Finding provenance on my MX5?

[llmoose]

My recently purchased MX5 unfortunately did not come with log books at all. The previous owner and their mechanic have confirmed this and I am 99.9% certain that the information I've been given is legitimate. The lady owner I purchased the car from bought it from Brighton Mazda in 1999 and has owned it since, servicing it at her local mechanic every "couple of years or so" due to the fact she barely travelled 5,000km a year in it.

I've carried out a revs check and that came back with nothing. I was wondering if there is anyway to chase up an ownership history of the car or if Mazda would be able to provide anything about the car being sold new?

I figure Brighton Mazda who sold it in 1999 would not have the records of the car from back then...

The car is a 1990 NA6 with 153,000km on the clock.

[bruce]

It's not a valuable antique. You want to know/confirm its history. Can be hard to do though. Hardly any benefit though as it's just a mass produced car.

[llmoose]

It's not a valuable antique. You want to know/confirm its history. Can be hard to do though. Hardly any benefit though as it's just a mass produced car.

What does the value or it's age have to do with anything? The provenance on the vehicle will affect the value of the vehicle. The benefit is purely subjective and in this case I believe your opinion wrong.

[bruce]

$1200 purchase price and you want provenance…

[project.r.racing]

The provenance on the vehicle will affect the value of the vehicle.

I think you are mistaking your MX5 for a 50 year old non mass produced car with some form of special history.

Sure if it turns out that Peter Brock owned the car previously or it was Sam Neils weekend basher, it might be worth a little more. But end the end. It is only a MX5 priced under $4K. And doubtful you'll find any excitment in the previous owner history.

[llmoose]

Wow Bruce, you really are a lovely fellow aren't you!

Maybe try posting something helpful, insightful or possibly intelligent in the topic.

In reply to the other post. There is certainly a difference between "IT HAS 153k GENUINE MILEAGE" and "Here is the documentation to help show the low mileage and two owners that the vehicle has had previously"

but maybe I'm mad and have the motor trade all wrong

[JayMo]

I assume your car came to you discounted because of the missing book? (the plus), it will be similarly discounted at the other end, (the minus)... net/net.

I found myself in the same position... a new aftermarket log book begins halfway through its history... I got the car before the 100k service so I got a compression done and base-lined the engine. All fluids, all consumables (eg spark plugs, filters, everything that could not be measured apart from the clutch got done in one hit, all good, all new lubes; motors, gear boxes, diffs, new brake linings)... every tick in the service book got done... I did that for me though, not the next guy/gal... (refer to Regies tag line in his sig!)

If it is good enough for me (my car), it can be good enough for everyone else - or not (cant control that, I used the leverage when I bought it, cant complain now...), I keep every receipt after the baseline, and have it maintained at a mechanics that specialises in two things small Japanese/Race Suzuki's (small hipo jap) and MG roadsters (um roadsters), they get the vibe. If i ever have to sell it will be a Saturday morning test drive to the mechanics... give them the vibe... impress prospectives amongst 60 years of roadsters (not that it should... but you work with what you got) get them to work shop and they can talk to the horse when the horse rolls out from an immaculate MG TC...

If the Mazda network serviced it you may be able to trace it via the VIN (I found out mine was a Qld car to start with) but it fell off the network...numberplates change,went interstate, new plate... I am comfortable with what the second owner told me after the baseline.

beyond that don't worry about it, you can't.... enjoy the car provenance be dammned!

[JBT]

If an NA6 has been serviced by the Mazda dealers, and survived thus far, that will be testimony to the car's inherent strength and not necessarily the quality of service.

I think anyone who buys that car further down the track will most likely be an enthusiast who will be able to tell fairly quickly whether the car has been properly looked after in all respects. A log book or dealer service record will be of little, if any, value.

[Mr Morlock]

It was pretty common at one stage that cars which have been wholesaled often do not have any service records and often not even a owners manual. Mazda and dealers will not normally give out any personal details.

[hks_kansei]

. Mazda and dealers will not normally give out any personal details.

Correct.

While Brighton Mazda may likely have details on file regarding when the car was serviced with them, there will be no way to get details of the many non-mazda services.

I know Ford keepa rough database which lists the basics of date it was serviced, and any warranty items replaced, Mazda dealers likely have the same details on file.
BUT, they probably won't provide it to you (try anyway though)



Either way, you won't be able to get a replacement manual with the stamps in it (not unless you buy a secondhand book from another car), at best they may give you a printout that shows it has been serviced at some stage.
Most people looking at a 20+ year old car won't really care about having a dealership printout though.

Personally, the only way I would care for a history on a 20 year old car would be if it had EVERY part of the history there, as in original reciepts, logbook, receipt of purchase, warranty books, etc.
To me unless the history is 100% it's not worth anything (since it's also so easy to fake)

[oztrackdays]

NA and NB production run 750,000+ almost identical cars.

Engine and Box < $1000 for almost all NA/NB
Rolling Chassis with no damage < $1000 most of the time.

As a normal boring running registered Car $4k - $12k

< 0.1% of MX5 owners would want a matching numbers car over a well maintained one.

I think the relative worthlessness is the major charm and attraction and why so
many are regularly thrown against concrete walls of racetracks.

[Rob]

I've enjoyed Classic and Sports Car magazine for years, and they get carried away with 'provenance', but that's on expensive vehicles with a meaningful history.

I think the OP is wanting something fairly basic, but using a term for it (provenance) that, generally speaking, tends to mean something far more reaching than what he's actually after.

But if you've already been told, firsthand, by the previous owner that there's going to be no records for a huge chunk of its like then... there's going to be no records for a huge chunk of its life.

[PhilM]

I am amazed to read about owners getting excited about a HQ Holden etc with matching numbers as if it makes it a better car. It might have had a "Friday" engine to start with .

I got a surprise when I rolled the back the carpet on the parcel tray (to fit a Brown Davis) of my Eunos to find roll cage cut outs. I was impressed that it probably already had had a good MX5 life in Japan .

Not knowing its history has not stopped it being a much loved car !

[hks_kansei]

I am amazed to read about owners getting excited about a HQ Holden etc with matching numbers as if it makes it a better car. It might have had a "Friday" engine to start with .

True.

But in those cases a matching numbers car of that age probably didn't have a Friday engine. (since if the engine was a dud it's pretty unlikely it's been in there for the past 30 yeasr running happily)


In the HQ case it's very much a matter of scarcity, there were so many of them gutted and with V8s stuck in them that to find one with the original engine is a novelty now.
Even more so if it was a V8 from the factory, and not a swapped one.