You pace around waiting for the phone to ring with crossed fingers on one hand and a credit card in the other. MOT day is never fun, the chap cheerily takes away your keys and once your back is turned he rubs his hands with glee. And this was the first time the Mazda and I would pass through the test. All month I’d mentally budgeted for some work, had replaced a numberplate bulb I’d been meaning to get around to for ages and Haymarket ‘MX-5 man’ James provided me with another bulb needed for the brake light in the bootlid.
Paint protection is paramount
I’d barely got home before the garage called. "All done for you" was the message. No issues. Just an advisory that the rear brake pads were low, but still had enough in them for a few thousand more miles. Well, to say I was surprised was an understatement. The £600 (now £1,300-odd all in) Mazda has done me proud, especially when you consider the amount of work needed to get the TVR through the test last year.
Since I last chatted about the fleet, progress for the Mazda has been slow. I had high-hopes of new exhausts, and even had thoughts of suspension too, but all I’ve done is drive it, clean it and carry the odd bicycle. The cleaning part is a particular pain in the rear as the green paint seems to mark and stain with amazing ease, and the fact that Haymarket has allocated PH parking underneath a tree noted for record-breaking bird ‘waste’ production, I have resorted to using a full car cover when I park at work. Annoying, but effective. Before my car cover brainwave I was always cleaning it to the point where the local hand car wash gave me one (£18) wash for free, they must have felt sorry for me. And I really must get around to replacing the exhaust … more on that next time.
No Le Mans trip this year for the TVR
recent TVR news
I got the Chimeara out and took advantage of the three-day summer we enjoyed a week or so ago. Funny how a good bit of news for the brand makes you feel proud as an owner. In celebration I booked a last minute weekend away and covered a few hundred miles in the hot sunshine. We were stuck in traffic, blasting along motorways and twisting down B-roads without a murmur of complaint. I may be tempting fate when I say this but 2013 has seen me enjoy trouble-free running with nothing more than an occasional stop for fuel. It’s all very easy and long may it continue. Life with the noisy green one is good but I will miss taking it to Le Mans this year. I hope it forgives me for being left home alone.
Before I go, a quick thought on TVR if I may. I wish Les all the best with his plans and await info with as much anticipation as everyone else, but my fleet got me thinking. I’ve enjoyed the MX-5 since purchase, it reminds me of a shrunken Chim in so many ways, and with so much praise for cars of this type I can’t help but wonder if TVR should release a small four-pot roadster. Cheap enough to be an achievable purchase to many but with enough volume (and therefore profit) potential to fund more lairy models aimed squarely at the TVR purist/ 911 owner. Who knows eh, but I reckon (as the owner of both types of car) that it could work. Very well.
 Shine soon lost to stains |
 Practical(ish) too |
Fact Sheet:
Car: 1999 TVR Chimaera 4.0
Run by: Garlick
Bought: December 2009
Purchase price: £12,995
Last month at a glance: Nothing but miles, fun and fuel use
Fact Sheet:
Car: 1997 Mazda MX-5 1.8iS
Run by: Garlick
Bought: November 2012
Purchase price: £600
Last month at a glance: Exhaust rattles (still), continuous cleaning, MOT time
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