THSCC Forums

Good luck with the insurance and everything...This makes me think twice about dropping collision and uninsured/underinsured (which I got rid of last month.)

How did the wreck actually occur? Was the guy turning, or did he just weave onto your side of the road? That road looks perfectly like it is perfectly straight with good visibility.

_________________
I sold my Saab to the devil...
And all I got was this crappy SUV.

Kevin:

Just glad you are ok. Miata may have been cursed but it protected
you impressevely well.

All I can say is you need to get a lawyer. With un-insured moterist
you sue your own insurance company. There are medical costs you are
entitled to recover that your own insurance company will not make
you aware of, or will try and collect from you.

Penny settled on her car right away but did not settle on
the medical claim. We expect to go through arbertration
sometime this summer.

Best you can do is turn this one over to the pro's.

_________________
Mark Vitacco
THSCC TT Chairman
mvitacco@bellsouth.net

Hey Kevin,

Glad you're ok and sorry about your Miata- may it "rest in pieces." It sounds like you never had the Miata long enough to really give it a chance as an autox car. It does seem to have made a better demolition derby car than I would have expected.

For your next car, I might suggest a 1958 Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham. We had one of those when I was kid. A lady with pink curlers in her hair ran into the back of that car, while it was sitting stopped because of flagman at a road construction area. A brand new 1971 or 74 Ford LTD hit us at about 60 mph. The engine from her car was just about in her front seat. It knocked our Caddy several hundred feet down the highway- with the brakes locked. Let's see, aside from nearly splattering us all on the rear windshield, the damage to the Caddy was amazingly slight. It cracked a rear taillight, and left a crease across the trunk, jamming the trunk so it wouldn't open. From 20 feet away, you could not tell the Caddy had been hit. An automobile reconstruction friend of mine said that back in the 50s, after a major head on collision, they just hosed the blood off the dashboard and put the cars back on the lot for sale. Thank God the car companies have learned something about crush zones and occupant protection since then!

Before giving suggestions on "rides", you gotta tell us what you've decided you like in a car. At least some general categories like- FWD or RWD? High horsepower beast? or lower HP, good-handling, furreign car.

Which did you like better- Trans Am or Miata on course?

You going to do track stuff? or just want a good autocrosser?

Or maybe a rallycross beater?

Miles

Miles,

Good to hear from ya. May a Caddy CTS? But seriously folks. I really liked the Miata. They are very quick and nimble. It's like they almost drive themselves. With 14" Azenis delivered to the door for $215/set, you have to love the operating costs of the Miata. I really loved the rag top too. For me, the 2 negatives regarding the Miata are flexibility and leg room. You also take naps on the straight aways on track.

I'm of the opinion that smaller, flexible cars get "tracked out". What I mean by this term is that the unibodies on these cars is not rigid enough to maintain itself within certain parameters. This results in a vehicle that has unpredictable dimensions that change as the internal stresses relieve themselves...the result of cyclic fatigue. I am of the opinion you will experience this with any non-rigid 7-10+ year old car that is fully used. Makes it really difficult if not impossible to get a consistent performance alignment.

With the Trans Am...POWER!!, along with plenty of leg room. While the TA isn't as well behaved as a Miata, there's never a dull moment. I started thinking about going back to an F-body, but the operational expenses made me start puckering. Tires ain't cheap, and I think there's got to be some way fast and affordable.

What do you do to get the best of both formats?? Check this out:

http://www.angelfire.com/biz6/stalkerv6/

It just so happens I have a ragged out '89 S10 with a freshly rebuilt 2.8 V6 sitting in the driveway. Maybe its time I did something with it.

_________________
“I feel safer on a racetrack than I do on Houston's freeways.” - A.J. Foyt

Kevin Butler
Mobetta Autosport Spec E30 #612
2003 C5 Z06 Corvette
AFR Miata, SM2 61, '93 w/200 SC'd RWHP - soon to be resurrected
Waaaay too many other projects....