and now in a 5 (or not)?
care to suggest to a 14 year serial MX-5 owner why he might prefer one of these over a 5?
Go and wash your mouth out with soap and water.
The only thing that puts me off those cars is the engine.
We had two 62 plate Subaru STI at work and although they were very fast both required replacement engines due to oil starvation which put me off the boxer engine for life.
I have looked at those a few times but something is putting me off and I don’t know what it is, I think now the RF is out I would sooner have one of them, if you squint at them side by side they look similar.
I had a GT86 from new for 3 years. Superb handling and great engine but interior was rather poor. Some minor glitches originally, small engine leak, misting rear lights and battery going flat very quickly and those silly narrow wheels and tyres. All very common BRZ/GT86 faults and all faults quickly fixed under warranty - including replacing battery with a beefier one. Probably personal to me as I have an arthritic neck, were blind spots which caused one or two near misses. Familiar to MX5 owners were poor rust proofing, very soft paint and complaints of sticky gearboxes, although mine was fine.
Reason for change - my wife was intimidated by the GT86 and, while happy to be a passenger, she refused to drive it.
Having had both an NC and two NB’s, I kept my NB Arctic while owning the GT86 and would say that the GT86 was such a totally different type of car to an MX5 that comparison is almost irrelevant.
Comparing my new 2007 NC 2.0 Sport to the 2013 GT86, both “straight out of the box” the GT86 was far the more pleasant and exciting car to drive. The GT86 also attracted far more attention from small boys and the public in general who often mistook it for a far more exotic beast than a Toyota. Best of all - no one mentioned hairdressers !
I had a brief fling with a BRZ a few years back, and whilst I loved it, the wife unfortunately did not so we got rid.
The car was a real head turner, and drove wonderfully but the suspension was a little too hard for wifeys taste and if Im honest maybe mine as well. The fuel economy is also not very good.
Interior plastics were also a bit iffy
Certainly agree with you on the poor interior and fairly heavy fuel consumption, although better than my Mk2.5 ! It definitely was a head turner and certainly attracted appreciative comments, something I never got with my Mk3.
I test drove a GT86 and loved it. The cost put me off though. But now that MX5 RF prices are way up, I would definitely chose the GT86 over the RF if I was getting a new car. The way the GT86 slides (safely) around curves at moderate speeds is just so much fun.
Unfortunately used GT86 with low mileages don’t really exist as most buyers treat it as their main car.
However the MX5 OC and the various rallies/trips is a big reason to keep a MX5. Nothing comparable with the GT86.
The GT86 is a (Subaru) cuckoo in Toyota’s nest Toyota having no other sporty car now, concentrate on the pious Prius and saving the planet. The Toyota Dealer sales and service people don’t really appear to relate to the GT86. If I bought one now I would almost certainly go for the BRZ as Subaru dealerships have far more knowledge of all aspects of the Subaru built car, especially the boxer engine.
Just another small point - apparently the engine requires lifting to change the plugs, although other servicing is simple and easy.
Something like this…
http://www.mapleleafgarage.co.uk/used-cars/subaru-brz-2-0-i-se-2dr-daventry-201603091790821
The advert says 200BHP - was not aware they were up at that level.
After a 200 mile round trip yesterday in my ND 2ltr Sport, roof down all the way - I’ll stick with the MX5
Have been running MX5s for 15 years, great fun.
Yes. But apparently it can be done in only a couple of hours, and only needed after 60,000-75,000 miles. No big deal.
The reasons we didn’t get one was the fixed top, and SWMBO didn’t like any of the colours.
I had an automatic GT86 3 years ago. It was a very pleasing drive in many ways, but the ratios on the auto box were weird, there was a noticeable torque ‘pause’ at about 3000 rpm, and the the number of interior trim rattles has only been beaten by my current NA! In some ways, I wish now that I’d kept it, but hey, it’s not convertible
So is the OP going over to the dark side … ?
Need to drive one, poor interior and heavy fuel consumption doesn’t really help sell the idea though.