MK1 MX5 Inspiration needed

[Camp Davy]

Hi guys just bought my first Retro to learn in a MK1 eunos roadster dead happy


However she is red faded and looking sad need some inspiration

Thanks looking forward to photos

Plus any advice on them would be awesome

[sumpcracker]

Yes, 9x16 wheels and a slight drop -

www.ebay.co.uk/itm/181530928536?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649

[Copey]

a good cut and polish would see the bodywork looking half decent, always been a fan of MX5s with roll cages fitted





or a hard top...

[Deleted]

Always loved these, you can be as subtle or as mad as you want, as these two demonstrate

[bobblegut]

Get it polished up , replace/repair what needs doing /will need doing ans enjoy it as it is untill you have been driving it a while , then you will no what you want to improve .

If you want to follow what most people will say is 'cool' , then 'banded steels ' , cut your springs in half and cover your interior and one front wing with stickers .

[Camp Davy]

nah itll be standard for a while thanks so far everyone

[baggabones]

Sept 20, 2014 14:48:11 GMT bobblegut said:

Get it polished up , replace/repair what needs doing /will need doing ans enjoy it as it is untill you have been driving it a while , then you will no what you want to improve .

If you want to follow what most people will say is 'cool' , then 'banded steels ' , cut your springs in half and cover your interior and one front wing with stickers .

^^ wise words ^^

[jdmini]

Where was the first pic taken? It looks like a road near where I live. I'm obsessing with mx-5's at the mo. So much so I've put my mini on ebay to buy one

[gurnersimps1963]

Great little cars,I still miss mine now and I sold it 11 years ago!

[wheelspinner]

This is one of those "how long is a bit of string?" questions.
You can go for the totally standard like your car (at the moment ?) or go stanced, because racecar, retro (see pitcrew), drift, etc etc.
Then engines range from 1600 90hp n/a to 1800 to turbo, to superchargers, to ITB's, to v6's (see Claire at Crapengineering), or v8's (Lexus, Ford,Chevy take your pic)
There are endless bodykits,wheels, suspension, interior and exterior mods.
Some of my favourites are Bruce's ( Mystery Machine on here ) Teenage Dirtbag, The Tarmac Terrorist (a complete aero monster) and the Hooded Reaper ( again active on here ) but a quick google on modified Mx5's will produce countless hits.
A good start is to join on Mx5 Nutz they are fairly forgiving of new owners questions (if you use the search function first) unlike certain other American websites i could name, they are a good source of parts and advice and have regular meets up and down the country.
The local MX5OC's arent all pipes and beards and again are a mine of knowledge and parts.
Pheonix 5's are in your neck of the woods and are a good set of lads.
So keep your drainholes clear ( this will mean something to you eventually) and your roof down.

[jayom]

A mate of mine built this -






juiceboxforyou.com/2013/09/chocolate-roadster/#more-8843

[ettorebugatti]

Make yourself a nice cup of tea and click this link:
retrorides.proboards.com/thread/88011

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[LowStandards]

I picked my Eunos up yesterday, I love it!

It's my second one so I knew how much fun they are.

I'll not put any pics up because it was cheap and it looks it, its stickerbomed up, vinyl wrapped etc, but like I said it was cheap and its got some choice bits, half cage, coilovers, mazdaspeed ms-03 wheels etc

They're just so damn fun

[jdmini]

I've got a few questions if people don't me asking them here. I've never driven an mx5 before but hope to get one soon. I've got my car on ebay, and if it goes for enough money I can get one.

What's the best type to get? I prefer the look of the mk1 but the mk2 is growing on me.
I keep reading about a short nose or long nosed crank and one is more desirable. What's the pitfalls of each engine?
Is it better to get a eunos as I hear they had better engines, shocks and trim levels?
Is it only jdm ones with headrest speakers?
Has anyone put a baby seat in one?
Does the hard top go over the soft top or does it have to removed in order to have the hard top fitted? Is it a major faff removing and refitting the hard top?
I like the look of those teardrop door speakers. Is that jdm only too?
How large is the boot?

Sorry for so many questions. If anyone has an mx5 who doesn't mind me asking questions would it be ok if I pm someone?

[goldnrust]

Firstly, if you want mx5 inspiration, then it's well worth visiting www.clubroaster.net , one of the larger american sites with a bias towards style/looks rather than performance. They've got some great pictures threads. Things like mx5s on 14" wheels, mx5s on 13" wheels, all red mx5s, etc.

Anyway, I tend to like mx5s which are either fairly clean and simple, or ones that are kinda function over form and a bit rough round the edges. Also it's gotta be Classic Red or Mariner Blue I'm only posting this picture of a silver one because I adore the wheels.









jdmini, feel free to PM me I'm not a super expert but I have had 4 (well 3 and then I bought the first one back…) mx5s now and know my way around them pretty well In answer to your questions:

What's the best type to get? I prefer the look of the mk1 but the mk2 is growing on me.

The differences between the mk1 and mk2 are fairly small really, nothing like the change to mk3. Underneath the skin there is little difference between the mechanicals of the mk1 and mk2, they have essentially the same engines, brakes and suspension, it's all just little tweaks. Mk1s generally have a few less toys, a little less sound deadening etc, this makes them a little lighter and a little more 'raw' to drive. The mk2 feels a bit more refined, with a more modern feeling interior. A 6 speed gearbox was an option with the mk2s, as was a glass window for the soft top. I think for most people the big decision is do you like pop up lights? (the answer being yes obviously )

I keep reading about a short nose or long nosed crank and one is more desirable. What's the pitfalls of each engine?

This issue only effects the early 1.6 models. The short nose crank cars can suffer from a damaged keyway in the front of the crank which leads to slop in the position of the front pulley and therefore cam timing issues. In 1991 the engine design was revised to the long nose type, which rectified the potential issue. See: www.miata.net/garage/crankshaft.html

The original 115hp 1.6 was available from '89 - '93, then the 135hp 1.8 was available from '94-'98. In the UK market the 1.6 was brought back in '96- '98 but detuned to 88hp to make it cheap to insure. This detuned 1.6 was for the UK only, so all of the imported Eunos 1.6s are the higher 115hp.

In '98 the mk2 was brought out with both 115hp 1.6 and 135hp 1.8 options.

Is it better to get a eunos as I hear they had better engines, shocks and trim levels?

The Eunos are really not different to the UK cars. The Eunos are sometimes less rotten than UK cars, as they don't use salt on the roads in Japan. The Japanese like toys in their cars, so pretty much every Eunos you can find has got central locking, electric windows, air con, etc. These are all options and many UK cars were bought in 'poverty spec'. Euoss don't tend to be worth quite as much as a UK car, and sometimes they can be more expensive to insure.

That said there are a couple of small differences. They were available with speakers in the headrest. They have a square import sized numberplate recess in the back of the car. Some of the Eunos came fitted with Bilstein shock absorbers which are much harsher than the UK spec shocks. I've no first hand experience but the general opinion is that they ride very poorly on UK roads and most people replace them with aftermarket shocks which both ride better and are stiffer damped.

There should be no difference in the engines. There are various special editions though, and there are some different cam profiles out there, but the changes are very small really. It is also fair to say that some fresh Eunos imports will come with aftermarket goodies fitted by their previous Japanese owner, like aftermarket exhaust manifolds.

Is it only jdm ones with headrest speakers?

Yes. Again no first hand experience but I'm not sure they're meant to be great to listen to...

Has anyone put a baby seat in one?

Pass

Does the hard top go over the soft top or does it have to removed in order to have the hard top fitted? Is it a major faff removing and refitting the hard top?

Yes the hardtop fits over the folded down soft top It's a 3 minute job to remove/fit the hard top, much easier with 2 people though it's quite hard work on your own. It's a large a cumbersome item to store when it's not on the car. Personally I don't see why so many people want a hard top, the mx5 soft top is very good at keeping with weather out and the heaters have no problem keeping the car warm, more to the point if it's not raining the roof should be down… nothing like driving to work on a sunny but crisp winters morning, white frost everywhere with the roof down

I like the look of those teardrop door speakers. Is that jdm only too?

Yes, but all of the parts are available on the second hard market easy should you wish to fit those door cards to a different mx5.

How large is the boot?

Bigger than you'd think, but not massive. Big enough to collect a spare gearbox….

[jdmini]

Wow! That's a great post! Loads of info and a lot to go on with. Sounds like I should look for 1.8 to avoid the crank issue, or just avoid the earlier models? I've just googled baby seats in mx5's and there are images that appear to confirm its doable.

I'm sure I'll pm you soon. Thanks again for taking the time to write that up and post the pics. I'll have to keep my fingers crossed the mini sells quickly

[jdmini]

Also I agree on your choice of colours, I thought everyone disliked the blue. The only colour I'm not keen on is British racing green

[goldnrust]

There's no need to avoid the 1.6s, it's pretty easy to tell which is the short nose and which is the long nose. The other side of it is, it's not a problem that everyone encounters. My mum's mx5 is a short nose and it's now done 165,000 miles and going strong

Mariner Blue has a bit of a cult following, those that like it really like it.

[jdmini]

Great pics :-) the only thing scaring me now is the rust. After having minis for so long I'm worried sick of rust. There seems to be a good following in my area so hopefully I could ask someone to look with me

[LowStandards]

I had my lil person in the Eunos yesterday, she loved it, roof down, giggles all the way.

She's not even a year old so in a full baby seat type thing, fit in just fine


Go on then, have a pic, bless her, she was cheap, though having looked over her she's not rotten, has a strong engine and some choice bits so I'm well happy