1990 Mazda Miata MX5 - service

You can remove it from the drivers footwell with a bit of discomfort, it could just be one of the short hoses in the footwell to.

You can get aftermarket ones for around £100 on ebay.

If you take the drivers seat out it's not too bad to lay down with your head on a cusion in the footwell

That’s such a burgerr.

Years ago I had a 2002 Golf GTi company car.

It was hit and run also by something tall, like a Transit, and by the level of damage, like yours, there is no doubt they knew it happened.

I hope you can get it all sorted in a way that works for you.

Ask them to contribute to the repair then. Usually happy to avoid involving insurance.

THEIR insurance to put YOU right. remember that.

Is it worth 1400 as it stands to you ? If so I'd take the 2100 and keep going - better the devil and all that.
Or what can you buy for 3500 you'd rather have ? Big non cat 6 diesels are taking a bit hit at the moment so might be a bargain ?
Tough choice but I'd start at where you want to be and work backwards if that makes any sense.
James

I do like this thinking.


But as you say MiataMark it is the wifes car.


Hope it works for you, whichever route you choose.

Disco disaster...

Having taken the money and decided to repair the Disco I sourced a panel (whole rear quarter), rear bumper and door mirror from Tim Fry in Cheltenham (Land Rover heaven in terms of salvage). I set out on Friday to collect, on the way back, oil light on, stopped won't restart tries to turn over. 2 hour wait for AA when they arrive will turn over and try to start but after a while stops. Recovered home, rigid bar tow behind AA Transit. Yesterday morning check oil, OK even over-full, will start and run for a bit then stop, take serpentine belt of (in the past I've had a Discovery that wouldn't start because of a seized alternator), starts but after a while stops and won't start. Something internal to engine is seizing up, given the age of the car and mileage it's really not worth trying to repair so the sad decision has been to write it off after 15 years of (mainly) faithful service. I'll get peanuts for it especially having spent £400 on parts on Friday. Will probably replace with an BMW X1 or a Panda 4x4.

Anyway I have actually made some progress with the MX5.

Sidelights.

The sidelight have always been a bit of a botch job with teh sidelight glued in and a miss-match between the sides when I quickly need to get an MOT,





I've been wanting to get some clear indicators from MX5 parts but they've been out of stock for a long time but finally they were in stock. I did think about the combined intake and TSI aftermarket ones but it doesn't really fit the new resto look.



The issue is that these are really US spec with the indicators being twin filament and needing to splice in the sidelights, comparing the wiring,



I decided to use the indicator bulb holder from the original lights and wire in the new sidelights.



The horrendous soldering is nicely hidden under the heat shrink. Then it should just be a case of installing them right? errr no they didn't fit, there is an moulding on the side that is bigger in the new lights that needed cutting down (compare the old vs new below).



But after some junior hacksaw action, and tracing down a bad connection in one of the old bulb holders happy car (and owner).




Heater leak...

I haven't been using the MX5 because of the heater leaking and losing water, but needing to press it into service as a spare car I needed to do something. The plan being to bypass the heater to (a) prove it is the heater and (b) if that is the case get it mobile.



Handily the heater hoses are easy to get at, the first thing I did was to take the hoses off (after a fight with them) and use some copper pipe and the original clips, which looked fine but leaked, not surprising as it wasn't a tight fit.



I then found some plastic pipe that was a much tighter fit.



Which was fine until the water heated up....



So a hunt around the garage turned up some copper pipe connectors and some jubilee clips,



No pictures of them fitted but it would be a picture of the hoses joined face to face with a couple of jubilee clips.

Which work well and a couple of test drives have been OK. So I can use the MX5 for a while, while the wife uses the BMW and we sort out getting rid of the Disco (I need to take a personal plate of it) and buy something else. Then when the MX5 is free to work on the list is,

• MOT runs out end of March
• Replace heater matrix
• While centre console etc is out replace gear lever bushes etc
• replace tombstone and heater panel with better examples and fit a radio
  
• Replace door mirrors
• put the 'Miata' badge back on
• Needs a clean to show off the paintwork
  
• Use it...

MOT Fail

• The seat isn't insecure it just moves a bit, I've got a replacement seat runner,
• The passenger door can be opened but it's a bit temperamental (needs lubricating and leaving it unlocked)
• Ball joint covers have been an advisory for the last 2 years, I've bought replacements
• Handbrake hopefully just needs a bit of adjustment.