track.

A couple fun town names I ran into on side road 46 just north of Utica were "Westernville" and "North Western" just north of it.

The expensive lesson I learned for the trip was you need to pay the RIV fee at the border when importing trailers.

Paul

Back In Black

5th February 2007, 16:17

My Garmin GPS showed me an alternate route through Rome, to the campground I was staying at, that saved me needing to back track.

Here's my trip down as seen by my Garmin GPS. (This brings to light that I'm probably capturing a few more points than I need to while I'm driving :eek: )

Good luck with the car...

mojoinco

6th February 2007, 07:13

just me

6th February 2007, 10:38

P90Puma

6th February 2007, 12:53

Congrats on the car P90Puma, Ok so I'll ask, what did you pay for the Car
and did you find out what the humming sound was? I was thinking the all season tires.
Bill B.

No, I haven't touched the car since I parked it. I doubt I will until spring rolls around.

I'd appreciate more feedback on the sound I was experiencing.

I don't think I will be doing any futher testing until spring rolls around, when I will put on new tires/wheels, 60k service and fix whatever issue is going on now. I think it is the wheel bearings.

I paid 2500 USD for the car. (Watch the thread explode now) It will probably be double that in CAD funds after everything is fixed and the car is licensed.

just me

6th February 2007, 22:43

DJW49

6th February 2007, 23:55

Cardinal2B

7th February 2007, 11:17

I'd appreciate more feedback on the sound I was experiencing.
... I think it is the wheel bearings.

I paid 2500 USD for the car. (Watch the thread explode now) It will probably be double that in CAD funds after everything is fixed and the car is licensed.

Given that you bought it from a do-it-on-the-cheap sort of fellow (that's actually a matter of some personal Yankee pride in NH, IIRC) the wheel bearings are a strong possibility; he might've "done them himself, and made 'em good and tight" ...happened to me on a Karmann Ghia OUAT. Makes a howl.

P90Puma

7th February 2007, 11:56

Given that you bought it from a do-it-on-the-cheap sort of fellow (that's actually a matter of some personal Yankee pride in NH, IIRC) the wheel bearings are a strong possibility; he might've "done them himself, and made 'em good and tight" ...happened to me on a Karmann Ghia OUAT. Makes a howl.

The guy was cheap, but had no mechanical inclination. He had his local mechanic do everything, but only when it became an "issue". :bang: