I have my eyes on a couple of MX5's that are going for cheap but I dont really have any experience with them, so seeing as I have seen a few on here I figured I would ask you guys if there are any specific things to look out for when buying one of these (or second hand cars in general) ? Specifically I have my eye on one that was imported from japan about 10 years ago, the owner seems like hes been fairly on it with maintenance and what not, but hes trying to sell it so its always going to be a biast! It has about 135k miles on the clock and the guy is looking for around 1.2k is that a reasonable price? The car seems to have the following modifications as well: Tein springs Grooved brake disks sportex backbox decat Do you think any of this might be an issue when MOT'ing or insuring? (This is technically my first car, a stock mx5 is quoted at around £850 but no idea what the mods might do to that price, I will have to do a quote tomorrow)
You might find better information on an MX5 forum mate. If you want to find out what modifications will do to your quote, go and get a quote from an insurance company.
i doubt these modifications will affect the price much if at all, look for the usual things: rust would be first, under the arches, along the seals, around the suspension mounts, the boot floor and any under the bonnet. then for signs of crash damage and to check panels for marks not in the original advert. make sure its cold when you get there. check the oil make sure its clean and not contaminated with water. check the water see that its not contaminated with oil, start it and check for leaks underneath, the basics oil and water. check its not smoking horribly, wait till its warm give it a few revs and watch for heavy smoke. then turn it off and leave it while you check the tyres, look at the shocks and bushes for obvious signs of wear, look at the brake discs for scorring and low pads. now start it up and take it for a test drive, make sure it brakes evenly, doesnt pull left or right when driving and accelerates smoothly. check the feel of the handling and that its not boaty. check for squeaks as you drive and check for squeaky brakes. any issues you do find, if you still want to buy the car, i would use as bargining points and hit him with a first bit of about £700 to give yourself room to negotiate. above all else if you arent sure take a knowledgable friend
Check behind the battery as that tends to rot early, If the sills and arches are legit, chances are it'll be alright. MX5's are usually pretty tappy aswell when cold so dont let that worry you, the engines can take alot. 1.8 Eunos is the model to go for
No but if your going to the effort of looking for one, it would be daft not to get the best one available which is the 1.8 eunos. It was a higher spec all round compared to the 1.6, however in terms of performance, there is nothing in them. Iv only bought the 1.8's, Mainly as the 1.6 has a shit thermostat housing which doesnt allow for boss arc boxes from 1.8s Weve had 1.6's and 1.8's neck and neck and there bugger all difference between them power wise.
So I just did a quote on compare the meerkat and It came back at £4000, dont know if that because it was originally an import or because of the mods, suffice to say I wont be getting that car haha
First car, any mods they will absolutely sting you. Also it being an import. Try a specialist company as commented above. Personally, I would go for a cheap UK car.
not so, i used to have an r33 at 18 although that was a few years ago. you just need to shop around on insurance and the mods shouldnt really make that much of a difference.
I just did a quote on meerkats again but for a 1.8 model from the UK and it comes out at about 820 ish from privilege and Churchill, so I think I'll just wait and see if I can find a 1.8 in the near future. Is there any advice when getting insurance towards "stretching the truth" when answering stuff like occupation, expected mikes per year, parking location...? Also, never having really bought a car before in the UK, what's the paperwork exchange like? Would I have to go with the previous owner to the dvla to get names swapped on the paperwork? Anyone know if its possible to do it all in one day?
you just fill out the log book and its the sellers responsibility to sent it off to dvla, i personally get it all filled out and take the whole log book so that i know it definitely gets sent. paperwork takes about 2 minutes to fill out. with insurance i always used to put that it was in a locked garaged regardless of if i had one and i usually say i will do 4-5k miles a year. if you have mods declare them and if you have points ect definitely declare them too.
Are "classics car" insurances any cheaper given it would be my first/only car? I know they tend to be more acceptable of mods, and they tend to swap convenience for cheaper insurance(in the form of limited milage, but I doubt I would manage to get more than 3-5k miles a year anyway as this is only going to be a weekender)
Is it still true that doing to many quotes is a bad thing? Also, what date do you guys say for your driving license? Ive swapped addresses on my license a number of times and have no idea what the date I first got it was anymore
they dont ask a date they just ask how long in years and how many years no claims, your licence will still have the date you passed on the back regardless of how many times you have to change it
