[ohmycivic]

Found it in Greenville, WI with 91k original miles, got it for $850. Haven't even gotten it home yet (need another driver) but I'll have it safely in my driveway tonight when I can find another driver -- having weekdays off is lonely...

This is an $850 car, make no mistake. Needs a new and oil pan gasket, and the radiator is on its last legs (replacements for both came with the car, and I'm capable of doing that level of work). While it runs like a song, it's pretty beat up both inside and out. Nothing that'll affect safety, but things like missing locks, buttons, etc and general ugliness are bothering me. I've driven cars in worse condition, but considering how hard I've looked for one of these I'm inclined to make it reflect my pride in finding one.

Down to business. I want to find a shell to drop the engine into. While I'm at it, some MPG modding wouldn't hurt. I'm not really a "car guy" (in fact, I more-or-less gave up on my last project, Unmodding the '91 Civic DX, since it just didn't seem worth the effort) so I don't really know what this'll involve. I guess I'd like to know what I can drop the engine into? Obviously 90-94 Metro shells, but what would it involve to plop it into a '95 or later Metro? What about a Miata, Civic, or VW? I'm really only considering hatchbacks (except in the case of an oh-so-cool Miata) since I'm a pizza delivery driver. Should I bother plopping it into a Mazda MX-3 shell I've found? Ideally I'd redo the whole frame as aluminum tubing, but fabrication at that level is beyond my ability.

Also, what are some MPG mods I could do? I've heard of swapping out the fifth gear for better ratios (don't know if I should do this considering I'm delivering pizza and cover the full range of 15-25-35-45-55-65 MPH every day) and replacing computers, but are these things I'm capable of? To give an idea of my abilities, about the most complex things I've done without a Haynes manual are swapping out a starter, changing spark plugs and disc brake pads, and installing stereo systems. I am mechanically able enough to do anything in a Haynes manual, though.

I have a remaining budget of about $1150, and winter is fast approaching. Down time for the car during projects cannot be more than 10 hours at a time since I need to drive it at least every other day and that's about all I can afford to spare from the rest of the stuff I have to get done on my days off.