Hi, I’m a newbie here with a red 1999 Mk2 MX5 that has had some restoration work done on it at MX City, Doncaster. Sadly the guy who used to service it (the excellent Peter Pemberton of Newhaven Garage, Rossett) has just retired.
I live near Harlech in North Wales. Can anyone recommend someone for servicing and general repairs within a couple of hours drive please? Chester or Shrewsbury area perhaps? There doesn’t seem to be anyone on my side of the border.
Very grateful for any help.
I have no experience of them myself, but I often see CBS recommended and highly rated as the MX-5 specialist in the NW:
Thanks Gareth, I’ll follow up on that but I was hoping that there might be somewhere a bit closer. Nelson is over three hours from here.
hi.i bought my MK3 icon from supercar classics neston on the wirral.i have the car serviced and the mot every year.a mx5 specialist.
Thanks Colin b. That’s a lot closer than Nelson.
Does anyone know anything about MX Heaven, also called Bloomsbury Garage, at Shifnal near Telford, which would be even more convenient?.
Hi TonyN
With regards to MX Heaven, if it is the one we checked out many years ago, it was a disappointment. The garage area looked like something out of a disaster movie and the guy we met had not taken a course in PR. He was just downright rude and very caustically critical about our first MX-5 - (our first exposure to the MX-5 ownership virus! )… …but it was some time ago and it may have all changed hands by now. However, I forget the exact location but just remember the name. Check it out as a drive by like house hunting to see if it has “kerb appeal”…?..!
The other place we have used at Congleton is Paul Sheard - CW12 4JX on the Newcastle Road at 01260 295181. We bought our 2nd and present car from the garage and Paul races MX-5s. That was some time ago now so again I am not sure what is current and with being geographically challenged, I am not sure how close that is to you.
We are still looking for a MX-5 sympathetic garage in the Shrewsbury area and have found a seemingly good and efficient garage - not 5 biased though - which we shall continue to use unless something better turns up within reasonable commuting distance.
Hope something helps in my ramblings - an age thing?!
Cheers
Ralph
Hi again TonyN
p.s…brain slow in getting into gear…there is an MX-5 enthusiasts garage north of us somewhere which the NW Midlands group knows about. Contact Marcus who is the local “oracle” for details.
Cheers
Ralph
Hi Ralph
Many thanks: that really moves things on.
I’ve only looked at MX Heaven / Bloomsbury on line, but it looks as though the business may have had a shave and a haircut, hence the name change. I’ll do as you suggest next time I’m in the area and reporrt back. From what you say, it should be easy enough to tell.
Paul Sheard seems to tick all the boxes, but is still quite a long way away. We’re on the Welsh coast about level with Shrewsbury, if you know what I mean. But it’s certainly worth checking out.
I’ll contact Marcus as soon as I work out how this board works! And that’s an age related prob too.
Best,
Tony
PS Managed to work that one out all on my own. Easy!
Hi TonyN
I used to live just a few miles from MX Heaven aka Bloomsbury Garage. Like Ralph says, be very wary of them. They import cheap and cheerful Eunos’ and sell them on at silly prices. As for any knowledge of mechanicals, the chap I spoke to; I wouldn’t trust him to fill the washer bottles let alone take the spanners to any of my cars. Its about 3 years since I was there but their web site looks the same.
Regards
Chris
Thanks Chris: understood. I’ve PMed Marcus as Ralph suggested and if there has been a change in the last three years then presumably he will have heard.
Cheers, Tony
Cheshire and North Wales member (and national committee member) http://www.cshaynes.co.uk/
Many thanks Richard, looks good and I’ll add them to the list.
Hi Tony
Whilst browsing the latest STHT yesterday I noticed the Broadspeed details which is the one the local 5 members mention. It is www.broadspeedmx5.co.uk at Stafford 01785 252423. Geographically they are probably worse than Paul Sheard for you.
I used to use a firm in Welshpool - WR Davies who we used when we had a Focus but they moved further into Wales. They seemed to be efficient and were basically a Ford based firm but are now too far out to be cost effective. We have started to use another firm RC MOTORS Ltd (see website for their activities) in Shrewsbury who are basically VW specialists - Audi, Skoda, Polo, Golf and the like but do cater for other makes and they have been very welcoming and efficient in servicing our 5. Having recently moved to the west side of town we recently found a small firm a short drive(walk) away which I have yet to sound out before our next MOT is due in September. They have a rolling road and do all sorts of more technical stuff - re-mapping I think being one of them.
Otherwise, it might be a case of you finding the most MX-5 sympathetic garage and then making a day of it for servicing and MOT’s. When we wanted our 5 Dinitroled we found the nearest place was in Malvern where they did the Morgan cars for the Morgan company, also based in Malvern. We took 2 cars and left the 5 to returned days later when the deed was done. With Davies in Welshpool we left the car and walked down to a local well known and much used Charlies Store for a browse and lunch. This always assumed that there was nothing wrong with the car that needed an overnight stay - ever optimistic.
Right, I am rambling but it’s an age thing!
Cheers
Ralph
… last minute additional thought…Of course, there is the main Mazda agent, along with their Fords and things, in the form of Furrows in Shrewsbury. We used them to buy our Focus and service it until they became seemingly incompetent, hence the move to Welshpool.
Hopefully, you will eventually find something that suits you…
I’ve been travelling, hence the silence. In fact I was hoping to pass MX Heaven at Shifnal so that I could have a nose round, just for fun, but it didn’t work out. But as you say, Broadspead at Stafford is a bit far.
My old arrangement at Rossett was perfect: complete confidence in Peter Pemberton who could get parts within the hour and nearly always had the car ready by evening, a pleasant two hour drive in and back with an excellent bacon butty near Llangollen, bus stop by the garage and a twenty minute (free with pass) trip into Chester for shopping - so no parking hassle, and perhaps best of all, on the rare occasions the car couldn’t be ready for evening, a free bus ride right across Wales to my home, then back next day. It’s going to be a hard act to follow, hence all the research. Before the end of the month I’ll do a round trip looking at some of the places members have recommended.
All that you say is helpful, and I’m resigned to service/repairs being a day out matter, but that suits us so long as large town is accessible and it can be combined with shopping. Living on the coast, trips to Chester or Shrewsbury are essential from time to time.
Best
Tony
I have a suspicion that MX Heaven near Shifnal might have closed and when they were open I thought the chap a bit odd to say the least. I live near Shrewsbury (although the buses are pretty infrequent) and am interested in what sort of things you are after having done as I am not aware of any specialists nearby. 5s are pretty easy and nice cars to work on mechanically and I do all my own servicing. Did a clutch and rear pad/disk change on my buddies Mk1, rear brake disks and callipers and timing belt on my son’s 1.6 Mk2, and recently an engine change and timing belt on my 1.8 VVT Mk 2.5. Basic servicing (oil, filter, air filter changes) is really straightforward if a bit messy because of the location of the oil filter but not beyond the skills of a competent DIYer.