The Garage is no longer empty

Need help from a fellow owner, something to air - discuss away!

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greenwoo
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The Garage is no longer empty

Postby greenwoo » Sat May 21, 2022 8:53 pm

well strictly speaking it was never empty - it just provided temporary 'housing' for stuff that should have been put in the other garage!

So one job in the coming week will be to remove various tools/tins of paint etc to make way for this.....

IMG_1528.JPG


Yeps, i've gone down the mx5 route. First impressions....well its going to feel slow against a 'kit', but the steering seems sharp and the driving position feels 'right'. In that last respect as close i would imagine as one would get to the feel of a kit - snug cockpit, but obvs roomier than the Tiger; All controls within reach and a kind of coccoon feel.

Not so good ( so far ). The wing mirrors being on the doors means a head movement to check the left one - which feels unnatural in a 'proper car'.
There's a rest for the left foot - which i havent got used to yet, which means the pedals are slightly offset to the right.
And a minor annoyance, the boot is key to open or toggle from inside the car - not user friendly.

Upside; hard top will mean less worry about 'hood maintenance'....surprising that there's not much buffeting with the roof/windows down at mway speeds.

What is it? Bloody hell, the model lineup could be a specialist subject on mastermind. 'King hell there's more special editions than roast ducks in ChinaTown. I wanted either a BBR ( or similar) modded car, either NA or poss turbo. I missed a turbo locally as the asking price seemed bonkers.....then found a BBR '200' ( ie/ 200 bhp) privately for sale in the Midlands and a '200' from a trader in essex.

Both were either weirdos or chancers; the trader didnt have any paperwork pertaining to the conversion - 'but our garage has checked and said that its an aftermarke manifold, so up to you mate...'
the private one - via FBook, the seller was useless at replying to messages, ie/ he took ages.

Someone pointed me to this one after i stuck a wanted Ad on a FB page.
It isnt a 200 but a 185, only thing it would need is cams and a remap - probs £1000/1200 from BBR.
It was owned by a club enthusiast who bought it when he was 76/77, and after looking after it to within an inch of its life for 6 yrs - his 'ended'.
Conversed with a pal of his from their Club, put in an offer - agreed to buy it based on the pics and picked it up yesterday.

No, it won't be as fast as a kit - even with the next level of tune.....but i figured i needed a car pronto for the French Trip - and at the price i paid, worst ways i'll get my money back/come out ahead. And if i really like it - then will think about whether the next tune level is worth the dosh. This is an SE model, so quite 'base', and that will be the only thing poss holding me back from slurging cash on big upgrades as its missing thinsg like leather/heated seats etc.
But 1st upgrade i think is a def - assuming i can get it done in time - and that will be a better audio system

Mrs likes the look ( she hadnt seen it - i just told her i was going out for the day to buy/pick up a car)...i like the driving of it, so could be a winner winner chicken dinner.

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locost220
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Re: The Garage is no longer empty

Postby locost220 » Sun May 22, 2022 11:04 am

Must say looks very nice Mark.
Locost book chassis, Undergoing testing post rebuild :D :?
Robin Hood 2B, keeping me sane
Sylva Leader, stuck to the trailer

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DJ.
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Re: The Garage is no longer empty

Postby DJ. » Sun May 22, 2022 4:30 pm

Looks great :D
Remember lower spec almost always means lower weight!

Going from 185 to 200 bhp is going to mean hotter cams, so the torque peak is at higher rpm and unless you rev the nuts off it regularly it actually might be slower most of the time. With double the weight, torque is much more important than power for overtaking.

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Re: The Garage is no longer empty

Postby bigstuff » Sun May 22, 2022 6:46 pm

Ooooooohhhhh, yes wise words Duncan 8-)
One is one too many and one too many is never enough.

greenwoo
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Re: The Garage is no longer empty

Postby greenwoo » Sun May 22, 2022 7:54 pm

true Duncan, but i'll have to check, but actually i think (from memory) that the torque after the cam change is actually a similar spread - but yes, defo worth checking!

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ChrisL
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Re: The Garage is no longer empty

Postby ChrisL » Tue May 24, 2022 1:00 pm

Welcome to the MX5OC!! No its won't be as fast but having done the alpine roads in an MX5 it'll still be fun. For more power what about a super charger? - I'll grab my coat!!! :lol: :lol: :lol:
Yes I've been drinking, what of it!!

greenwoo
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Re: The Garage is no longer empty

Postby greenwoo » Tue May 24, 2022 9:13 pm

haha, well i did look at the price of those, plus turbos....and the rockateer conversion. I doubt that i'd mod this one that heavily, but if i like it ---- maybe a different one along the line ;)

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Richard
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Re: The Garage is no longer empty

Postby Richard » Fri May 27, 2022 6:50 pm

My Wife swapped an MG TF for an MX5 Mk3 with retractable hard top and it was a brilliant car. Cannot fault them at all. Just simply fun and nothing will go wrong with it either.
Richard.
Dax Rush 5.0l TVR V8, EFI with Megasquirt ECU and wasted spark, Racelogic Traction Control, Quaife LSD. Now with big brother 1973 TR6 being totally body-off restored.

greenwoo
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Re: The Garage is no longer empty

Postby greenwoo » Fri May 27, 2022 9:29 pm

thx Richard - yep, 1st impressions are good. going for a drive tomm for the first time - although a 'supervised' outing as Mrs will be the speed regulator.

Liking the retractable hard top - makes more sense ( so far) than a ragtop

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Re: The Garage is no longer empty

Postby Hammy » Thu Jun 09, 2022 3:21 pm

Welcome to world of MX5's mate!!! Ive owned them for years, trust me on one mod (particularly for the Mk3) Get a set of MeisterR CRD's or MeisterR Sportives, you will not regret it Mark!!


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