MX-3.com

Yeah, I'm just reluctant to put the new dash in with this Florida sun. It's actually been re-upholstered. There was a tiny crack when I pulled it. I guess I should get one of those windshield shades.

On a side note, my springs are set to arrive on Tuesday. Literally took forever for my buddy to send them. Can't wait to put them in. Should be a 2 inch drop or so. Of course, I'll post pics of the process.

Speaking of pics, on Tuesday I'm going to install the new front harness I got. I plan on posting plenty of detailed pics of that as well.

=o awesome! Before I got my mx-3 , the last owner had it sitting in the sun in NC for a little under a year , than sat in my yard in VA for another 2 years yet the dash zero cracks. The humidity has caused a lot of my fabric to un-glew itself though. I herd Florida was a lot dryer thought. Do you suffer the same problems?

I don't know if you can tell from the pictures, but the fabric on my door panels is long gone. I'll probably have to strip them and possibly do some fiberglass work. With all that sitting your car did, I'd say you're pretty lucky.

UPDATES!!!

First of all, got the new harness installed. Here's the old harness:



Had to strip most of the exterior...



...and of course the dash. Not much to look at, but still a fun picture of a stripped interior.

Also, my springs arrived today!





More to come whenever I get around to installing them...

10 points oof for pink steering wheel cover. No soup for you now, NEXT!
Good work so far.

Daninski wrote:10 points oof for pink steering wheel cover. No soup for you now, NEXT!
Good work so far.

For the record, it used to be red. Cheap aftermarket crap + Florida sun. Pretty sure I want a Protege wheel anyway.

its WILD how much those engine harnesses cost brand new from mazda, there like 1200 for some wires

kulluminati777 wrote:its WILD how much those engine harnesses cost brand new from mazda, there like 1200 for some wires

Yeah, I tried to get a new one, but ouch! That was just too much. I was lucky to find a used one. Even luckier that it had all the same options as my old one. Until now, I've never had reverse lights because of an ATX to MTX swap. My old harness never had the wires.

Well, got the back springs on today. A noticeable drop, but I'm hoping it'll get a little lower once I put the the fronts in as well. Not too low, though. My driveway's kind of steep. At least the back no longer looks jacked up. The only issue is, I won't be able to drive it for a little bit, so I guess the new setup will just have to wait to get broken in and whatnot.

On with the pics!

Before:



After:



Old crappy spring:



New ride height:



More shots when I finish the job...

Finished the front springs about an hour ago. Here's the results:







I think I may go with a slightly larger tire to fill the gap a little more. Personally, I think it would look better on my rims anyway. On a side note, I really need some MS emblems for my center caps...

Just realized you shaved your door handles. I assume yo have poppers. Do they work well for you?

Works great until the battery dies. I rarely ever have passengers, so I only have a popper in the driver's side. The next project on my list is a release cable for the driver door just in case. Gets kinda old climbing through the trunk.

If you're looking at poppers, I'd recommend solenoids rated for 75 lbs. or more. Our doors are old and tend to get sticky with anything less. Plus, you'll need that much pull in order to keep the interior handles attached.

I'd also recommend JB Welding the lock mechanism in the unlocked position. I bumped mine accidentally when I was working in the door once. Lucky the door panel was off...

Tried to put the recovered dash in today and realized that some of the plastic is broken off where the trim pieces screw on. Also, the new vinyl is too thick and the driver side underneath panel won't fit into place. Guess I need a new plan...

the rims you have look pretty cool and you want fill any gap with a larger wheel you will just sit higher