Thanks Don, so much more I want to do to her and makes me smile every time I open the garage door and see her wee bum sticking out! Lol
Very esrly cars had an optional ribbed sill cover
In the 1990 UK Finishline options catalogue, they have scrubbed out the Roadster logo
The usual factory covers are more rounded over the lip, and the logo decal is in an indentation
Thanks for the info Saz, much appreciated as always. I learn something new everyday about these cars!Ā
The sill covers you got for Christmas still look smart and look better than most second hand genuineās anyway and just as I thought this example of a mk1 couldnāt get any better! Your giving me some high standards to match for mine!
Thanks Rory for the very kind comment mate! Sheās nowhere near the standard yours is heading for mate, and itās your build thread that inspires me to do the same to mine. What youāve done so far is what I would love to do to mine, but I donāt have the skills or tools (and Iām not as young as I used to be!) to do it. Can only read yours and be in awe of it!
So, a little update! As some of you may already know, when I went to work on Carly (my MINI Cooper, replacing rear calipers then bleeding brakes) things did not go smoothly! After new calipers were fitted, Gayle and I were in the garage finishing off bleeding the brakes. And thatās when it happened!Ā I had a heart attack! I didnāt have a clue what was happening but luckily Gayle spotted the signs and got me into the house then called for an ambulance. Wont go into too much details but they had a team waiting at the door pf the ERI who took me from ambulance straight into theatre. Two stents fitted then up to cardiac care unit. Both the team and the ambulance crew said if Gayle hadnāt acted so quickly, I wouldnāt be here now.
So obviously restoring Mindy has ground to a halt due to me having to recover and rebuild my strength/repair my old ticker. Well, not entirely ground to a halt! hehehe. I have changed her head unit again, after picking up a Pioneer DAB/USB head unit really cheap (like, Ā£20!). Got it all fitted although it did have a fault with itās own wiring harness which I had to repair but all as good as new now. Had a spare brand new DAB ariel lying about in the garage so fitted that and all working perfectly. Love having the USB, as it means (like my other cars) no more CDās rattling about in the car. Will get photos of the new head unit when I remember, but hereās a few of Mindy on a wee run yesterday down the coast road. Decided it was sunny, and I needed cheering up so off we tootled. Actually gave her quite a good blast, and even with the knackered suspension, totally enjoyed it. Flashed at a silver MK2 MX5 going through Port Seton but he blanked me! lol
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And my fav photo of her so farā¦
Hope you like. Will be tackling replacing the suspension once I have my strength back, then engine service/belts along with draining the brake fluid and renewing it (hopefully no dramas this time round!!)
Cracking weather today for Feb! I feel a wee run coming onā¦top down naturally! Went for a spin up through Gifford and into the hills for a change, first time up there with Mindy. No other MX5ās seen, but did get a thumbs up from another convertible (that didnt have the hood down)ā¦a Porsche convertible! lol Dunno if he was thumbs up to Mindy or thumbs up to me for braving the cold with the hood down.
Hereās the pics, this time done with my Nikon 35mm DSLR (not had the camera our for ages, just been using my phone) Hope you like the results.
Can see East Lothian and the Firth of Forth in this last pic.
Great photos. Ran mine today in the North Yorkshire lanes not quite as sunny as where you are but enjoyable all the same.
Ordered up Mindyās new springs, shocks and bump stops from MX5Heaven and all arrived. Decided as my recovery is on a go slow and I have no patience to switch to plan B! Getting my wee local garage to fit it all! They have asked me to take her down for an inspection first so they can see whatās what rust wise so they have a good idea how the job will go.
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Well, backĀ from garage after Mindyās initial check. Looks like the shocks,/bolts will come off ok after some heat. On inspection, osr shock is completely gone, no damping at all. OSF shock is leaking like crazy, and not much damping going on. They also suspect thatās where the knocking noise is coming from, although will know for sure once they get stuck in. NSF shock is a bit weak, NSR shock and spring have both been replaced. No wonder her handling is all over the place!
They had me in the garage to have a good nosey underneath as you canāt really tell much when viewing the car in the streets when buying it. Guys at garage even agree she is surprisingly very solid underneath. The wishbones look crap with all the underseal thatās been slapped on them flaking off, but these will also be getting replaced as we go along. Underseal on floor etc looks untidy/old and needs wire brushed off and redone, but she looks really solid! Very happy and very relieved, as checking the underneath on any car is tricky, but on these itās even harder and also more crucial as they do rot like hell. Glad to see wee do appear to have bought a really good one on that front!
So, sheās booked in for Monday to get all her new suspension fitted! So looking forward to it! Martyn my friend at the garage also recommended a place not too far away from here to get the geometry set up done so will get that booked asap too. Next month, funds allowing, will get new tyres all round and new brake pads front and rear. Getting her booked into there to get all her fluids changed too, along with all filters and spark plugs/leads.Ā
Took her for a wee celebration run seeing as the sun was out! Love this wee car!
Iām watching you.
Donāt think Iām not.Ā
Lol Iām being good, I pwomise lol
(Runs and hides behind the sofa!)
Got to love a classic red NA. It was one of those that got me 100% hooked nearly twelve years ago.
Sorry to hear about the dicky ticker.Ā Good that you are on the road to recovery even if there may be a few bumps in that road.
You do realise further upgrades to Mindy may have to wait a while.Ā If your dear lady wife decides she wants a few treats in the next few months you just have to pay for those first. You canāt say no. You owe her your life!Ā
Donāt think filling station flowers will do it this time.
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LOL Iāve owed her my life from way before the heart attack mate tbh, sheās a proper wee star. Sheās got us booked up to go on holiday in June with our step daughter to Grand Canaria, then weāre off again (just the two of us) to Spain for a week in September, so will need to chip in and get these paid for. So yes, need to calm down a bit on the mods front lol. However, after I told her today how well it went at the garage and that the new suspension is getting fitted on Monday she said āGreat! You do realize that once summer is here, Mindy will be coming with me to work now and again on nice sunny days!ā
Honestly, she really does love Mindy as much as I do, which is brilliant! So want to make sure the car is 100% match fit, safe and reliable for when Gayle takes her out. Hence asking the garage about the major service including replacing all fluids etc. Oh and the new tyres. Want her driving perfect if Gayleās going to be driving her.
Oh, and donāt worryā¦sheāll be nice and safe at Gayles work as sheāll be in a nice private car park. And the Days where Gayle hasnāt taken her, she can come with me to my work!!! lol Speaking of work, I spoke to work today and they have been amazing, really supportive. I know I moan about work (as we all do) but I know Iām really lucky in that when anything bad happens, theyāve always been really good. Been a lot of changes since Iāve been off, so sounds like it wonāt be as stressful as it was before when I go back, which is excellent.
Iām the same as you mate, was a red mk1 that got me hooked on them 30 years ago!
So, got herĀ back, new suspension fitted and they didnāt have any probs with the fitting. Just had her out for a proper wee blast as didnāt have time yesterdayā¦and bloody hell, what a difference!
The massive vibration through the car when going over even the slightest bump is gone. There is still a little vibration, also noticed this at high speed on the motorway,Ā so assuming the wheels deffo need balanced plus a 4 wheel alignment still need done.
But cornering, my god sheās so much better! Could feel myself trusting her more and more with every corner. Sheās just so much more controlled. Now she doesnāt bounce on the osr, which used to throw her out in corners. So much more fun to drive, but also so much nicer to drive normally.
Ordered up 4 new Goodyear efficient grip tyres for her (got aĀ bargain on blackcircles, 4 fully fitted for Ā£214 as they had a discount sale on) so these getting fitted on Thursday. Will then get her booked in for the geometry set up.Ā
Got a pic of underneath with new shock/spring fitted but itās on my phone so will upload it later. Not much to see really, just a nice shiney shock bump stop and spring. Lol
Glad to hear youāre on the mend!Ā Cars coming along nicely too! Gotta love a classic red mk1, Iāve owned 7 of them over the years (all Eunos 1.6) plus my first ever Eunos which was a bright yellow 1.8 J2LTD. Red is my favourite without a doubt thoughĀ
Ā Nice that your car is sound in the rust front too. Wish you well for a complete recovery.
Barrie
Thanks Barrie!Ā Ā Yes, recovering slower than Iād like but deffo getting there.Ā Iām the same, fell in love with a classic red one when they were launched. On saying that, my stepdaughter was with me on the wee run today, and just as we got home a new MK4 in soul red pulled into the local supermarket. I had to turn and go back for a look! When the sun hits that colour, omg it is stunning!! Had only seen them under full skies and although nice, didnāt look special. But seeing that today has me thinking I might respray her soul red after all. That colour really pops in the sun!
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Well, everyone knows how I love miniatures so after seeing the 1:18 scale models from Gates posted by another member, I decided to go looking for one! Had been told that these were expensive, and cheapest ones I could find were over the Ā£100 mark. Then this one popped up, but had no box (not an issue for me as all my models come out of the box and go on display shelves) but in mint condition. Looked at the price, it had just been listed minutes beforeā¦at Ā£40! Jumped on it there and then!
So it arrived today, and have to say description was bang on, not a single mark or scratch on it. Had to make up some of Mindyās plates in 1:18 scale (would be rude not to! lol)
Hope you like!
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Oh, and the only pic I have of the new suspension so far! lol. Unfortunately, it also shows how untidy she is underneath, but everything is solid, only surface rust. Will be tackling this as soon as Iām well enough!
Well. Sheās got her full new set of Goodyearās fittedā¦along with the suspension omg! So much more planted through the corners!! Still to get the geometry done but already transformed!
Now Iām not sure if this is because of the geometry still needing done, but she is still a bit crashy on roads that arenāt Uber smooth. Feel the vibrations got through the car, which I think on a long trip, would be very tiring. Did they have a crashy (and I mean really crashy) ride from new? This feels like every single thing on the car is trying to rattle free, such are the vibrations/crashes. The vibration from the steering isnāt that noticeable now (although again, going over rough/ holes roads it sends shocks through the wrists) so assuming the wheels now being balanced have sorted that. Just the vibrations/shocks through the chassis that but me. I donāt remember the mk1ās I drove all this years ago being like this?
Anyhoo, seems Mindy is on a mission to have my account constantly overdrawn! Went to pick Gayle up from work yesterday, and on way home, bloody brake pads went! So ordered up a new brake disc/brake pad package from MX5Parts today. My bank manager must be having me right now, but hey ho, itās only money! LolĀ
In a wordā¦no.
I presume the tyres are at 26psi.
I suspect tired wishbone bushes / droplink bushes/ anti-roll bushes etc. They donāt really have to look totally shot to be pretty goosed.
If you do change them out just stick to OEM rubber.
There is a large range of rigidity products, including even door latch hard rubber mounts (!), boot braces, longways chassis braces, turret braces etc.
Probably just a question of gradual elimination.
Ta Robin. Yeah, the wishbones themselves look grubby, so bushes in them probably not the best to be honest. Plan was to replace these as part of the resto, but was hoping to do this quite a way in to it. Quite surprised how knackered the whole suspension is (apart from the brand new springs/dampers etc) with only 90k on the clock. Our focus is on all original bushes etc and suspension is superb and itās just turned 91k. Suppose it depends on how bad the roads were where she has been driven her whole life.
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