Mazda MX-5/Miata NC Buyers guide (2005-2015) Avoid known problems on Mazda MX-5 Roadster (1.8/2.0)
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- čas přidán 11. 02. 2023
- Mazda MX-5/Miata/Roadster NC1 NC2 NC3 (2005-2015) Buyers guide for common problems with the 1.8-litre and 2.0-litre models. Avoid buying a cheap broken MK3 Mazda MX-5 with rust and problems if you have already bought one then you can use this as an owner's guide on what to look out for. Avoid the mistakes of buying the cheapest broken Mazda MX-5 NC as a track car or fast daily only to have large bills and spend more time looking at your Miata than driving it. You may be attempting to fix the Mazda MX-5 with parts known to fix weak points with our review. This buyer's guide covers the Mazda MX-5 and Mazda Miata from 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015 in all trims from Anniversary to Sport Tech or basic SE. Mazda MX-5 owners may also find our guide useful and informative as we list common faults and problems to keep a look out for.
The MK3 Mazda MX-5 is a reliable vehicle although some known faults and problems remain and should be avoided when looking for one to buy.
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The Mazda MX-5 NC is already a modern classic and with the chance of a naturally aspirated sports car becoming very rare, this is almost certain to become a future classic. - Auta a dopravní prostředky
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📒 Haynes workshop manual --
Pre-facelift - haynes.pxf.io/jWxAEa
Facelift - haynes.pxf.io/5b2PeD
8X Car and Driver Top 10 Cars - more than any other Miata.
No doubt good ones will continue to be great to drive long in to the future too 😁
I have an 07 1st gen NC hardtop. It's done 204000 kms, and runs like a Swiss watch. Other than routine maintenance it has had nothing spent; not so much as a blown bulb. What a car.
Agreed, peerless reliability rivals higher end roadsters.
I have a 09- still pre facelift, 271000km. And still as a switch watch! Also no oil consumption, key is yearly proper maintenance.
i have a 2006 launch edition and it’s been great
It's worth noting that the coolant expansion tanks are well known for cracking and leaking, which causes the engine to overheat and seize. To make this problem worse both the oil and temperature gauges are, strangely, ecu calculated approximations and not directly driven by sensors, so it's hard to know when a failure is occurring.
Also the clutch pedal assemblies are infamously thin and known to eventually snap and render it undriveable, with squeaking being one of the telltale signs of it being ready to go. The 2nd gear issue is closely related to that problem because these pedals use a nut and screw adjuster that loosens over time and, compounded with pedal warping, can cause the clutch to nut fully disengage, causing the transmission to feel notchy.
Yeah, worth inspecting & replacing prior to failure.
Only in America…
A Moroso aluminum tank was my first mod. My clutch pedal cracked too, and I had to get a brace and weld it myself. The clutch pedal gave me a bad headache. If it starts to squeak, take the pedal out and inspect it. Safe yourself some heartache.
As i own it longer and longer, I love the looks and the drive of my 2013 NC Silver Bullet!😊
very cool, thank you, I'm about to pickup a 2014 6 speed manual
love my 2012 GT NC, best car I have ever owned!
I listen to this video every night to get me off to sleep 😴 ...
Happy 2009 niseko owner here, with the brown roof and brown leather interior. 100k driven in the last 8 years. Really became friens on all my trips to France.
This is the best car buying video I have ever seen👍
Thanks, comments like this are great for us to see 😁
lovely thank you
Thank you
3.5 years and 145,000 miles on my used NC2 PRHT GT, and loving it. Not much room for carrying anything, and dodging street potholes is my life now. Still, I would not change it for anything else. Change the coolant expansion tank for an aluminum one, if you plan to get one. Light wheels, flywheel, and suspension made a great addition to it.
@5:18 for the 2nd gear stickiness when cold, before you go and change your clutch I suggest removing the boot covering the shifter and clean all that gunk off the shift knob and replace the oil in the shift turret. Worked for my NC1 w/ 125k miles, clean shift from 1st to 2nd even when cold.
A great tip, thanks for adding the info 👍
Fresh trans oil with added Penrite Shifteze (Aussie product) made a big difference for me. I also upgraded my engine mounts with stiffer ones from IL Motorsport which improved shifting overall, especially on track where I was starting to miss some shifts. Mounts do increase NVH though
Ive owned since new an Australian delivered 2011 special edition PRHT commemorating 950 thousand MX5’s built .
It is one of only 200 made available over here featuring 50 finished in Dolphin Grey all featured Bilstein shocks and a unique light grey leather interior.
Mine has only ever been used occasionally and as such only has only travelled around 20000 kilometres. It is a wonderful car to own and has never had any mechanical issues and I regularly have it serviced at a Mazda dealer. The only thing I have replaced is the tyres last year as the original ones were well past its use by date.
I also own a 2022 ND also a great MX5 however as good as the ND is the NC is so special to me and wonderful MX5 to own and drive.
Great to hear your NC is still going strong. Agreed the ND is a great car but the NC is special generation to me also having sold them new. All the best with yours for the future 👍
Great video
Glad you enjoyed it 👍
You missed the 2011 Special Edition honoring the sale of the 900,000th Miata limited to Only 750 vehicles which came in either Dolphin Grey or Sparkling Black Mica which offered a Grey leather interior along with some performance parts.
The MX-5 Kendo? Or 'Special Edition' in the U.S from memory, yes good spot we didn't include that one. Thanks for mentioning the Kendo as it brought back a memory for me. I sold one brand new and your comment reminded me of a very happy customer that had patiently waited quite some time for it to arrive at our dealer. To the best of my memory they don't have any additional performance and could be purchased with both the 1.8 and 2.0 litre but I'm happy to be proven wrong as its been quite some time 👍
I have a 2011 PRHT. the dealer tag said "dolphin grey" but I think mine is silver metallic. I doubt mine is a special edition, but how can I tell? I have color perception issues.
In short, everything after 2009 is pretty much bulletproof. Most weakpoints have been sorted in the first facelift. Also, rust protection and hardware quality, such as bolts and screws, is abysmal on pre facelifts. From what I have seen, the improvements on facelift models 2009 and onward can not be understated. The extra money for these will give you a far superior car.
Great video, but you missed out the single biggest issue on NC's, especially for drivers in the UK or anywhere else where the roads are salted in Winter. They can suffer horrendous rust issues in the sills, rear wheel arches, rear sill end panels and underneath the rear bumper bar mounts, if not treated correctly and inspected on a regular basis. It's not uncommon to find relatively new NC's (2010 or newer) where the sill end panels have completely rotted away and there is serious rot in the rear arches and sills themselves. Any buyer should be aware of this, as although it's repairable, it is very costly to fix.
Great comment with some really useful additional information. Thanks for adding 👍
Good video, though I didn't see you mentioning any real oil issues. My girlfriend's 2006 NC uses quite a bit of oil - runs on fumes every 1000km. I'm guessing that's a fair bit more than usual. Also, the engine/gearbox (don't know which) grinds at 2000RPM in any gear except first.
Anyone that has an idea to help rectify these issues?
This is likely not a grind but a vibrating heat shield or exhaust component. Mine does this at about 1200-1500rpm when under heavy load (gear 2+, full throttle). However, your engine sounds buggered. Using the entire oil supply every 1000k? Not normal for ANY car. Piston rings maybe? Check for blue smoke from exhaust especially when cold.
For reference, I redline my 2011 2.0 every time I drive it but only when warm. Not just the coolant too, the oil needs to be warm really. It has 140,000 miles on it and it has never used a drop of oil. Hope you get your problem(s) fixed.
Thanks for this. Any chance we could see a P3 generation Volvo XC60 guide?
We’ll add it onto our list of future videos 😁
@ProductofNZ Our XC60 video is now live 👍
@@themilesdriven thank you so much. I'll take a look!
Im taking a look tomorrow at a NC. Your video easily was the best out of all o watched
Great to hear it was helpful, all the best with the car search 😁
2:50 Correction: ALL facelifted NCs (2009+) have forged cranks (as well as fully floating wrist pins, stiffer valve springs and a 7500 (+500) rev limit), and I am quite sure the lightened flywheel point is false. This is for the 2.0 engines, at least.
No mention of rust which is a big problem on older cars.
Audio is quiet
How do I know if an NC I'm looking at has the 1.8 or 2.0 engine?
The answer depends on where you are in the world but general advice is the 1.8-litre is only offered with a 5-speed gearbox and the 2.0 can be 5 or 6 speed. The 2.0-litre engine has a code of MZR LF-VE
I'd say look up the vin number online, or call a Mazda dealership and give them vin number.
The 2.0 has VVT so you have to check if there is the VVT Actuator Solenoid on the valve cover. Very easy to check it is on the top of the engine, just in the front of you when you open the bonnet, then on the valve cover : just on bottom right of the oil cap, approx same size as the oil cap, there is a wire plugged in it. The 1.8 don’t has that : this space is just a black circle on the valve cover.
Type the reg into the government tax or ulez checks, it will report the engine size in cc. The RPM gauge is also very helpful, 1.8 engines have a visual redline on the tach of 6,500rpm. Old (pre-2009) 2.0 engines have a redline of about 6750 and new (2009+) engines have a redline above 7,000. This is not the rev limit, however. Just where the red is.
The folding hardtop is plastic.
The roadsters electric roof isn't metal. It's composite for lightness.
You're absolutely right! A huge oversight on my part considering I sold them brand new for four years and used to knock on the roof and explain about the composite material to customers - I hope my old sales manager isn't watching 😅
37mpg on the 2 liter engine??? I have one and have trouble getting it to do better than 24, that’s for half highway and half country road driving.
Can anyone think of a possible issue? (you don’t have to say driving style)
same here.
Nobody is getting 37 mpg driving a NC, that's BS. Even the official estimates are just 21 city 28 highway. I've NEVER even came close to hitting 28 mpg. More like 22-23 mpg (highway). I don't put my foot in the tank either, I drive fairly conservative. When I get into the mountains driving our steep twisty roads (again conservative driving) I average 16- 18 mpg.
It's the only thing I really don't like about my NC. When you have a car with a 4 banger that weighs around 2400lbs you expect better FAR better fuel economy. The only small car that I've ever owned that sucked gas quicker was my '79 RX7 with that damn Wankel engine in it.
I'm in agreement here. With mixed use (minimal time in slow traffic) I get around 9L/100km which is 26 US MPG. It's all downhill from there..
But I'll admit I don't care at all. It's fine economy for such a fun car.
US MPG is not UK MPG. I get 35ish in the UK even when driving hard. That is 29.14 U.S. MPG. (2011 2.0)
@@cydonia9342I