I'm buying one!! (Few questions and findings..)
Discussion
Have sold the diesel Volvo and am now actively looking for my first MX5! This will be my first open top and first rear-wheel drive! :smile:
I would definitely like a Mk1 car rather than the Mk2. Personal preference.
I have set myself a budget of £4k as I will probably be spending a further couple of £k on upgrades within the first year or two. I think this should allow me to find and buy a very nice example.
I've phoned around more insurers than I care to mention, and the UK car seems miles cheaper to insure - even with the specialists. £350 for a UK car or £700 for a Eunos based on fully comp! Sheesh. Therefore I have now decided to look only at UK cars. (PS. I am 23 with 4 years NCB).
1. Do the special editions retain their value better? I'm looking at some Merlot editions which do seem pricier than their standard counterparts but I love that shade of purple with the grey leather.
2. If I were to fit a supercharger kit at some point in the future, does anyone have any recommendations about what kit to use? I have been told that this would set me back approx £2k and would see an increase from 130 to about 180bhp. Is this correct?
3. What tyres do people recommend? Fast road use but have to be good in the wet. Having been used to £140+ per tyre on my Volvo the idea of buying four Goodyear Eagle F1's for less than £160 is novel!
That said, there seems to be an awful lot of choice in the 195/50-15 category.
4. What oil is recommended for these cars and how often should the oil be changed? I understand the oil capacity of the car is 3.5 litres?
Thats it for now. Wish me happy hunting!
I would definitely like a Mk1 car rather than the Mk2. Personal preference.
I have set myself a budget of £4k as I will probably be spending a further couple of £k on upgrades within the first year or two. I think this should allow me to find and buy a very nice example.
I've phoned around more insurers than I care to mention, and the UK car seems miles cheaper to insure - even with the specialists. £350 for a UK car or £700 for a Eunos based on fully comp! Sheesh. Therefore I have now decided to look only at UK cars. (PS. I am 23 with 4 years NCB).
1. Do the special editions retain their value better? I'm looking at some Merlot editions which do seem pricier than their standard counterparts but I love that shade of purple with the grey leather.
2. If I were to fit a supercharger kit at some point in the future, does anyone have any recommendations about what kit to use? I have been told that this would set me back approx £2k and would see an increase from 130 to about 180bhp. Is this correct?
3. What tyres do people recommend? Fast road use but have to be good in the wet. Having been used to £140+ per tyre on my Volvo the idea of buying four Goodyear Eagle F1's for less than £160 is novel!
That said, there seems to be an awful lot of choice in the 195/50-15 category.4. What oil is recommended for these cars and how often should the oil be changed? I understand the oil capacity of the car is 3.5 litres?
Thats it for now. Wish me happy hunting!
MKH9130 said:
Have sold the diesel Volvo and am now actively looking for my first MX5! This will be my first open top and first rear-wheel drive! :smile:
I would definitely like a Mk1 car rather than the Mk2. Personal preference.
I have set myself a budget of £4k as I will probably be spending a further couple of £k on upgrades within the first year or two. I think this should allow me to find and buy a very nice example.
I've phoned around more insurers than I care to mention, and the UK car seems miles cheaper to insure - even with the specialists. £350 for a UK car or £700 for a Eunos based on fully comp! Sheesh. Therefore I have now decided to look only at UK cars. (PS. I am 23 with 4 years NCB).
1. Do the special editions retain their value better? I'm looking at some Merlot editions which do seem pricier than their standard counterparts but I love that shade of purple with the grey leather.
2. If I were to fit a supercharger kit at some point in the future, does anyone have any recommendations about what kit to use? I have been told that this would set me back approx £2k and would see an increase from 130 to about 180bhp. Is this correct?
3. What tyres do people recommend? Fast road use but have to be good in the wet. Having been used to £140+ per tyre on my Volvo the idea of buying four Goodyear Eagle F1's for less than £160 is novel! That said, there seems to be an awful lot of choice in the 195/50-15 category.
4. What oil is recommended for these cars and how often should the oil be changed? I understand the oil capacity of the car is 3.5 litres?
Thats it for now. Wish me happy hunting!
You're totally correct about the insurance. I was in the same position as you 3 years ago when I bought my MX-5 (right down to age, NCB and budget!!), and I ended up looking at imports because they were generally much easier to find in good condition, and all seemed to have much better specifications for the same price. I ended up spending £4k on an early 1.8 S-Special (with A/C, electric windows+mirrors, factory bilstein suspension and an LSD) with only 66,000km on the clock!I would definitely like a Mk1 car rather than the Mk2. Personal preference.
I have set myself a budget of £4k as I will probably be spending a further couple of £k on upgrades within the first year or two. I think this should allow me to find and buy a very nice example.
I've phoned around more insurers than I care to mention, and the UK car seems miles cheaper to insure - even with the specialists. £350 for a UK car or £700 for a Eunos based on fully comp! Sheesh. Therefore I have now decided to look only at UK cars. (PS. I am 23 with 4 years NCB).
1. Do the special editions retain their value better? I'm looking at some Merlot editions which do seem pricier than their standard counterparts but I love that shade of purple with the grey leather.
2. If I were to fit a supercharger kit at some point in the future, does anyone have any recommendations about what kit to use? I have been told that this would set me back approx £2k and would see an increase from 130 to about 180bhp. Is this correct?
3. What tyres do people recommend? Fast road use but have to be good in the wet. Having been used to £140+ per tyre on my Volvo the idea of buying four Goodyear Eagle F1's for less than £160 is novel!
That said, there seems to be an awful lot of choice in the 195/50-15 category.4. What oil is recommended for these cars and how often should the oil be changed? I understand the oil capacity of the car is 3.5 litres?
Thats it for now. Wish me happy hunting!
One of my mates has a supercharged '5 that's looked after by Performance5 - they've got a set of supercharger kits at different prices depending on what level of performance you're after. If I were looking for a kit, they'd be my first port of call.
For tyres, everyone seems to recommend the Goodyear Eagles. I'm on 14inch wheels, so I can't really comment (and the supply of good, sporty 14inch tyres is drying up quickly
).For oil, I generally use Mobil1 0w40. The last oil change I put in some Silkolene 5w40 full synthetic stuff from Opie Oils, and that seems to be working just as well as the Mobil so far. Capacity is somewhere between 3.5 and 4 litres for a full oil and filter change. I usually have a wee bit left from a 4 litre can when I do an oil change.
Thanks for the reply.
I've looked at the imports and if I were to go down that route it would definitely be the R-Limited. The red leather did cause an 'issue' with my girlfriend but hey ho.
The main problem is that my current insurers (Direct Line) won't insure me on an import until I am 25. They will change the car on my policy from the Volvo to the MX5 (UK spec) and give me a pro-rata refund. I'm halfway through the current year with them so don't really want to lose 6-7 months NCB if I can help it!
I prefer a low-spec in terms of air-con and electrics - less to go wrong! I think I have found the 'right' car, but due to a holiday next week and non-stop work this week I am unable to even view before the middle of this month so I am hoping it will still be for sale on my return!
I've looked at the imports and if I were to go down that route it would definitely be the R-Limited. The red leather did cause an 'issue' with my girlfriend but hey ho.
The main problem is that my current insurers (Direct Line) won't insure me on an import until I am 25. They will change the car on my policy from the Volvo to the MX5 (UK spec) and give me a pro-rata refund. I'm halfway through the current year with them so don't really want to lose 6-7 months NCB if I can help it!
I prefer a low-spec in terms of air-con and electrics - less to go wrong! I think I have found the 'right' car, but due to a holiday next week and non-stop work this week I am unable to even view before the middle of this month so I am hoping it will still be for sale on my return!
hi, good luck and glad to hear you are getting one, for the money you will get a good one but don't buy the first one you see,jap imports better, more on them as for insurance i spent ages looking for mine and god knows why but Lloyds tsb were by far the cheapest and the best. loads of mods that you can do and boy are they sooooooooo much fun, just watch the rear end in the wet, i have yokahamas fitted to mine and although they are fantastic in the dry, they are awful in the wet. the only reason that i aint lost it YET is because years ago i used to drive a brooklands special capri. in the capri's i used to take out the spare wheel and fill th well with concrete, but as there is hardly any space in eunos boot that can't be done. enjoy it i know you will.
Phil.
Phil.
mx5 hairdresser said:
...loads of mods that you can do and boy are they sooooooooo much fun, just watch the rear end in the wet, i have yokahamas fitted to mine and although they are fantastic in the dry, they are awful in the wet. the only reason that i aint lost it YET is because years ago i used to drive a brooklands special capri. in the capri's i used to take out the spare wheel and fill th well with concrete, but as there is hardly any space in eunos boot that can't be done. enjoy it i know you will.
Phil.
I think it must be the tyres causing it, mine is about as planted in the wet as it is in the dry - have to provoke it fairly agressively to get any sideways antics happening, and when it does let go its nicely balanced and very controllable.Phil.
As said the Eagle F1s are great - Toyo T1-R also get a good write up. On 15" wheels you'll get a set fitted for 200 quid.
Oil - as said 0w40 / 5w40 or 10w40 seem to used with the first 2 being the most popular. Synth or semi-. Don't know what the interval is but change it pretty often IMHO, every 6k miles?
Things to look out for: rusty sills, tatty hoods (just bargain it down, they can be fitted cheaply), and get one that's got plenty of history.
There's so many out there that you don't need to buy the first one you see (like I did
)
Oil - as said 0w40 / 5w40 or 10w40 seem to used with the first 2 being the most popular. Synth or semi-. Don't know what the interval is but change it pretty often IMHO, every 6k miles?
Things to look out for: rusty sills, tatty hoods (just bargain it down, they can be fitted cheaply), and get one that's got plenty of history.
There's so many out there that you don't need to buy the first one you see (like I did
)Sorry for the plug but mine is still up for sale and fits the bill also has a hardtop,
on PH
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/372348.htm
on PH
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/372348.htm
twinchoke said:
Sorry for the plug but mine is still up for sale and fits the bill also has a hardtop,
on PH
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/372348.htm
Hi.on PH
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/372348.htm
Am afraid the girlfriend doesn't like the colour, and I definitely would like the 1.8 rather than the 1.6 having driven both.
Looks nice though and low mileage!
twinchoke said:
Sorry for the plug but mine is still up for sale and fits the bill also has a hardtop,
on PH
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/372348.htm
4k for a '96 1.6! on PH
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/372348.htm
I think you may have to re-adjust your radar wrt pricing fella, no offense!
hornetrider said:
twinchoke said:
Sorry for the plug but mine is still up for sale and fits the bill also has a hardtop,
on PH
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/372348.htm
4k for a '96 1.6! on PH
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/372348.htm
I think you may have to re-adjust your radar wrt pricing fella, no offense!
If you are supercharging then go for a 1.8. If you want to turbo then 1.6 or 1.8 are pretty well equal, in fact there are probably more options for the 1.6 than the 1.8!
I think oil capacity on the 1.8 is 3.8l from dry including the oil-filter.
Do a good engine flush first and then use Mobil 1 0-40. It might be a bit of overkill but if you are planning to keep the car for a while it's an investment worth making.
As for UK/jap spec, I thought the main specialists (AON & Adrian Flux) were fairly even either way though for AON you need to be 25+ years old.
I think oil capacity on the 1.8 is 3.8l from dry including the oil-filter.
Do a good engine flush first and then use Mobil 1 0-40. It might be a bit of overkill but if you are planning to keep the car for a while it's an investment worth making.
As for UK/jap spec, I thought the main specialists (AON & Adrian Flux) were fairly even either way though for AON you need to be 25+ years old.
MX-5 Lazza said:
If you are supercharging then go for a 1.8. If you want to turbo then 1.6 or 1.8 are pretty well equal, in fact there are probably more options for the 1.6 than the 1.8!
I think oil capacity on the 1.8 is 3.8l from dry including the oil-filter.
Do a good engine flush first and then use Mobil 1 0-40. It might be a bit of overkill but if you are planning to keep the car for a while it's an investment worth making.
As for UK/jap spec, I thought the main specialists (AON & Adrian Flux) were fairly even either way though for AON you need to be 25+ years old.
Have a quote from Esure for £287 on the standard Merlot. Currently with Direct Line until September. I think oil capacity on the 1.8 is 3.8l from dry including the oil-filter.
Do a good engine flush first and then use Mobil 1 0-40. It might be a bit of overkill but if you are planning to keep the car for a while it's an investment worth making.
As for UK/jap spec, I thought the main specialists (AON & Adrian Flux) were fairly even either way though for AON you need to be 25+ years old.
Having had a number of turbo cars before I want to go supercharged route this time hence I now have the 1.8!
I see Mazda recommend 10w40 and that is what previous services have used. I will probably go with 5w40 or 0w40?
MX-5 Lazza said:
You can't go wrong with Mobil 1 0-40.
Do you know of any suppliers offering this at a good price? (Excluding Costco, as I am not a member and neither do I know anyone who is!)I usually pick up oil from France where I can get 5L of 0W40 for about £25 as opposed to £45+ in Halfrauds, except I won't be in France until July but would like to change the oil in the '5 ASAP.
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