I once drove a part exchanged Midget 5 miles from the garage I worked at to the paintshop to have some rust fettled before re-sale. The first issue was getting into the thing, they’re TINY. Getting out was even worse, almost discumknockerated myself .
The MX5 is the car MG & Triumph sports cars should have been.
The midget is a great car, just from a different era
Not sure why some are telling you to walk away, ANY car no matter what it is will never run perfectly all its life, that’s why this forum is full of questions.
I say give it some thought mate, I love my mk1 but can’t rule out swapping it for something else during my driving lifetime. If something comes along that you really like why there is advice to forget it just because it isn’t a Mazda is beyond me
The midget is a great car, just from a different era
ANY car no matter what it is will never run perfectly all its lifetime, I love my mk1 but wouldn’t rule out chopping it in for something else that I liked.
I’m not sure why some advise against it and imply that anything that isn’t a Mazda is inferior because they aren’t.
Even mx5s play up and rust away that’s why this forum is full of questions. If you like it then consider having it mate
This is my current favourite thread - and sums up why I love cars so much!
I feel your pain, but as others have said the Midget is from a different era, so you just have to accept it’s a slightly different form of driving/ownership than the 5. I love my 5, but its a journey at the end of the day, and if something else comes along, then why not? As long as you can live with the idiosyncrasies, and it gives you enjoyment, then go for it.
Mind you, this is the man who is toying with the idea of buying a Series III Land Rover, so ignore any of my advice!
A Midget, just like any car of that era, isn’t so much a reliable mode of transport, more of a hobby - a bit like gardening. There’s always another job needs doing and if you don’t keep up with the weeding, you’ll have big trouble.
Thanks for the replies. Almost gave up on it but then browsing the Internet saw a few photos on photobucket of EMY608J. Not sure how old these are but the car still looks very good today. I think it has had a full rebuild and is in very good nick. Interested in views of what people see but might give you an idea why I was hooked in!
Would love these old British cars to have been what the MX5 actually is. If i were younger and fitter i would buy a British Heritage shell and do a ground up rebuild but with MX5 running gear and have the best of both worlds. Then again maybe i will get the kids involved and slave labour them to make it possible. Just need to find a way to make the MX5 soft top to fit and BINGO
So had the conversation with my better half and the idea of getting this MG is dead in the water! If I’m spending £8,000 on another soft top she wants the same on soft furnishings! Forget it!
£8000 is a lot of money for a Midget but if the Midget is just a weekend car I wouldn’t dismiss one. A good Midget is probably a lot more reliable now than it was when it was new. Another thing is running costs, I would imagine it would be a lot cheaper to run than an MX5. Remember no car tax or MOT to pay for.
A Midget will be at least 10 years older than an MX5 so how will an MX5 fare up at the same age as the Midget. I love MX5s don’t get me wrong but just to dismiss a Midget like people have been doing is odd. If you aren’t mechanically minded it doesn’t matter what car you have you will still have to take it to a garage for work even if it is just servicing and consumables on the MX5. I am lucky in that I have an MX5 as my shared daily with my Porsche 996 but for the right car I would willingly swap my 996 for a Lotus Elan +2 which also has an unreliable reputation. Some cars just get under your skin.
Many thanks for your reply. In the end the moment passed and I decided not to buy the Midget on the basis that it was a lot of money and less usable than my Mk 2.5. On occasions I drive my MX5 to work and leave it in a public car park and I don’t think I could do that with the Midget. Would love a Porsche 933 though but I don’t have a spare £40k! Also a friend of mine is going to sell his mk3 2 litre with the folding hardtop for around £5.5k soon which is tempting although it will be less raw than what I have now.
I have had both a MK1 mx5 and a 1275 MG Midget.
Both cars do the job they were intended to do, In the end I decided to keep the MK1 mx5 and sell the Midget to make way for a MK3 mx5.
Now I have a pair of cars that I enjoy using and working on.
But as has been mentioned the MG Midget is so cute its hard not to love them.
The MG is a bone fida classic and no matter how you look at it the MX5 will not be regarded as a hard core classic for some time yet.
Only you will know if you have made the right decision, when you see a midget you will fall in love all over again.