Agreed. The other side had the same thing, just not as bad. I'll keep looking!

 

your last set of pictures are too close to see what's going on. if you took a picture like Banzai's of the swing arm place in the wheel well, people could give you better advice.

 

So the 2nd one looked good except for the area referred to as below the bins? Thats why it's known as a rust prone area. Some rust is normal but the metal should still be solid. It shouldn't be soft or feel like you can poke a finger or screwdriver through it. Especially in that area when the trailing arms attach, due to the additional forces applied there.

Anywhere you have enough flaking metal to create actual holes, you have another level of corrosion. Cutting and patching is the only way to fix it and restore structural integrity. Thats where you need to consider if its really worth all the extra cost and effort. Here's a couple pictures of the bin area from the inside. The cleaner the better.

 

Those are great looking bins! I assume the rust starts from underneath the car and works its way to the top. So if those bins are rusty on the top it probably means its rusted right through. Does that sound about right?

 

You can have rust start up top, and work its way down too, if you had leaking windows, or seals, and water just pools on the inside for some time.

It's smart to check both underneath, and peak inside under those bins to make sure there's no rot on either side. It pays to be thorough.

 

For metalwork in this area I assume its all custom fabrication and no options to buy panels and weld them in?

 

Riggs Rotary in Canada and Rhineharts in PA both specialize in parting out cars. I've saw advertisements from both regarding custom cut sections. You can probably get a whole shell too but it will be pricy.

Again, its normally cheaper to find a nice one yourself. The math usually adds up the same each time. The part out guys buy them from the same sources as you would. They have an advantage that some people seek them out because they are in the business of paying to remove old eye sores off their property.

 

Kurt Robertson Rotary out of Portland has been selling off a lot of stuff lately too. I've saw a couple different engineless, 1st gens for up for sale, fairly reasonable, with the option of him building an engine to go with them. His main business is building motors but has accumulated a bunch of other stuff along the way.

Don't know their condition, but the Pacific Northwest has a lot of nice survivor vehicles.

 

I'm in Canada and winters really kill these cars so at an even extra disadvantage. It might be worth looking to import a shell from the US.

 

Where in Canada are you located? I’m in the states but need to sell my FB since I have too many cars/not enough space. The car needs work, buts it runs and drive and I think you’ll be a lot happier not have to restore so much rust and having a lot of the mechanical stuff working from the get go.
If you go thru my profile you should see the ad I posted in the cars for sale/buy section.

 

I'm in Toronto. Importing a US car would be my last resort due to our terrible dollar value, duties, shipping, import fees etc. it's a pain. I will check it out though.

 

Yeah Toronto is too far from me unfortunately. I was hoping you were in Vancouver, then the drive down wouldn't be terribly far to Oregon.

 

Ya saw that. Way on the other side of the country. Your car is really nice, looks to be in great shape.

 

What do you guys think of this one? I noticed the drivers side rail looks pushed in. Wondering if this is a red flag?

 

That looks much better - I would get that for sure. The rail pushed in isn't a dealbreaker - it might have been skidded along a flatbed or something like that. The rails are relatively thin sheet metal so it doesn't take much to deform them.

 

Yes its the cleanest one I found so far. Only issue is that it's an automatic but he started with the manual conversion already.
No engine. It's a GSL-SE so I'll need to find a 13B motor. My guess that is going to be hard to find and risky because if the housings are toast... finding replacement ones are not easy and probably very expensive!

 

The GSL-SE 13B housings are still available. Not for cheap though. Check MazdaTrix's site.

 

The GSL-SE never came with an auto. Given how old these cars are, anything could have been swapped around at some point previously. ^Like he said - parts are still available, but not cheap.

 

Yeah, i would doublecheck the claim of being a GSL-SE given the auto situation. Does it have the right bolt pattern wheels? That is usually the dead giveaway from the outside barring having an engine installed.

 

I asked about the rear diff and didn't get an

nswer. It looks like it was replaced. Can you tell what diff this is?

 

The fuel filter tells me it's a GSL-SE, the ones for the carbed cars don't have banjo bolts.

What's weird is that they're cheaper than later housings, even the Renesis'.

 

Here is the engine bay. The clutch master cylinder is missing which makes this really strange if the GSL-SE never came in automatic.

 

check 8th digit in the vin. JM1FB331-12A, JM1FB332-13B making it an SE.