That’s what I did, and ended up with a bright, garish Crystal Blue, which at first did nothing for me, but has grown on me…slightly.
I’m Dorking way so if you want to take a look at a clean 6-speed 2001 Sport in the wrong colour, for inspiration, just let me know.
Thanks pmba, when i get ‘the’ car, hopefully in a preffered colour, I will pop in en route to Leith Hill for a walk.
Cheers, Ian.
After some more thought - given this car ticks so many boxes for me in terms of the gearbox, the mileage, the colour etc, should I buy it & get the rails done. The Mx5 restorer has the price at £600 the pair.
The dealer will drop the price to £2800 ( or £3k inc the hardtop, which I don’t want ) . Is this way too much to pay?
And what would the cost be to clean the entire underside ( all a but surface rusty ) and paint? I have been trying to call the MX5 restorer, but getting through is a bit tricky.
Cheers, Ian.
Hi Ian,
I am not the best person for your questions. However, something that I would like to tell you, is that a Hardtop in a good condition could cost at least 300£ maybe more. It’s something that you could think to have some profit and sell it to somebody that wants to have it. Apologies if this out your topic but I thought to mention it.
In addition, in regards to the vehicle, I also recommend having a look at the wheel alignment. I did not check it on mine, and a few months after the purchase I did free wheel alignment test and the results were really bad. This work is about 100£ so if you can check it earlier why not to do it.
Good luck with your purchase! I wish you to find the best possible MX-5! And of course, welcome to the Mx-5 family!
Bill
I am starting to look towards the Mk3 as an option. How do they compare? The ‘look’ heavier - are they? And which is the engine to have?
All thoughts appreciated.
Cheers, Ian.
Hi there- When I got my first MX5 I really wanted a mk1, drove a few, but couldn’t find a good enough one in my price range. I couldn’t consider a mk2 cos of the chassis rail problems, so I tried a mk3 2.0 option pack which was just within my budget.
I was smitten - grin from ear to ear.
So I would say - just drive a few and see what you think.
Also - you really should read this: https://www.mx5oc.co.uk/forum/yaf_postst60858_Mk-3-buyers-guide.aspx
good luck, Colin
Yes the MK3 is a bit heavier but not a lot heavier. I have never driven an MK2 but I had 2 mk1 before I got my MK3. I can honestly say I have never missed the mk1.
MK3 feels a lot more like a modern car, so feels more solid and safer. That does take away somewhat from the raw feeling you get in earlier cars. But modern engine and gearing make it faster and more liveable with.
I believe a MK3 is 95% of the fun of a mk1 but more than 50% better in almost all other measures.
Mine might be up for sale in the next week or 2 but it is dark red (copper) and has a fair few chassis mods. It has however been professionally undersealed and well loved.
If you go Mk3 you still need to be very careful of rust when buying. They are getting very old now, and are just as prone to rust as the Mk2/2.5’s are.
I was looking at one being welded up yesterday, and my mate says he has a load more Mk3’s booked in next week for rust repairs.
I haven’t seen any evidence of them being that bad but rust is indeed coming an issue on SOME early cars. Buyer beware.
They have the potential to be worse; rusty cars are rusty all over, not just in a few spots, and the subrames are rusting through, something rare/non-existant on the NB.
NC rust
Add this to the fragile engine for things to be aware of.
Thanks for all your very useful advice.
So, I went to see this Mk2 yesterday :
…this car is very low miles and has NO mention of rust anywhere on the MOT history, so I took a train all the way to Leeds with the necessary folding stuff in my pocket.
But guess what - a quick look at the rails showed they were rusty!
The dealer seems a good guy. An ex-copper now doing a bit of dealing, and not an MX5 specialist, so he seemed genuinely surprised when I showed him the rot. We had already agreed on a price of £3k ( down from the £3200 advertised ) for a quick cash sale. He asked whether I’d be interested at £2600, I’m sure there was still some wiggle room. That’s enough to get the rails done properly ( £500 for both at The Welding Corner in Southampton ) but I walked away because I need to re-think the whole MX5 idea if they are this bad for rot.
It wasn’t a completely wasted journey though, because I jumped on a train to York to see a friend, and had a great time catching up with him over beers, breakfasts, and a wet wet wet walk around the city.
I’ll have a look at a couple of Mk3’s & see how I feel. Otherwise I think I need to massively up the budget & think Lotus Elise, Caterham 7, maybe FIAT 124, which I much prefer to the MX5 Mk4 ( sorry Mazda fans! ) .
Cheers all, Ian.
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I’m not sure I agree about all old cars being rusty - ‘back in the day’ when I drove a Mk2 Cortina, Mk2 Escort ( 1600 Sport was a lot of fun for a teenager who couldn’t afford an RS200! ) Hillman Imp etc - they all had to be checked for rust, and I usually found it.
Fast forward a bit, and nothing I have bought in the last 20 years had even the smallest hint of rust. FIAT Punto, FIAT Multipla, Pug 205, Merc Estate, Vauhall Zaffy - cars just don’t rust anymore!
Which is why I’m a bit surprised that MX5s are so prone to the tin-worm.
I’m in no hurry, it’s just an itch that needs scratching somehow, I’ll have a look at some Mk3’s. One of the other options on the wish-list was a FIAT Barchetta, but I can’t imagine they are much better for rot!
Cheers, Ian.
Barchetta (galvanized) is nothing more than a drop top Punto.
You could spend the next month and a half, or more, going up and down the country looking for that perfect car. Or go to one of the established importers, and have a car ordered to spec. It might only take 6-8 weeks to have a car at your home. I recommend speaking to Andrew at Autolinkuk, who can explain the process, and set your expectations.
Getting a 100% mint car in the precise specification, colour, mileage is possible, but it might take longer to find a car in Japan. Andrew’s agent might find such a car right away, you never know. Or you can be flexible in your requirements. For instance, a 100% standard, 1 owner, low mileage car you mightn find graded as 3.0, but the bodywork might have scratches and minor dings. A car with a bit more “history” might be cheaper but better presented. There are arguments either way.
If hes looking at mk2s i doubt hes the budget to import one.
The costs alone without the car will be more than he could pick something reasonable here
No idea wheat the OP’s budget is (including petrol to go looking for cars).
Costs to import a car to order is not the same as the retail price of such cars on the forecourt. Dealers add a margin of upto 100%. Their money is tied up at sea for 6 weeks. Its a different proposition when its someone else’s money, and they are performing an essentially risk free service; their guarantee is usually along the lines that the cars selected will be something they would be happy to sell themselves here.
Looking at retail price cares (cars at auction will be cheaper):
https://www.carsensor.net/usedcar/detail/VU1693406689/index.html?TRCD=200002
Nice 79k km RS model, 528,000 Yen, or £4000.
Add £500 Agent/FOB fees, £500 shipping, 10% duty, 20% duty, £200 UK dock fees, £500 importer fee =£7300, plus allow £500 for UK service MOT (Yokohama tyres on that, so wouldn’t anticiplate any issues). Auction car would be half the price? This car appears essentially as new, and is the desireable RS model (more power).
https://www.carsensor.net/usedcar/detail/CU3423812685/index.html?TRCD=200002
V-Spec NB1, with 81k kms. Being a NB1, it will have the proper Torsen diff. 408,000 Yen. £3100 to purchase, £6100
The cheapest 1.8 manual retail:
https://www.carsensor.net/usedcar/detail/CU9225020604/index.html?TRCD=200002
227k kms, 250,000 yen, £1900
Prices are cheaper is you include the 1.6 model
https://www.carsensor.net/usedcar/detail/VU2216095259/index.html?TRCD=200002
150k kms, 128,000 yen, under £1000. Looks to be in sweet condition.
And these are retail dealer prices (there isn’t really a private used car market in Japan), not auction.
You can go via a Japan exporter, from stock, where they are buying cars at auction, adding a markup, and then you deal with the taxes and fetching the car home at the other end
https://www.beforward.jp
You can bid on cars yourself, though that I suspect can be fairly nervewracking. And most of these Japan-based exporters are fronted by Australians. New Zealanders. You can sign up to various websites, and see the auction prices (sold prices), but you can short cut that effort with Autolinkuk.
My mate’s hotcan import business. He charges me 300 .and i just pay the rest.
I dont think id pay 7k for a mk2 even if it were rust free.
As said, these are Japan retail prices, not auction prices.
Peach of a car, special edition, 6-speed 1.8, sold for £1700
Its a 1.6 NR-A. A little special; basically a 1.6 with factory upgrade exhaust system, special interior, Bilsteins, 1.8 big brakes. Some of these came from the factory with a full cage, but this one didn’t. Has the super rare red interior. Those white Enkeis weren’t the same as the ones that appear cheap in the UK, but were a lightweight forged version It sold for £400… This car was put through the auctions 3 times, before the reserve was lowered and it was sold. Grade 3.5, someone has replaced the windscreen, but I don’t see much else up with the body. Interior is grade C, so I guess it needed a clean.
Thing this was a “Web car”; owners could custom order a car on the web, and get some interesting trim combinations. It was the only way to get a 1.8 with the red cloth interior. This one has a bucket seats, factory body kit. Ultra low miles, sold for £1800
Earliesh RS. Its an example of the variability of the prices. This car obviously has some paint issues, and needs work on the interior, but looks to have some nice parts on it, such as those £1500 Watanabe wheels. Extra clocks? is there a turbo there? Sold for £1000.
Who knows what we would be paying for a rust free Mk2 RS in a few years time. Also have to remember that the prices are guided by a currently unfavourable exchange rate. Auction prices aren’t really driven by age, for NBs.
So I bought this S-VT Sport :
https://www.dropbox.com/s/d2i4nq7nvrft8vo/MyMx5.jpg?dl=0
It’s the one I originally walked away from because it has some blistering on one of the chassis legs. But having seen many more with the same problem I guessed it was worth living with that fault in order to get an otherwise VGC S-VT Sport model with low miles ( 51K ) .
It needs a service & cam belt, so I will be seeking advice on other areas of this very useful forum to find some answers, such as - is it best to buy an original Mazda belt, or is there an upgraded item? Is there an MX5 specialist in SW London? Otherwise I have some excellent ‘all-rounder’ garages nearby.
Cheers all 
So I bought this S-VT Sport :
https://www.dropbox.com/s/d2i4nq7nvrft8vo/MyMx5.jpg?dl=0
It’s the one I originally walked away from because it has some blistering on one of the chassis legs. But having seen many more with the same problem I guessed it was worth living with that fault in order to get an otherwise VGC S-VT Sport model with low miles ( 51K ) .
It needs a service & cam belt, so I will be seeking advice on other areas of this very useful forum to find some answers, such as - is it best to buy an original Mazda belt, or is there an upgraded item? Is there an MX5 specialist in SW London? Otherwise I have some excellent ‘all-rounder’ garages nearby.
Cheers all