Mazda corrosion continued.

[Perseverant]

I've just joined, so having briefly introduced myself elsewhere I thought I'd share my MX5 experience. We'd sadly bidden farewell to SAAB 900 number three with an interstellar mileage and after some dismal weekends looking at various tiresome and ugly Euroboxes, my wife tried an MX5 for size and liked it! That one wouldn't start but that didn't put her off so we ended up with a VVT Sport version and drove it for 50000 miles or so come rain or shine.
I've repaired the rear wings and rear sill - it's not that brilliant a design there and seems rust prone. The repair isn't too bad looking and was well anointed with waxoil applied with the aid of my air compressor. A year or two back my wife or rather the car had a brief altercation with a van and came off really well, making a right mess of the van's sliding door and its channel. I elected to mend the car which meant taking off the nose to repair a split and straighten the bolt on mounts. If you do this you can look inside the channels forward of the top wishbone, and guess what? There was considerable rust though the section hadn't distorted in the crash. So I set to and discovered that I could squeeze in the engine compartment with the radiator removed to wield an angle grinder and welder. It's a cockeyed bit of construction there as it's a double skinned construction with little sign of any attempt at rust protection. Anyhow, I had excellent access and made up new sections, welding both sides and finishing with a flat closing plate on each outer side. I also was able to weld on new captive nuts for the front rollbar mounts. Not the most pleasant job, but I hate to be beaten by mechanical maladies. Sorry to be so long winded, but if anyone wants further details or advice I'll try to help!