Forgive me - I may have sinned

[Prof Beard]

One of my mates asked me: "I'm thinking of buying a nearly new 2lt mx-5 - you know about cars is there anything I need to look out for?"

After making the appropriate hairdresser comments and advising him only to drive it with the roof down when he had his wife with him, I said: "as far as I know they as really nice to drive and really reliable - just check history etc"

Have I done wrong?

[jez-m]

No. I've got one and it's brilliant.

[Kinky]

I've got one too, and it's brilliant.

This feels like "MX-5 Anonymous" ......

"Hi, My names Kinky ..... I've got an MX-5"

[Big Al.]

Hi I'm Big Al. I've owned one too.

[deevlash]

I love driving my mums one, it goes sideways and everything

[MX-5 Lazza]

When you said you'd sinned I thought you were going to say that you had bought an MGF

[franv8]

Hello my name is Francis, and my MX5 has flowers on the back...

[Milford Cubicle]

The MK3 is a decent enough MX-5 but you're essentially buying a Ford. You're better off getting a Mk2.5 or even better, a Mk1

[DennisTheMenace]

The mk1 is the absolute best of the lot ,
quite like the mk3 though but cant help but feel its going to be just another modern car with a remote feel to the driving experience,

but i love the raw unrefined feel of my mk1 vibrations noise and meaty unrubberised gearchange and steering , Fantastic

No airbags no abs no traction control = fun

[TVR_nut]

Milford Cubicle said:

The MK3 is a decent enough MX-5 but you're essentially buying a Ford. You're better off getting a Mk2.5 or even better, a Mk1

A Ford?? I know that Mazda did a rebadged Fiesta, so links must exist between the two companies, but what is the MX5 Mk3 based upon?

Having just bought a Mk3 I am very pleased with it (especially ride and roadholding), but hoping it will have Mazda rather than Ford levels of depreciation!

[DennisTheMenace]

Ford own a percentage of Mazda so its only natural they shre components , Engines are shared for 1 , but why worry modern Fords are extremely reliable

[MX-5 Lazza]

The Mazda 323/2 is based on a Fiesta, 3 on a Focus, 626/6 on a Mondeo. The Mk3 engine is basically a Ford Duratec which was originally a Mazda engine.
The same applies at Volvo where a V40 is based on a Focus and V60 on a Mondeo.
Same with Jaguar...
Same with Aston Martin...
Same in US with Mercury...
I could go on.
It's all about sharing floor-pans and components between brands to save on design, development and construction costs and it's gone on for years.
The Mk3 is not based on any Ford apart from the engine.

[noh]

The Mk3 engine is a Mazda MZR.
Mazda is 33% owned by Ford and they share technology. The engine was designed in Hiroshima with input from Ford engineers.
Ford use the same engine in some of their vehicles where they call it a Duratec.
So really its a Mazda engine that is being used by Ford.
Some info here:-

http://www.aluminum.org/Template.cfm?Section=20012...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mazda_MZR_engine

Edited by noh on Saturday 26th January 16:20

Edited by noh on Saturday 26th January 16:23

[TVR_nut]

Thanks for the info - Mazda or Ford, the engine is starting to feel good after 180 miles (150 of then with the roof down!!). Did over 100 miles yesterday up the Trough of Bowland, which provided a varied mix of roads, and kept me smiling.

I assume the decent fuel economy comes partly from the Ford input - they have always tended to make frugal engines in recent years.