Sad story with an ongoing Happy Ending!!!
Sad story with an ongoing Happy Ending!!!
Hi guys!!!
Here's the extremely sad horror story not for people wearing pacemakers or with heart problems!!! I know it's sad and hard to see a car deteriorating (I'm a car lover) and some would like to kick me in my rear, but I promise you, it will have a happy ending. It's not done yet, but it will have one.
It all started back in 2001 I got my first well paid job and needed a car to move around. At the same time I started my aviation school and flying hours are not cheap. A couple of friends from work had were selling their cars. A Honda Civic 86 and a Mazda Rx7 82. Well, I guess that the choice for a 19 year old boy was obvious. I went for the FB.
Turns out that the car had a funny history. It was a donation from the US government to some institution in Costa Rica and at the same time they auction the car. Apparently the engine was damaged and someone replace it for a 1.2 Datsun engine. Now here's where all starts to fall. At the time the guy I bought the car from tried to register the car in the Government Property department but he was having problems since the Datsun engine was still registered in another car. That's where I picked up. Did a lot of research and found out the owner of this already scrapped Datsun car. I asked him to please hand me a bill of sale of the engine, that's all I needed. And he said no....
At that point nothing legal could be done. I was using the car still but since I was driving with an ilegal car I could not go anywhere and I had a big chance of getting the car confiscated by the Traffic Police Department.
So, I left the car in a garage and after a while I bought another car. One day this guy shows in my doorstep asking me if I would sell the FB. I said yes... And told him all the story in detail and that the car could not be registered legal. He said it was ok, it was his dream car and he wanted it. And so I sold the car. We agreed in instalments however he only paid a few ones and like after a year I went back and picked the car back. I then parked the car in a friends shop. One day I went to back and this guy with a neat SA parked outside the bank and so I asked him who was his mechanic. He pointed me to this Rx7 guru and so I went to see him...
I told him the whole story about the car and that if there was anything he could do to help me out. At that moment he told me that precisely he was going to take apart one 82 FB in a few weeks, so he could sell me the car "papers". I was aware that this is completely illegal, however I knew that I bought the car honestly and the government was giving no other choice than do it this way. Believe me I tried all possible ways to register the car legally.
Anyways, a few moths later I had my car legally registered but now I had no engine since I removed and sold the one in the car. I was still going under my aviation hours and money was not enough. Later I bought a Toyota 2.2l 3S-FE engine and a AWD gearbox thinking about the idea of installing it in the car. Of course I couldn't continue with my project because of the money. At that time I was traveling to Argentina to finish my aviation hours so I left Costa Rica for a couple of months. Time went by, I had finished my aviation training, still working in the call center and looking for an aviation job. A while after I was able to start my first job as a pilot with a very low income and of course my FB was left forgotten. It was left out in the shop, no roof, no protection whatsoever. A huge mango fall into the windshield, passenger window broken, plants growing inside the car and rust at it's best.
At that moment my economic situation started to improve so I took the car back home and started to clean it out. My beloved RIP mother help me out and she look happy!
I then took it to a friends workshop and they took all the rust out of the car, and re did the floor.
Here's the extremely sad horror story not for people wearing pacemakers or with heart problems!!! I know it's sad and hard to see a car deteriorating (I'm a car lover) and some would like to kick me in my rear, but I promise you, it will have a happy ending. It's not done yet, but it will have one.
It all started back in 2001 I got my first well paid job and needed a car to move around. At the same time I started my aviation school and flying hours are not cheap. A couple of friends from work had were selling their cars. A Honda Civic 86 and a Mazda Rx7 82. Well, I guess that the choice for a 19 year old boy was obvious. I went for the FB.
Turns out that the car had a funny history. It was a donation from the US government to some institution in Costa Rica and at the same time they auction the car. Apparently the engine was damaged and someone replace it for a 1.2 Datsun engine. Now here's where all starts to fall. At the time the guy I bought the car from tried to register the car in the Government Property department but he was having problems since the Datsun engine was still registered in another car. That's where I picked up. Did a lot of research and found out the owner of this already scrapped Datsun car. I asked him to please hand me a bill of sale of the engine, that's all I needed. And he said no....
At that point nothing legal could be done. I was using the car still but since I was driving with an ilegal car I could not go anywhere and I had a big chance of getting the car confiscated by the Traffic Police Department.
So, I left the car in a garage and after a while I bought another car. One day this guy shows in my doorstep asking me if I would sell the FB. I said yes... And told him all the story in detail and that the car could not be registered legal. He said it was ok, it was his dream car and he wanted it. And so I sold the car. We agreed in instalments however he only paid a few ones and like after a year I went back and picked the car back. I then parked the car in a friends shop. One day I went to back and this guy with a neat SA parked outside the bank and so I asked him who was his mechanic. He pointed me to this Rx7 guru and so I went to see him...
I told him the whole story about the car and that if there was anything he could do to help me out. At that moment he told me that precisely he was going to take apart one 82 FB in a few weeks, so he could sell me the car "papers". I was aware that this is completely illegal, however I knew that I bought the car honestly and the government was giving no other choice than do it this way. Believe me I tried all possible ways to register the car legally.
Anyways, a few moths later I had my car legally registered but now I had no engine since I removed and sold the one in the car. I was still going under my aviation hours and money was not enough. Later I bought a Toyota 2.2l 3S-FE engine and a AWD gearbox thinking about the idea of installing it in the car. Of course I couldn't continue with my project because of the money. At that time I was traveling to Argentina to finish my aviation hours so I left Costa Rica for a couple of months. Time went by, I had finished my aviation training, still working in the call center and looking for an aviation job. A while after I was able to start my first job as a pilot with a very low income and of course my FB was left forgotten. It was left out in the shop, no roof, no protection whatsoever. A huge mango fall into the windshield, passenger window broken, plants growing inside the car and rust at it's best.
At that moment my economic situation started to improve so I took the car back home and started to clean it out. My beloved RIP mother help me out and she look happy!
I then took it to a friends workshop and they took all the rust out of the car, and re did the floor.
When I asked them how much would they charge me to bring back the car to life the guy told me around $15K USD. So I say no... I honestly think he told me that incredibly stupid amount just because he didn't wanted to work on it. It would've taken a lot time for the workshop to fix so it was not a profitable deal for them.
So again I took the car to another place and kinda forget about the idea of restoring the car....
One day a very good friend of mine called me and told me that there was an another FB for sale so we went to see it and it was in descent shape. Same story, problems with papers so all I got was a bill of sale. Anyway the other car already had a pedigree. My idea then was to restore the first FB with parts from this other FB. Time went by, things coming and going, no time, no money, changing jobs, high income, then changed jobs for better but with a low income, anyway, left both cars on standby. Then I always wanted a Jeep CJ5 and bought a 56 one and since it was an easy job, I decided to start restoring this one first. It took me a while to bring it back to the state I wanted it, and still I'm short by 30% to finish the car, but now I'm in no rush.
At some point I thought about the idea of restoring this second FB however it was not my first car and it didn't have a special place in my heart.
Now, 14 years later, I'm working for an airline in the middle east and pay is good. After a year in the ME, I went back to Costa Rica and finally took care of my FB. Unfortunately many many parts are lost and I have to start from scratch. I will not take any parts from the other FB for the moment since I have a couple of ideas for it. That will have to wait anyhow, but I'll keep it for the time being.
For some years now, I know a guy who works in one of the most prestigious bodyshops in Costa Rica and he help me with my CJ5, so I told him about the FB and he agreed on helping me with this project. Since he has a full time job, he woks during the weekends on the car. Process is going slow but it's headed the right direction.
I'm extremely happy and thrilled about restoring my first car. Extremely happy about this huge community. There are more FB lovers other there than I thought.
Now, present day. I'm fully restoring the exterior of the car, getting mostly new parts so it will look mint!!!! After a long thinking regarding the color, I narrowed the options to Black as it originally was or Red. I chose red color just because the car has so many black details like the mirrors, handles, surrounding body and windshield trim that makes it look nicer than going for back, all these details will be lost.
After that, I will go for the interior. I have already bought a brand new discontinued console, ash tray, panel centre pocket switches and *****. I have already been giving an unexpected gift from a member. A beautiful analog clock in excellent condition. Can't wait to have it in my hands.
I'm also planning on getting a newer (not new) Mazda rotary engine, but that will take a while now. I still need to do a lot of research and need some time to finish the exterior and interior.
Trending Topics
Getting a lot more parts for it. Here are some more pictures of the progress.
This is me on the blue shirt doing some paper sanding....
Those parts are a pain in the ......, but the prize to see them in metal with no rust is priceless.
This is me on the blue shirt doing some paper sanding....
Those parts are a pain in the ......, but the prize to see them in metal with no rust is priceless.
After some extensive detailing body work, the whole body is running the last primer before the paint, I just can't believe how good she's looking!!!! h[b[ h[b[ h[b[
Still a long way to go, but definitely less than before, one step at a time!!!!
Still a long way to go, but definitely less than before, one step at a time!!!!
You guys are right, looks like a different car...
Alright, so here I come with new updates.
-All exterior has been covered with the final primer.
-Door hinges set where they have to be and painted red. Not the official red, but just to set them in the proper place.
-Interior floor, fenders on the inside coated in black.
They are working on the undercarriage now... Hopefully will have some updates soon.
Alright, so here I come with new updates.
-All exterior has been covered with the final primer.
-Door hinges set where they have to be and painted red. Not the official red, but just to set them in the proper place.
-Interior floor, fenders on the inside coated in black.
They are working on the undercarriage now... Hopefully will have some updates soon.
Next steps:
-Install sound and heat proof material covering all interior. For that I will be using SecondSkin Automotive insulation. They sell a Corvette Kit that will perfectly work on the FB.
Corvette Package - Second Skin Audio
-Final Paint
-Install all weather seals, window regulators and window and quarter rear glass.
I'll be traveling to Costa Rica soon, so you'll see a big update.
So far, engine bay is ready and I have bought a new set of wheels. As one of these coincidences in life, I found this guy selling an almost brand new set of S2 wheels, so, even though the price was quite high, I figured I would end up paying more if I ship my wheels to the USA, have them refinish and ship them back to CR.
So far, engine bay is ready and I have bought a new set of wheels. As one of these coincidences in life, I found this guy selling an almost brand new set of S2 wheels, so, even though the price was quite high, I figured I would end up paying more if I ship my wheels to the USA, have them refinish and ship them back to CR.
