I bought a Mk1 Mx5 1.6 last year and it failed its MOT a few months back. I decided to have all the welding work that it needed underneath doing, to keep it on the road. It is a Jap import, but was brought in a long time ago and is in nice virtually original condition. My issue is, shall I try and keep it as standard as possible on the basis that there are few “standard” cars around, or should I do some subtle upgrades. I do not want a racer for the road and enjoy just going out for a quiet drive (or I did until this current situation). If I was to change anything it would not really be cosmetic, but more general mechanical to make it drive “better”. I have changed the brakes for new standard ones and did not even change the wheels for 15" ones - just put some decent tyres on it.
The question is - is it worth making any upgrades and if so, what is worth doing? I do not want to change the sound, but a little more performance may be better and is the suspension worth changing if I am only using it on the road? I am currently thinking that if I just replaced anything that needs doing with completely standard to make it as nice as possible is this the best direction? I am really not sure if upgrades are just changes and not improvements…
Discuss…
I suppose it’s down to personal preference, what you want to get out of it and how long you intend to keep the car for. When you say drive ‘better’ what do you mean? If you’re just upgrading brakes, bushes etc then that’s definitely adding value to the car and not really affecting its originality. In my eyes a car becomes ‘modded’ when things like coilovers, bucket seats, wide arches and forced-induction gets fitted.
You’ve already said you don’t intend to convert it into some sort of track or drift car which tend to be more permanent changes, so if you do upgrade any parts you can always keep the originals should you wish to put them back on and sell it as an original car in the future.
Personally I think they’re great kept as original cars and perhaps lose some of their charm when too much is done to them especially anything affecting their handling and ride. But each to their own, and equally some tasteful upgrades can be good such as a decent set of alloys. I’ve seen a few cars with aftermarket steering wheels and gearknobs which to me look and feel wrong, I loved the original MOMO wheel in my J-reg, but again they are small items that can easily be changed back. It’s certainly been the case that Nissan S13’s and S14’s have sky-rocketed in price due to so many of them being drifted and wrecked as a result, leaving fewer decent cars available. So over time we may find the same happens to the MX-5 market making original cars more desirable and therefore valuable.
Good on you for getting the welding done, it’s great that you’ve kept another early car alive rather than breaking it for parts. By the way, I’ve (re)joined this forum today and am in the market for a nice original mk1 so if you know of any close to the South West of England please let me know. 
Thanks for the reply JonXLR8. I am a bit OCD and whilst I bought this car on a whim last year through e-bay (it was only £1650, so not a fortune in reality), I liked that it was not perfect as it is difficult to use a car and keep it immaculate. The car has obviously had work done in the past and the garage who is doing the work now says it was done badly (therefore a lot worse than I imagined) as they have taken cardboard out of the chassis, so was in desperate need of doing properly.
However now I feel that as I have polished it quite a lot and generally looks ok on top and the engine is good, my OCD has taken over and I even cleaned the garage out to store it. Therefore I want it to be as good as possible.
As far as upgrades are concerned, I believe that Mazda did a good job in the first place and whilst it may have got older and therefore not as good as it once was in most areas, if I can get it back near how it was when new then I think that would be good.
I was just wondering if anyone knew of any more subtle upgrades that were real improvements?
I have gone past the point of wanting to drive as fast as I can everywhere and the MX5 is not that quick now compared to other cars I have had and to extend eth engine at reasonable speeds is fun, rather than the actual fact of going fast. It just makes me smile driving a “classic car” that is sort of also modern. It is a half way house to an old MG I suppose, but more reliable (ideally).
I am not aware of any cars available, but good luck - it is worth looking at a few and waiting as there are quite a lot around on various platforms.
Back around the time I had my MX-5 I used to work with a guy who restored and modified Mk1 and Mk2 Escorts and other cars which are worth an absolute fortune now. We got onto the subject of modifying cars and I’ll never forget a piece of wisdom he gave me, in that every ‘mod’ you do to a car has both a positive and negative impact. The Yin and the Yang.
Which when you think about it is very true in a lot of cases, e.g. certain coilovers may make your car handle so much better on the track, but could be so bone-jarring that they ruin the comfort of your commute every day, top end brake upgrades may give you awesome stopping power but squeal like a banshee everywhere you go.
The pros and cons of things like welded diffs and bucket seats may be obvious, but even small things can affect how you feel about a car and change it’s general ‘character’. It all comes down to finding that balance and what’s important to the individual.
Back when I had my S14 I fitted coilovers and a bucket seat in order to have a bit of fun drifting it, but when I started using it more for commuting than drifting I put the original leather seat back in, got rid of the coilovers and just fitted some upgraded shocks and springs which were very close in spec to a Nismo upgrade that was originally available for the car, that way it was much nicer to drive on the B-roads as a real improvement to the original floaty suspension, without having to worry about avoiding every tiny pot hole.
I also had a hard top for my MX-5 which I used in the winter, and I’m sure that stiffened the chassis up, although I could be mis-remembering that.
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Thank guys, I am thinking that standard is probably the way to keep it as i will be using it only on the road. I have a friend who has a very much modded Mk1 that he races at Curborough and whilst it is nice, he cannot use it on the road. I feel that if I was going to go down that route I would start with something that was already not standard. As there are a decreasing number of standard cars, I suppose that whilst I am not considering value really at the moment, at some point the standard cars will be worth more than modded cars. I have seen other cars go up in value and it is always the standard ones that people are most interested in. As “improvements” are a very personal thing, I suppose that keeping it standard will also mean that the car is easier to sell if I needed to as well. I will therefore try to stick to standard and certainly not do anything that cannot be reversed.
To be honest I am just looking forward to getting it back now and being able to go for a drive as it was in my garage since October and I have only driven it to the garage to be fixed. I am sure I am not alone in that - especially with the current weather!!!
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It’s not original now anyhow with the rear number plate panel.
That’s not a Roadster panel. So what else may be different in addition?
Should look like mine.
So saying, the reg (1994) is very close to mine so that bit fits.
Thanks for the comment - I was aware of this panel change as I initially thought it was a UK car (it was very late in the evening when I bought the car - unseen - on e-bay…I know never do that but I probably would not have one otherwise). I know that it was imported many years ago and it also has a chrome rollover bar - but I suppose that can be argued as a safety issue!!
I think that the UK panel looks better IMO and I agree it is not now completely standard, but I suppose that what I am thinking of is probably not 100% standard (the goalposts are allowed to move aren’t they?? and I am not swapping the panel back!!), but as close as possible rather than with lots of performance upgrades etc.
Also I really like yours - my second option was a green one with tan interior/hood as they look very cool…and shiny!!
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OK…I’m happier with that now. 
It’s just…these days…you know?
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If you are unsure about modding the car then stick to mods that can be undone easily. Coilovers are easily undone especially if you keep the originals, same with exhaust mods, anti rollbars, wheels, steering wheels, audio etc.
Once you get into cutting metal or fitting flared arches you’ve really committed to mod life
It really does depend on you and what you want from it and plan to do with it. If it’s not a keeper then I would say make it look nice (oh already done that) and make it run well, as this will make it easily resalable, but don’t get hung up on the original everything route.
If it’s a long termer / investment then my advice is definitely keep it original. Really good original MK1’s are getting rare due to the combination of tin worm and modders / racers. Given that you say just want a nice quite drive and aren’t bothered about performance original would be best imo.
As others have said if you do put non original stuff on e.g. exhaust, airfilter etc. it’s relatively easy to put it back to standard if required.
Either way good luck and ENJOY. Oh and stay safe out there.
Someone changed the boot lid as well, so possible the rear panel wasn’t changed for purely cosmetic reasons.
If the BBS wheels are original, its a 1.6 S-Special.
Probably the Bilstein suspension will need a refresh now.
sav9961 - thanks for the information. I have no idea what model it is, but it has a wooden steering wheel with a mazda central horn that looks old - did the S-special come with one of those? I will have to have a look at the suspension as I noticed when changing the front brake disks/pads that they looked ok - black dampers, but I will have a closer look when I get it back from the garage. It also has electric windows and power steering… As far as the boot lid is concerned, how can you tell the difference?
If the suspension needs a refresh then I may have a look at different options, but I want it for the road not the track, so whilst it needs to get round corners ok, comfort is more important. I have heard that lowering by 20mm is ok, but going back to the original question - would just replacement standard dampers be ok, or would "upgraded ones make much difference? to be fair it drives ok now - although it does wallow a little, so if the suspension is 25 years old, a new/refreshed set would probably make a difference anyway.
Enter your VIN into this and it might be able to tell you what trim/edition it was.
It might also be worth cross checking against this resource.
It looks beautiful by the way 
Unless the car has been repainted, on the drivers door shut there will be a sticker denoting the trim level.
Are you sure that it’s an import? That rear ended looks very UK to me too, looks like a factory rear fog lamp, orange reflectors in the bumper and the steering wheel does sound like a 1994 genuine Mazda accessory.
I suppose it could have had a full set of rear end components from a UK car at some point, it looks like it’s been painted at some point as it doesn’t have black sills.
This car is registered as an MX5 not a Eunos which I think would be unusual for an import.
In answer to the original question I would suggest you do what you feel like doing to maintain or enhance YOUR enjoyment of the car.
Most mods are reversible anyway so only perhaps a temporary commitment
Mine was registered on June 8th 2000 by the DVLA as a Mazda Mx5. “Date of first registration”…not bad for a 6 years old!
It’s currently insured as…a Gleneagles 'cos computah sez neeowww.
I do have a letter from insurance affirming they know well what it really is in the event of a claim.
Reg plate looks pretty typical of a JDM import…just a few cars removed form my own.
I guess another quick glance clue might lie in the trip recorded in Kms.
Anyhow, as the owner is likely aware, it’s last MOT fail in April lists quite a comprehensive task program to attend to…
Been there with mine as some know…
Repair immediately (major defects):
- Offside Front Subframe mounting prescribed area excessively corroded significantly reducing structural strength floor pan (5.3.6 (a) (i))
- Offside Front Seat belt anchorage prescribed area strength or continuity significantly reduced floor pan (7.1.1 (a) (i))
- Offside Front Seat belt anchorage prescribed area strength or continuity significantly reduced inner arch (7.1.1 (a) (i))
- Offside Rear Vehicle structure corroded to the extent that the rigidity of the assembly is significantly reduced (6.1.1 © (i))
- Offside Rear Floor excessively deteriorated (6.2.4 (a) (i))
- Nearside Front Seat belt anchorage prescribed area is inadequately repaired (7.1.1 (a) (i))
- Nearside Front Seat belt anchorage prescribed area strength or continuity significantly reduced (7.1.1 (a) (i))
- Offside Front Service brake excessively binding (1.2.1 (f))
- Nearside Front Lower Suspension arm ball joint excessively worn outer (5.3.4 (a) (i))
- Offside Front Lower Suspension arm ball joint excessively worn outer (5.3.4 (a) (i))
- Nearside Rear Upper Suspension component mounting prescribed area excessively corroded significantly reducing structural strength inner arch (5.3.6 (a) (i))
Monitor and repair if necessary (advisories):
- Oil leak, but not excessive (8.4.1 (a) (i))
- all suspension components corroded front to rear
Hi Robin
My check shows yours as a ‘Eunos Roadster’.
I have to check quite a few where catalytic converters, etc purchased and this is the usual for a Japanese import. MX5 is what I would expect to see for UK spec cars.
certainly a mk1in good, standard condition is worth having IMO. As others have said, keeping on top of bushes, links etc is a good idea, getting the best out of it in standard form ideally. Well done for rescuing another mk1 from the breakers 
