I’m suppose to be picking up my MX5 tonight but I have been called to inform me that it failed it’s MOT and needs a new front coil, he’s fixing it for free and then selling the car with a full MOT but how much do I have to worry that my car has the predisposition to fail?
I’ve never had a car fail before.
Well, he really needs to replace both front coils as a pair. They usually fail due to rust (old), so likely to be sagging. It is a 20 year old car after all.
BTW, you keep sending duplicate posts.
Yeah I dunno what it is, firefox doesn’t do it but chrome does.
Could it have broken? These potholey roads aren’t kind to 20 year old springs. Would still need a pair replacing though.
Well he says he’s replacing it and I can go down and get it at 5. Hopefully nothing else goes wrong with it later.
It’s 20 years old, things do go wrong occasionally.
I wouldn’t worry about it, a coil can fail an MOT due to rust, it may just be an overzealous MOT tester covering his backside. It could however be a crack due to hitting a bit pothole, loads of them around, unlikely to be as a result of driving style or a particularly unreliable car.
Fundamentally check that the engine, gearbox and diff are fine, no electrical gremlins and there’s not much rust and no rust near structural areas. Other than that, most things are fixable.
Cars fail MOT all the time. It could have been meticulously cared for and loved, but sometimes a component will fail. I wouldn’t be too worried about this sort of problem. If it had failed on emmissions I’d be much more concerned, but this kind of thing isn’t a cause for major concern.
Jack.
If that is all it has failed on then dont worry
but as other wisened scribes have suggested, insist that they put a pair of new springs on the front
Dr. Eunos
Apparently I can’t pick it up till tommorow now, just one problem after another.
Not picked it up yet?
-so I still have a chance to find who’s selling it and outbid ya!! 
I wouldn’t let failing on a spring worry you, the fact they have been honest is a good sign IMO. Changing them as pairs is best practice though…
Sure the car is worth the wait.
For safety’s sake I would insist on a pair!
Is it a garage or private individual selling?
No I’ve not picked it up just paid half the money deposit
Used car dealer.
In that case, the Dealer KNOWS that they should be replaced in pairs - I would insist on it, they will be getting it done cheaper than a private individual could.
I am pretty sure he’s doing them both.
Ask if the bottom shock bolt is giving problems; on an early car, the bolt is often rusted in, and breaks the captive nut in the wishbone if removed… leading to a new wishbone being required.
He’ll probably find he’ll have to replace all the springs when he figures out new Mazda Mk1 springs are a bit longer (or seem to be).