I really could do with some tips, the car itself is a 1999 1.8s Red hard top included. RAC vehicle inspection completed 19 May 2014., Next MOT due 01/06/2016, Part service history, Electric windows, Air conditioning, CD player, Leather trim, Spare wheel (Space-saver), Power steering. RED I’ve spoken to the owner and he said when he was looking he looked at dozens before he found one that wasn’t riddled with rust, to be sure after he’d had the rac inspection done and then purchased it, he had it serviced at an independent MX5 specialist and had it up on the ramps, the specialist had said it was a sound car. I know it needs a cambelt doing so that’s a negotiation point already.
hey Michael, looks fair from here.
on enlarging the pic, the hood over both windows look suspect, is it torn/repaired or just wrinkled? look closely.
hood replacement is about £300 upwards. another negotiation point.
ask him why he is selling it after only having it just over a year from RAC inspection.
obviously rust is the biggy. look closely at & under everything including the chassis rails.
mechanically its a very strong motor car so if it drives well & feels good on the road & engine sounds quiet its worth haggling.
someone more knowledgeable than me will be along with more (probably better) advice. good luck
I recently inspected a similar age Mk2 that had a split new MOT and there was problems with the front chassis rails. The MOT tester is not allowed to remove the engine under cover. In saying that I could see the problems without removing the cover.
On a car with hubcaps and the wheel only held on by one nut, the MOT tester cannot remove a hubcap to check if the wheel is held on by all the required nuts or bolts.
With all due respect to yourself and I have no knowledge of your experience of inspecting cars.
The car once you bought it is your problem and it is of no use coming back on here in a few months time and saying look what the last owner left me as others have done.
Therefore it is you who has to find someone you have confidence in to get the car on a ramp and remove the under tray and have the front chassis rails of that 16 year old cars hit with a hammer a few times to check them as they rust not from the inside of the rails but between the layers of the chassis rail out.
You then need that competent person to examine the rear arches and sills and boroscope the sills.
If the present owners is not happy with that then walk away but the inspection is yours at your cost, do not even think about saying it was inspected a year ago and was fine then.
There are very clean cars out there and I live in snowey Aberdeenshire with lots of salt on the roads in winter.
I have inspected about 20 MK2 and Mk2.5 cars and only 2 had clean chassis rails.
The recent MK2 I inspected had rusty sills underneath the body kit this car has a body kit covering the sills
I hear what is being said about the rust and i’ll go with open eyes, Asking price is £1500 which will be negotiable, I’m no stranger to Japanese stuff I’ve owned Subaru’s for the last ten years and i’m involved with quite a lot of different car clubs German and Japanese, I do have a knack of finding quite tidy cars though this is my MK2 Scirocco I bought a couple of years ago.
I wonder if the original steering wheels Airbag has gone off? Price wise is it in the ball park or way out? If it is a Sport and that’s the original hard top that’s got to be worth something?
Ask yourself what you are expecting to get for £1,500 and what you want from the car?
While you obviously don’t want a car that is about to return to its basic elements by oxidation, worrying about matching tyres and if the inside of the sills have been licked by Virgins is going to find you looking for a car for a very long time.
If you want something to lavish love upon and keep as a show car for the next 15 years, then let your search begin, however if you want something to drive for the next two years have realistic expectations, especially since there are already all the “negotiation” points.
If the hard top is in great condition, that alone would be worth £400 to £500 come October, even poor condition, £250 to £300.
One thing I do is a guy I used to use to service my car and my wife’s would inspect cars for me on his ramp. I would pay him for an hour of his time and also drop of some beers as he could be doing more lucrative work in that hour.
All I had to do was phone him and then give the seller his number. Once I had spoken to the seller if I was interested I would ask him to call my mechanic and arrange for the inspection.
Annoyingly he has now given up being a mechanic and started a B&B down in devon so I am trying out some other local garages. I doubt I will get the same service elsewhere but always worth a shot.
I have the mechanical skills and experience of a piece of garlic bread hence why I need the help
