CitroJim's AX, C3 Picasso, Cycling and Running Tales

[Hell Razor5543]

An MX-5 is so small (and, presumably, fun) that it is more likely you could carry one on the back of a bike!

[myglaren]

Daughter #2 has one - a fairly recent one, she has back problems and couldn't drive an earlier one.

It is pretty smooth and very comfortable, not crashy at all.

She tried a couple of Z3s, Z4s, TTs, SLKs and couldn't stay in them. One of the Z4s she got out and walked back to the dealers.

[mickthemaverick]

I absolutely love driving Ken's MX5 which is still stranded in Mallorca. Once I'm allowed the plan is to fly to Mallorca and bring it back to the UK to sort the sills and then decide what to do with it. They are not bad at all but showing the first sign of paint bubbling so need to be dealt with before they become an issue. Ironic considering I drove it out to Mallorca in 2015 in December and have pictures in the snow in the Pyrenees with crystal blue skies and the top down.

The car started looking lovely when we got it on the ferry:

Own work

But I think it got scared heading for the mountains:

Own work

In fact by the time we stopped for a break it was decidedly chilly:

Own work

So chilly I had to double tog for the next section, after all you can't put the top up when the sun is shining!!!

Own work

[Skull]

I know someone who had the same 1.8 MX-5 (the engine to have) and it was a decent car, I remember him always moaning when he traded it in for a Hyundai DIESEL Santa Fe (2006 ish) that was thirstier and a change in his commute distance meant he was out of pocket at his new job

Good effort on the shower Jim and MX-5 why would you buy one when you can just have a play in one

[bobins]

Jim - for info, MX-5 factory parts diagrams and numbers:
http://mazdaepc.com/parts/MX-5/

I do have factory workshop PDFs if you need, but they're for NB cars and not NA cars like yours, but engine operations are on the whole unchanged.

[CitroJim]

and MX-5 why would you buy one when you can just have a play in one

As it looks like it'll be with me for the foreseeable I think I can play with it quite often And I will too

Jim - for info, MX-5 factory parts diagrams and numbers:
http://mazdaepc.com/parts/MX-5/

I do have factory workshop PDFs if you need, but they're for NB cars and not NA cars like yours, but engine operations are on the whole unchanged.

Fantastic, thanks Bobins

I've started work on the car and found the boot leak appears to be caused by a failed bootlid seal and this is allowing water to drip on top of the battery... Now proving this is indeed the case...

What's spares availability like for these cars?

The oil leak is from the exhaust cambox lid and appears to have reduced since I I rook it for a good warming drive... I can see the cambox cover has been off at some point in the past judging by the excess instant gasket around it...

[bobins]

Parts supplies are pretty damned good for them - no shortage of new and second hand supplies for just about everything. Try https://www.mx5parts.co.uk and http://www.mx5city.com/ for new bits, but there's plenty other suppliers out there. Ebay for second hand stuff - you'll be spoilt for choice.
Cambox cover gaskets are known to leak - they resemble black spaghetti so no wonder Only use genuine or very good quality cambox gaskets. I think I have a spare Reinz one somewhere if you want one, but I'd have to go exploring to find it
IIRC, there's supposed to be a couple of splodges of gasket sealant in very specific areas, but the rest is 'dry' fit.

[CitroJim]

Cambox cover gaskets are known to leak - they resemble black spaghetti so no wonder Only use genuine or very good quality cambox gaskets. I think I have a spare Reinz one somewhere if you want one, but I'd have to go exploring to find it
IIRC, there's supposed to be a couple of splodges of gasket sealant in very specific areas, but the rest is 'dry' fit.

Thanks Bobins That's really appreciated!

Had a good session on the MX-5 today... Really enjoyed myself... It's good to work on something a bit different

This is where the cambox appears to be weeping:

And this is where the bootlid appears to be leaking... You can see a little 'bump/swelling' on the skirt of the seal and under here it is split and rusty... It's right above the battery..

I've now put a little plastic dish just below it and resting on the battery in order to prove this is the case...

The amount of rust around the battery shows it's been leaking for a while.... Removing the battery is not easy as it's held in with a collection of large cable-ties... The original clamp has disappeared.

A picture or diagram of the proper battery clamp would be appreciated...

I gave the interior a jolly good clean and took up the footwell mats which seemed to be the worst offenders for the musty smells although quite a lot of mould was found on many surfaces... A warm weak bleach and water mix shifted all the mould a treat..

There's no puddles in the car and there's no areas of wet damp so I'm wondering if the damp is just normal soft-top condensation as a result of not being used over winter... I'm on new territory here...

With the roof down I checked the drains and both are fine

Roof well drains

I left the roof down all day to air out the interior and will do the same on every nice fine day from now on... I'll also leave out the footwell mats as they do seem to act as 'sponges' for any moisture...

To avoid jealousy, I brought Daffodil out of the garage for an airing and gave both her and Sally's interiors a jolly good clean in case they felt left out

The remainder of the day was spent gardening - I'm grubbing up my very tangled ragged strawberry beds and starting afresh along with giving the whole garden a thorough spring revamp/tidy-up...

This year I'm planning on growing a few selected veggies...

[mickthemaverick]

I had a similar leak issue with the MX3 rear window to body seal Jim, which I temporarily resolved with the use of dehumidifier pads. I have now fixed it permanently with rubber sealant! The pads kept the moisture away from the carpets and upholstery brilliantly and I now keep one on the parcel shelf which keeps the windows condensation free. It is easily dried once a week with 45 mins in the oven at 80C and is probably the most effective "gadget" I have ever used. Here is a link to the things I am talking about:

https://www.securefixdirect.com/dehumid ... 1209-c.asp

[bobins]

Cambox cover gaskets are known to leak - they resemble black spaghetti so no wonder Only use genuine or very good quality cambox gaskets. I think I have a spare Reinz one somewhere if you want one, but I'd have to go exploring to find it
IIRC, there's supposed to be a couple of splodges of gasket sealant in very specific areas, but the rest is 'dry' fit.

Thanks Bobins That's really appreciated!

Had a good session on the MX-5 today... Really enjoyed myself... It's good to work on something a bit different
This is where the cambox appears to be weeping:

Sorry for the dodgy picture, but you can vaguely see where the 6 splodges of sealant is supposed to go in this diagram

MX5 cam cover sealant

Tightening sequence - tighten them to 6lb ft. Yeah, right !

MX5 cam cover tightening

The amount of rust around the battery shows it's been leaking for a while.... Removing the battery is not easy as it's held in with a collection of large cable-ties... The original clamp has disappeared.

A picture or diagram of the proper battery clamp would be appreciated...

Here's my battery clamped in, but mine is a Mk2.5 so your clamping arrangement basically needs to turn 90°.

MX5 battery clamp - own work

You'll need a Mk1 battery clamp which does appear to be slightly different to the Mk2 / 2.5.
Here's a Mk1 batt clamp:

Mk1 batt clamp - eBay / MX5Parts

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MX5-Battery- ... 2795921082

You'll also need a suitable 'J' bolt:

Mk1 J bolt - eBay / MX5Parts

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MX5-Battery- ... 2795917637

I gave the interior a jolly good clean and took up the footwell mats which seemed to be the worst offenders for the musty smells although quite a lot of mould was found on many surfaces... A warm weak bleach and water mix shifted all the mould a treat..

There's no puddles in the car and there's no areas of wet damp so I'm wondering if the damp is just normal soft-top condensation as a result of not being used over winter... I'm on new territory here...

Entirely possible it's just the lousy weather we've had. Mine was certainly a bit musty, but leaving the windows open did wonders for that

[CitroJim]

Thanks Mick and Bobins That's absolutely excellent! I'll have a word with the owner and see if she's happy for me to purchase a proper battery clamp and some dehumidifier pads...

I did notice there was some more mould on the underside of the soft-top when I put the roof up late this afternoon... I missed it when I did my clean-up so will have to attend to that tomorrow... More support for just overwintering/disuse condensation maybe?

Seems odd the battery clamp went walkies but not so long ago almost £3K was splashed out on the car for a full respray and maybe that's when the clamp went missing...

The respray was a good one... The pictures don't do it justice but the paintwork is of the highest quality... I'm not normally a fan of green but this one I do like

Under the bootlid seal there's not a spot of rust, even where it appears to be leaking... I'm surprised this was not noted during the respray and the seal replaced then...

[Hell Razor5543]

It might be worth calling into your local Poundland, Jim. They have been known to sell dehumidifier kits. I cannot say how good they are though.

[bobins]

The trouble with trying to use any form of dehumidifier in a convertible car is that you'll be trying to dehumidify the whole street

[mickthemaverick]

The trouble with trying to use any form of dehumidifier in a convertible car is that you'll be trying to dehumidify the whole street

I know where you are coming from there bobins, but it made a serious difference to my Celica Convertible overnight out on the drive. Obviously you need to make sure the hood is in good condition in general and fitting properly, and the window top seals make proper continuous contact when you close the windows which you do before dewtime in the evening. It certainly is well worth the minimal expenditure involved and they last for years. The ones I recently used in the MX3 were the ones left over from the Celica days!!

[mickthemaverick]

Jim, I picked up on the fact that you were pleased with Daffodil's DAB installation second time round so I had a look to see if I could find the same unit. I found this one and wondered if you could confirm it to be the same, or let me know where your's came from?

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/FirstE-Car-D ... 1438.l2649