MX5 Owners in here....bring your curling tongs

agw_01 said:
Quite like the idea of a bit of RWD summer top down fun, maybe the worst time to buy as I didn't really want to pay much and so was initially looking at MG TFs (are we allowed to say that in here?). I've now started looking at Mk2/.5 MX5s and even had a little look at the Mk3.

I've seen quite a few rusty Mk3s, do they tend to end up the same way as the Mk2? And with the Mk2s, is it a case of they all end up with rusty sills or can you prevent it with a decent cavity wax?
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You can keep the rust at bay but it's a constant battle.

I love my 3.5 but I've never had a car so prone to rust.
 
agw_01 said:
Quite like the idea of a bit of RWD summer top down fun, maybe the worst time to buy as I didn't really want to pay much and so was initially looking at MG TFs (are we allowed to say that in here?). I've now started looking at Mk2/.5 MX5s and even had a little look at the Mk3.

I've seen quite a few rusty Mk3s, do they tend to end up the same way as the Mk2? And with the Mk2s, is it a case of they all end up with rusty sills or can you prevent it with a decent cavity wax?
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The only real change you'll have of getting a rust free mk2/2.5 is by picking up a late JDM import. I think my old mk2 RS was imported in 2011 and I bought it in 2014. The sills, chassis rails, arch lips, practically everywhere was still rust free and I undersealed it myself. A nicely undersealed one can look great in pictures, however it can also hide a multitude of issues. For that reason I took pictures before, during, and after. When I sold it in 2017 I got top money for it (Just over £4k iirc). I sold it to a friend who lives about 100m from the sea and it's still rust free today. A properly undersealed car, that was done before any rust took hold will happily stay rust free. To give a comparison, my brother paid £700 for a mk2.5 Sport that was tidy to look at but the front chassis rails were failing. He used it as a track car for 2 years before stripping it for parts and making back more money than he paid for it.
 
The more I look at them, the more I find myself being drawn to the Mk3. My original plan was to buy a really cheap (~£500) TF to drive over the summer and scrap it when it eventually died. Then I started considering doubling my budget and getting a cared for example that I wouldn't have to spend half the summer fixing niggles. I was then into cheap Mk2 territory and even though they're both old cars, the MX5 interior looks better and I know how good they are to drive. 05/06 plate Mk3s aren't a great deal more and look to have stepped it up in terms of interior quality and equipment.

What's the 2 litre engine like in terms of reliabililty? I know they use a cam chain rather than a belt and they seem to be pretty robust from what I've read. I've been looking at the Sport, so 6 speed gearbox, bigger wheels and LSD.
 
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agw_01 said:
The more I look at them, the more I find myself being drawn to the Mk3. My original plan was to buy a really cheap (~£500) TF to drive over the summer and scrap it when it eventually died. Then I started considering doubling my budget and getting a cared for example that I wouldn't have to spend half the summer fixing niggles. I was then into cheap Mk2 territory and even though they're both old cars, the MX5 interior looks better and I know how good they are to drive. 05/06 plate Mk3s aren't a great deal more and look to have stepped it up in terms of interior quality.

What's the 2 litre engine like in terms of reliabililty? I know they use a cam chain rather than a belt and they seem to be pretty robust from what I've read. I've been looking at the Sport, so 6 speed gearbox, bigger wheels and LSD.
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The 2Ltr is bulletproof provided it's been looked after. It needs to be consistently run at max oil level to avoid starvation issues to the rear cylinder and also needs to be driven at high revs to avoid bottom end failure but if you get one that's been looked after it'll go on and on.

The 3.5 had lots lots of upgrades over the Mk3 and many of these relate to the engine am performance:


Performance Upgrades
  • MZR 2.0 engine is revised for better performance feel and top speed (manual transmission only)
  • The engine now produces 160 PS at 7,000 rpm (up from 6,700 rpm) maximum torque of 188 Nm remains at 5,000 rpm
  • Rev limit fuel cut-off increased by 500 rpm to 7,500 (around 7,200 in some markets) for livelier acceleration feel
  • Surge tank optimised for rigidity for improved contribution to engine sound
  • New forged steel crankshaft to minimise vibration at high engine speeds
  • Fully floating pistons with higher pin-boss reliability
  • Newly-designed valve springs that suppress valve ‘bounce’ at high revs
  • Higher-durability materials for the connecting-rod bearings
  • Added an engine oil cooler
  • Revised six-speed manual transmission for improved gear shifting, 3rd – 4th gear synchromesh diameter is now increased by 6 mm, all synchronizer cone specifications are revised and a carbon coating is used on some of the meshing surfaces of the 1st through 4th gear synchronizer cones
  • The upgrades to the six-speed gearbox improve acceleration performance 0-100km/h in 7.9 seconds for the soft top and top speed 218km/h (135mph)for coupe
  • New induction sound enhancer (ISE) on six-speed manual cars amplifies pulse sounds created when the throttle valve opens for a more sporty engine sound This sound is transmitted to the dash panel through the air, but also to the dashboard, the outside dash top and the windshield frame through a special duct
  • The sound transmission to the outside dash top creates an even more intense sound when the roof is open
  • New to UK six-speed automatic transmission with steering-wheel paddle shift and two new control technologies: Direct Activematic and Active Adaptive Shift
  • All powertrains fine-tuned to improve fuel economy
  • MZR 1.8 with five-speed manual uses 7.0 litres of fuel per 100 km (4% reduction)
  • MZR 2.0 with five-speed manual uses 7.4 litres of fuel per 100 km (4% reduction)
  • MZR 2.0 with six-speed manual uses 7.6 litres per 100 km (7% reduction)
  • MZR 2.0 with six-speed automatic transmission uses 7.9 litres per 100 km

Chassis Upgrades
  • The front suspension geometry was revised by altering the ball joints’ vertical pivot position, lowering the height of the front roll centre by 26 mm
  • Decreased fluctuations in vertical load on the outer wheel when cornering so that roll movement caused by steering input is now more linear
  • New suspension tuning for even more precise reaction to steering input
  • Yaw and roll feel more natural for a higher quality ride
  • Tyre pressure monitoring system now available in most markets
  • Dynamic stability control (DSC) now standard in most markets
 
Thanks bainbridge, really appreciate the info. The 3.5 does look lovely but I probably cant justify upping what was originally a £500 budget going to a possible £7k spend :D

What options should I look for on the MK3? Heated seats look fairly common. Was the Bose stereo standard fit? Not a huge Bose fan but if I can get it, I will. Any other options worth holding out for, cruise control perhaps?

Any benefit to the folding hard top over the soft top? More secure? Keeps the car warmer in winter? I have other cars I can use so not a huge concern in going for a soft top variant. I guess the hard top is heavier too although IMO it looks more aesthetically pleasing when the roof is up... Which defeats the whole point of me buying an MX5!
 
Satnav in a Mk3 @Tee Hee Johnson? Agree about the hard top, looks so much better than the soft top.

@sandys, that's the thing... as nice as the 3.5 is I don't really want to spend anywhere near 7k. I already have 2 cars, a daily driver and a fast toy in the garage. The MX5 will be to scratch the itch of a convertible roadster but my thinking behind spending a bit more was to keep it for a couple of years if I can find a nice one. I could comfortably spend £3k on a nice MX5.
 
I might potentially know of a mk2.5 that needs some work.

It’s my old one which I had welded and under sealed around 2014. Then gave it my dad who pretty much left it in a garage before taking it over to their house in Spain.

It’s gonna cost a bit to convert the lights and register it over there though so I had mentioned he’d probably be better off sending it back here to sell rather than ***** money on it given he barely uses it!
 
I remember your old one Marv, dark blue and had some split rim BBS/replicas on it didn't it?

Could be interested depending on price/work required. Obviously you know I'm not scared of picking up a spanner. So it's in Spain now, that's going to cost a bit to ship back isn't it?
 
Yeah that’s the one.

He said it’d depend on whether there was a market for it over there in its current state. Think he only paid around £400 to ship it over so if it’s similar then depending on sale price he’d still recover some. It was an SVT with the LSD and 6spd box.

Depends on it’s condition really. He’s pretty useless when it comes to telling me things! Otherwise I might consider getting it from him. Just depends on where I go next.
 
agw_01 said:
Satnav in a Mk3 @Tee Hee Johnson? Agree about the hard top, looks so much better than the soft top.

@sandys, that's the thing... as nice as the 3.5 is I don't really want to spend anywhere near 7k. I already have 2 cars, a daily driver and a fast toy in the garage. The MX5 will be to scratch the itch of a convertible roadster but my thinking behind spending a bit more was to keep it for a couple of years if I can find a nice one. I could comfortably spend £3k on a nice MX5.
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Its a Mk3.5, I think some of the limited editions had it.

Its a Sanyo/TomTom unit... still supported too!

Can see it in this image, again its surprisingly good :)

interior.jpg
 
@Marvt74, how much is a one way flight to Spain? Could make for a nice road trip, haha. If he's really considering it, have a word with him and let me know. I'd definitely be interesting in hearing more about it, the SVT has heated leather seats doesn't it? I'm not in a rush to buy, just watching the market at the moment.

Oh yeah, thanks for reminding me :p

@Tee Hee Johnson, that looks really smart. The interior is lovely. I'd previously discounted the Mk3 but it just seems like a nice overall package for not a lot of money. Mk3.5 just isn't going to happen unfortunately. I just can't justify having 2 cars of that value sat around doing nothing for weeks at a time. I can stomach it with a 3k car, but not one costing twice as much as lovely as they are.
 
agw_01 said:
@Marvt74, how much is a one way flight to Spain? Could make for a nice road trip, haha. If he's really considering it, have a word with him and let me know. I'd definitely be interesting in hearing more about it, the SVT has heated leather seats doesn't it? I'm not in a rush to buy, just watching the market at the moment.
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Yeah heated leather. The bolster is a bit worn on the drivers side but it does (did) have a touch screen pioneer head unit and decent speakers.

Hard to say what condition it’s in now though!

Will give you a shout when he gets back to me.
 
The whole exhaust or the center/backbox? It's not too difficult to change the exhaust.

I'd still be interested to know exactly how much work it needs. If the body is in good condition, mechanicals don't worry me too much. Your call :)
 
When I hear more I’ll let you know. As I say he’s not the most descriptive!

Ping me a trust and I can always put you in touch with him which might be easier.

Also whilst I can say it was in great condition when I had it from a bodywork side of things I can’t guarantee it still is!
 
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