Rate this car

[Accy cyclist]

https://www.britanniacarsales.co.uk/used-cars/mazda-mx-5-1-8-sport-2dr-oswaldtwistle-202110198653467

The first sign of a bit of cold and that effing #@~!! of mine didn't start today! Yes, i know it might be the battery, it might be the starting system blah blah blah, but i've had enough of effing poor starter diesel!!!!! I've only ever had 2 diesels and both were(are) crap at firing up in cold/damp weather. I've seen the above. I love the colour!!! Is it worth it?🤔

 

[Gillstay]

I have had French diesel cars for the last twenty years and never had a problem starting them. Have you been replacing glow plugs?
They are only about £40 notes. Lot cheaper than buying an unknown car or do you just fancy a change.

 

[LWeleven]

To old and expensive for that age , I looked at a 08 plate for that price , last year .
look at Mercedes kompressor 2 door great value silky smooth drive

 

[biggs682]

Looks nice enough for a hair dressers car

 

[Mark Grant]

Another thing to remember is to turn on the ignition and let the glowplugs warm up (light should go out) before starting.
MX5s have a good following and spares are easy.

 

[vickster]

Looks practical for a Lancashire winter

 

[Drago]

I have had French diesel cars for the last twenty years and never had a problem starting them. Have you been replacing glow plugs?
They are only about £40 notes. Lot cheaper than buying an unknown car or do you just fancy a change.

Silly old Accy went and bought one with a Toyota diesel motor! Told him he should have got a nice reliable Renfault, but he wouldn't listen.

Accy, the MX5 looks pretty, and mechanically theyre fairly robust and inexpensive to service and repair, but they rust faster than Lord Lucan runs for the ferry. If you do go for one then for the love of Lemmy (Gods from other denominations are available) make triple sure the underside isn't lacier than Madonna's knickers.

The price of that particular one looks a bit spoiy for my blood, and the low mikeage is only really a benefit if there is a full service history to go with it.

And you realise its band K toad tax, £340, the same as my 2 1/4 tonne XC90?

All in all it looks like a very expensive cheap runaround with little to recommend it.

Personally I reckon you should man up and get a proper car, show the chicks you're a man to be reckoned with. Disco 3, mk1 XC90, Shogun, M class Merc, something that looks like a 4 wheeled bicep. Hang the cost, youll be knee deep in suffragette's by midnight.

 

[Accy cyclist]

Have you been replacing glow plugs?

It might be the glow plugs, but it might not! This is the uncertainty of having a diesel engine. I mentioned this last winter when the thing was playing up again at the first sight of cold weather! I also thought about buying one of these.
https://www.halfords.com/motoring/b...jpYQ-hnEAHM3_x3A9wp1jUztG9z1_EyxoCxz0QAvD_BwE

Yes, it might be something that one of these can't fettle, but once bought it'll come in useful for any future cars that won't start.

 

[HMS_Dave]

Check for rot underneath on the sills and chassis. The Mk1's were terrible for rot. Not sure if they improved the situation on the facelift models...

 

[fossyant]

Rust on MX5's is an issue. Make good drift cars though if you fancy it.

 

[Accy cyclist]

To old and expensive for that age , I looked at a 08 plate for that price , last year .
look at Mercedes kompressor 2 door great value silky smooth drive

I know for a fact the seller won't come down in price! He might extend the 'warranty' to 6 months, but that's about it! I had a sit down in one of those Mercs you mention last week. Very nice, but hard to get in and out of and it was 12 grand for a 14 plate. That's a lot to spend for someone who does less that 3000 a year!

 

[Accy cyclist]

Looks practical for a Lancashire winter

Yeah, but at least it might fire up unlike yon #@#!!

 

[Drago]

The seller might want to read what the Consumer Rights Act has to say about 6 months...

 

[theclaud]

0/10

 

[bonzobanana]

Mazda MX-5s are probably the most reliable sports car ever but as previously pointed out they can rust badly. It's not really an everyday car, limited room and storage and while great handling not amazingly fast. Soft top limits where you can park it and is easily ruined. More of a weekend fun car.

If you are looking for accurate reliability data for s/hand cars the reliability index is still available on the internet archive wayback machine. This used insurance claims to gauge frequency of repairs and repair costs so no bias at all. However for whatever reason the company pulled it earlier this year so a good resource for reliability data that couldn't really be manipulated is no longer updated. It's only useful for s/hand purchases because their warranties wouldn't kick in until after the manufacturer's warranty. Obviously if you are buying a new car with 3 years or more warranty and plan to sell at the end of the warranty its not really a big deal for you anyway its the next owner's problems.

https://web.archive.org/web/20210122212745/https://www.reliabilityindex.com/reliability/search/151

https://web.archive.org/web/20210305152224/https://www.reliabilityindex.com/manufacturer