After almost 6 years ownership of my lovely 1989 Eunos “Katie” and a relatively short ownership of a NC roadster, I’m now no longer a member of the MX5 family.
Around 2 years ago I bought a Renault Zoe EV and I’ve completely fallen in love with how EVs drive and I’ve found myself being drawn to that car in preference to to MX5s even for pleasure drives. That has meant that Katie was only being driven on the occasional trip and to a few local car shows, amounting to just a few hundred miles a year. With all the speed limits on roads these days and the big increase in traffic in the South West since the pandemic, the joy of sports cars for me seems to be disappearing and I’m beginning to think that low down torque driving coupled with the serenity of electric power is the future.
“Katie” has now gone to live with a new owner, Larry, in Kent where I’m hoping she will be as loved and cherished as she has been with me! I will miss her I’m sure!!
I don’t expect there to be any agreement to my comments on an MX5 forum, but the number of cars that have been offered for sale due to low usage does make me think I’m not alone.
Anyway, good luck to you all and enjoy your MX5s for as long as you can.
Paul
All the best for the future.
I’m still unsure about EV’s myself but that’s for a debate elsewhere.
Me too have noticed an increase of 5’s for sale, usually its from October onwards, sign of the times.
All the best👍
I wish you all the best of experiences with electric, and hope you don’t miss your MX-5 too much.
I sold my ND to get a Tesla Model 3 Performance after a delightful test drive.
But as time went by, there was no shaking the feeling I’d lost something. After 2 years exclusively on the M3P, this happened:
I hope you enjoy the Zoe. My wife has one, and absolutely adores it.
Thanks Mick. Perhaps some owners see their MX5s as a “luxury” that they have to sell in these difficult financial times.
Thanks John. It wasn’t an easy decision to make!
Never say never, I guess!! It’s good to hear that your wife loves her Zoe too.
Soon be dearer to drive an EV than petrol or diesel cars the way the price of leccy is rising!
Like many I’m not sure about EVs yet. But I can understand how it can be difficult to justify an MX-5 when you have another vehicle you enjoy driving.
Swapped our old Nissan Juke for a nearly new Qashqai last year. It drives really nicely with it’s 1.4 Turbo. Floor it with the revs at 2k or more and it flies. The driver aids work faultlessly and it is smooth and comfortable and for an SUV handles very well. I don’t feel I’m missing out driving it rather than my ND.
If the ND was depreciating rapidly I might consider selling myself. However it’s hardly lost anything in the 4+ years I’ve had it and isn’t costing me a lot to run. I would probably regret selling.
If you enjoy your driving then who cares if it is petrol, diesel, electric or steam driven.
Have fun.
Thanks for your comments.
It was a slightly different situation for me because at 33 years old, my car was naturally needing a bit more maintenance and at £90 per hour for even an independent garage, costs do mount up. The yearly tax was also quite expensive being viewed by the government as having a “dirty” engine! However, on the flip side I was able to sell “Katie” for considerably more than I paid 6 years ago, so I’m happy. Perhaps I’ll consider getting another MX5 if they bring out a steam driven one!!!
Enjoy your ND!
Don’t laugh too soon. There very well might be a steam driven one soon,
My very old mobile phone runs on coal… £10 from Tesco’s Including a ten pound voucher ! … shows you how much they want you to have these phones. A licence to print money ….
All the best Paul… from Ray in Epping, Take care mate… 
Each to their own but you have fallen into the EV trap this is what they wanted you to do. EV’s will soon be the same cost to run as a petrol or diesel as the electricity prices keep rising and for the cost up front are they really worth it ? EV’s cost more to produce and take more of the earths resources to produce which is the total opposite of being green and net zero ? So for example a friend of mine who drives to London for meetings twice a week from the North East distance around 400 miles. He has been forced to get a EV as a company car theres no way when he sets off at his usual time of 6am in the morning he is going to be at his meeting at 10am. He will be sat on the A1 somewhere at a motorway services twiddling his thumbs. So do the powers that be just want us to stay local and use EVs just for local trips I think they do. Its a very strange future indeed and I wish you all the best in the future without your MX5 but I will be sticking to fossil fuel transport as I think many more will be too.
Well. It’s not rocket science, The money that the Government is about to lose Billions every week in ‘ Lost ‘ tax income on Fuel, Has got to be found somewhere !
The ‘ lost ‘ revenue’ ( £ billions a week ) has got to be found from somewhere else …
Erm. I wonder where that might be ? Electric cars of course with the raising Of the electric bills, etc etc. it’s not rocket science …
I’m not going to get into a big confrontation as I was only saying to some friends in the classic car world how refreshing it was that on the MX5 forum, all the replies I received to my post were friendly/funny/interesting, but I can assure you that I have not fallen into a trap and if you had read my post carefully, you would have seen that it’s the pleasure of driving an EV that has won me over. The current cost savings on fuel is a great bonus to be enjoyed for now and if EVs help with the environment that we live in, that’s good too, but neither were my reason to change.
As regards taxation, can you be so sure that the government won’t increase taxes for those motorist who won’t willingly change to EV’s. If they persist with their net zero plans, they’ll have to get motorist out of their fossil fuel cars somehow!
Throughout all of time, the future has always been an uncertain beast and never more so that now.
I can’t understand the hostility.
My daughter has a Kia e-Nero EV. It’s the long-range version and she’s getting 250-300 miles on a charge. She travels all over England and Wales regularly on business and so far she’s had no problems with charging. Does anyone really want to travel more than a couple of hundred miles without a comfort break and a coffee?
It’s a nice car, well built and has fearsome acceleration in sport mode.
When you look at how far electric car technology, particularly battery technology has come in the last 15 years I wonder where we will be in another 15 in terms of range, battery capacity and charge time.
And when you look at how complex a modern internal combustion engined car is, with all its amazing mechanical technology, and then you look at an electric car which is basically a big washing machine motor - all the clever stuff is software (yes I know that’s simplifying it somewhat), prices must surely come down with volume and competition. There are already inexpensive EVs in China only available for their home market.
I’m as big a petrol head as the next guy, love my NB to bits, but the vast majority of motorists just want something reliable to get to work and the supermarket and affordable EVs fit the bill very well.
Yes, EV’s are the way ahead I’m just pondering how the Government will Balance the lost revenue ! It was a MIGHTY big chunk of our overall tax revenue. Quite how this balance will take place is a mystery … But, I’d have a EV tomorrow, They are going to be the way to go…. There will
Be no rush to get fossil fuel cars off the roads. These practices take decades not years …. And in any event. By then MX5’s will be kept as Classic cars and allowed many dispensations … It’s our heritage …
Having said that I’m expecting a man to knock at my door in about an hour to buy my MX5 Loved every second of owning it. But at 81 I’m resigned to be chauffeured by my mate who owns one of my lovely cars. And a A8 limo. So. I’m in no rush to get another car at the moment… My joy is to be driven to one of many local country pubs and get a large wine down my neck …. Incidentally. Talking of wine. Just a tip here ! Go to Waitrose and buy T.E.R.R.E … THEN GIVE ME A THUMBS UP… OR A
I think it can only be bought in Waitrose at the moment… It an Organic wine and is fantastic from the very first gulp… No acidity etc…
Eight years ago I bought my second brand new car, well it was a pre reg 4 months old me the first real owner. That was £11,500 and I paid straight off for it, I’ll never be able to do that for an EV. When affordable then yes, well for now at least I’m still running the same car bought 8 years ago.
I’m not sure what kind of EV your friend will get, but in the M3P it seems like they could depart 10-15 minutes earlier and be OK-ish? (Traffic notwithstanding).
I’ve happily used the M3P for long journeys, with the times comparable to driving in the MX-5 (traffic, again, the major influencer on any journey I make).
An example route: ABRP
Honestly though, if Mazda released an EV MX-5 tomorrow, and gave it Toyota’s fake gear shifter, I’d be all over it (Fake Manual Gearboxes Patented For Toyota Electric Cars).
I was a member for many years then sold my last 5 four years ago due to mobility and replaced it with an Audi cabriolet. Loved it but now replaced by an Electric job
It’s hilarious driving with the torque on take off really annoying the GTI drivers. Also very simple driving with all the gadgets. If an MX5 EV ever turned up I would be sorely tempted
Thanks everyone for at least trying to understand why I felt it was right time for me to let my MX5 go to a new loving home whilst I enjoy my EV. I understand that they may not be for everyone, but I love them!