Hi All, Hope you are all well I purchased my first 5 just a week last thursaday and promptly got the insurance sorted and cruised down to join you all at Sandringham on the Sunday and what a fantastic turn out it was. I met my first MX-5 friend Ian on the way down and we cruised together from Sleaford, I already felt part of the club with all the pop up light flashing going on as we approached kings Lynn. I just had to join up as soon as i arrived and am pleased to say that my membership came through today…No 56768! I met some lovely ladies from the Lincolnshire arm of the club and found out they meet just 8 miles from where I live so I’m looking forward to some good drives outs with my local clan.
Since then I must have been out every day and my new ‘Summer run around’ seems to have become my daily driver…Think I will be needing to up the mileage on my insurance for next spring! These motors are so much fun!
Well onto the story of how I found my little 5…It was pure chance I drove past her in the village/Town I live in and noticed the for sale in the dash. Her nose just popping out of the drive onto the pavement and I remember thinking to myself blimey she looks in good nick. I past her a few more times over the next week or so and evry time I managed to drive past but I just knew she was going to be a good 'un if I looked. You know I just got that impression, she was parked in a nice driveway, garden was lovely and I’d rarely seen her before so presumed she was normally hidden away in the garage…another good sign. So anyway I digress so back to the point. I couldn’t resist stopping one evening on the way home from picking up my little lad and so as we browsed a lovely older gent came out to talk to us and tell us all about the motor. I was right she did look a beauty and so in we got and took her for a quick 10 mile blast…the smile on my lads face was awesome and I’d not felt like this about a car since losing my beloved Celica GT-4 almost a decade ago now. My lad just kept saying dad you have to buy this car!!
Back at the 5’s home I did a bit more chatting and found she had just had the MOT including the Sills and Rear springs replaceing and 2 new tyres . The old boy had a polly pocket full of receipts and service records and it appeared he had her serviced before each summer even if she’d only done 1500miles the previous year. A nice bill for the timing belt was also present for 4,000 miles previous…I knew I wanted her!
So in true Mike Brewer style I went in hard and to my surprise the old gent didn’t look too flabaghasted but obviously upped my bid, I said “well I guess the usual protocol is to meet half way?” so promptly bidded him down again…a hand was offered and the deal was done!!
Now on the 2min journey round the corner I’m wondering how to approach the subject with the boss!, Didn’t need to worry really as I hadn’t got my but out of my car before young boy was in the kitchen telling mum we had just been on a test drive…Luckily for me I don’t think he realised the gravity of the conversation I had just had with the old boy and the secret handshake was still under my hat! I offered to take ‘The Boss’ for a little look which surprisingly went rather well and so off we popped. After another short test drive and obviously her who must be obeyed not wanting to let me know she actually liked it we pulled back up, her poker face would of won games at Las Vegas! On handing over the keys my wife uttered the most depressing words since my mum told me as a child that I had left my favourite teddy bear in Southern Spain…“Thankyou for your time we will need to go and have a think about it”…
…Now some of you may say i was stupid at this point, some may say I was very brave, as I turned to her bravely and uttered the words " What is there to think about, I’m having it"…It went down surprisingly uneventfully and she said OK, if you really want it no problem! So that was it off home we went.
I must say I got very little sleep that night from a mixture of excitement, YouTube watching and MX-5 t’internet surfing.
So the morning was here, the wife went to work, I reieved no grief and I got my lad to school. Then it was off to the bank for the dosh. By half 9 I was back at the old boys, filled out the V5 and was driving back home with a carrier bag full of apples from his orchard…bless him.
So that is the story of my first MX purchase, since then I have managed to give her a good cleanup and bought her some moving in presents…
Here’s a few pics of Rosie, I do hope you like her.
Hope to meet loads of you in the future
Regards
Matt
