some help from the mx5 hairdressers

[Rusty]

I know this is a home for elises but we all know there has been an infiltration of mx5 owners.

Kat and I have decided to get another car (potentially sell the bike) as the bike is hardly used now I walk to work and with
her running her own business she is in the tut towers stickered astra. Meaning on days I'm off work, I can only do things that I can use the bike for.

Found a nice wee mx5 on gumtree for nice money, email'd and he seems quite a petrolhead by his reply.

I am arranging to go see it and wondered if anyone has some tips on what to look for (i know the rust on the arches and sills is most common)
or if you are glasgow based and would come with, beer tokens will be provided!

This means i will finally have a car to do trackdays in! (just need to find ones when i ain't working!)

Cheers
Adam
(potential hairdresser)

[j2 lot]

Dont sell the bike to do it - you will regret it once the novelty of the new car wears off ( been there)

[r10crw]

Not much help but you could get a nice rusty one and do this,

http://www.mevltd.co.uk/mevx5_gallery.htm

Just bolt on panels, even a roadster one although looks like a lot more work.

[Dominic]

As you say, rust, especially sills and arches to be checked. Take a magnet with you. Otherwise AFAIK they are fairly bullet proof. Just the usual checks for any used car. And check the seller as much as the car.

[Rusty]

Kat says i shouldn't sell the bike..... she is proving her worth!

The seller (going by email) seems a decent bloke, even has spare suspension he will chuck in! (he bought as he heard a clunking sound, upon investigation it was a spare wheel nut in the wheel arch!)

So dom, do i just put the magnet next to bits to check it stays and isn't hollow behind or what am i meant to do with it?

Cheers

[steviej]

Put the maget on various (suspect places) on the panels, if it sticks its got metal behind the paint, if not its body filler or something similar !
Quite funny really considering your user name

[Rusty]

As i read the last part i had a moment of "what is my username" looked over and laughed!

Dom said he will come with to give me a hand!

i thought it might be some tactic like that but wasn't sure!

[renmure]

Re the PH thread.. This one?

http://www.gumtree.com/p/cars-vans-moto ... to-content

If you assume the ad, the seller and the MOT are all above board then it will be a safe bet that the car will sell for somewhere around the asking price to someone. Unless it is a shedy death trap, you can't really go that far wrong with a sub £1500 MX5 really.

[Rusty]

Yeah thats the add, i had posted it up on PH to see if the mx5 lot on there could think up anything to be very careful of.
can't go wrong asking for help from lots of folk!

If the guy is anything in person like his emails i think he probably is on PH.

I will probably still try and barter with him, what do you think is a fair one to go for, think £1k is too low to offer? (then work way up to meeting point)

[GBOBM]

Check the roof at the point where the side windows meet the roof.
Common place for them to rip and tear.

[Dominic]

I will probably still try and barter with him, what do you think is a fair one to go for, think £1k is too low to offer? (then work way up to meeting point)

Given the recent weather, I'm sure there are plenty of buyers out there. Doubt you'll get much off a ragtop during a sunny summer. Unless it's a lot worse than you expect when you view it, I would go in at £1200 (if he's asking £1500), and maybe hope to get it for £1350 ish. IMHO

[Rusty]

His advert says £1350 so maybe i'll try and get it to £1200.

What insurers mirror ncb?
I'm currently with direct line and i thought their multicar deal would let me use my 5 years ncb on both cars but nah its 2 seperate policies under 1 person
compare to admiral who i think do 2 cars on 1 policy.

[GBOBM]

I will probably still try and barter with him, what do you think is a fair one to go for, think £1k is too low to offer? (then work way up to meeting point)

Given the recent weather, I'm sure there are plenty of buyers out there. Doubt you'll get much off a ragtop during a sunny summer. Unless it's a lot worse than you expect when you view it, I would go in at £1200 (if he's asking £1500), and maybe hope to get it for £1350 ish. IMHO

Advertised for £1350 now, so I'd go with £1200 assuming all is well.

To give you ammo, I paid £1500 at the start of the year for a 1999 SE with 49k on the clock, very little rust, a full MOT and 3 months tax. The added bonus of the wooden steering wheel and baby-puke coloured interior increased the price contrary to popular belief.


eta: My insurance is £153 on a multicar policy.

[renmure]

If the guy is anything in person like his emails i think he probably is on PH.

I will probably still try and barter with him, what do you think is a fair one to go for, think £1k is too low to offer? (then work way up to meeting point)

It is probably worth round about £1500 give or take £500 depending on how keen he is to sell or how keen someone is to buy.

At these prices, my view would be that you are going to be buying a fairly unknown quantity anyhow which is as likely to blow up on the drive home as it is to keep going for ever. If nothing else I would take a view on the seller as much as the car. From everything you have written here and on PH then unless there is some great big red warning light over the whole thing, I would be expecting to drive home in it after seeing it having paid somewhere near the asking price.

[mwmackenzie]

You want check out my classified and video postedon facebook edinburghMR2 group and have a rethink.. lol Bob's MX5 was shall we say our excuse for pitstops lol