Sub £1000 MX5. Good/Bad Idea?

[warren t claim]

As the thread title says really. Noticed a few winter bargains and pondering whether or not to have a look for one. I know they can rust like a Lancia but other than that do they get the AS seal of approval?

[Baz]

I was having similar thoughts myself....I definitely would!

[skattrd]

rwd convertible in winter ... sounds like an excellent idea to me

[cobblers]

Brilliant idea. Good fun to drive, not enough power to get you in real trouble. No chance of surprise DRIFTU action in the dry, wet is a different matter with P6000s on. Gearchange is an absolute joy.

 

They do rust for fun, but the mechanicals last really well. There'es been one in my family for about 3 years, all it's needed is a clutch slave and a battery. If it does fuck up, they are easy to put right and the parts are all cheap and pretty easy to get hold of - there's no major common faults to cause parts prices to rocket on them, at worst you'll have a sticky tappet or two. An engine flush often will cure it.

 

 

Get one that's not that rusty with a halfway good roof (hardtop ideally) and it'll last you til you get bored of climbing all that way in and out of it. I'm young and fairly fit and after about a year I just lost interest and gave the car to my mum. She absolutely loves it though and soldiers on even though her back and neck are quadraspazzed since someone ran into the back of her (in the MX5 which only needed a new back bumper)

[HMC]

I made a bit of an impulse buy last month, 500 on e bay. Mines not perfect, had plenty of T&T and is just great fun, especially with the budget tyres it has presently and slippery roads. Theres loads around below a grand, utter bargains IMO. I suspect they may have an image problem, but when has that ever been an issue on here?

[dollywobbler]

I can't understand why they're so cheap. Must purely be down to the sheer abundance of the things. Rot in the rear of the sill can spread into the wheelarch and even the entire back wing if not attended to and timing belts need replacing every 54k miles IIRC. I know of one with over 300,000 miles under its belt. A Eunos will probably have more kit, but quite a few of those are autos.

[cobblers]

They're non interference (apparently) so don't worry over the belt too much. My mums has 105k on it, probably on the first cambelt.

[warren t claim]

To be honest, I'd prefer a Mk1 CRX but most of them seem to of rusted away and the survivors fetch good money off mongs who think they're something special.

[warren t claim]

Here's the sort of thing I'm looking for, history and a sensible mileage

http://classifieds.pistonheads.com/clas ... 990/906862

[ypsilandra]

IMHO one of the few cars that look better with simple steel wheels and a lot less potential pain than the wonderful Barchetta

[HMC]

I didnt see any recent cambelt bills in the history with mine, but the 1.6 at least is non interference. Theyre cheap due to simple supply and demand, most average buyers have moved on to newer stuff, people don't really view them as a classic. Plus they made over half a millon of them, and despite the rust factor, they are quite hard to kill. I think of it as the autoshite version of a 60's lotus elan for people who are skint

[cobblers]

but the 1.6 at least is non interference.

 

I hope the 1.8 is as well otherwise I'll be busy next weekend!

[Guest]

To be honest, I'd prefer a Mk1 CRX but most of them seem to of rusted away and the survivors fetch good money off mongs who think they're something special.

 

CRXs are ace, but I haven't seen one for sale for ages and as you say, even rough ones appear to be treasured even though the OMG VTEC B16 action was reserved for the Mk2. The earlier models were based on the Ballade I think and were pretty fragile body wise. They're edging into classic car territory and I suspect spares would be a bit of a bitch to get hold of.

 

I see the MX5 question rears its head again. I'm warming to them slightly despite harbouring an irrational hatred because of the locally modified and cretinously driven examples near me. There are far too many Pistonheads \ OMG EBAY COILOVERS bell-ends nearby and I still haven't forgotten the actions of the local cumfart who nearly ran me off my favourite road. They make a lot of smoke when they spin, I can tell you that much.

 

I'd like a go in one that wasn't terminally fucked and \ or to Federal specification, please. I think for someone with my level of hatred that's fair enough.

 

And they have got a shit image, by the way. Not as bad as a Saxo \ Impreza but I suspect there's good a car lurking underneath, as with the Citroen and Subaru. They're not quick despite what the true driving enthusiasts say.

 

Fair enough?

[RoadworkUK]

Not my cup of tea, thanks for asking.

 

If I wanted lightweight sportster I'd be finding a Westfield and doing all the bolts up again myself. If I wanted a year-round roadster I'd be finding a six-cylinder Z3 (I know they're shit, I just like them more).

 

MX5s are triffic, but the affordable ones have been properly pre-enjoyed by now, and they're just a bit.... obvious? What a twattish thing to say. But I mean it.

[Guest]

Here's another question about the MX-5 that's always struck me as odd.

 

Most of them seem to be owned locally by drift wannabes. Now I'm no expert when it comes to organised skidding, but surely an ideal drift car would be one that's tail happy with more power than the chassis could handle. Something, you know, like a E30 325i or a V6 Ford Capri (it fucking stuns me that drifters don't use these, that's all they fucking do!)

 

If the endless witterings of the car mags are to be believed, rhe whole point of the MX-5 was its balance and handling characteristics - as opposed to brute gobs of power. From what I understand, only the manual Eunos SEs had a locking rear differential, so wouldn't a one six MX-5 be underpowered and shit for drifting?

[cobblers]

wouldn't a one six MX-5 be underpowered and shit for drifting?

 

With an open diff you've got no chance of anything other than a shitty donut unless you're some kind of god at driving.

[Doctormop]

Had a T reg MX5 a few years ago, cost 4k with fsh and hard top, tremendous fun, used all year round but did chuck 2 bags of chicken feed in the back to weigh it down in icy weather, not sure if it helped or not but never had any real problems, thought I do drive like a pensioner on Mogadon!

Kept it 2 years and just fancied a change, sold to a specialist (MX5 city near Doncaster) for 2.5k, had no major problems with it, surely they will never get any cheaper than they are now, Eunos roadsters can be tricky to insure if you don't have a trade policy that covers grey imports.

[Baz]

Here's my much-loved example:

 

 

Sold for £1295 a year or so ago, due to lack of garage....I'm not bothered by "image" personally - If anyone wants to come over and call the sixteen and a half stone, bearded, shaven-headed oaf behind the wheel a poof, let them give it a crack....I'm a sucker for a proper open-topped sports car, and that the MX-5 is such a hoot to drive quickly whilst asking nothing of it's owner in return, makes it the default choice....Unless you can stretch to an S2000 of course!

[Junkman]

Why can't I see anything wrong with a beaten up old rotten sub 1 kilo MX5 for the winter?

 

Well, apart from this maybe:

 

http://www.thedailymash.co.uk/news/soci ... 1204135122

 

 

MX-5 drivers convinced they look cool

13-04-12

 

OWNERS of Mazda’s popular affordable roadster are certain they attract admiring glances, it has been claimed.

 

As the weather improves, the reasonably-priced sports car containing balding men and their wives is once again ubiquitous on UK roads. And according to research by the Institute for Studies, 94% of Mx-5 drivers would describe themselves as ‘cool’.

 

Professor Henry Brubaker said: “Although this little car has obvious merits, it is perhaps less charismatic than the middle-managers and hairdressers that drive it like to believe.

 

“I mean, you wouldn’t see George Clooney driving one, unless he’d just had an incredibly expensive divorce.

 

“However I imagine the man who played the put-upon husband in 90s BBC sitcom Keeping Up Appearances might be a fan.â€Â

 

He added: “The Mx-5 is a bit of a semantic minefield. It says of the driver, ‘I am a maverick who plays by his own rules’ and also, ‘I am sensible enough to appreciate a vehicle with low running costs and reasonably-priced insurance’.â€Â

 

“Is that, objectively speaking, cool? I’d say it’s more mildly endearing.â€Â

 

46-year-old Mx-5 owner Tom Logan said: “Since I bought my little green convertible, it hasn’t exactly cured my mild erectile dysfunction but it has compensated for it.

 

“Driving it makes me feel like a 60s secret agent, albeit a relatively junior one on a modest pay grade.â€Â

 

He added: “When I’m not using it I keep the Mx-5 zipped up in a special bag, like a car-shaped musical instrument.â€Â

[meshking]

Great idea, I had a eunos roadster for a few years, brg with tan leather, 90 on an h. Great fun to drive on twisty a roads, bit of a pain on motorways, where the noise is a bit much after an hour or so. I think they have near 50-50 weight distribution, I think the back stepped out once or twice in the wet, but was easy to catch.

 

Mine was fresh off the boat from Japan, insured with standard car policy via Tesco iirc. It did 35mpg all the time, economy drive or pushing on. Got rid after a French volvo truck couldn't see me in front of him and pushed me into the car in front, was the most unlucky car I ever owned. Hit by four people in two years, but nothing mechanical ever went wrong.

[purplebargeken]

Fabulous idea, go for it. Just keep an eye on the sills as mentioned earlier.

[crapcarcollector]

They're non interference (apparently) so don't worry over the belt too much. My mums has 105k on it, probably on the first cambelt.

 

I thought they were chain driven?

[cobblers]

Nah, definitely run off a belt. Not a bad job to change since there's plenty of access.

 

Oh, it reminds me - if you are buying an early 1.6 import it's probably best to avoid the ones with a "short nose" crank. Basically the taper on the end of the crank isn't really long enough and causes the pulley to fatigue it's way off over time which eventually fucks up the end of the crank and makes the engine pretty much scrap. They can be bodged back on and last about a dozen K with loads of loctite, but you're on borrowed time and there are that many cars out there it makes no sense to buy possible trouble. I'd steer clear of one unless the body is really good and there are no signs at all of someone having been dicking about with the crank pulley.

The way to tell if it's a short nose is look at the bottom pulley and count the slots. 4 slots is short nose.

 

That said if you don't mind getting your hands dirty, if the crank is fucked it's really not much of a job to change the engine for a later one.

[cort16]

I can't believe I've not owned one of these yet given how cheap they are now. Are the imported EUNO's the same engine and drive train just with a different interior spec? Do all the EUNO's have LSD's?

On that strippers cars for cash TV program they broke one and there's a seriously beefy brace that runs from front to back to stop it flexing, which I was quite impressed by.

 

Heads to gumtree to look for one

[Negative Creep]

I'm very tempted by another one. Without wanting to sound all Troy Queef, they really are great fun to drive and feel just "right". Not fast but then that's not the point. Fuel economy isn't that great though

[HillmanImp]

I did some work welding the sills on one the other week. Had never been in one before but they are a really nice place to be. Only drove it up and down my road but the sitting position was very much like my GT6, which I liked a lot.

[fordperv]

I know a couple of lads who bought cheap mx5s as learner drift toys and they do have good balance and are forgiving to the novice, in a whole as a car though I like them the only thing that annoys me about them is the handbrake being on the wrong side of the console

 

watanabe I think the higher price tag puts most lads off the e30 325 and v6 capri

[Pillock]

If anyone's on t'blue forum, wedgedout/brownvanman has a MX5 that he's constantly toying with and should know inside out, might be worth poking for info. I think his latest plan involves a T3 turbo and custom ECU.

[meshking]

I can't believe I've not owned one of these yet given how cheap they are now. Are the imported EUNO's the same engine and drive train just with a different interior spec? Do all the EUNO's have LSD's?

On that strippers cars for cash TV program they broke one and there's a seriously beefy brace that runs from front to back to stop it flexing, which I was quite impressed by.

 

Heads to gumtree to look for one

 

Same engine and drive train, the v and s spec are I think more likely to have an LSD, but it was an option and not that many have them fitted iirc.

 

It's a belt, but the really early ones had an issue with the woodruff key, so changing is a ball ache at best. But, since they are on-interference, if it snaps you can just coast to a halt. I'd have another, but three kids under four at home means no. Plus I always felt a bit too exposed in modern traffic, with all the SUVs and even fiestas looking down on me.

[purplebargeken]

You feel low in one of these? Try a GT6, being towed on the North Circular at night. The only time I have been able to inspect the top of artic wheelarches whilst on the move. Very, very, very scary.

 

Oh poop, now I am having hankerings for one of these! Oh feck, poxy CPZ lurking, arsebiscuits.