I’ve read quite a few readers rides threads since joining the club just over one year ago and I’ve found them to be very interesting and insightful. Therefore I thought starting a readers rides thread of my own to document my journey with the car would be a nice way of introducing myself and the car to the club.
Background
When buying the RF, I part exchanged my first MX-5. An early 2016 2.0 ND1. A great car that brought plenty of memories and smiles.
However, I had my eye on upgrading to an ND2 for a few months. But before that, there were a few decisions to make.
Engine size
For comparison I test drove a couple of 1.5 litre models.
The 1.5 had much more ‘oomph’ than I expected and was every bit as engaging to drive, if not more than my ND1 2 litre.
However after test driving a 2 litre 184hp free-revving ND2 I knew that this was what I wanted.
Enough power to cruise down the motorway and overtake without every really needing to downshift while at the same time lighting up B-roads made this the engine of choice for me.
Had I been looking to buy as a second car or a weekend toy I would have given the 1.5 a lot more consideration. Every bit as fun and seem to be bit cheaper to acquire.
The fact that I would be daily driving the car though made the 2 litre that bit more appealing to me.
Soft top or RF?
My ND1 was pre RF era so obviously a soft top. I loved it and couldn’t fault it apart from the hoop rubbing issue.
With no access to a garage for storage, I felt that an RF may be the better option to brave the elements along with the added security of a hard top. Again, since this was going to be a daily driver, the RF seemed to me like a better choice for all year round driving.
I didn’t rule out the soft top however. If a nice example, that ticked all the boxes came up for sale, I would have given it serious consideration.
Colour
My ND1 was soul red and I loved it but I was open to a change. I narrowed down my search to red or black. I liked how the A-pillars on my ND1 soft top were black and added contrast to the red paint as opposed to the RF having colour coded A-pillars. I was on the lookout for another red soft top or a black RF. I had seen only a handful of RF’s in black and I thought they enhanced the curves of the RF roof and gave it a more of a ‘mean’ look.
Purchase
After weeks of scanning through auto trader, test drives and part-exchange valuations, I found the car that I wanted.
A well cared for, completely stock 2019 ND2 RF 2.0 in Jet Black Mica.
1.Gearbox & Diff Oil
A trip to Roddisons for the all important gearbox & diff oil change. I tried a few different brands of oil for the gearbox and diff with my previous ND. I’ve found Roddison’s blend to be the best I’ve used. Gearbox isn’t too notchy or stiff when cold and is silky smooth when hot. I feel confident that the gearbox is well protected with this oil. Highly recommended.
2. Tyres
New 215/45/R17 Kumho PS71 tyres fitted all round. The car came with the original Bridgestones at the front and dealer fitted budgets tyres at the rear. Both were terrible.
The difference since I’ve gone from 205 to 215 is immense. So much more grip and the car feels far more planted and predictable on turn in. Ride comfort has also improved.
It was a choice between Michelin Pilot Sports, Goodyear Eagles and the Kumhos.
I had read good things about them all, but the Kumhos seemed like excellent value and had been recommended to me by quite a few people who have been tinkering with MX5’s for a long time.
3. Mazda Valve Caps
Ordered a set of valve caps from MX5 parts. My car has TPMS so I had to get the TPMS specific version. A nice subtle addition to the car.
4. Moss Stubby Aerial
Picked up a Mossy stubby aerial on sale at the anniversary rally in Compton Verney.
It suits the RF a lot more than the standard aerial in my opinion. Looks good and no loss of radio signal.
5. Brake Fluid Change
A trip to Mitchell Mazda for a quick brake fluid change. I’m confident doing most servicing jobs myself but I’ve yet to do a brake fluid change.
6. Roof Maintenance
Cleaned out the roof drains to make sure I don’t find water in the footwell some morning. I also cleaned away all the dried out original grease from the gears & hinges on the roof mechanism and applied fresh general purpose grease on the gears and white lithium grease to the hinges. In addition, I applied some Autoglym Bumper & Trim gel to the seals on the roof edges to keep the rubber fresh and supple.
Next Jobs
I do want to change out all the discs and pads pretty soon. The pads are starting to wear out and the discs are showing a little scoring. Been looking at a few different options… in particular EBC standard discs and Greenstuff pads. Has anyone any experience using this combination? A good choice or am I better off looking at other brands or should I even go OEM again?
My criteria is a set of discs ands pads that will perform well in regular daily driving with
occasional fast road use.
It depends on what you are looking for from your brakes. Obviously standard discs work but grooved discs offer the advantage of allowing the pad to degas and can deglaze the pad offering a small improvement in performance.
It was a really good write-up. The rubber seals on the hard-top do worry me. I am a bit worried there will be water leaks in the future. Do you think the Autoglym product will be enough? How often does it need to be applied?
When you cleaned out the roof drains did you find much stuff in there?
I am also trying to figure out what brake discs to get. There is so much choice out there.
Storing your car outdoors as opposed to a garage will have an impact on the condition of the rubber seals and the possibility of the roof developing leaks.
If the car is stored in a garage the likelihood of the roof leaking in the future is greatly reduced.
When left outdoors, the rubber is exposed to rain, sun and fluctuating temperatures. The rubber seals are constantly getting wet and drying out. This will cause the rubber to crack or perish over time. How long that would take to occur, I do not know, but something I wouldn’t imagine happening in the first 8-10 years of the cars life even if the rubber is left completely unprotected.
I don’t have the luxury of being able to store my car in a garage at the moment so I use the Autoglym Bumper & Trim Gel to give the rubber seals a protective hydrophobic barrier. I apply it liberally with a detailing brush and let it to settle and soak for about 5 mins before removing any excess with a microfibre cloth. It keeps the rubber soft and stops it drying it out. Doing this once every 3 months should be more than sufficient. Before I apply the trim gel I like to clean the rubber of any dirt and grime with an APC (all purpose cleaner and degreaser).
I use a 10:1 (water:product) solution of Bilt Hamber Surfex-HD.
There wasn’t really any debris in the drains when I cleaned them out thankfully. I used the MX5 Parts Hood Drain Cleaning Brush. It removed a light film of grime along the inside of the drains.
I’m still doing research on options for the brakes. I will post on here what I eventually go for and how they perform. I’m not looking to upgrade to a big brake kit or change out the calipers. Just change out the discs and pads. If you happen to change your discs and pads in the meantime, please let me know what you go for and what you think of them. I’d be interested to hear!
Thanks for this. I will purchase those two products and start protecting the rubber. I think it is worth it because you don’t want water getting into the electrics/buttons inside the interior.
I have read that previous thread on the drains and watched the videos. My impressions were honestly that it is too difficult for me to attempt so I want to get someone to do it but I don’t know if I trust my local dealer to do a decent job.
I am changing the calipers to Wilwood. And pads to Wilwood. Discs unknown.
Is your brake pedal mushy/soft? I find it has too much travel and noticed the travel can increase at times. Where in my other car (a basic Aygo) it is much more abrupt. You only need to tap the brake pedal and it results in good decelaration.
I personally wouldn’t describe the brake pedal as mushy or soft. I would describe it as ‘progressive’ and ‘linear’. I feel like the effort I apply with my foot matches the effort being applied by the brakes.
I do understand what you mean in reference to your Aygo though. My girlfriend has a 2022 Polo and when I go from my MX-5 to that I find the brake pedal very sensitive. I lightly touch the pedal and I feel like I’m about to go through the windscreen! Takes me a coupe of miles to get used it.
All personal preference however!
Initially when I bought the car I was shocked at its sensitivity but actually it is safer I think when cornering. In hard driving you need it more immediate. So I don’t know how I can change this for the MX5. Will have to see what the engineering workshop has to say.
Or get a Mazda ND car cover and use it with consistency. My seals, 6 years old, look totally mint, like a brand new car, without then the need of rubber protection.
Edit: Of course with an RF that’s different, just me being thick and not reading the thread title lol
Speaking of which, I use this stuff:
On a Elgrand’s sunroof seals, as well as on the general seals of that and two otger cars in the family.
Agree with you. I have the cover from my previous ND soft top. Genuine Mazda Outdoor Half Cover. It fits the RF also so I’ll be using that a lot more come the winter months!
