So, the mid life crisis has hit me (according to my wife) and i have purchased a 2005 MX5 Sport

It needs the wheel arches tidying up, thankfully it still seems pretty solid underneath (O/S chassis leg needs replacing)  with just some surface rust present at the moment, although once i start digging i am sure it will be worse than it looks. More to come as i crack on with it. So far the only thing i have done is make a heat shield for the air filter.

Audio needs sorting as well due to intermittent front speakers and the standard in dash 6 cd changer being a bit too out of date - so something with USB connectivity for my mp3 collection will be getting fitted.

Wheels need a refurb (£55 each for stripping and powder coating locally) 

Nice - another one joins the Briskoda MX5 / Skoda sub-owners club!

 

Mines the Mk1 below:

 

 

Nice, I did look at mk1's, way out of my price bracket now though. Got this one for a decent price I reckon, 04 plate, full history and minimal rust  arches need sanding back and some rust killer on them, should last a while before requiring replacement, same as the RH sill, surface issues. Chassis rails need doing (as do most of them, lol), gives me an excuse to dust off my welder 

Very nice from another owner

I was right about the rust being worse than it looked - previously bodged  with a panel "welded" over the rot -

Before shot and the result of prodding it, maybe a bit too hard. Dread to think what the other side that has been "repaired" will be like - and i have the chassis legs to do yet as well. Good job i enjoy this stuff.

Edited 13 October, 20214 yr by octyal

At least i managed to get a new arch from Facebook for £20 brand new  

Yep - that's pretty typical as they tend to rust from the inside out and can be prone to being worse due to blocked sill drain holes - so you start with what looks like a small issue on the outside and once you start digging it just grows and grows (been there done that although I managed to stop at the swage line that the Mk1 has!).  Looks like you're making a decent job o the repair though!

57 minutes ago, skomaz said:

Yep - that's pretty typical as they tend to rust from the inside out and can be prone to being worse due to blocked sill drain holes - so you start with what looks like a small issue on the outside and once you start digging it just grows and grows (been there done that although I managed to stop at the swage line that the Mk1 has!).  Looks like you're making a decent job o the repair though!

Cheers. It had been badly bodged, no idea how long ago though. The drain holes on this side were non existent, hence the excess of rot inside, only way to do it is to cut back slowly and then rebuild. Have ordered some buzzweld stuff this morning that should be delivered tomorrow so that i can get something on it before the weather shifts to wet after the weekend and give it some basic protection until i can get the outer panel on and sealed properly. Planning to keep this one for a fair few years yet, so want to make sure it lasts.

Bit of CAD work done (Cardboard Aided Design   ) and some new repair panels fabricated. Rust killer and zinc primer applied and my Buzzweld delivery arrived as well. Time to crack on with welding some new metal back in.

Top work. 

Productive weekend - arch all finished after some careful trimming and plate making  

Coated with buzzweld rust encapsulator and a quick outer coat of zinc rich primer to keep the worst of the weather off for now. Fingers crossed for some more dry weather to get some filler work done.

More progress made. Skim of filler, plenty of flatting and a coat of high build primer/filler. Still a few areas that need some flatting and a smidge of filler as they only show up once the primer is on and flatted. Picked up the top coat from a local autopaints specialist yesterday, hopefully get the top coat and lacquer on this weekend as the forecast is looking dry and mild.

Managed to get the top coat and lacquer applied over the weekend, and one wheel painted up as well 

Have now got back into it with the weather being more favourable to work in  so have started on the crusty chassis rails. Wings removed for extra space and also so i can treat the rust trap where they meet the front of the sill, thankfully it looks worse than it was, still solid so ground back, rust killer, zinc primer and then red oxide followed by stone guard over the top. Wings will be getting the same treatment and then some cavity wax sprayed into the gap once refitted. Will be coating the whole of the inside of the wing with stone guard etc as well.

 

Edited 24 March, 20224 yr by octyal

Genuine replacement legs sourced from Germany for less than the ebay ones (even with postage)

this is why rot should always be cut out and replaced

One side done, and the front panel treated where there were a few rust spots. Just need to inject some cavity wax inside when i have finished the other side. Next  is onto the LHR arch and then MOT time next month (hopefully)

Blimey that was bad - my 1995 Mk1 is ten years older and nowhere near as bad!

 

Where did it live its previous life?  In the tidal zone at the local seaside?

On 24/03/2022 at 15:08, skomaz said:

Blimey that was bad - my 1995 Mk1 is ten years older and nowhere near as bad!

 

Where did it live its previous life?  In the tidal zone at the local seaside?

Cheap repair job in the past by a previous owner. The rot had been badly plated over so it carried on rusting from the inside out. Thankfully i got to it before it has spread too far to make it repairable. The Mk 2 came with a built in rust trap where they double skinned the chassis legs for crash protection. 

LH side all done now as well. All seam sealed, under sealed and cavity waxed to within an inch of its life 🤣

Edited 28 March, 20224 yr by octyal

and after all the hard work - MOT passed 😀 couple of advisories to deal with, o/s/f brake binding slightly, n/s/r spring corroded, "corrosion to underbody components"    and repairs covered in underseal (understandably) - time to enjoy some top down fun, then onto sorting the external bodywork out (lots of small dents and stonechips plus a new n/s/r outer arch)

Just over 12 months on - and another MOT pass in the bag - after having to replace the catalytic converter for the correct Post 2001 compliant unit. A previous owner had replaced the original one with a non type approved (pre 2001) cat for a 1.6, so the emissions were way off.

Not much been going on really, i have managed to source a complete new sill, rear arch and inner sill/arch panel for the LH side, so will be getting on with that before too long now that a few other jobs are sorted and out of the way.

I have managed to paint the rocker cover though 😁other than that, just enjoying driving it (averaging between 40-45 mpg as well on v power)

 

Nice new metally bits 😎

 

Bet I've got more weeds in my grass than you have! 🙄

 

G

Not a lot happened with this one last year due to out lovely damp summer weather - fingers crossed for some good weather this year to FINALLY get the welding finished - plus a few other jobs.......

 

Starting with......a refurbished rear sub frame, suspension arms, uprights and refurbished Bilstein shock absorbers - all polybushed. Front subframe will be done as well, although i am keeping my eyes peeled for one being sold to refurb so i can just swap and change in a few hours rather than having the car out of action for a few days.

Anyway, the crispy looking rear unit i nabbed for a good price...