Nope, not until the new Elan comes out. But I have a friend who I expect has a wife that is getting intolerant of a non-running SE in the driveway....

 

Yep, the engine fire most likely was due to a leaking fuel filter under the hood or a totally messed up Nikki. Another rookie mistake. But that greased bleeder valve is priceless.

NC Tim, here's your gratuitous goat video:



Dave getting that engine spinning is going to be interesting, I'll be listening for the proper swoosh swoosh. And I'll do a video of the original start up, of course.

GA Tim, OK, now I get it, 5 Letters. GSL-SE. Dahhh...... I'd be interested in an SE, specially in white or silver with red interior. Fuel injection might be cool.

I scored some unbelievable parts for the White One project, I'll get some photos up soon.

 

oooooh, do tell us what you got!

 

You're going to kill me Dave, one of the three "unobtanium" parts I found is a mint pair of red leather seats from an 83 GSL.

I couldn't believe it when I saw them, and then when he let them go for $52.00 I knew this project was going somewhere.

I'll get some pics tomorrow, it's been rainy today (yes!)

 

im sooooooooo jealous! red leather seats always elude me, lol

 

I know Dave, I feel terrible about it. But here's the pics, including the mint red leather seats.

The most important part was the 85 gas tank, which the White One Project didn't have until Alex volunteered this beauty



I had to go over to Powder Springs, where Alex lives, about a two hour drive, to pick up the tank so before I went I checked ebay and found this:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...K%3AMEWAX%3AIT

So I bought it and it turned out that Toney, the guy that owned it, lives about a mile from Alex. Totally cool.

So before I went to see Alex I picked up the air cleaner from Toney and discovered that he has the mother load of mint 83 parts in his garage.

Here's the air cleaner, it even had the original Mazda factory filter installed.





The best part was the mint red leather seats I saw sitting in his garage. I didn't think I could afford them but turns out he had recently placed them on ebay for $75 without success, so he took my offer of $52, what I had in the wallet.



Am I lucky or what???

 

Nice parts. Finding good parts in Tennessee is impossible. :/

 

Nice score Ray.

 

lucky?? thats an understatement man?! i've been on the hunt for a mint air cleaner lid and some maroon seats, cloth or otherwise for well over a year! i can't think of a better person to have these parts though, so i can't wait to see them on the car!!

 

I'll keep an eye out too Dave, next set goes to you!

For now, I've got to stop buying stuff or my wife is going to kill me. Time to get that project up on blocks, install the tank and see what needs fixing.

 

Those seats look great, Ray. I think I paid $40 or so for the ripped up T2 seats I had in my first FC. Before you know it, this car will be looking better than the silver one...

 

we have sun here, ive never seen leather seats that nice....

 

any updates on this one?

 

No this one is on the back burner for now while I finish up the Silver One and focus on house repairs for the rest of the summer. But sometime in the next few weeks I should have it up on blocks and on to the next stage. I'll post up lots of photos then.

Thanks for your interest, what I hope to show with this project is how you can bring an FB that was headed for the crusher back from the dead with very little effort and expense to make a first rate daily driver, a stable mate for the Silver One.

My biggest challenge right now is finding a nice pair of red leather door panels from an 84/85 GSL or GSL-SE to go with those mint red leather seats I picked up. I have a nice pair of red velor panels from an 85 GSL I could use and also a really fine pair of brown leather panels (also 85 GSL) with all new plastic parts that might work, either as is or dyed red if that is possible. But I'd prefer the stock red panels, a better match for the red leather seats.

 

you could probably just pull the velor part out of the red panels and install some matching leather.

 

Clever idea, I'll look into that. Still getting that stock leather door panel look could be tricky.

I wish I could use the pair of brown leather ones I have, they are in perfect shape with all new plastic, but I'm not sure about the brown color or how to make it work with the red.

Here's a photo:



They might look pretty good in your light beige car, they came out of a light beige GSL.

 

I might think about that but I would need to find an equally good set of seats to match.

 

ive got some red leather door panels, if you like i'd be happy to get pics. CA car so they need to be redyed

 

I'm interested J9, please send me a pm with a couple photos. I kind of like the way those original red panels fade to brown, yellow and green. Here's what I've got in the Silver One, that's the look I'm shooting for:





Chris, brown leather seats in good condition are Unobtanium. But you never know, if you find some seats I got the panels.

 

LOL

last car I got came with a Haynes manual too

 

Yo Ray!!! Good karma you got! You deserve those fantastic finds my friend. Those new red leather seats are a breathtaking find. Congrats!

Keep the faith!

 

I know not what you speak of. I'm using one as a computer chair as we speak.

I swear it is the most comfy chair i've ever had. The base is from a broken ikea chair someone was throwing out, and the adapter is the first thing i ever welded up. The picture is a few years old, but the thing still looks just about brand new after daily usage. The passenger seat is floating around in the garage, and my project car has 2 great cloth seats in it...

 

This makes me miss my old white fb. I was stupid, stupid, stupid for letting that one go.

 

Thanks Mickster, there is even more Good Karma coming for the White One project. On Saturday I am headed over to Billy's (the respeed founder), he is donating those badly needed red leather door panels that I never could find, they are coming out of his wide body project (a black SE with the red leather interior - he doesn't need the interior parts for the race car).

And if that weren't enough, he's also giving me the original white hood that came out of the original White One, the car we all know and love



The original White One ended up in Billy's yard after Chris, who bought it from me as a rolling shell, sold it to him as a parts car after getting rear ended. So Billy removed the hood from the White One, which still has the pristine decals underneath and the nice bright white paint, just like the way I used to keep it. It will be a nice replacement for the current hood on the White One Project, which has that hole burnt it the paint. Billy will use the hood from the White One project for the race car, so it will need to be painted anyway.

Billy also has the White One's front fenders, which I'll be swapping on to the White One Project in exchange for the decent but not perfect fenders that are on it now. So most of the front end sheet metal from the original White One will be on the White One Project. Talk about reincarnation!

I'll snap a few pictures this weekend, when I mount the holy hood from the White One Project on the Silver One, then drive over to Billy's to swap the original White One hood onto the Silver One and load up the fenders, door panels and various hard to find red interior parts that Billy is also donating from his wide body race car project.

Did you guys follow all that? If not, wait for the pictures, it will make more sense.

This I like, great idea. I need to make one of these.

 

All you need to finish it off is a Sexypants III sticker.