mx5cartalk.com

Thought I'd start a thread now that I've rejoined the ranks of MX5 ownership to document the cars time with me.

My MX5 journey actually started back in late '94. I was looking at order a brand new black Clubman with no options. The price was a real stretch for me back then just 4 years out of school and so I was very happy when I found a 6 month old Clubman in the beautiful Laguna Blue colour and managed to score it for $10k less than buying new.

Over the next 8 or so years it received "a few" mods. Unfortunately I seem to have lost many of the pics I had and back then digital cameras were very new and expensive. To sum it up it had wheels, springs, sway bars, strut brace, clutch, flywheel, ECU, injectors, some gauges and this thing bolted on to the side of the engine that was used to turn rubber into smoke.



This is one of the last photos I have still have of it though at a guess it's still a couple of years before I should it.



I'd gone about as far as I wanted to with it and decided to buy something larger that would be quicker and so bought a brand new 350Z. Oh the foolishness of youth. I quickly realised my error and only had the 350Z for about 18 months. There was a parade of cars over the intervening years. I slowed down and mostly had boring cars though did sneak a 240Z in and a 73 Landover 88".

Anyway after driving 4WD for the past decade I'd decided I wanted a weekend car. I looked at a few things but decided to order a new Mustang. In all those years and cars I'd never owned a V8 and I think time is running out for them. Long story short, after 18 months and two cars being delivered damaged I took the hint that the Mustang wasn't meant to be. It was actually a mates passing comment on the way back from Mustang #2 that got me thinking of the MX5. It was so obvious I should've seen it myself. I'd always said that my old MX5 was my favourite of them all and I was looking for something for early morning runs up to PITS, or Putty or Nasho. Why didn't I think of it?

So the search began and I quickly realised that NAs weren't so common anymore. One of the first I saw was a very expensive 97 green LE. It looked like it was in great condition but the price was too high. Over the course of 2 weeks however and looking at what was on sale around the country I cam to realise the price on the '97 wasn't so far off if the pics were a true representation. Certainly not the colour I would've chosen and no AC but it did have a hardtop.

I spent some time going over the car and while not perfect it really was in great condition for a car approaching 21 years and had a complete service history. Cars in this condition obviously weren't common so while it wasn't exactly what I would've preferred (a white or blue Clubman with AC and hardtop would've been ideal), it was far too good to pass up so a deal was struck. I picked it up this morning. Obligatory first photo upon arriving at home.



This one will remain basically stock unlike my first car. Few little things to tidy up and get a couple of short day trips under the belt to work out any kinks and I'll document anything here. Right now I'm happy to be back in familiar territory.

So first little thing I want to get sorted is the hard top demister. I know they're generally consider to be unnecessary but I like for everything to be as it should.

I believe the hardtop is probably from an NB as the plug doesn't fit the socket. Can anyone confirm if this is an NB plug?



I'm guessing a switch for it should also be found here where that LED is?



Is that OEM? I can't see any sign of an alarm so is it a factory immobiliser? I doubt it so perhaps it had an alarm at some point. How are those switches removed? Lever out from the front or is there clips at the back?

I know the pigtail and switch can be ordered so just want to confirm I'm looking at the right things.

Thanks for that. I found the hardtop FAQ on miata.net but the pics of the pigtails don't really show any detail.

Looks like I need these parts:
Fuse Block N008-66-730 apparently not required if you have an electric antenna, just need a fuse
Defroster Relay LA40-67-740
Dash Switch NA75-66-460
NA Pigtail N007-67-060A

I'll have a look tomorrow for the relay then I'll order the parts soonish. Once they arrive I'll pull that blank out that has the LED and see what if anything it's wired to.

Is this connector with the yellow on it where the relay goes? Very small relay but it's the only connector in the area that I can see.



Any idea how to work out how old the space saver tyre is? Usually tyres have a week/year marking but this one doesn't. Doesn't look that old but want to be sure it's usable given I don't think space savers are all that safe to begin with.

Yep, that where there needs to be a relay. It's an LA10 relay, same as the horn relay in the engine bay under the black plastic cover near the wiper motor.
Apart from the usual 4 digit code an alpha-numeric is sometimes used.
Btw, if 1997 LE is anything like the earlier NA8s, there should already be a fuse in fuse block N008-66-730.

Space saver would be original to the car. I've never seen a replacement tyre for them?
It should be OK as they're only for temporary use, just put some air into it (and carry a can of goop tyre sealant).

My original space saver on a Sep 1993 build, which is a Bridgestone, has BEE343 on it to identify manufacture date & location. My guess is BEE is location code, while 343 is 34th week of 1993. Rubber looks fine, though sure it will be harder after all these years.

I've done a bit more research and think you're right that BEExxx is the date code. Apparently before 2000 they used a two digit week then a single digit to represent the year of the decade. So I think you're right that yours is 34th week of 93. Mine is marked BEE426 so 42nd week of 96. As I said it looks fine and I believe has never been used but it certainly would be a hard after all those years.

Not too worried about it. In my old MX5 I didn't carry the spare at all, just a can of goop as bruce suggests. I've only ever had one flat that I had to change on the side of the road in my life so it's an unlikely event. I'm just going over everything and for peace of mind may ask about a replacement when I do the other tyres.

I just carry a can of goop as less weight means more Zoom Zoom.

Ah, i think I remember that old thread from OCAU was it?

Looks like another nice NA.

I'm sure I would've mentioned and posted some pics of it on OCAU but I don't recall having a thread for it. You might be thinking of Sabretooths red one? He had a fairly extensive build thread IIRC.

apsilon wrote:I'm sure I would've mentioned and posted some pics of it on OCAU but I don't recall having a thread for it. You might be thinking of Sabretooths red one? He had a fairly extensive build thread IIRC.

Yeah, i remember Sabs one quite well, plus some photos of yours floating around.

So I've had a few weeks to think about things and have decided I'll be doing some mods. I was torn about keeping it stock as stock examples in this condition are rare but given this will likely be a forever car I've decided to make some changes but I'm setting a rule that everything must be 100% reversible without a trace so no cutting, drilling etc. All parts that come off will be retained so it can be returned to current condition.

That said I won't be going down the route of forced induction this time around. This time I'll be doing just handling stuff, maybe a few very light performance things and some light cosmetic stuff. As this will also be a forever car I'm also splurging on parts and brands I always wanted but never got around to in the past.

To that end I have some parts enroute. I've ordered bronze 15x6.5 Rays TE37 Sonics, Fujitsubo header and RM-01A catback, Ohlins coilovers, Cusco front strut brace, DBA slotted discs, Hel lines and Hawk pads.

I've already got an old momo Corse steering wheel and a boss kit that's been hanging on the wall for years, only problem is it's yellow leather so I'm thinking of having it retrimmed and toying with going with black leather with tan stitching and having a shift and handbrake boots done to match.

Things I'm thinking of doing is changing out the headunit and CD player for a double DIN touchscreen purely so I can use Google maps if I need to along with handsfree. Dashcam because I've been using one for about 8 years now and am convinced it's a good idea. Voodoo shift knob and handbrake handle because the plastic items aren't that nice and I had Voodoo items on the last MX-5. Only other possible change is a light weight flywheel to free things up a little. Oh and a torsen. Oh and roll bar. I'd forgotten how small these were to drive combined with the increase in number of larger vehicles and the significant drop in driver ability amongst the population since my last one and that'll give at least a little peace of mind.

Long term I may also do a complete strip and respray though I won't be changing colour. The paint looks good but a lot of the car has already been resprayed (it actually bugs me a little that I can't work out why, no sign of accident damage/repair so I can only assume either a freshen up or it was perhaps keyed at some point) and while it's decent, I know it can be better, not that I'm after a show car.

Parts are finally rolling in, mostly lots of little bits but I'll get started on things soon. Few things still in transit. Coilovers in particular are still a little way off after the retailer misled me on the ETA, hopefully the distributor are more accurate and communicative.

Wheels arrived today which is more exciting than lots of seals, and switches and stuff.

Weighed one right away, 4.65kg for the bare wheel, 15x6.5 +36 which is a bit lighter than the OEM 14". I'll weight them again with tyres and the ones that come off for comparison.