Nearside Rear Integral body structure is corroded but structural rigidity is not significantly reduced sill (6.1.1 (c) (i))
Integral body structure is corroded but structural rigidity is not significantly reduced both front chassis rails (6.1.1 (c) (i))
I’m happy to buy a car which needs the fron rails doing ( don’t they all?? ) because I know the cost of this work & it doesn’t require expensive paint, but one sill needs doing - could that be a whole can of worms?
Find another one at that mileage though - prices seem to have gone crazy lately. And as I don’t want a hardtop ( which is just a storeage headache for me ) I could sell that for a few £’s, which effectively brings the price down a bit.
That dodgy sill is a worry though. I have seen some seemingly nice MX5’s being sold for parts with not very much wrong when I have looked at the last MOT.
Looking at the MOT history the offside rear structure went from Advisory to Fail within 12 months so it’s highly likely that the 2 last advisories will go the same way on the next test. At the price he’s asking that’s a lot of potential additional cost, maybe he has forgotten about the last welding job or maybe it was done before he bought it. As it stands it’s definitely not rust free, the outside panels may be ok but the sills and front frame are not.
As I have all but given up on finding a low mileage / few owners / Strato blue or black Sport that is rust free, I need to consider one that doesn’t tick all the boxes. The MX5 restorer quote up to £1000 to do a sill properly & paint. A random welder way out of London ( my area ) quotes £150 to do the sill, but just primed, which seems suspiciously cheap.
Given this car with a bit of haggling, and selling the hardtop comes in at about £3500, it could be worth it.
Does anyone have experience of sill replacement cost? And front rails ( which MX5 Restorer quote £600 for both, as they have the job off to a fine art! ) ?
It’s not about how much will the sill cost to replace it’s also about how much of the inner body section needs replacing and factoring in to the price.
If you take a look at those videos on the mx5restorer website it’s pretty obvious to see these cars can hide rusty bits behind the sill. Different levels of rust can lead to more cutting out and the need to fabricate panels to weld in even before fitting a final new out sill cover. It only becomes apparent when the sill is opened up how much work and the cost involved.
I reckon that quote for the front chassis rails from them is about on the money for a good job doing. Probably get one rear sill done for that price depending on how rusty it is inside, who knows?
They all look great in pictures, if you go to view ,take someone who really knows their roadsters so they know what and where to look correctly , and will know a true value gauged on viewing and condition etc etc ,not internet raised prices to do new owners over, the sellers all think they have a millions pounds sat on the drive with 4 wheels that you want, because of the internet rubbish thats posted , which most is from FB groups.
Getting one at the “correct price” and budgeting repairs etc can give you a great roadster , remember these are not getting any younger and unless they have had a full refurb or restoration which will be high end dollars for a reason ,they all need some kind of work regardless.
M-m
Just be aware that any work done to pass the MOT on rusty bodywork may well be just enough to get a pass and move the vehicle on. Vehicle acquired in November 2020 MOT and work done in July 2020, you decide… Chances are it will last a couple of years then the true extent of the problem will be evident. Correctly done, these type of repair are not cheap.
Thanks for all advice. I’m going to view the car next week, when hopefully it has an MOT.
‘The Welding Corner’ in Southampton look like they do impressive work, and quote £300 to £600 for sills, finished & painted. And £600 for both chassis rails.
If those are the only issues with the car, I figure it’s worth taking on & getting the work done properly.
I would be very careful, speaking from experience as others have said, this is a lotof money for what could be a costly restoration project. I have owned a few Mk 2’s and 2.5’s and seemingly tidy one’s have rust in places you wouldn’t expect? My advice is to find a car with a good body and chassis, mileage is less important as long as the car has been serviced regularly has a good MOT history. You can still find decent MK2/Mk2.5 for around £3000 without major rust issues! Don’t be in a rush, take your time and you’ll find a great one, oh and it is always a good idea to take a knowledgeable friend with you to check the car over.
Hi…Just Adding Your Post to My Notifications Because My Girl Currently Going Through Similar Experience and the More Info I Can Gather the Better I Can Make Informed Decision
I Mean…Never Thought of Looking on EBay re My MX5 !
Update - I bought this car with a fresh 12 month MOT.
Just one small area of one sill flagged as an advisory, which I’m hoping to get sorted, then underseal & cavity wax to preserve it for the future.
I paid £4K, and hope to sell the hardtop for about £500 ( does this sound about right for an OEM top with heated screen in very good condition? ) so I think it’s not a bad deal for a very low mileage ( just under 35K miles ) SVT Sport with a good service history & 2 owners.
I have just driven it back on a mixture of A & B roads, plus motorway and just about every side street from Golders Green to Tooting ( Waze is genious for directions in London! ) and it drives very well, so I’m a happy camper.
If it is as good as you think, good luck!
Is that FP03 though? Thought the MOT was a bit dodgy? I thought it has failed on rot in 2020?
I’d definately get inside the sills etc Boroscoped and if possible the interior of the front chassis rails…
You know what to do if there’s any surface oxide visible, or “swelling”.
Alloys look bob on too. Not too often you see that these days.
In fact, this one might be so good…it’s maybe worth simply preserving,maybe getting it 4 stage mopped for example, and enjoying as it is.
Yes, it’s the same car. It’s had a sill on the OS, and the NS has been flagged as coroded, but minimal. The MOT guy was almost apologising about flagging it! The front rails are defo not 100% good. They were flagged on previous MOTs, but not this time, so I think I might try & get a load of Dinitrol in between the skins & then underseal the outside to hopefully keep them as they are. No point in having those welded if they aren’t even advisories. It’s been a bit of a garage queen ( 35K miles in 19 years ) but isn’t anything like mint condition.
I had chance to jack the car up today & have a look at the sills. The rust mentioned in the MOT is a tiny amount at the very rear-end, just infront of the rear wheel. I would hope to get this sorted & blast the rest of the sill with cavity wax to halt any further corrosion that might be eating away inside. Where can the sill be accessed to get a boroscope inside?
I’m sorry to potentially piddle on your parade, and trust I am proved horridly wrong.
But.
I’m concerned that is the tip it the sill’s Titanic Iceberg.
As it so often is…
Take a deep breath…it can be fixed with a suitable amount of cash
…as usual.
Anyhow…it’s all going to fall out on the garage floor, and will need cut back so you ought to have a big enough hole to stuff a Boro in there in due course.
I’ve also seen worse over many years. Like mine…
Compared to many of the MX5’s I have seen where the rust is bubbling-up in a large area from the arches to the middle of the sill - I hope mine isn’t so bad.
Either way - It’s sortable. I will just prepare to assume the position when it comes to the bill!
Thanks for your good spirit to my comments.
It’s just…well…ask around…I’ve been at it for years!
Keep us posted.
Above all else, don’t feel bad about posting up photo developments.
Knowledge & experience is empowerment after all.
I emailed C&C Sparks yesterday to ask about welding work and Colin from that company phoned me up today for a chat about what’s needed. He invited me to pop in so he can have a look, so I will probably do that soon.
