MX-5 OC Forum

Well my bikes sold and money is burning through my pocket so........ I have my eye on 2000 a mx5 arizona model the write up says it is an import but confusingly the rear number plate is uk type not square , the clocks have been changed to mph and the mileage is around 70k , it has leather interior and nardi wheel and looks overall very nice , it,s reasonable money at 1495.00 but is there any advantage to buying import over Uk or vice versa , is there a way of finding out which market it was imported from ?

Is this year the one with potential engine probs smoking , using oil etc it is a 1.8 ?

this is the only info I have so far I will inspect it before deciding.

2 Doors, Manual, Convertible, Petrol, Metallic Green, MOT-12-2012. STUNNING LITTLE MX5.THIS IS AN IMPORT MODEL SO HAS ALL THE EXTRA'S INC BOSE CD/RADIO/SPEAKER SYSTEM, NARDI STEERING WHEEL AND GEAR KNOB, FULL CREAM LEATHER AND CREAM HOOD, LONG MOT, SERVICE HISTORY IS IN JAPANESE UNFORTUNATELY! CLOCKS HAVE BEEN CHANGED TO MPH, SHOW 119,000 KM, WHICH IS AROUND 70,000 MILES, ONLY 3 KEEPER SINCE REGISTERED IN 2003, HPI CLEAR, Front armrest, Immobiliser, Passenger airbag, Radio/Cassette, Rear headrests, Sports seats, Steel wheels, Body coloured bumpers, Drivers airbag, Front electric windows, Front head restraints, PAS. Insurance Group:12A, THIS CAR IS AN ABSOLUTE JOY TO DRIVE!!!! VERY FAST AND AMAZING HANDLING, WITH MAZDA RELIABILITY, COUPLE OF LITTLE DENTS BUT OVERALL GOOD CONDITION.

Does this describe an Arizona MX5 , what puzzles me is how the clocks are changed to MPH but show 119,000 km ??

Service history in Japanese probaly indicates country of origin Doh!

 Not an Arizona if an import. With that colour scheme it sounds like a Roadster VS, go see it, if it's a 6 speed gearbbox bite his hand off and change the wheels

Nothing wrong with an import it probably has less rust

Hi,

Arizona is a Mk2.5, 2002. They were only in Red, Silver and Yellow. 

The one your looking at has rear head restraints and steel wheels. .

Colin  

I would walk away. Anyone selling an MX5 and telling you that it has rear head restraints needs their bumps felt.

Nick and Jane (aka The Captain):

I would walk away. Anyone selling an MX5 and telling you that it has rear head restraints needs their bumps felt.

Called the seller this morning and asked a few questions, not six speed ,was insistent it was an arizona but I got a funny reception when asking so I shall

 walk away .....I was going to have a rear head fitted so I could use the rear head rests as well Doh!

rurod:

Nick and Jane (aka The Captain):

I would walk away. Anyone selling an MX5 and telling you that it has rear head restraints needs their bumps felt.

 

Called the seller this morning and asked a few questions, not six speed ,was insistent it was an arizona but I got a funny reception when asking so I shall

 walk away .....I was going to have a rear head fitted so I could use the rear head rests as well Doh!

 

Checking the registration thats in the ad with the DVLA records, its clear its a 1.8, imported in May 2003.

The garage ad I am looking at clearly shows a V-Special Mk2, which WILL have a 6-speed box, despite what the seller thinks. There's a scratch on the rear bumper, and the rectangular numberplate plinth thats been fitted is a bit squished, but the bumper itself looks fine (though photos may flatter). The interior looks spot on; Nardi gear knob as expected, Bose stereo still in place, no apparent rips to the drivers seat leather, which is a good sign. It has a nice "Roadster" factory option boot liner in place. The factory floor mats have gone for a walk, instead you have in place a passenger carpet mat, which looks like a MX5 specific mat, and a rubber mat of the correct shape on the drivers side. The tan roof looks serviceable still. There's a 50p sized ding on the passenger rear wing; not sure its in a position that a paintless repairer can get at easily.

For the momey being asked, it looks like a steal. Having the Japanese service documents still kept together (and you can extract some information from them, see http://www.mx5oc.co.uk/forum/forums/t/334.aspx) indicates to me that this is the first time this car has entered the trade since being purchased by its first owner in 2003, OR, its been sold to a dealer that understood the importance of keeping the paperwork together, such as a MX5 specialist; the first registered owner may well have been the original importer, who wouldn't have kept it long. I get a good feeling from importers who are willing to hand over the Japanese documentation with the car; some of the shark importers would have conveniently dumped the paperwork. And some of these importers weren't actually importers anyhow; they brought low grade cars from the UK-based import auctions; these cars were frequently missing all their provenance. It would be interesting if the original auction sheet was with this car still.

The BP suffix on the plate indicates Portsmouth.

A close look at one of the pictures of the boot shows "Supercar Classics" clearly on the plate; they are a well know MX5 import specialist up in Cheshire. Besides importing the cars, they also buy cars within the UK, so they might have taken the car as a P/X at one timeThe selling dealer is in Warrington, so clearly its had  local owners. Supercar Classics has a pretty good reputation (at least, I've never heard anything horrific about them), and a lot of its stock these days seems to be p/exs from previous customers. They might be willing to tell you more about the car. You might even find it if you can trawl through the archived copies of Supercar Classics' webpage at the Internet Archive (Wayback Machine).

In 2003, as a 2000 car being imported, it would have missed out on the ESVA introduced in 2004, but will have been subject to a SVA, rather than just a quick MOT. In general, this meant that the importer had to invest a significant amount to get the car sellable, such as fitting a UK spec rear cluster (foglight). Its unlikely that a low grade 3 year old car would have been imported; this would have been a grade 4.0 or 4.5 car. Any accident damage is most likely to have been incurred in the UK, and traceable. Imports are more easily written off, so anything significant would have meant the car ending up at an auction, and all that provenance ending up in the mud of some scrappie.

I think this car is certainly worth a look.

I have may have lost the plot here are we talking about the same car ? can you forward the ad of the car you are looking at many thanks Rod.

AT:

Checking the registration thats in the ad with the DVLA records, its clear its a 1.8, imported in May 2003.

The garage ad I am looking at clearly shows a V-Special Mk2, which WILL have a 6-speed box, despite what the seller thinks. There's a scratch on the rear bumper, and the rectangular numberplate plinth thats been fitted is a bit squished, but the bumper itself looks fine (though photos may flatter). The interior looks spot on; Nardi gear knob as expected, Bose stereo still in place, no apparent rips to the drivers seat leather, which is a good sign. It has a nice "Roadster" factory option boot liner in place. The factory floor mats have gone for a walk, instead you have in place a passenger carpet mat, which looks like a MX5 specific mat, and a rubber mat of the correct shape on the drivers side. The tan roof looks serviceable still. There's a 50p sized ding on the passenger rear wing; not sure its in a position that a paintless repairer can get at easily.

 

For the momey being asked, it looks like a steal. Having the Japanese service documents still kept together (and you can extract some information from them, see http://www.mx5oc.co.uk/forum/forums/t/334.aspx) indicates to me that this is the first time this car has entered the trade since being purchased by its first owner in 2003, OR, its been sold to a dealer that understood the importance of keeping the paperwork together, such as a MX5 specialist; the first registered owner may well have been the original importer, who wouldn't have kept it long. I get a good feeling from importers who are willing to hand over the Japanese documentation with the car; some of the shark importers would have conveniently dumped the paperwork. And some of these importers weren't actually importers anyhow; they brought low grade cars from the UK-based import auctions; these cars were frequently missing all their provenance. It would be interesting if the original auction sheet was with this car still.

 

The BP suffix on the plate indicates Portsmouth.

A close look at one of the pictures of the boot shows "Supercar Classics" clearly on the plate; they are a well know MX5 import specialist up in Cheshire. Besides importing the cars, they also buy cars within the UK, so they might have taken the car as a P/X at one timeThe selling dealer is in Warrington, so clearly its had  local owners. Supercar Classics has a pretty good reputation (at least, I've never heard anything horrific about them), and a lot of its stock these days seems to be p/exs from previous customers. They might be willing to tell you more about the car. You might even find it if you can trawl through the archived copies of Supercar Classics' webpage at the Internet Archive (Wayback Machine).

In 2003, as a 2000 car being imported, it would have missed out on the ESVA introduced in 2004, but will have been subject to a SVA, rather than just a quick MOT. In general, this meant that the importer had to invest a significant amount to get the car sellable, such as fitting a UK spec rear cluster (foglight). Its unlikely that a low grade 3 year old car would have been imported; this would have been a grade 4.0 or 4.5 car. Any accident damage is most likely to have been incurred in the UK, and traceable. Imports are more easily written off, so anything significant would have meant the car ending up at an auction, and all that provenance ending up in the mud of some scrappie.

 

I think this car is certainly worth a look.

Had a look at the supercar classics site very interesting and some nice cars

This is the car I was looking at:

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201219469969790/sort/default/usedcars/price-to/2000/model/mx-5/make/mazda/page/1/radius/60/

not sure if the link will work ?

rurod:

This is the car I was looking at:

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201219469969790/sort/default/usedcars/price-to/2000/model/mx-5/make/mazda/page/1/radius/60/

not sure if the link will work ?

rurod:

This is the car I was looking at:

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201219469969790/sort/default/usedcars/price-to/2000/model/mx-5/make/mazda/page/1/radius/60/

not sure if the link will work ?

Thats the one I looked at. I deliberately didn't post the link, as I didn't want you to get gazumped over what might be a very good buy. Kind of hoped my description was enough for you to recognise that I was talking about the same car your referred to.

Oh, and I meant Supercar Classics had previously sold the car, possibly as the original importer, or they've taken the car in as a part exchange. I would have expected that if they had imported the car, it would have been originally registered in Cheshire, not near Portsmouth, but who knows how they work.

I am not quick on the uptake sorry I rang and they said it was not six speed ? may call them again and check it out.

Just spoke to the seller and it is a six speed model so I may go and look at it tonight anything to look for ? re imports ?

No different from UK models, except may not have rust problems.