[Closed] Likely problems with MX-5 daughter wants to buy.

Rust.

Rust, especially on the sills between the doors and rear wheel arches.

they're pretty bullet-proof cars, apart from the aformentioned rust. Check the roof goes up and down nicely, look for damp bits of carpet/seats and maybe spray it with a hose (with someone inside) to check for leaks - they're not super expensive to replace anyway. Not sure on pricing, I'd have thought a couple of grand tops for a 17 year old car?

As above rust is the big worry, ththe are plenty of places this could crop up but start at the sills, near the rear wheels but don't restrict yourself to there, check all around including suspension arms etc.

Mechanically they are pretty good, and cheap to repair - cambelt engine so see if it's been done recently.

And I hope you do find one - plenty around if this one isn't right. My wife has run them for about 8 years including hefty work mileage with very little trouble.

Good luck

Rust it the only big killer of them.

Mk2's (or NB as they are known) are particularly bad, especially the sills, wheelarches, and (hard to repair) chassis legs, as they rust from the inside, out the way.

I assume the roof drainage is similar to my mk1, as they have the same hood (but don't know for sure): The hood feeds water into a rain rail round the back, which then drains down through pipes out the bottom of the car near the B post. The rain rails commonly split (its basically a plastic channel), and the drain pipes can block. When this happens, water ends up inside the car and draining to all the wrong places, including inside the sills.

See if you can find one that's been garaged as much ad possible, or perhaps an import that hasn't been in the UK for so long. My 1990 car wasn't imported until 2008, generally they start rusting when they come to the UK.

If the budget can stretch, it is possible to pick up a decent 2006 mk3 for around £3.5k.

We used to have a yr2000 mk2 for a several years which we loved,  but got fed up of welding to pass MOTs so sold a few years ago.

A couple of months ago we decided that we would get a cheapy £2.5k mk2 for the summer, but in looking at them convinced ourselves to spend slightly more and that the sweetspot was about £4.5k on a very good quality,  well maintained,  top end 2007 mk3, so got one of those instead and are very happy with it.

Would have been happy with a cheaper, lower spec mk3, but although mechanically strong and still a good car we don't regret not getting another mk2 as they are annoyingly rust prone and feel much less "complete"  as a drivable daily car.

I guess you get what you pay for.

As above rust is the main thing but if you’re handy with a welder all can be fixed. Have a look at the MOT history on the .gov website. You’ll be able to see if any issues have arisen before and potentially fixed. Mine showed several suspension parts being replaced over the years

Also don’t be afraid to ask to have a read through the history. The owners prior to me and myself have included pretty much all receipts and servicing history in a big folder. Holds to understand what’s happened in its history.

The only other bit is to crawl underneath and have a good poke with a screwdriver. If the owner says no I’d walk away. It’s easy to cover rust for a layer of underseal

Chassis legs are the worst worry on an NB (the sills will rust, but they're not too horrific of a job to repair). They're a bugger to check if you can't get it up on a ramp, and even more of a bugger to repair. I absolutely loved mine, but I don't know if I'd have another NB for just that reason.

For balance to peekay, I've driven both an NB and an NC and I wouldn't have an NC, it felt heavy and dull in comparison. If I were going to have another it would probably be an NA.

Something like an old radio aerial is perfect for cleaning the drain holes (which is well worth doing periodically as they do get clarted).

Check for uneven tyre wear too - they're sensitive to tyres as it is, but it doesn't take much misalignment to throw the handling out.

I bought an NB MX-5 (like yours, but 2002) from the classifieds off here about 3 years ago. I still have it. So I'm now an expert.

- Rusty sills. Mine had been redone, not terribly pretty but passable. They've been through a few MOTs without a mention. Feel along at the bottom for rust - there are drainage holes here. If they're still wet then that's not good. But they can be replaced for about £300 a side, so it's not a disaster.

- Rusty engine mounting rails. Reach in past the front wheels and you can just about see/feel them. They should be solid. Mine were flexy (I found out later). As above, they rust from the inside out. I had them replaced for about £500, so it's not great, but not disastrous. The NAs don't have this problem to nearly the same extent (I now have NA mounting rails!).

- Heater matrix failed. Apparently this isn't that uncommon. Check the driver-side footwell for damp. Nasty job to replace but by no means impossible.

Apart from the rust, mine's been pretty good. I'd get another one in a heartbeat.

Don't get an automatic, by all accounts they're not great.

Rust in the sills and rear wheel arches. Easily repaired though if you find a welder who knows what he is doing.

The real problem area for rust though is the chassis rails around the engine mounts. If they are rotten the car is dangerous. They can be repaired but it’s an expensive job. I scrapped by first NB due to this as the repairs would have cost more than the value of the car.

I have my current NB for sale if you are interested: it’s a year 2000 1.6. 40k miles and I’m the second owner. It’s a solid car with soft top and removeable hard top.

We went from a mark 2 to a mark 3, for me the mark 3 was a better all round every day proposition and I did not detect any downgrade in the driving experience. And I would say less rust prone.

But of course will depend on your budget.

Not entirely helpful but I much prefer my Smart Roadster to my old Eunos.

No welding, cheaper to run, similar luggage capability (coupe) and more involving. Still has gremlins tho, just not rusty ones.

Not entirely helpful right now, but right now is probably the worst time to be buying a convertable (especially given the great weather the UK has been getting recently).

If she can, she should wait until the autumn/winter and she'll probably get one for 10/15% less.

In my experience, the whole summer/winter price thing really doesn't have to much of an effect with mk1s/2s due to the market they sit in financially.

cynic-al

Not entirely helpful but I much prefer my Smart Roadster to my old Eunos.

Guess what she's just made me pay out for.... 🙂

"she can, she should wait until the autumn/winter and she’ll probably get one for 10/15% less."

Sound. Walk everywhere for the next 3 months and save 200 quid.