Greetings from new mx5 owner

Ransom · Post by **Ransom** » Sun Jun 22, 2014 4:22 pm

Hi
Just picked up a very rough Mx5 to get me thru the winter while the roads down here in the south are too icy/mossy to be fun on the motorcycle

Read many many things all over the net before i bought one and it seems to suit what i wanted - cheap reg and fuel costs and fun on twisty roads and with a certain character

Very impressed by the knowledge and help available online it made it so much easier to know what i was looking at and what to watch out for

So its a 1989 1600 NA in rough as matt black with racing stripes
Has the long nose crank and pulley so has prob been repowered at some point in its 190 000 km
Its been sitting a while and was running rough til i got fresh petrol and injector cleaner thru it
Has cheapo import Ice tyres on it so yes it looks like a rally car...
Handbrake was trying to stay on drivers side wheel so have been lubing that and seems to have freed up ok
I see new calipers pads and rotors in my near future
Softop is almost dead coupla rips leaks - even trusty duct tape wont stick to it
So looking at importing a cheap cover

Unless anyone has a complete softop they want to sell ?
will give mazline a call
I also see there is a black hardtop on the nzmx5 farcebook but im guessing freight from auckland would be a killer for a fragile odd shaped item like a hardtop roof

Anyway .... hurro .. seems like a good fun helpful forum here

GRUVBB · Post by **GRUVBB** » Sun Jun 22, 2014 6:36 pm

Nice intro Mate.
Welcome to this forum. I recently sent a hardtop from Ak to Invercargill. The recipient paid for freight. I think it was about $300 without insurance.
Try Mazline. They are super helpful and a good excuse to go for a drive...
Nice to have another bike rider on here as well. You are not alone!

4A-GE · Post by **4A-GE** » Sun Jun 22, 2014 6:49 pm

+10 man points for buying a neglected one - Go hard

MrGrey · Post by **MrGrey** » Sun Jun 22, 2014 7:46 pm

hello, welcome to the roadster lifestyle and welcome to the forum mate!

chris · Post by **chris** » Sun Jun 22, 2014 8:01 pm

I should have read your full intro.

I didn't. I'm lazy.

Welcome, and thanks for posting a really well written (or seems to be) intro! Makes for a good first impression

Much better than saying you have the fastest mx5 in the country... *cough*

I'm stripping mine, hit me up with any interior parts you need.

Also have P/S pump and A/C pump

SLYDIT · Post by **SLYDIT** » Sun Jun 22, 2014 9:13 pm

Welcome Ransom.
the rear calipers can be rebuilt fairly easily with a new seal kit and some maintenance with caliper grease on the actuator arm where it goes into the caliper body, thats where they usually jam. if you get a seal kit, make sure you look at the little o-ring and ask the brake parts supplier for the next thickness up. when i re-built mine , the standard o-ring in the kit wasnt fat enough and leaked.

Ransom · Post by **Ransom** » Sun Jun 22, 2014 10:01 pm

No mine will never be the fastest maybe just the dodgiest looking
And i do like the kiwi we can fix it / make it better attitude

Plenty of it on here i have looked at many of the conversion and mod threads some great stuff being done from insane horsepower to very cool little tweaks to enhance the grin factor

Musta seen 10+ mx5s out today ... zero waves .....

Thanks for the welcome ...

Ransom · Post by **Ransom** » Mon Jun 23, 2014 2:52 pm

Passed a warrant today yay
And removed some exhaust rattles
Tossing up whether to just push the button on a new cheapy Robbins XT softtop cover from the usa
Or complete second hand NB glass window roof from here in NZ

4A-GE · Post by **4A-GE** » Mon Jun 23, 2014 3:48 pm

Glass windows are the shit.

SLYDIT · Post by **SLYDIT** » Mon Jun 23, 2014 5:38 pm

4A-GE wrote:Glass windows are shit.

here i fixed that for you.
Glass windows make fitting a roll bar a real PITA.

even the cheap ebay tops with no zip are actually not bad going.

marcellarius · Post by **marcellarius** » Mon Jun 23, 2014 5:40 pm

A complete NB soft top frame is fairly expensive... a friend was looking to buy one a month or two ago but the one he found was actually an NA roof.

The NB roof frame should have springs that pull the 4th bow forward as you lower the roof.

4A-GE wrote:Glass windows are shit.

FTFY

One-piece glass tops are horrible; they stress the material around the glass and the material can fatigue and crack. My one was badly installed (a previous owner had the top replaced) and was showing cracks around the window after several months in my possession.

This was taken when I first noticed it... it's much worse now. The top has ripples near the glass, could be a crap design or bad install, but not impressed for a top that is probably only a couple of years old.

From miata.net... this one is a nicer looking fit than mine but it has failed badly in that area:

Ransom · Post by **Ransom** » Mon Jun 23, 2014 6:07 pm

Yup the NB glass window roof has now sold so that narrows down the options
Budget wise its looking like a cheap Robbins out of the states and get a friend who has done a couple to give me a hand
Unless something cheaper and easier pops up here
$345 nzd for a Robbins XT including shipping
10$ usd more than a EZ-on cheapy ....

How many posts til I can add pictures of the dirty dirty little MX5?

marcellarius · Post by **marcellarius** » Mon Jun 23, 2014 6:19 pm

My top is an EZ-on, and I have a number of complaints with how it fits and has held up... I would not buy from them.

They only sell to distributors and don't support tops that aren't professionally installed. It's no wonder mine was installed incorrectly, as they provide no installation guide with their tops.

SLYDIT · Post by **SLYDIT** » Mon Jun 23, 2014 6:41 pm

put your pics on a photo sharing site and just link to them.

Ransom · Post by **Ransom** » Tue Jun 24, 2014 6:17 pm

tried that and got .....

In order to minimise spam, we do not allow our users to post URLs in any form until they have posted at least 2 legitimate posts and have been with us for more than 5 days.

oh well

I am enjoying the foul looks i am getting from the older drivers of tidy Mx5s locally ......

Does anyone know where to get a lift kit and an ARB diff locker and maybe a winch mount for an mx5?

SLYDIT · Post by **SLYDIT** » Tue Jun 24, 2014 7:58 pm

the same place you get the artificial grass that you glue to the bonnet!

Ransom · Post by **Ransom** » Tue Jun 24, 2014 8:17 pm

No way am i gonna glue artificial grass onto my superior quality mattblack bonnet paint ...
But damp enough on the rear parcel shelf to grow real grass

Buys a car to avoid riding the motorbike in evil weather ...

Buys car with holes in the roof ...

4A-GE · Post by **4A-GE** » Tue Jun 24, 2014 8:54 pm

... profit.

SLYDIT · Post by **SLYDIT** » Tue Jun 24, 2014 10:11 pm

Ransom wrote:No way am i gonna glue artificial grass onto my superior quality mattblack bonnet paint ...
But damp enough on the rear parcel shelf to grow real grass

Buys a car to avoid riding the motorbike in evil weather ...

Buys car with holes in the roof ...

totally understandable...you dont want to go cold turkey

NicF · Post by **NicF** » Fri Jun 27, 2014 2:59 pm

Have you thought of going the G string way? Surprisingly weather resistant while driving.

I have a set of 15" wheels with warrantable tyres cheap cheap if you're interested.

Timmo · Post by **Timmo** » Fri Jun 27, 2014 4:51 pm

NicF wrote:Have you thought of going the G string way? Surprisingly weather resistant while driving.

Yeah but your bum and thighs get really cold.

Ransom · Post by **Ransom** » Fri Jun 27, 2014 5:26 pm

Ransom · Post by **Ransom** » Fri Jun 27, 2014 5:27 pm

Ransom · Post by **Ransom** » Fri Jun 27, 2014 5:33 pm

Ok so far i have changed oil + filter flushed radiator and added antifreeze mix
new spark plugs
travelled 600 odd km and put lots of injector cleaner thru
moved number plate up out of the radiator hole
Ordered a new softtop - may turn the old one into an H- string top

What sort of wheels do i have ? are they light or bogus ?

why do the tops of my headlight covers sit lower than the bonnet ?
Is this adjustable?

Yes looking for some tyres/wheels at some point

Also looking for a good cheap upgrade for the stock worn out suspension
I dont want to go lower - very rough roads and driveways around here

SLYDIT · Post by **SLYDIT** » Fri Jun 27, 2014 5:53 pm

the headlight covers can be adjusted"easily" depending on how easy the screws come undone. just pop up your lights and remove the plastic surround. then there are 4 screws holding the covers on. BE WARNED!!!!!! the screws are made from some crappy soft steel and you WILL strip the pozi out of it if you dont use the correct good quality screwdriver. i replaced all mine once i got them off. i had to drill one or two out.

Greetings from new mx5 owner

Greetings from new mx5 owner

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