Hi!
I’ve been retired now for a few years and seem to be going through something of a “late life crisis”. I’ve been looking at buying a Mk3 NC, possibly the retractable hardtop variant for security reasons as I have no garage space. Attended the rally at Gaydon on Sunday which really whetted my appetite. I was hoping to find more cars for sale on the forum than there appears to be. Maybe I’m not searching correctly. Any pointers how I can speed the process? I’d really like to buy privately from a club member where I know the car has been cared for. I live in Lichfield so I believe my local group would be NW Midlands.
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Hello and welcome, good luck with your search.
A handy shortcut to forum presented sales is the link below. Adverts posted here either move when the advertiser tells us the car is sold or time out after 2 months so hopefully the list is reasonably fresh.
I bought exactly what you’re looking for from a back street dealer in Stoke. It came up on my Autotrader search and was a one-owner car with FSH.
Some “we-buy-any-car” type operators send their cars straight to auction so I’ve heard and are presumably recycled through the trade.
It’s fair comment I think to suggest that OC members will want top dollar for their cars because they have invested part of themselves into the car.
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There are also Facebook groups which have lots of members if you are on there, decide your model and then join the related groups.
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You could also post in the wanted section, with a description of what you are looking for:
I live in Stafford and am in the NWM area. The group meets twice per month in different locations due to the area’s size. One meeting is near Telford at the Shropshire Golf Centre. The other meeting is currently at The Wheatsheaf, 472 Walsall Road, Great Wyrley, WS6 6HX - that will be the nearest one to you. There’s nothing to stop you joining the club (if you haven’t already) and attending a meeting to get to know people and let them know you are looking to buy an MX-5. Winter is normally a good time to buy a sports car from a cost perspective.
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Agreed, but be wary of scammers on Facebook. Not all sellers are genuine.
Interesting. Look forward to seeing your post.
May be a bit of a trek for you but try Prestige Vehicle Consultants in Essex (he has a website). He is an MX-5 specialist, only dealing in nice low mileage stuff and when I was looking for mine had a far better selection of really good cars than the franchised network. His name is Paul Vaughan and is very pleasant and easy to deal with. I’d give him a call for a chat 
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Thanks for the tip. I’ll check them out. I might take a chance and just have a car delivered if the pedigree looks good. I had been courting the idea of buying from supercarclassics.co.uk. They’re in the Liverpool area and seem a legit specialist.
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excellent. very nice.
i’ve also just joined the club myself and am also in the NW
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Hi! I’m planning to attend the breakfast meeting in Telford next Sunday. Maybe I’ll see you there 
Popped into Prestige Vehicle Consultants this morning, didn’t realise it was by appointment only 
. But fair play to Paul, he had time to speak to me and let me sit in an NC.
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Lovely car! Where did you get it?
He’s a nice guy, usually has some good low mileage stock too. Very pleased with my car
Supercarclassics in Neston near Liverpool.
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I’ve had two lovely cars off Facebook Marketplace in the last eighteen months. Where you buy has little influence on what you get. I would never buy from a main dealer because the cover they provide, by law, is seriously overpriced. Forums can be abused but mostly are populated by decent people so that would be my first point of call.
If you are buying a car more than a few years old you just have to put the hours in to learn the object of your desire.
Peeps