Calling a lot of dealers with nice-looking pics on Net and usual response to my is it rust free question is “in a car this old it is bound to happen…”
Not really what I want to hear, but is it always wise to walk away from any deal? Are the rusting sils a rabbit hole of expenditure?
I’m just impatient, I guess! 
There are clean cars with no apparent rust but as in all older cars some rust may be below underseal or in box sections you cannot see into.
If you go to one of the people who import cars from the Japanes domestic market where salt may not be used on the road these cars will be in better condition, two companies I know of who do this but there will be others.
1 Autolink down south
2 Goodwoodsportscars in Berwick on Tweed.
Budget £3k to £5k for these cars.
There will be rust free cars mostly Mk1’s on the private market but you may well get sick of seeing rusty cars to find a clean one.
Due to the number of nice Mk3 cars on the market this has compressed prices of older cars and makes it uneconomic for those wanting their money back to repair older MX5’s that need metalwork changed out.
Any specific questions just ask but remeber this fact.
Mk1 cars are 17 to 27 years old.
Mk2 cars 14 to 17 years old.
Mk2.5 cars 10 to 14 years old.
Mk3s are up to 10 years old.
Cars are made of mild steel and that rusts if left open to the environment or the protective coatings degrade and let moisture and air in.
Not all fresh imports are rust free these days.
Rather familiar looking repairs being attempted in Japan, and they don’t always do the repairs well;
Thanks to a lack of salt, these cars will look immaculate on the underside.
http://www.yoshihisa-style.com/arg/s010.html
A few years ago, you could have taken a punt on buying an import unseen, but now, given the premium importers are applying, and the relative straightforwardness of Mk1 repairs, its less convincing now.
Dealers always make a big thing about UK spec cars as if they are worth more than a Eunos. They all come off the same production line and are virtually identical. Due to the different climate and the lack of salt on Japanese roads they will rust much more slowly. Doubt if the standard British resurfacing methods help much either. Isn’t it a wonderful feeling to drive down a long stretch of road covered in grit with the sound of your car being shot blasted from below even at the recommended 20mph. There may be rusty examples coming in and you can never be sure of what repairs have been done. At the end of the day though the average Eunos will be more solid than the average UK car of the same age and probably cheaper. The later in it’s life that it has been imported the better it is likely to be. The V5 will tell you when it was first registered in the UK. Have fun searching, you will know when you have found the one for you. By the way they don’t have faults, the have character traits.
Saz9961
I too am not convinced of the non rusting of the JDM cars and that is why I advsed it can still be under underseal or in box sections or in this case sills.
I have seen other rust repairs in Japan on their own market cars.
That is why I pointed out the age of the cars.
Ignoring the recent revival of imports, I suppose fresh Mk1 imports mostly dried up about 2008-2009, but towards the end of that phase, a lot of low grade rubbish was coming in; cars with dubious accident histories. So while the risk of rust decreases, the risk of getting something with accident damage increases.