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Thanks for the comments guys  I forgot to add the height after it was lowered. All measurements taken from wheelarch to centre of wheel Original height (as seen on Pg1): Front = 350mm Rear = 360mm Current ride height: Front = 260mm Rear = 270mm So a 90mm drop front & rear. I could go more if I took the helper springs out but I think it'll do me for now. I also got my roll cage fitted at the beginning of August. It bolts in 8 places but I am going to rethink the mounts because I don't reckon they are man enough to be properly effective. I'd currently put it someway between a style bar and a proper roll bar. Assuming it's the petrol tank under the shelf area where the hood sits might make things a bit more tricky because I need to access this area in order to fit some nice spreader plates so that I can fit some more manly bolts. My guess is that I'll need to remove the tank if this is the case. This will probably also mean removing the prop, exhaust and possibly the diff?? Anyone have any experience on this matter? Have a pic of the rool bar:  As for costs....well, JoeTheFish, the previous owner of the MX5 had bought it himself and never got around to fitting it. I didn't know anything about this until he showed up at Area 52 with it as well as a Mazda wind deflector, a set of original 'daisy' alloys and a tonneau cover! He didn't want anything for them, just wanted them out of the way. RESULT! Costs so far: Car purchase price: £375 Raceland coilovers: £162 Garage Vary splitter: £142 Hard top: £130 Crystal headlights: £24 Welding: FREE Roll cage: FREE TOTAL SO FAR = £833 |
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This thread is awesome, thank you for sharing.
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MM,
Not sure on the Mk1, but you can get to the tank in the Mk2 through the boot, take all the trim out and there's a metal panel at the back, there should be enough room in there to get a spreader plate above the tank, but you're right - you'd probably have to take the tank out. Very much doubt you'd need to remove anything underneath though, as it's at boot level. That is, if it's the same as the Mk2 I had!
Looks awesome, what a bargain!
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richk
Part of things
Posts: 43
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These are absolutely great cars and completely undeserving of the hairdressers car tag. Mine is one of the finest drunken ebay purchases I have ever made and never regretted.
I'm enjoying watching the evolution of this car so far, the story that goes with it and the excellent photography.
I'm seriously envious of Ian's metal work skills! Although thankfully mine doesnt need any welding.
Out of interest where did you buy crystal headlights and have they made a big difference? It's something I'm going to be looking at getting after blowing two sealed beams in the last week.
I also wish that I could find a hard top for that kind of money aswell, they seem to fetch half as much as I paid for the full car on ebay.
Looking forward to the next installment.
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1340cc 1989 mini
1098cc 1977 mini clubman in antique gold
1991 Eunos Roadster
1997 VW Polo 16v
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Not sure on the Mk1, but you can get to the tank in the Mk2 through the boot, take all the trim out and there's a metal panel at the back Thanks Dude, but I've already checked there. It's a solid bulkhead!  When I get chance I'm going to remove the roll bar and take the carpet out on the shelf area below it to see if there is anything I can add in there to make some strength up for a mounting point? Out of interest where did you buy crystal headlights and have they made a big difference? It's something I'm going to be looking at getting after blowing two sealed beams in the last week. I got them from eBay advertised as Mini headlamps (basically any of the crystal 7" round lamps will fit except for Golf ones as far as I am aware. I just searched for Crystal Headlights and made my search for cheapest inc. P&P. I went for the cheapest with good feedback. They are actually awesome lights! Although the reflector/fear of the unit is plastic (as to be expected) the lens itself is actually glass! They came with sidelight bulbs already fitted and were dead simple to fit. The light output is a different league to the standard units. SO much brighter and sharper. I know it sounds cheesy but the difference is literally night & day. The best lighting upgrade I've ever done for the money. I would highly recommend them. Looking forward to the next installment. Coming any minute........ |
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Have some pics - none taken by me for a change. Progress had been slow on the MX5 due to spending most of my time & effort on a certain little vehicle called 'Project X' (build thread pending I PROMISE!!!) The next bit of news about the car was getting it to the Gathering (along with 'X' and a few more of my motors!) Dan: aka VIP kindly drove the Dirtbag to the Gathering for me where I was planning to use it for my first ever go on track. An awesome weekend! Here is a shot of it on the camp field showing the newly fitted roll cage  Some shots of the car on the track Lining up in my group  On the start line  Off we go......     Kicking up some dirt  Aprroaching the top corner     ...and out the other side  I'm a complete amateur and total rubbish at it, but it was my first ever go on a track and what a laugh! Certainly want to be doing it again sometime. Many thanks to those who took the photos. It's nice to have a record of my first go on track |
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stealthstylz
Club Retro Rides Member
Posts: 14,960
Club RR Member Number: 174
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Looks great, wouldn't mind a quick blast in it next time i'm down if possible.
Matt
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Looks great, wouldn't mind a quick blast in it next time i'm down if possible. Not a problem Matt, I think it's going to be out a fair bit on 'test drives' over the weekend while the few on Retro Rides that haven't driven it yet play catch-up LOL. |
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nugget
Part of things
Posts: 840
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Man this car is CLAAS!  ;D looking well, strangely fits in too well with the grass |
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Man this car is CLAAS! LOL - you crack me up Niall.  Since fitting the 'crystal' headlamps the difference at night has been amazing! The light output is so much better than the original units. On dipped beam it's fantastic but on full beam it's around eleven billionty* times better than before (* this is a scientifically calculated figure, not some random guesstimate) While having a tidy up in the garage dumping den the other day I stumbled across some H4 bulbs I removed from a set of lights a few years ago knowing one day they would come in handy. Most of my cars since then have been using H1, H3 bulbs etc....The MX5 is the perfect place for these things. PIAA Plasma ION 2,500K bulbs. They were in a set of off-road spotlights I bought ages ago off eBay and they were superb until one of the lenses got smashed and I binned the lights but kept the bulbs. The light output of these things are superb. Don't ask me how, but they really cut through the darkness and illuminate way better than standard H4 bulbs....even the 'super bright' ones. They are only the normal 60/55W output but make a HUUUGE difference to night time driving. I looked into them when I first removed them from the spot lights and they aren't cheap! Back then they were about £35 EACH!! I think you can get them from abroad (Japan, Hong Kong, USA) for about £45>£50 a pair now. Still not something I'd want to replace often but will probably buy another set when these ones go because of how damn good they are. The best bit...I already had them and they were free, so another 'better than cheap' upgrade for the car. Since fitting them the light output is way better again. There is a yellow tint which seems odd at first but is actually quite nice to drive to when you get acclimatised to it but it's the way it illuminates every detail that I like. I really ought to dig out the old lenses and do a side by side comparison (I just hope now that I didn't throw them away??) Anyway, have some pics....taken in daylight but gives you some idea of the yellow tint. Lights off they give a lovely tint to the reflector, but from other angles they look totally normal  Dipped beam - you can see the yellow tint now.  I had to sit a bit lower to get the full beam shot because they were so damn bright it was hurting my eyes!  Suffice to say I LOVE them! Not only because of the cost but also the way they improve the night time driving. Hurtling down country lanes, I am a lot more condident now. I also forgot to mention my wooden steering wheel. I bought it off a guy on the MX5 forum for £15. I fitted this a while back but forgot to add it to the list of costs. It's a lovely thing to hold and makes the driving even more enjoyable than the standard Momo one that was already fitted. I know it doesn't really match anything at the moment but once I get started on the 'big change' to the car it should fit in better. How could I refuse for £15 though??  I also sold the original Momo to Butterz for £35 on its own (the price they fetch on the forums) - keeping the horn push for my wooden wheel and the boss to sell on (Butterz is fitting the Momo to his Polo so doesn't need the boss ) Costs so far: Bought:Car purchase price: £375 Raceland coilovers: £162 Garage Vary splitter: £142 Hard top: £130 Crystal headlights: £24 Wooden steering wheel: £15 Welding: FREE Roll cage: FREE PIAA Ion bulbs: FREE Spent = £848 Sold:Momo steering wheel: £35 Made = £35TOTAL BUDGET: £813 |
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I also forgot to show my Area 52 stickers which I didn't fit until about a fortnight after getting the car. Despite most of the Area 52 guys having them on their cars, I am probably the worst at not having them on mine....even though A52 is my place and I make the stickers!!   |
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How about using the tops of the seatbelt mounts for the rollbar mounts? They might be a bit out of the way, but that's where the hard top mounts to, so I'd expect them to be pretty solid?
I'm going to have to nip down to A52 one of these days, I want a sticker!
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The roll bar mounts to the seatbelt towers (you can see the big M12 bolt in the right of the picture above) but I want to secure it better on the rear tube that runs across the back under the two angled brace bars. Here is a pic I pulled off the net of my roll bar:  The two brackets that come out of the sides are mounted to the seatbelt towers with M12 bolts. There are two brackets below these that drop down below the 'shelf'/behind the seats and bolt to the rear bulkhead just to the side of the seatbelt towers with M6 bolts (hopefully this makes sense??) The bar that runs across the bottom of the hoops has two brackets that fit to the shelf with M6 bolts and the rear bar has a bracket behind each brace (M6 again) It's all six of the M6 brackets that I want to beef up to M10 with spreader plates. It's just getting behind everything that is the problem. In fact, it's finding the time to take things apart to get to everything is the biggest problem. One day maybe? For now, I'm not planning any track activities, so there is no urgency and it can just stay how it is. |
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Great to see the evolution of this car! Loved seeing it at the Gathering, so much stance and attitude!
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I'm loving the direction you are taking with the little 5, awesome little machine!
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Ever since driving this for all of 3 minutes the urge to own one of these has grown by the day, I don't think I've ever wanted to own a car so much ever.
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Ever since driving this for all of 3 minutes the urge to own one of these has grown by the day, I don't think I've ever wanted to own a car so much ever. If you don't need load carrying ability or can run more than one car then you should get one. They're not practical but they are a hell of a lot of fun! |
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1962 Datsun Bluebird Estate - 1971 Datsun 510 SSS - 1976 Datsun 710 SSS - 1981 Dodge van - 1985 Nissan Cherry Europe GTi - 1988 Nissan Prairie - 1990 Hyundai Pony Pickup - 1992 Mazda MX5
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This is a brilliant thread. Love this car - it looks ace.
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I've driven this a few times now, at different stages of it's evolution and each time I never wanted to get out, just such a joy to drive. I will have one... one day... and I can see it follwing a similar path to the dirtbag. Such a cool car! |
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Faster. Faster. Until the thrill of speed overcomes the fear of death.
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