Emily's 04 VR SE

[emily_mx5]

Hi everyone,

Meet Ziggy (じぎ) my 1990 import V-Special Eunos Roadster. Immaculate with only 106K

I thought I might start up my own garage thread after finding a lot of useful info on other people's garages; so I may be able to help someone else. This is going to be more like a diary for me, be warned LOTS of pictures



The Story
I am 18 years old and this is my first car. After getting my P's I started looking, but after several months of viewing old Festiva's and Mirage's I was giving up hope. But then this amazing looking car came up in the search... Mazda mx5, never heard of it (lol).
Upon driving out to inspect it, I COMPLETELY fell in love with this little beauty.

Pros:
completely stock (apart from rims)
only 106K
amazing paint!
interior in perfect condition
brand new soft top
new radiator installed
A/C recently re-gassed
new oil filter
no leaks
new rear brake pads
roadworthy with 6 months rego

Cons:
no log book
no import documents
no manual
OEM exaust has rusted and the baffles are loose.
4 different, worn, crappy tyres
damage from attempted theft including big crack around boot key hole, smashed/bent glove box and twisted indicator assembly/steering column.

The cons totally outweigh the pros here, but the car drove perfectly and handled even better.
So I bought it the same day anyway and have never looked back!

Future Plans
timingbelt service
little interior/exterior mods
upgrade the currently pathetic interior lights
complete audio overhaul - sound/music is VERY important to me
new tyres
new exhaust - all help appreciated here!
style/roll bar - all help appreciated here!
maybe some sort of front lip - all help appreciated here!

x Emily

[Jeo]

Very nice. Welcome!

I've got a black V-Special myself. I'm sure you'll love your new toy.

[lee]

Looks like you've picked up something quite nice there

You have a lot of options with the exhaust, but what you like can be very much up to personal taste. Have a listen to other member's cars, or look on youtube to hear a couple of different systems.

With the roll bar, I'm of the belief that safety is more important that style, so I would try to avoid the twin hoop style bars. They wouldn't do very much if you happened to roll the car, and as such all they really do is add weight to the top of the car. The two more popular roll bars I've seen are the Brown Davis and the Single Hoop bar from MX5plus.

[Hjt]

Weird question I know but do you go to PLC at Pymble in Sydney?

Welcome BTW, car looks tops

[davidau]

Welcome to the forum and well done on the purchase Emily. I had a V-special and they are very special classic feeling car. Looking forwards seeing your car progress.

[PaulF]

Nice car Emily, and welcome to the forum.

With the roll bar, I'm of the belief that safety is more important that style, so I would try to avoid the twin hoop style bars. They wouldn't do very much if you happened to roll the car, and as such all they really do is add weight to the top of the car. The two more popular roll bars I've seen are the Brown Davis and the Single Hoop bar from MX5plus.

I would agree with this, but if you're looking for something with a bit more of a "style bar" look then you might also like to consider the twin hoop roll bar from MX-5 Plus.

[marty085]

Man love the interior!! I have a plain old black interior on my NA8.. yeah just on the roll bar thing, the mx5plus twin hoop is just as safe as the single hoop I thought..

[dalef92]

Welcome Emily!

Head for a brown davis or an mx5 plus bar as for style the twin hoop and the single will hold the same weight but i believe lee was talking about the twin hoop style bar like the one in my car!

[Guran]

Welcome! Looking forward to reading about how your car develops. But most of all, how you're getting out and enjoying driving it.

Sounds? It's worth keeping in mind that an NA6 is a noisy little bugger to start with. You've got induction noise, exhaust noise, wind noise, and 20 years worth of rattles. So trying to get a great sound system in an MX-5 is like pushing the proverbial uphill. I recommend an iPod with in-ear buds.

Tyres? I recommend a set of Bridgestone Adrenalin RE001s, which you should be able to pick up for around $115 each fitted & balanced. After having them fitted, set your tyre pressures at 29psi.

Then get yourself a proper four-wheel alignment. Don't waste your money at a run-of-the-mill tyre shop. Go to Spinning Wheel, Heasmans or Pedders, and ask for an aggressive street set-up. It should be something like this: front camber -0.75deg, front toe in 1mm, front caster 5deg or more, rear camber -1.0deg, rear toe in 1mm. Then drive it and feel the difference.

[emily_mx5]

aww thanks for all the positive words guys

But most of all, how you're getting out and enjoying driving it.

I'm really enjoying my 5, so much so that I drove to palm beach yesterday, for no reason except that it's a great drive on a really sunny day!

Tyres? I recommend a set of Bridgestone Adrenalin RE001s, which you should be able to pick up for around $115 each fitted & balanced. After having them fitted, set your tyre pressures at 29psi.

My tyre specs: 205/45/R16 a difficult size to shop for with my low budget

Also, I just bought a Style Bar! Its a JDM polished stainless steel twin hoop style. Won it off ebay. I know it doesn't offer any support/safety etc etc, but i'm not going to be racing or anything, and its all my budget will allow for now. The twin hoop bar from MX5 plus is my future upgrade plan.

I've had the car for a couple of months now, so there is a bit of a back log of mods i've done, i'll be posting a lot of stuff over the next few days

[Hjt]

Options from Tirerack.com on a low budget;

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Kumho&tireModel=Ecsta+AST&partnum=045HR6EASTXL&vehicleSearch=false&fromCompare1=yes
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Dunlop&tireModel=Direzza+DZ101&partnum=045WR6DZ101&vehicleSearch=false&fromCompare1=yes
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Yokohama&tireModel=S.drive&partnum=045WR6SXL&vehicleSearch=false&fromCompare1=yes

[yem11n]

Congrats with the buy.. and welcome.

Not sure if you have replaced the exhaust/muffler. I would recommend to choose a non sport muffler if possible. Especially if you plan on listening to music.

[emily_mx5]

I would recommend to choose a non sport muffler if possible. Especially if you plan on listening to music.

Hahaha, I would like a bit louder than the OEM exhaust, then the music louder

[luist]

hey emily, if you want to hear a system and exhaust come listen to jess's car. custom system with a custom made exhaust in it...WITHOUT losing the boot! cheers luis (pm me if you wanna check it out)

[emily_mx5]

Ok, first things first, wash and polish for the exterior, and vacuum and clean for the interior.
I was recommended this tinted polish, and it worked amazingly.

I also rubbed this into any plastic/vinyl I could see, somehow it makes everything look like new!
EVEN the weathered windscreen scuttle tray.



Off to the local mechanic to replace the timing belt, idler bearing seals and water pump.