- My model of MX-5 is: __
- I’m based near: York
- I’m looking for technical help or recommendations on: servicing/buying.
Hi All,
I’m a new member and am about to begin checking MX5’s with a view to purchasing.
I’ve plenty of questions to ask but this post is specifically about getting the car up in the air with a trolley jack without using the jacking points so that axle stands can be used under the jacking points.
Also, while I’m looking underneath at prospective cars, where/what to look for that is a common issue for MX5’s I think I’ve pretty much settled on an NC model.
Regards,
Michael.
I’d first study the MOT history to see if there were any advisories/failures and if so, look to see if they were properly sorted.
Service records are a good indication of oil change history. It will need a gearbox and differential oil change if it hasn’t had any.
Rust is always an issue, so have a good poke about under there to see if it has much. A bonus would be that it had been properly undersealed.
Suspension bushes and the usual bearing wear is also worth a good looking at.
Other than that, I will let everyone else add their ideas to it all.
Best of luck with your searching👍🏻
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When I went looking for mine I put a pair of ramps and some carpet in the car so I could get the car up in the air and inspect the underside. It was very interesting that some vendors got quite nervous when this was requested, if I managed to get underneath it was clear why. I think about 80% of cars I managed to inspect displayed some rust, some much worse than others.
The MOT history was a good starting point to see how the car had been treated in terms of simple failures like lights not working and bald tyres. If an owner can’t or won’t fix these things then chances are more major things and regular servicing have probably been neglected.
Thanks Wilier and Allen.
Have been reading and making notes of suitable candidates MOTs today.
There’s one with a good service history that’s failed a couple on reasonable things like tyres and discs, but never had any advisories. Not sure if the lack of advisories is a good thing in a car that’s around 12 years old ( looked at about 10 so can’t remember it’s exact age).
Luckily there’s no rush and I’ve another motor to sell first.
Cheers,
M.
Not sure if the lack of advisories is a good thing in a car that’s around 12 years old ( looked at about 10 so can’t remember it’s exact age).
Why? My car is almost 16 years old and never failed an MOT or had an advisory!
Some people look after their cars.
But a lot don’t, and caveat emptor.
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This is my 5 currently in winter hibernation, admittedly it is cosseted and only used in dry summer months.
Good luck with your search there are some good cars out there.
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SAZ9961 (26 years young) might have failed a few MOTs over the years, but it never failed on rust, or even had an advisory
Sometimes a lack of advisories implies a too cozy arrangement with a MOT tester. Or a mail order MOT.
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Safetymatch,
Lovely looking ‘5 there.
AST, regarding the absence of MOT advisories that is what flashed up in the mind. I find it hard to believe that there’s nothing noted like bushes, pads etc, etc starting to fail. Bushes especially even without use will perish, same with tyres. Anyway I’ll see when I go check that particular car.
Still on the MOT subject, I replaced the rear tyres on my XK8, Pirellis P-zero IIRC perfect condition, no cracks, plenty of tread but they were 16 years old and as hard as steel. Still can’t believe that that’s not an MOT check.
Cheers,
M.
Don’t read to much into mot history, some testers can’t stop writing advisories while others just can’t be arsed
Hi Robert,
Thanks for your reply.
There’s certainly an argument for your view too. At least we can check them now, not like ‘back in the day’. 
Cheers,
M.
Dealers offer cars that have HPI checks. Do we ever actually see these?
I did an HPI check AFTER purchase because I was drawing a blank trying to research service history which is minimal on the official Mazda site. The service garages I contacted said the car didn’t exist! It turned out that my car had been on a private plate until six months before it was sold. My 12 reg car was actually first registered in 2011.
Ask to see everything.
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Hi Portvalenil,
I will be doing my own checks via Car Vertical. Not free but forewarned is forearmed or summat like that!
Info here http://www.duratecnc.co.uk/?p=52 or maybe buy Oliver Wild’s book on the Mk3 MX5 - full of good info and photos https://www.amazon.co.uk/Mazda-MX-5-Miata-2005-2015-Essential/dp/1787117545
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Thanks for that article link Meneer.
Looks like the lowest mileage is the one to go for before those big end bearings fail.
Luckily for me they’re quite near me. I think engine and ‘box fluid changes from day one are the order of the day.
Cheers,
M.
The family runs a total of 11 cars, the youngest is 13 years old, I look after them all myself and the only time I’ve had an MOT failure was when I bought a lemon and took it for test knowing it would fail. I then used the MOT failure as evidence the car was unroadworthy to extract compensation from the dealer who sold it to me.
It’s also very rare to get an advisory as I check each car before it goes to MOT and do anything that I think needs doing. Sometimes I get a verbal comment from the MOT tester about something that isn’t even an advisory and I take care of that too.
However the last NC I bought blind because it was just so cheap and I couldn’t go wrong even with a dead engine. The MOT history showed no failures and only minor advisories on tyres, brake pads etc so I thought it would be solid. But when It turned up on my driveway it had big holes in the rear of the sills both sides and the whole underside had lots of surface rust, like I’ve never seen before. After I’d welded it all up I got an advisory that it had been undersealed, the tester said it was just to cover himself as so often with Jap cars its just underseal over rust.
The NC bearing failure gets talked about a lot, from what I’ve heard and seen first hand, they start to use oil and the level drops to the point where there just isn’t enough in the engine to lubricate the big ends and then they fail because of lack of lubrication. The dip stick on the NC1 is actually quite difficult to read and while there’s an oil gauge on the dash it has nothing to do with oil pressure or level. I think if people checked the oil every week like it says in the handbook the engines would go on indefinitely. Increased oil consumption can start at quite a low mileage, mine had been run dry by the previous owned and destroyed the bearings at 67000 miles.
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