Thursday 24th March 2016

Mazda MX-5 Le Mans: Spotted

Well as we're celebrating the MX-5 this week...

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Forget the GT-R. Leave the R8 Spyder. And who really cares about an NSX racing car? No, the big news for PH at New York - going off the comments and views - is the Mazda MX-5 Retractable Fastback. Perhaps it shouldn't be surprising given the MX-5 love on PH, but the attention is still pretty remarkable.

No hiding from anyone in this MX-5

So why not ride the crest of the MX-5 wave for a little longer? Now ideally this feature would use the old MX-5 Roadster Coupe, preferably with a little BBR tweaking to make it more interesting. There are plenty of standard cars around, but nothing any faster.

While on the hunt for BBR cars though, this little gem emerged. Yes, it's an MX-5 Le Mans, the car that celebrated Mazda's incredible victory at La Sarthe. This year marks 25 years since that triumph in fact, so how better to commemorate that fantastic race?

Those with especially good memories will recognise this MX-5, as it's the car we featured as a PH Hero back in 2011. All of the Le Mans cars are very rare, with only 22 believed to have been built and at least five of those not even in the iconic paint scheme. Back when the Hero feature was written just 19 survived; could that be even less now?

It's easy to forget beyond the wild colours and the Le Mans success that these cars were significantly improved over a base MX-5. The BBR turbo boosted power from 114hp to 150hp, plus there were Tokico springs and OZ wheels. Don't forget the authenticity certificate signed by Johnny Herbert too (and yes, this car still has it).

Looking immaculate under here as well

The Le Mans is a very special car in the history of the MX-5, and should remain jolly good fun as well. Yes, this car has 90,000 miles on it and "a number of enthusiasts" have owned it, but that's kind of the point. It will have been cherished throughout those miles as those who owned it will have (hopefully) recognised the Le Mans as something special. The fact that an Owners' Club member has owned it is encouraging, as is the fact it looks flawless in the photos.

So what on earth will it cost? Frustratingly this Le Mans is listed at POA, so we'll have to compare standard MX-5s for some idea. Amazingly the most expensive of those is for sale at £12K, albeit with just 14,000 miles. Given the rarity and the status of the Le Mans, it wouldn't be a surprise to find the asking price beyond even that. What do you reckon? How much can an MX-5 really be worth? The floor is yours...

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MAZDA MX-5 LE MANS
Engine: 1,600cc, turbocharged inline-4
Transmission: 5-speed manual, rear-wheel drive
Power (hp): 154@6,500rpm
Torque (lb ft): 154@5,500rpm
MPG: N/A
CO2: N/A
First registered: 1991
Recorded mileage: 90,000
Price new: £20,499
Price now: POA

See the original advert here.

[Specs: MX5 Mazda]

[NJ72]

Saw this exact car 3 years ago in the Watford Mazda dealer awaiting collection by the current owner. It had 90k on the clock then, so not really been driven in the past 3 years it would appear.

They sold it for £10k then AFAIK, so probably a good £12-14k I'd guess.

Sorely tempted, looks great in the flesh...

[Krikkit]

One item guaranteed to be depreciation-proof. Looks absolutely cracking, although sadly most of the general public would assume you were a bell-end driving it of course!

[LaurasOtherHalf]

Krikkit said:

Looks absolutely cracking, although sadly most of the general public would assume you were a bell-end driving it of course!

That about sums it up for me, I'd absolutely love it but I just couldn't drive the thing. I remember seeing one at a dealers when they first came out and loving them then.

[Skornogr4phy]

That £12k car listed in the adverts has been on sale for almost a year. I bought my MX5 from Silverbrookes and that was sitting there at the time. The car they sold me was listed as having no rust but it turns out that was a lie, and I wouldn't recommend them.

[405dogvan]

Skornogr4phy said:

That £12k car listed in the adverts has been on sale for almost a year. I bought my MX5 from Silverbrookes and that was sitting there at the time. The car they sold me was listed as having no rust but it turns out that was a lie, and I wouldn't recommend them.

There's no such thing as a rust-free car in the UK (unless it's been here less than a week!) Not really THAT hard to check this tho - I don't get why people take a salesman's word for something they can confirm for themselves (you don't even have to get dirty - any dealer worth buying from will put a car on a ramp for you)

As for this car - it IS a low-mileage vehicle! It's 25 years old so has done less than 4K a year - that's low-mileage in anyone's book...

Low miles/any signs of non-use for long periods are BAD things - cars work better when they're used regularly (and it seems this one might not have been, at least not recently).

In many ways, the tired 150,000 miler imports might actually be mechanically better - if not as-pretty/unique!?

[Itsallicanafford]

Nice car but one for the collectors i think.

To me, an RS-Ltd would be the ultimate Mk1.

[Jam12321]

405dogvan said:

There's no such thing as a rust-free car in the UK (unless it's been here less than a week!)

Quite a few MX5 owners are restoring their cars at the moment. Have seen several that had the shell lifted off, any surface rust repaired and the shell receiving a coating of underseal to a level that Mazda didn't achieve from the factory. They will be rare to see for sale but they do exist!

[noell35]

I remember seeing one of these regularly around Barrow in Furness when I was a lot younger. Looked great, still does in my opinion.

[LaurasOtherHalf]

noell35 said:

I remember seeing one of these regularly around Barrow in Furness when I was a lot younger. Looked great, still does in my opinion.

I think that one lived in the Lake District, possibly Windermere. Can't imagine there's be two in the same area

[Krikkit]

Jam12321 said:

405dogvan said:

There's no such thing as a rust-free car in the UK (unless it's been here less than a week!)

Quite a few MX5 owners are restoring their cars at the moment. Have seen several that had the shell lifted off, any surface rust repaired and the shell receiving a coating of underseal to a level that Mazda didn't achieve from the factory. They will be rare to see for sale but they do exist!

How do you lift a shell off a monocoque?

[TheJimi]

Firstly, the Le Mans is an absolute cracker but unless you didn't care about residuals, you couldn't enjoy it.

Secondly, and people have been saying this for years but are Mk1's going up in value?

I can't make up my mind.

[j_s14a]

Itsallicanafford said:

Nice car but one for the collectors i think.

To me, an RS-Ltd would be the ultimate Mk1.

They are lovely, but the RS-LTD isn't the top of the mk1 Eunos Tree, that distinction belongs to the M2 cars, especially the M2-1028

http://mazdaroadster.net/showthread.php?12-M2-Inco...

[Superhoop]

405dogvan said:

As for this car - it IS a low-mileage vehicle! It's 25 years old so has done less than 4K a year - that's low-mileage in anyone's book...

But compared to another Le Mans I know of that has 13k on the clock, it's high... you are right though, a 4k average is low..

[Garett]

Krikkit said:

Jam12321 said:

405dogvan said:

There's no such thing as a rust-free car in the UK (unless it's been here less than a week!)

Quite a few MX5 owners are restoring their cars at the moment. Have seen several that had the shell lifted off, any surface rust repaired and the shell receiving a coating of underseal to a level that Mazda didn't achieve from the factory. They will be rare to see for sale but they do exist!

How do you lift a shell off a monocoque?

Hydraulic lift is the easiest way

[Oldwolf]

TheJimi said:

are Mk1's going up in value?

I can't make up my mind.

As an owner I wish it were true but I don't think so yet...

[WJNB]

I was one of the first members of the UK Owners club & these whacky versions were always of interest to those who understood the reason for the weird colour scheme.
Have to agree you would look a bit of a twerp driving it so best kept as part of a private collection or in a museum.
The REALLY sensible & more visually acceptable would be an early BBR modified car, with unique wheels & DISCREET badging

[LaurasOtherHalf]

j_s14a said:

They are lovely, but the RS-LTD isn't the top of the mk1 Eunos Tree, that distinction belongs to the M2 cars, especially the M2-1028

http://mazdaroadster.net/showthread.php?12-M2-Inco...

Thanks for that, interesting read.

[SimonTheSailor]

j_s14a said:

They are lovely, but the RS-LTD isn't the top of the mk1 Eunos Tree, that distinction belongs to the M2 cars, especially the M2-1028

http://mazdaroadster.net/showthread.php?12-M2-Inco...

Were they sold in the UK though ?

[Iva Barchetta]

There was one of these at the Edenbridge car show last summer.

Can't post the pics currently.

[Iva Barchetta]