Comments on: New 90 Miata purchase – Bad Luck already http://www.miatamazda.com/new-90-miata-purchase-bad-luck-already Wed, 08 Feb 2012 21:01:38 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: admin http://www.miatamazda.com/new-90-miata-purchase-bad-luck-already/comment-page-1#comment-5205 admin Sun, 31 Jan 2010 18:38:20 +0000 http://www.miatamazda.com/new-90-miata-purchase-bad-luck-already#comment-5205 <p>Henry Payne wrote: <br /> > Purchased my second Miata Friday - a red 90 model, 63k miles, original <br /> > owner, older couple (with 4 cars - 2 drivers), all records from new, garage <br /> > kept,  looked good, drove well - bought it 7k even. <br /> </p><p>> Drove it all weekend (after oil changes etc.), took on road trip yesterday. <br /> >  After 500 miles of use, the car shuddered from start up in 1st.  No <br /> > problems with other gears, only starting in 1st. <br /> </p><p>> Got home, put the car on stands, and found oil dripping from bell housing. <br /> > No smell, appears to be engine oil.  Rear main seal? Read shop manual.  Not <br /> > as easy to pull tranny on Miata as I would have thought. <br /> <br />It sounds like the proper diagnosis -- the seal blew, squirting oil all over <br /> the face of the clutch, causing lockup problems. <br /> </p><p>> 1st QUESTION: The factory manual is a bit vague on pulling the PPF from the <br /> > diff.  Many warnings on what not to do. The "Miata Enthusiast Manual" gives <br /> > much more information, but it conflicts in some ways with shop manual. <br /> > Who out there has pulled the PPF from a Miata?  Is it simpler than the book <br /> > makes it sound?  I've done many tranny pulling jobs on other cars, never a <br /> > Miata, so the PPF thing is a new one on me...looks neat though...all that <br /> > aluminum. <br /> </p><p>> 2nd QUESTION:  After the rear main seal is replaced, should I buy a stock <br /> > clutch/pressure plate, or go with some other hiperformance model.  If so, <br /> > whose is good? <br /> <br />If you are planning to install a turbo or super, now is the time to spend an <br /> extra $200 or so to install a Flyin' Miata kevlar clutch. You might want to do <br /> this anyway, as you will never burn out the FM clutch under normal or heavy <br /> use scenarios. <br /> </p><p>> 3rd QUESTION:  What is the history/frequency of rear main seal failures on <br /> > the Miata? <br /> <br />This is the first trouble I've read about, although with the weird oil <br /> capacities on this car, if somebody just threw in 5 quarts, and did it enough <br /> times, then the seal would be exposed to oil pressure in addition to crankcase <br /> gas pressures, and would be prone to leakage. <br /> </p><p>> Thanks for any advice.  The red Miata was for my son, so he wouldn't drive <br /> > his mom's blue 90 model all the time ... so at this point in time he is one <br /> > sad puppy, and his old man looks like a big dummy for not finding this <br /> > problem before he forked over the cash.  As an aside, bought the blue 90 <br /> > last year from used car lot, with 65k on the clock.  No idea on how it was <br /> > maintained, how it was driven etc.  It now has 95k and still runs great. <br /> > So much for service records and talking to the owner. <br /> </p><p>> What does this prove?  Buying used cars is a gamble! <br /> </p><p>> It also shows that I am a nut, because I own two Miatas, and can't drive <br /> > either of them.  My RX-7 does fit in because it is white, so we have the <br /> > full patriotic spectrum of red, white and blue. <br /> </p><p>> HP <br /> <br />Good luck -- I hope your son helps you turn the wrench on this puppy so that <br /> he learns the potential trouble of over-servicing the engine. By the time the <br /> job is done, he'll hate the former owner! <br /> -- <br /> </p><p>Nick <br /> </p><p>Soldier, seeing Patton standing in moving Jeep: "Where ya goin' General?" <br /> </p><p>Patton: "Berlin! I'm gonna shoot me a paper-hangin' son-of-a-bitch!" <br /> </p><p>Come visit my home page @ http://www.concentric.net/~greek/ <br /> </p> Henry Payne wrote:
> Purchased my second Miata Friday – a red 90 model, 63k miles, original
> owner, older couple (with 4 cars – 2 drivers), all records from new, garage
> kept,  looked good, drove well – bought it 7k even.

> Drove it all weekend (after oil changes etc.), took on road trip yesterday.
>  After 500 miles of use, the car shuddered from start up in 1st.  No
> problems with other gears, only starting in 1st.

> Got home, put the car on stands, and found oil dripping from bell housing.
> No smell, appears to be engine oil.  Rear main seal? Read shop manual.  Not
> as easy to pull tranny on Miata as I would have thought.

It sounds like the proper diagnosis — the seal blew, squirting oil all over
the face of the clutch, causing lockup problems.

> 1st QUESTION: The factory manual is a bit vague on pulling the PPF from the
> diff.  Many warnings on what not to do. The "Miata Enthusiast Manual" gives
> much more information, but it conflicts in some ways with shop manual.
> Who out there has pulled the PPF from a Miata?  Is it simpler than the book
> makes it sound?  I’ve done many tranny pulling jobs on other cars, never a
> Miata, so the PPF thing is a new one on me…looks neat though…all that
> aluminum.

> 2nd QUESTION:  After the rear main seal is replaced, should I buy a stock
> clutch/pressure plate, or go with some other hiperformance model.  If so,
> whose is good?

If you are planning to install a turbo or super, now is the time to spend an
extra $200 or so to install a Flyin’ Miata kevlar clutch. You might want to do
this anyway, as you will never burn out the FM clutch under normal or heavy
use scenarios.

> 3rd QUESTION:  What is the history/frequency of rear main seal failures on
> the Miata?

This is the first trouble I’ve read about, although with the weird oil
capacities on this car, if somebody just threw in 5 quarts, and did it enough
times, then the seal would be exposed to oil pressure in addition to crankcase
gas pressures, and would be prone to leakage.

> Thanks for any advice.  The red Miata was for my son, so he wouldn’t drive
> his mom’s blue 90 model all the time … so at this point in time he is one
> sad puppy, and his old man looks like a big dummy for not finding this
> problem before he forked over the cash.  As an aside, bought the blue 90
> last year from used car lot, with 65k on the clock.  No idea on how it was
> maintained, how it was driven etc.  It now has 95k and still runs great.
> So much for service records and talking to the owner.

> What does this prove?  Buying used cars is a gamble!

> It also shows that I am a nut, because I own two Miatas, and can’t drive
> either of them.  My RX-7 does fit in because it is white, so we have the
> full patriotic spectrum of red, white and blue.

> HP

Good luck — I hope your son helps you turn the wrench on this puppy so that
he learns the potential trouble of over-servicing the engine. By the time the
job is done, he’ll hate the former owner!
—

Nick

Soldier, seeing Patton standing in moving Jeep: "Where ya goin’ General?"

Patton: "Berlin! I’m gonna shoot me a paper-hangin’ son-of-a-bitch!"

Come visit my home page @ http://www.concentric.net/~greek/

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