spork

I've been kind of throwing around the idea of getting a used Miata (MX-5). When I say used, I mean USED (like with 100-150K miles on it). Like getting it mainly as a cheap way of getting around but yet having it still kinda fun (convertible, tossable).

Now looking around, you can get one for really cheap, but of course these are ones that have over 100K miles (in some cases 150K). So I'm wondering whether or not these things are just days away from visiting the junkyard or something. I'm pretty sure at best they're going to need work after a few thousand more miles, but I'm more curious about the cost.

If the engine blows, how much would it cost to replace (not replace with a brand new engine, just to make it run without trouble)? What else would I have to worry about? (Timing belt, wheels, brakes, clutch, transmission, etc?).

I don't want to wind up spending like 5000 bucks on fixing it up nearly immediately after... Anybody have any thoughts?

RotrDoc

Miatas are very reliable, durable creatures. They also have a vast following of enthusiasts who are even more passionate about maintenance, repair, and modification of this cult car than what you read on this forum. There are numerous Miata forums, and probably a Miata club near you with its own forum.

I think that the Mazda USA website will link to Miata clubs. If you need help, reply here or PM me and I can send some links to get you started.

--My Other Car is an MX-5 (2001 BRG SE)

missinmahseven

The miata forum (and miata.net, which is the parent, if you will) blow *this* place out of the water. They don't put up with trolls and "yo I'm f4s7 and fuR1ous y0, my POS can sm0k3 your car anytime!" over there. There's 15 years of knowledge in there. There's detailed, photo-illustrated articles on everything from adjusting the headlights to pulling the lid off the lump to do cam work and more.

As for the car, the one real "gotcha" is the clutch slave. Every 70,000 miles, like clockwork. Fortunately, it is a 60 dollar part and about 30 minutes of work including bleeding. (the car, not you..)

Timing belt is every 60,000, clutch should last forever if it hasn't been abused, brakes about 70,000 miles for the fronts (hard driving) and 2x that for the rear.

To check for a tranny on the way out, put it in 1st, go, then let go of the gas, then get back on it.. yeah, she'll porpoise---but she'll also "clunk" badly if the u-joints on the driveline are dying. Also, get up to about 30, put it in 3rd and coast. If you hear a rather loud-ish "gnashing" the pilot or throwoff bearings could be on their way out.

Stock shocks are worthless after 40,000 miles. I used AGX 8-ways on mine, and they were 100% better than the stockers both in feel and life expectancy.

Mmm what else.. the top's about 600 bucks including labor.. if the owner took care of it properly and *DIDN"T* use 'preservatives' or 'shine products' on it, it should be a-ok.

There's a lotta support for these cars. You can get just about any part. And tons of stuff the factory never even thought of.

miata.net will get you goin' on building a knowledgebase about hiroshima's awesome little buggy.

They are amazing little cars.

Addendum: They are *extremely* sensitive to wheel imbalance. .25 oz off will cause the dreaded '65 mph' shimmy. It'll be fine under and over, but not at the 'sweet spot.' The cure is a very talented wheelman, and a strut tower brace up front helps.

spork

yeah, more information/links would be nice.

i'm just trying to find out if a miata with 100-150K miles can last 5 or so years without needing major service (major = issues that will cost in the $1000+ price). obviously the amount of care will be a key factor but i'm just wondering in general if the car is decently maintained and driven normally, what people think.

i wouldn't be driving it hard; using it mostly as a commuter car.

missinmahseven

I've seen many 250,000 milers on the original engine without the lid coming off. Just timing belts and plugs and waterpumps. A club I was in for a while had 3 such cars, all of 'em the original 1.6s.

In a nutshell, they're bulletproof when maintained and driven right. Which means, foot in the floor all the time. They carbon up something *fierce*. Those threads in miata.net about lifter tic? Dirty oil. Why dirty oil? They ain't getting their foot to the floor. The car, like any fine machine, loves getting properly spanked. She gets very grumpy otherwise. Honest.

One day I'll get another '94. I don't care if it has 300,000 on the clock. If it's been taken care of right, she'll run like a champ.

Mazmart

iTrader: (12)

The MX5 is and has always been an excellent car. All the years are good. They are simple in their intent: To make you happy, similar to RX8s but a little different. Bone stock, they are great handlers.
Like any other used car that you may consider buying, check the history through Carfax or similar means. Have a Mazda dealer or specialty shop inspect it, looking for previous body damage or major mechanical problems that you might overlook. I always prefer good service records and I like to look under the oil cap for a silver to golden appearance of the valve train.
There are just a few years to be a little extra careful with: 90 through half of 91 had a crankshaft key and keyway that were not as idiot proof as those that came afterward. People would replace the t-belt and seals and install the key improperly causing play and then wear. This will cost you an engine. The other that comes to mind quickly is the 99 model year . There was a VIN range that had the potential for an improperly machined block that would cause excessive crankshaft endplay which would eventually cause metal debris to wipe out the motor.
My Miata motors start at $400 and could exceed $3000 on a Mazdaspeed Turbocharged unit. I hope this helps.
Paul.

VikingDJ

When shopping for an older Miata, look for one that has had the top replaced at some point in it's life, or is in excellent shape. Generally when dealing with an older/cheap Miata, you will find that the top is on it's way out and/or leaking.that could end up being the likely culprite of cost after you buy one of these for a very cheap price, if you overlook it. Otherwise, it's a great cheap used car with lots of miles left, even at 150k miles or more if it's been maintained properly. Good luck!!

spork

Thanks for the info guys.

Mazmart; is that 400 for a new engine or just a working one? And how much might labor be?

And what's the best way to determine the actual shape of the car. I mean you can't really tell from say just a test drive. And what would you expect to pay for one? I've been seeing around 3K at the cheapest, and up to like 8K?

missinmahseven

An NA miata should be well below 4 grand these days, I'd say. An NB *maybe* up to 8 or more, depending on how recent it is.

You can tell a lot from just a drive, if you know what to look for, and listen for. Car should feel tight, with no slop in steering or brakes or gearbox, with no obvious gnashings, etc.

A one-minute walkaround with a keen eye will show you paint issues..which may be hiding other things.

Things to look for in a healthy car:

1. Clean engine bay.. if you can't see the cam cover under the dust, that's a red flag..

2. Pop the oil filler cap. Should be golden-caramel in there.. if it's black, be wary.

3. Tailpipe should show a very healthy collection of black dry carbon. If the black carbon is wet/oily, that car has oil control issues.

4. A 100,000+ mile miata will have wear on the pedals. A lot of wear. Keep this in mind when looking at mileage.. easy to spot a rollback if you know where to look.

5. Ditto for the seats: Side bolsters tend to wear out by then.

6. Back window should be fairly clear.. if it's brown, plan on replacing quickly.

7. If car is cold, take off rad cap.. the coolant should be green, not brown. Brown == negelcted, rusty, crufty.. unhappy car.

Drive it. See my previous post re: gearbox noise. Shockwise, it should bounce *onnce* after a good bump.. any more, and they're shot. Firm but compliant ride.. kinda like an 8. If it wallows, the shocks are gone.

There's not much to go wrong, man. In the few posts here, I think you got all the info to go and look for a good miata.

I've heared some aftermarket guys are unhappy with the current miata crate motor, these folks say the original hiroshima-built engine is better done. Blown miata lumps are kinda rare, tho. Most involved boost... as usual.

The pre-95 1/2 cars respond very well to FI. Flyin' Miata has a good rep for their turbo kits.


The real question... Barndoors, or no barndoors? ;o)

opus_opus

I suggest go to miata.net, and they have a checklist their on what to look for in a used miata. I haven't seen a list more complete than this.

100k - 150k mileage Miata depend a lot on the care of owners. If properly taken cared of, you should still have years and 50k-100k more of life in them. To give you an idea how durable these engines are on the Miata, I have heard local club member drive the miata without engine oil (not sure how it happened, but it did). Nothing happened to the car. But, I am sure it is not much distance.

My advice...be patient and find a good well taken care of Miata.

Rotory_Addict

I hope this helps its the used Miata checklist from Miata.net: http://www.miata.net/faq/usedmx5.html

Mazmart

iTrader: (12)

We are the nation's original Mazda Salvage yard so sometimes I have like new products (We just sold an RX8 engine with 5 miles on it) and once in a blue moon we sell something with 0 miles but that's not the norm and believe you me, $400 is going to get you something closer to 130k . 99% of our stuff is thoroughly tested though so you can still expect some level of warranty on something like that.
Paul.

crossbow

94/95 1.8 ODB-I's + supercharger and proper tuning = everyone awestruck around your car constantly at its performance.

Those little buggers can get CRAZY fast...and handle on rails. The mx-5 is one of the greatest car's ever made!

spork

haha, i'm like so tempted now, but i'm just not sure since my rx-8 lease is up in august i need to figure out my car situation.

i was figuring that the mx-5 would be awesome to have as a daily driver to save myself some gas costs. but then if i had a mx-5, i'm not sure how often i'd drive my 8... and i'm not all that sure if i want 2 mazdas considering my luck with the local mazda dealership. but man, now that i've had the thought put in my head and all the positive feedback here, i'm incredibly tempted. i probably should wait though until my rx-8 lease is up (and when i figure out whether or not to buy my 8).

thanks a lot for all the info guys. lots of good things to know here.

(and crossbow; that was part of the appeal for me. for a cheap price, you get a convertible, a fun ride, a reliable car, and parts up the wazoo!)

Aratinga

Hey Spork...

Here's something just to tempt you a little more... one of three Miatae in our family. The Miatas plus my 8, b/f's GTO and Camaro, = too many cars. We may be needing to find a home for this baby soon.

spork

Oh god...

But it looks too nice for me. (ie that one looks like you can actually sell for a decent amount of money since it looks almost new!).

It's horrible. My lease is up in August and I'm debating whether to
1) Go for an Acura TL. (The car is awesome, it doesn't handle like the 8 whatsoever though and it's FWD)
2) Pay off the RX-8 and get a used Miata as a daily driver. But then I'll feel kinda dumb because I was thinking if I had two cars I'd want an automatic and a manual, not two manual cars. And I definitely don't want an automatic MX-5.

How much were you thinking of trying to sell it for?

tuj

Yeah I got both and NA and an RX-8 here too.

The NA's can range quite widely in price, and figure the hard-top is worth $1k also. I paid 8k for my 95M with hard-top and 60k miles in excellent condition. I've also seen a 94R for less than 4k locally.

The engines are great, and even if you break the timing belt, its a non-interference design, so no worries there. They tend to need new plug-wires quite frequently and new plugs, Mobil 1 + the OEM filter is the cure to HLA ticking, and you can get seafoam from NAPA to clean out carbon build-up.

The older engines will likely be nearing rebuilds at 150-200k but they will still have decent compression. Rings + a rebore will probably take most of these old blocks to good condition. Lots of sources for BP short-blocks, including some Ford and Kia applications.

They are great cars, although you will notice the chassis is not as stiff as the 8. They are also sensitive to tire balancing and tire pressures. And yes, rev the snot out of them for TEH WIN!

Cubicle Dweller

i've owned a 91 and a 99. My 05 rx8 was supposed to be an 06 "MX5", but I got too impatient. The 99 had a better top design (I ended up getting a permanent "bubble" top with windows down on my 91) and a glass backlight. Love both cars to death and took them both close to 150K. Onlymajor problem I had was when I over torqued a spark plug on my 99 (aluminum head). Trick with that is don't make that mistatke(the fix was a time cert as opposed to a heliocoil).

Forced induction is available for both series, Jackson Racing does a low boost Supercharger while Flyingmiata has a few turbo options (more choices for the NA than the NB).

Good luck

Aratinga

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