MX5 - the second coming
Discussion
11 years ago family and circumstance dictated my trading my first Eunos Roadster in for (of all things) a 1.8 petrol Vectra.
Sadly no photos of that car exist (and thankfully none of the Vectra that replaced it) but for those who know the breed it was an early 1.6 with lowered suspension, LSD, HKS induction, Mazda front lip spoiler and rare lightweight Watanabe wheels.
Since then I've been searching for the same thrills on a similar budget, but with family in mind even a brief foray with a rusty
Ford SportKa (great as the chassis/engine combination on that car was) couldn't fill the void that was left.
My son (7) loves cars as much as me and loves getting hands on and decided a track/daily car would be an excellent project for us to get stuck into.
Now that I'm able, I decided I wanted another MX5, an NC3 2.0 Sport with a soft top that would accept a few basic mods but would also serve quite happily as a daily.
After much searching I found this example. The perfect car in a rare colour with updated bumpers and the whiff of a couple of suspension upgrades from what I could see in the pictures.
Unfortunately I couldn't buy it because there were two people in front of me in the queue. However I was lucky and travelled 3 hours north to Nottingham to view the car.
The owner told me he'd seen the car first off at Mike Comber Racing being stripped to be turned into a BRSCC Max 5 car and had been told that there was no way it was for sale. A change of plans meant the car was screwed back together and put up for sale complete with Bilstein shocks, Eibach springs, RX8 ARB's, championship standard Federal tyres, the geometry reworked to racing specs, Mintex discs and pads and later model Mk 3.75 bumpers and lights.
I've struck gold and bought the car yesterday.
So the plan is for the car to be a daily hack to and from work so I don't want to make it too hardcore, however I want to improve the power and looks. I'm going to continue to use the Max5 Championship regs for inspiration and combine that with the spirit of the Mk 1 RS Limited which was essentially a track car for the road.
Took the boy out in it for the first time today and he loves the car, seems the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. Sorry there is only one picture but I'm surprised I was able to take even this one with the roof down during the last 24 hours!
Sadly no photos of that car exist (and thankfully none of the Vectra that replaced it) but for those who know the breed it was an early 1.6 with lowered suspension, LSD, HKS induction, Mazda front lip spoiler and rare lightweight Watanabe wheels.
Since then I've been searching for the same thrills on a similar budget, but with family in mind even a brief foray with a rusty
Ford SportKa (great as the chassis/engine combination on that car was) couldn't fill the void that was left.
My son (7) loves cars as much as me and loves getting hands on and decided a track/daily car would be an excellent project for us to get stuck into.
Now that I'm able, I decided I wanted another MX5, an NC3 2.0 Sport with a soft top that would accept a few basic mods but would also serve quite happily as a daily.
After much searching I found this example. The perfect car in a rare colour with updated bumpers and the whiff of a couple of suspension upgrades from what I could see in the pictures.
Unfortunately I couldn't buy it because there were two people in front of me in the queue. However I was lucky and travelled 3 hours north to Nottingham to view the car.
The owner told me he'd seen the car first off at Mike Comber Racing being stripped to be turned into a BRSCC Max 5 car and had been told that there was no way it was for sale. A change of plans meant the car was screwed back together and put up for sale complete with Bilstein shocks, Eibach springs, RX8 ARB's, championship standard Federal tyres, the geometry reworked to racing specs, Mintex discs and pads and later model Mk 3.75 bumpers and lights.
I've struck gold and bought the car yesterday.
So the plan is for the car to be a daily hack to and from work so I don't want to make it too hardcore, however I want to improve the power and looks. I'm going to continue to use the Max5 Championship regs for inspiration and combine that with the spirit of the Mk 1 RS Limited which was essentially a track car for the road.
Took the boy out in it for the first time today and he loves the car, seems the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. Sorry there is only one picture but I'm surprised I was able to take even this one with the roof down during the last 24 hours!
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