Miatatom

Reminds me of a '40 that was for sale when I was 16. They only wanted $60 and all it needed was some wiring work. My Dad vetoed the idea. I didn't have any source of income so this would have been my Dad's burden, but man I wanted it so bad.

Great idea, he'll love it! GO VOLS!!!!!

Excellent replica! I wish SpeedTV still had Thursday Night Thunder where midgets and monsters like your replica tore it up on dirt tracks.

I like everything about it! The design concept is really excellent.

Yes, it does. Thanks a lot!

What colors of metalizer are you using? Different tones under different color coat?

You can make a boot lid. Cobra's aren't a complicated shape.

Thanks, Bryan.

Go for it! My car inspired several builds in the area where I live. I did a lot of things to mine that added a lot of extra work like rounding the leading edge and rear edge of the cockpit opening. The Factory Five is flat and I wanted it to look like the real thing. The rear on the Factory Five sticks up too high too so it had to lower it. Hiding the bolts that hold the body onto the frame had to go. I would have finished it several months sooner than I did but sometimes that anal retentive stuff kicks in. I'd do one a lot simpler if I did one again. In fact, a buddy in our Miata club wanted to know if I'd do another one. I told him no, just can't hold up physically to that kind of work. Get that gal through law school and do it. You'll be glad you did. I was.

I love it! It's just like on my brother in law built. You did a great job!

Yeah, I built it. It was a lifelong dream to own one and then when I owned one I found out what a PITA it is to own one. A buddy that had one told me but I didn't listen. His had a real 427 side oiler. Mine was a breathed on 302 out of a SCCA American Sedan race car. They're hot, loud, no AC, no top, the fuzz want to stop you all the time, etc. It was a Factory Five with a bunch of mods. It started out to be a standard build but as I went along, I was a member of a forum http://www.ffcars.com/ which gave me a lot of ideas, so I changed it quite a few times. The rear of the body was lowered quite a bit necessitating cutting the upper frame structure and rewelding the supports plus rebuilding the door openings. I still have that license tag (65 Cobra) hanging in my basement. The guy that bought it from me only lives about 3 miles away. The only thing I didn't do was the paint. My brother in law shot it. I did all the body work, priming and prep though as well as all the assembly. It was a lot of work and a lot of fun. I was pretty proud of the finished product. The color was a Miata color, Merlot. The new owner repainted it black. He rides a Harley so what would you expect. Still looks good but I don't think it looks as good as it used to.. I was asked recently if I'd build another one for someone but my 68 year old back won't allow it. That's why I'm doing models again. If I was capable, I'd jump into to it but years of racing motorcycles, a broken back in 1989 (racing a go kart) and a ruptured disc in 2004 (throwing up) have pretty much put all that nonsense to a stop. I've had my fun though. PS I've got a great workshop now, but that one was built in my garage and in front of it at my last residence. Painted it there too.

I've got a Willys sitting on the shelf. You may have given me an idea. I really like it! What did you use for the roof and sides?

I've got a Xbox and Forza 4. My tag is Miatatom34 Maybe we should form some sort of racing league. The local SCCA used to designate a car and a track and have folks run it and they'd compare best times. Maybe when it gets cold, we could race once a month or something?

Wild! I used to own a 61 Falcon Ranchero. I lived in Oak Ridge, TN and it was an old Atomic Energy Commission vehicle. I put some mags on it and a C4 transmission. It was a neat ride. I want to build a replica of it some day.

I looked at all 403 pictures. That was a great show!

I second that, beautiful job.

Dude, that is really nice. The wiring is awesome. I look at stuff like this and wonder if I'll ever build anything even close. Something to strive for. Keep it up! Here's some pics of the 1:1 that I built a few years back. http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v705/baddogracing/Cobra/

They're not something that I'm in to, but some of them are very creative. I like the ultra low wicked look but I'd prefer if it shines.

Miata and beetle, apples and oranges. They were designed and marketed to entirely different demographics.

OK, well let's go with the most glaring figures. Solstice total US sales = 114,773 (production discontinued due to poor sales). Miata total US sales = nearing 500,000, with over 1,000,000 sold world wide. It's still being produced and sold and going into it's 4th redesign. It's the largest selling 2 seat roadster in world history.

Truck bed? Yeah, paint it black and use it as a bed liner.

Nice build! Your friend should be very happy.

I still like the 58 Chevy, if we've got to talk Chevys. The Solstice, I wouldn't trade my 12 year old Miata for one.

Maybe it's more popular than I thought. A local friend watched the first 4 seasons in less than a week to get caught up. I too like the 150 more than the "tarted up" Bel Air.

That is just the coolest thing. It's something she will remember from now on. Bet it makes you smile big time. 8^)