2006 MX-5 2.0 Option Pack
Discussion
sunday I took a drive out to keighley to look at a 07 plate mx5 at motorhub(I know) it was under 2k, no mot , failed on emissions and a few bits and bobs, pictures made it look ok, seemed cheap and maybw worth tinkering with
i wasn't expecting a diamond and wasn't disappointed, it was dog rough,bumped at the front at some point and nowhere near the right colour on the nose, alloy buckled on the back, 4 new tyres that looked like they cost £10 each , broken rear light , scratches and pinholes in the paint all over
both windows open an inch which I assume was to let the smell of the damp out, I didn't even get as far as asking for the keys because even if they'd knocked £1000 off I didn't want it , yours looks mint in comparison.
motorhub is based in an old multi storey car park , 2m worth of cars on the ground floor getting cheaper the higher you go, every space was full right to the top , bangers must be on the roof so they get enough momentum to make it out of the car park
i wasn't expecting a diamond and wasn't disappointed, it was dog rough,bumped at the front at some point and nowhere near the right colour on the nose, alloy buckled on the back, 4 new tyres that looked like they cost £10 each , broken rear light , scratches and pinholes in the paint all over
both windows open an inch which I assume was to let the smell of the damp out, I didn't even get as far as asking for the keys because even if they'd knocked £1000 off I didn't want it , yours looks mint in comparison.
motorhub is based in an old multi storey car park , 2m worth of cars on the ground floor getting cheaper the higher you go, every space was full right to the top , bangers must be on the roof so they get enough momentum to make it out of the car park
Swapped the gearbox oil tonight. I took the car for a spin beforehand to warm the oil up before draining. It might just be a placebo effect but a clean air filter seems to have made a noticeable improvement to the way the car drives. There used to be a bit of a flat spot when pulling away or crawling in traffic, it appears to have all but disappeared.
Anyway, the gearbox oil was last changed by a Mazda dealership in 2012. It would appear they didn't tighten up the fill plug very well, it was barely more than finger tight.
The magnetic drain plug had caught quite a bit of muck.
Filled up with Castrol Systrans which should apparently improve cold shifting. Just the turret oil left to do now.
I also popped out one of the spark plugs. It was branded Mazda/NGK. I *think* I read somewhere that the original plugs were FoMoCo branded so I believe they've been replaced during a dealership service at least once. They looked to be in good shape so I'll leave them for now.
Edit Jan 2020 - Fix image links
Anyway, the gearbox oil was last changed by a Mazda dealership in 2012. It would appear they didn't tighten up the fill plug very well, it was barely more than finger tight.
The magnetic drain plug had caught quite a bit of muck.
Filled up with Castrol Systrans which should apparently improve cold shifting. Just the turret oil left to do now.
I also popped out one of the spark plugs. It was branded Mazda/NGK. I *think* I read somewhere that the original plugs were FoMoCo branded so I believe they've been replaced during a dealership service at least once. They looked to be in good shape so I'll leave them for now.
Edit Jan 2020 - Fix image links
Edited by Accelebrate on Thursday 23 January 15:17
Craikeybaby said:
It is interesting that you prefer the handling of the mk3 to the mk3.5, I was the other way around, although my mk3.5 was on the 16" wheels.
The mk3.5 I test drove was the RC, on big wheels and a demonstrator that the salesman admitted to 'ragging everywhere'. It was also at the time an 18k car, which might have made me more critical!Deerfoot said:
Can I be vulgar and ask roughly how much you paid for it?
I paid 3k, mentally I consider it to be a 2.5k car and a £500 hardtop, although I doubt I'll sell the hardtop and I'm not sure I'd get £500 for it as there don't seem to be that many blue cars around for it to generate any interest. 
Interesting thread, I bought a 2007 2.0 Sport last year.
I had a notchy gear change too when cold, especially from 1st to 2nd. After reading up on this I replaced the gearbox oil with Redline MT90 which was recommended online and vastly improved the change.
Interesting you intend to do a Europe trip in yours I love mine but I'd struggle to go too far in it as its not the most comfortable car for extended use. The fact my clutch pedal gets very notchy in traffic doesn't help, I need to look into it, could be the master/slave cylinders.
Otherwise I want to get mine Waxoyld before the end of the summer but may leave it for next year. Rust seems to be the main killer of these cars.
I had a notchy gear change too when cold, especially from 1st to 2nd. After reading up on this I replaced the gearbox oil with Redline MT90 which was recommended online and vastly improved the change.
Interesting you intend to do a Europe trip in yours I love mine but I'd struggle to go too far in it as its not the most comfortable car for extended use. The fact my clutch pedal gets very notchy in traffic doesn't help, I need to look into it, could be the master/slave cylinders.
Otherwise I want to get mine Waxoyld before the end of the summer but may leave it for next year. Rust seems to be the main killer of these cars.
We just sold our MK3 2.0 Sport after over 3 years and about 45,000 miles. Great car, nothing ever went wrong and saw us down through France a couple of times, it's amazing how much stuff you can pack into them!
Just keep an eye out for the drainage channels behind the seats, they're likely to block up and start letting water in, easy but awkward fix.
Just keep an eye out for the drainage channels behind the seats, they're likely to block up and start letting water in, easy but awkward fix.
glenmore3685 said:
Interesting you intend to do a Europe trip in yours I love mine but I'd struggle to go too far in it as its not the most comfortable car for extended use. The fact my clutch pedal gets very notchy in traffic doesn't help, I need to look into it, could be the master/slave cylinders.
Otherwise I want to get mine Waxoyld before the end of the summer but may leave it for next year. Rust seems to be the main killer of these cars.
It should be fine. It obviously isn't the height of luxury and comfort but you tend to forget that if the sun is out and the roof is down. I'm over 6ft and the seating position is about right once pushed right back. The previous owner has unclipped the springs from underneath the seat base which supposedly puts you a little lower down.Otherwise I want to get mine Waxoyld before the end of the summer but may leave it for next year. Rust seems to be the main killer of these cars.
We're off to Italy but punctuated with overnight stops in France and Switzerland, it shouldn't be too arduous in terms of mileage and hours behind the wheel each day.
Waxoyl or Dinitrol is a good shout. The rear subframe and suspension components are quite crusty for a relatively young car. Skuzzle Motorsport seem to offer a good range of underseal options depending on how much you want treated/to spend so I might get it booked in there before the winter.
http://www.skuzzle.com/motorsport/index.php?page=u...
rehab71 said:
We just sold our MK3 2.0 Sport after over 3 years and about 45,000 miles. Great car, nothing ever went wrong and saw us down through France a couple of times, it's amazing how much stuff you can pack into them!
Just keep an eye out for the drainage channels behind the seats, they're likely to block up and start letting water in, easy but awkward fix.
My 2006 has had it's first component failures this year. 1 ignition coil, and the washer motor. For a 10 year old car with 70,000 miles I'd say that's pretty good Just keep an eye out for the drainage channels behind the seats, they're likely to block up and start letting water in, easy but awkward fix.
I predict absolutely no problems with the road tip for the OP. I almost did the same this summer.
Accelebrate said:
Waxoyl or Dinitrol is a good shout. The rear subframe and suspension components are quite crusty for a relatively young car. Skuzzle Motorsport seem to offer a good range of underseal options depending on how much you want treated/to spend so I might get it booked in there before the winter.
http://www.skuzzle.com/motorsport/index.php?page=u...
Yeah I was looking at taking it to Skuzzle too, it was £365 for the treatment when I checked earlier in the year. Trouble is they are quite far from me so I've been too lazy to sort it out! http://www.skuzzle.com/motorsport/index.php?page=u...
Changed the turret oil tonight, it was already at the right level and quite clean so potentially a wasted hour. Nice to do a job that wasn't underneath the car though.
The shift boots were in good condition.
I put 100 miles on the car today, I'll tick over 1000 during my ownership tomorrow. The gearbox oil and clean air filter have definitely made a noticeable improvement.
I checked the battery voltage. The original Panasonic has been replaced with a cheap 'Powerline' battery, seems to be in good health though. I also found my ODBII wifi adapter and scanned for fault codes, there was nothing stored.
Despite previously claiming I wouldn't replace the spark plugs ECP were having a 30% sale earlier. A set of NGK plugs for £35 seemed worth doing.
The car came with a set of side tonneau covers, I assumed they were part of the hardtop until I spotted them on MX5 parts. I can't quite believe they cost £85!
http://www.mx5parts.co.uk/cloth-side-tonneau-cover...
Edit Jan 2020 - Fix image links
The shift boots were in good condition.
I put 100 miles on the car today, I'll tick over 1000 during my ownership tomorrow. The gearbox oil and clean air filter have definitely made a noticeable improvement.
I checked the battery voltage. The original Panasonic has been replaced with a cheap 'Powerline' battery, seems to be in good health though. I also found my ODBII wifi adapter and scanned for fault codes, there was nothing stored.
Despite previously claiming I wouldn't replace the spark plugs ECP were having a 30% sale earlier. A set of NGK plugs for £35 seemed worth doing.
The car came with a set of side tonneau covers, I assumed they were part of the hardtop until I spotted them on MX5 parts. I can't quite believe they cost £85!
http://www.mx5parts.co.uk/cloth-side-tonneau-cover...
Edit Jan 2020 - Fix image links
Edited by Accelebrate on Thursday 23 January 15:18
I think my main concerns would be the rear arch lips and what's going on underneath the plastic side sills. The alu bonnet and boot also seem to corrode, particularly around the rear numberplate lights (see my earlier post), although it's easily rectified.
The underside of mine is covered in surface rust, particularly the rear suspension components and subframe. It doesn't look great but as far as I can tell it is just surface rust and not an immediate issue.
The underside of mine is covered in surface rust, particularly the rear suspension components and subframe. It doesn't look great but as far as I can tell it is just surface rust and not an immediate issue.
glenmore3685 said:
Yeah I was looking at taking it to Skuzzle too, it was £365 for the treatment when I checked earlier in the year. Trouble is they are quite far from me so I've been too lazy to sort it out!
Update: I've actually got off my arse and my car is currently down at Skuzzle for a underseal & cavity service. Nick is doing some before and after photos so I'll share them once I get the car back. 
New plugs arrived with the usual ECP/DHL speed...
Engine cover and coils popped off easily enough.
Old plugs, essentially the same part as the NGK plugs I ordered but Mazda branded. I think I stated this before but I believe they would be FoMoCo branded if they were the original plugs, so they have been replaced at least once. I only have a detailed summary for what I think was the last main dealer service in 2012 and they weren't done then.
Coils back in and bolted down...
Managed to get another little job done tonight - a variable wiper stalk from an RX-8. I thought when I first collected the car that this mod had already been done, but I was mistaken.
It's a straight forward swap, there are three screws to separate and remove the trim around the steering column and then a couple of screws and a connector on the stalk.
I'm hoping that the new stalk combined with the new wipers will mean we won't see any rain on holiday.
I also swapped the light/indicator for one with front foglight control. The car has had foglights added to the front by means of some additional wiring and a small switch mounted down low next to my left knee. This is apparently unnecessarily as hopefully when I remove the arch liners I should find the connectors already attached to the loom - you just need to add the stalk and fogs, so I'm hoping to be able to remove the rather messy wiring that was added.
Edit Jan 2020 - Fix image links
Engine cover and coils popped off easily enough.
Old plugs, essentially the same part as the NGK plugs I ordered but Mazda branded. I think I stated this before but I believe they would be FoMoCo branded if they were the original plugs, so they have been replaced at least once. I only have a detailed summary for what I think was the last main dealer service in 2012 and they weren't done then.
Coils back in and bolted down...
Managed to get another little job done tonight - a variable wiper stalk from an RX-8. I thought when I first collected the car that this mod had already been done, but I was mistaken.
It's a straight forward swap, there are three screws to separate and remove the trim around the steering column and then a couple of screws and a connector on the stalk.
I'm hoping that the new stalk combined with the new wipers will mean we won't see any rain on holiday.
I also swapped the light/indicator for one with front foglight control. The car has had foglights added to the front by means of some additional wiring and a small switch mounted down low next to my left knee. This is apparently unnecessarily as hopefully when I remove the arch liners I should find the connectors already attached to the loom - you just need to add the stalk and fogs, so I'm hoping to be able to remove the rather messy wiring that was added.
Edit Jan 2020 - Fix image links
Edited by Accelebrate on Thursday 23 January 15:20
Accelebrate said:
Managed to get another little job done tonight - a variable wiper stalk from an RX-8. I thought when I first collected the car that this mod had already been done, but I was mistaken.
This is the best single mod for one of these cars and makes it far nicer to live with day to day especially in winter. 
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