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Mazda MX-5. Buy or avoid.


Bobthebeard

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Disaster? Possibly but BIG fun :) That year is ripe for chassis rails rotting as well as the usual cills(sills) so check carefully as the chassis rails is a bit of a chore and can get expensive fast. But, if they are sound, then go for it, everything else is easy/cheap and the rewards are huge, driving one makes you grin until your ears fall off! :) 

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As above, the only serious issues of early-ish Mk.2's is underbody corrosion - both sills and the floors/rails. They can be quite deceptive in that the upper body can look great but underneath they are a mess (I've seen several in the last two years) so get under it and check this out before buying. There's loads of really nice, well kept Mk.2's about so no need to saddle yourself with a rotten one, it aien't a rare car & lifes too short.

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I have had a mk1 for 9 years, other cars have come and gone but I think I will always keep the mx5 as it is just so much fun to drive. Rust would make me very wary of mk2s, and not just in the sills.

 

Mechanically mine has been eerily reliable. So much better put together than most of the other cars I’ve “worked on” (I use the term loosely).

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Of course, I'm going to say buy it but it really depends on how much ? There is, as others have rightly said, a high likelihood that you will be looking at sill and chassis rail repairs in the future - is it cheap enough to walk away if it needs £loads spending ?

 

If it's got a decent bit of mot then have some fun and start saving for a mk1 once the bug has bitten :)

 

They are bloody good cars, I've owned six of them

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You will actually save money by being able to cut your own hair.

10 posts before hair was mentioned , it's 2 or 3 on your average forum,

 

If it's really cheap and has MOT until it starts snowing buy it, drive it and bin it if it's too rough to fix

 

I warn you though, you'll buy another , I've had 4 up to this point and I'd have another tomorrow

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If its cheap and mot'd, go for it!

 

I loved my mk1, mk2's arent as sought after yet but as more keep being drifted, it wont be long. Mk2's are notorious for rot especially on the front chassis legs, get a good one, or one thats been repaired properly

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That 52 plater I owned for all of a weekend was a good example of the kind of rotbags they are, it ended up getting broken up as even the specialist saud it was too far gone, on the plus side it did drive well and the 1.8 went like shit of a shovel.

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Here is mine along with another of mine with an even bigger reputation for dissolving. post-4673-0-36250700-1533329746_thumb.jpeg

At that sort of money it’s a no brainier really. The only trouble is they are very likeable and grow on you and the idea of binning it can give way to modest plans to repair and improve and keep!

 

Ps the red bit on mine was crash damage not rot.

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Buy

 

Only disaster is the inside of the sills as they rot from the inside out.

 

Shouldn't be too much of an issue though, if it has test.

 

Worst case, buy it, play with it, and if you don't like it, roffle it.

2003 is that a mk2.

 

I have seen pictures of chassis rails next to engine that are like erm a cheap chieese barbeque after 3 years outside.

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Have you bought it yet?

Yes actually!

Thanks for all the positive comments ( and warnings ).

It does have rust. An hour poking about underneath revealed a LOT of surface rust on suspension components etc. Although some determined prodding with a big screwdriver failed to find anything actually rotten. One chassis leg at the front has been recently replaced and the other needs cleaning up and a proper check. New springs all round it seems, shiny anyway.

MOT until next April.

It has a good service history with two recorded timing belt changes (now on 91,000 miles) at 51k and 82k.

Mechanically looked after but badly neglected bodily and underneath. Wheelarches full of mud and crud causing bubbling and lifting paint on three of them. Have ground down the blebs on one side and no holes, so caught in time. Kurust and etch primed them for now. Plan is to get it up on the jack ramps and spend a day wire brushing the surface rust off the underside then a good coating of Dynax UB wax everywhere.

Offside rear sill corroding and bubbling up, so safe to say I need to cut that out and replace. Nearside not as bad on the surface but doubtless needs the same doing.

Am using it as is for now and what great fun to drive! Grin factor 10 as many of you say!

Hopefully a rolling restoration unless anything nasty shows up when I start removing stuff, which is entirely possible.

Pic from (280 mile) collection road trip. The silver one.... The yellow one pulled in a minute earlier....post-5532-0-52539300-1533549657_thumb.png

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