Background
Alright, let's start this project. It all more or less began on February 10th of this year. The original idea was to participate in the Roadster Challenge within the framework of TimeAttack Germany with my gray Mazda MX-5 NC (Helena). As of early February, there was still a lot to be done on my gray NC to be ready for the first race on April 5th: sealing the leaking differential, installing various oil coolers, brake cooling, converting to a 6-speed transmission, ...
After the regulations for the smallest class of the Roadster Challenge were raised from 170 hp to 200 hp, frustration set in, and the thought crossed my mind: Do I even want to participate anymore, or should I just let it go? That would also mean less effort for me...
But then, a new idea quickly emerged, initiated by Erik Raab: there’s actually a black and red, modified MX-5 NC in a container on the Zelte Raab premises. It’s been sitting there since 2018, and has had no engine for 7 years after a motor failure. The repair was started but never completed. However, theoretically, with an engine, it would be a perfect base to start in the Roadster Challenge. The car just needed to be inspected, and then I would have to decide whether to take on the project of getting the NC back in working order. But first, it has to be taken out of the container!
Moving into the workshop
Exactly that happened on the evening of Monday, February 10th, 2025. During the day, the trailer, which had been parked in front of the container, was moved, so Chris and I finally had access to the container. We then started by clearing away everything that had accumulated in front of and on top of the car over the past few years.
After that, we were able to lay down the ramps. We then tried to pull the NC out of the container with Chris' Audi A4. It turned out to be much harder than originally thought. Once the NC was hooked up and I sat inside to steer, nothing happened at first. There wasn’t even a jerk when the Audi started pulling. Slowly but surely, the NC began to move, but even down the ramps, it had to be pulled with a lot of force. Once we managed that, we were able to cover the few meters to the workshop, although it turned out to be difficult to get the NC properly positioned on the lift. Manual pushing was out of the question.
Still, after about two hours, we finally managed to get the NC on the lift. Upon inspection, it turned out that the base is in pretty good shape. The currently fixed seat definitely needs to be repositioned, and the car has some rust spots, but nothing that can't be fixed in the short or long term. So, the evening ended quite positively, but also with the decision to be made: Now that I’ve had a closer look at everything, can I get the NC race-ready within 1.5 months—with all the issues that will surely arise along the way—and do I want to take on this effort?
Kurze Berichtigung vom Ex Fahrer: das letzte Rennen war im Oktober 2018 in Hockenheim.
Bin gespannt, wann Erika das erste Mal wieder brüllt.