Keito's 2009 NC2

keito · Postby **keito** » Tue Jun 07, 2016 9:19 pm

I've been putting this off for ages, with delusions about some giant big first post. But bugger it I'll start off small or I'll never start at all.

It's a 2009 NC2 in metropolitan grey. Bought from Penfold's Mazda in ~September 2015 it had 140,000km on the clock. Since buying the car I've put ~25,000km on it, most of which is commuting to work, but includes a lot of weekend trips up into the Vic High Country. Biggest trip to date was probably a 4,000km three week escapade darting up and down the Great Dividing Range between Melbourne and Sydney over the new years break.

The car is completely stock except for the Exedy heavy duty clutch that was put in about 10,000km ago. Oh and the Michelin Pilot Sport 3's which replaced the horrible run flats. I just about manage to do all the maintenance and repair work myself, which is handy because I'm an hour or two away from the nearest Mazda dealership. I have big plans for this car but I don't have the wallet to match, so for the foreseeable future it will remain stock. Well, except for the shocks. And the sway bars. And the exhaust. And the wheels. And the interior leather.

Jinba Ittai! (note: don't ever actually store your car in the stables. So much dust.)

94 clubman perth · Postby **94 clubman perth** » Tue Jun 07, 2016 10:46 pm

Hey keito, excellent advice re not storing the mx5 in the stables, my nc lives in the stables to and is always covered in hay and dust. One day when i work out how to post an image i might be able to prove it...

ManiacLachy · Postby **ManiacLachy** » Wed Jun 08, 2016 7:52 am

keito wrote:so for the foreseeable future it will remain stock. Well, except for the shocks. And the sway bars. And the exhaust. And the wheels. And the interior leather.

That's how it starts, and then, and then, and then :shock:

Welcome! The car looks great. If you haven't already, be sure to check out Reggie's NC for some inspiration, it's a very tidy number.

JBT · Postby **JBT** » Wed Jun 08, 2016 6:36 pm

ManiacLachy wrote:That's how it starts, and then, and then, and then

...and I know that from my experience as a youth, but it has started again at my current age. Makes me feel younger and makes the car feel so much more enjoyable to drive. :mrgreen:

keito · Postby **keito** » Wed Jun 08, 2016 7:24 pm

JBT wrote:
ManiacLachy wrote:That's how it starts, and then, and then, and then

...and I know that from my experience as a youth, but it has started again at my current age. Makes me feel younger and makes the car feel so much more enjoyable to drive.

eh. If I spend too much time commuting along straight highways I do get quite bored, and wish it had more grunt. As soon as I take it up a mountain the only thing that's holding back the car is the driver :lol:

Still though, if I'm going to be doing 50,000km a year, a few years from now an engine swap will look mighty tempting.

keito · Postby **keito** » Sun Jun 19, 2016 11:19 pm

Replaced the air filter on the weekend. It was a thirty second job, but it took me five minutes to figure out I was trying to put in in the wrong way round.

Was probably ready for a replacement.

Also how am I supposed to keep my car clean when my driveway looks like I've been attempting to reenact the Somme? The car is currently filthy and I have no motivation to clean it until this gets sorted. Hopefully that happens next weekend and I can go back to having a clean car.

Postby **Okibi** » Mon Jun 20, 2016 1:05 am

Welcome

keito · Postby **keito** » Sun Aug 07, 2016 9:20 pm

What a horrible week!

Last Thursday (so eleven days ago) I noticed the clutch was getting hard to engage. If I pumped the clutch it would get better, and on inspection of the brake/clutch fluid (a nice shade of aubergine) and the slave cylinder (tired and rusty) I decided it would be a good idea to just replace the lot. So a ordered master and slave cylinders, bought brake fluid and a suction pump, and set to work over the weekend. By late Sunday afternoon I could not for the life of me successfully bleed the lines, and in the process of removing the master cylinder I found that the bracket that held the clutch pedal in place was broken, and when I depressed the clutch it would flex slightly, reducing the travel of the bolt that pushed into the master cylinder.

Bollocks.

Luckily with the help of my dad everything went much more smoothly. We bleed the clutch manually in about twenty minutes, and dad mended the clutch bracket with a welder. After a general service the car is now back on the road and feels better than ever.

Unfortunately I was too preoccupied to take photos, but I will pull out the old slave and master cylinder and take a few snaps of the welded clutch bracket in situ.

In other news the weather has finally turned, and it's comfortable to drive with the top down in daylight hours. Should made the commute more enjoyable, and I'm already planning a few trips up into the hills.

Edit: the moral of the story is that the best tool in the shed is a pair of helping hands!