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Mazda MX-5 Miata (2005 and earlier)

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#3823 of 4340 Turbos????????? by balas Oct 14, 2004 (7:04 pm)
After a year and a half, I finally talked my wife into getting a miata. Had my heart set on a nice new 5-sp LS. There seems to be a large amount of mazdaspeed miatas in the inventories of the dealers that I have searched. I realize that there are some cosmetic differences between the two cars, but my main concern is the turbo charged engine. Can anyone tell me how dependable they are for the long run? (I will probably have this car for at least 10 years.) Are there any special start up or shut down procedures that have to be followed? thanks
#3824 of 4340 by locke2c Oct 15, 2004 (5:07 am)
it should be no different at all, but obviously you're asking a bit early for long-term or high mileage reports from other forum members.   the engine is not stressed that much, it's only a bit more output. somewhere beyond 100k miles you'll have to overhaul the turbocharger, just like the engine will need an overhaul to return like-new performance. but odds are both will run for a long time.   start-up: don't drive until the coolant needle starts to move. don't drive hard until 5 minutes after the coolant temp reaches normal-- this is approximately when oil temp reaches normal and the engine is really ready to party down.   shut-down: if you use synthetic oil, which I would highly highly recommend on a turbocharged car, you have no real need to cool-down the engine with prolonged idling if you've just been driving fairly normal in the minutes before you park. if you've just flogged it pretty hard, then you would want to idle for 2-3 minutes and let the turbocharger cool off. an aftermarket turbo timer is mostly irrelevant these days, but some people install them anyway.   ~Colin
#3825 of 4340 by ateixeira Oct 15, 2004 (5:48 am)
I usually suggest that people take it easy while pulling out of their neighborhood, and then again when arriving.   You probably do this anyway, hopefully, for pedestrian safety.   -juice
#3826 of 4340 the BP motor by the_big_h Oct 15, 2004 (2:46 pm)
in the Miata is built for boost, so it should more than handle the low boost the Mazdaspeed Miata has been set at.
#3827 of 4340 1999 10AM by revdrluv Oct 24, 2004 (4:21 pm)
So I am on the verge of buying my second Miata (99 10th anniversary edition). I found it at a local dealership and got the price down below TMV, but found that the top is leaky when I went to check it out (thank god for the early socal rainy season this year!). There was a lot of water in the passenger foot well, and I could see where it was dripping from the window sill onto the seat a little bit as well (the seat wasn't wet though). I had to replace the top on my last Miata (which is why I knew to check under the floor mats), but I can't figure out if the problem is in the weather stripping or the top itself.   There was also a lot of condensation in the trunk area and a little inch diameter spot of water as well. The carpet back there seemed dry, but is this most likely a sign of a cracked rain rail?   I've done the paperwork, but am waiting to take delivery on it until they get the leak repaired. They will let me run the car through their car-wash to make sure it is really fixed before I pick it up.   What do you guys think? Should I take the car only if it gets a new top or could this just be a weather stripping problem?
#3828 of 4340 by locke2c Oct 25, 2004 (6:09 am)
yikes, I'd have an third party THOROUGHLY inspect the car before you purchase it-- before and after the repairs would be best.   but if everything is solid, the 10AE is my favorite Miata.   ~c
#3829 of 4340 by ateixeira Oct 25, 2004 (6:34 am)
Yeah, fixing the leak is one thing, what about the potential for early rust, though?   It could be that cable that we discussed earlier. My driver side one broke, and that created a very slow leak along the window. It was never enough to get the carpets wet, which tells me that one had a more serious leak.   -juice
#3830 of 4340 by revdrluv Oct 25, 2004 (9:38 am)
Is it a 10AM or 10AE? A link I found on miata.net says it is called a 10AM. Not that it really matters.   Well I didn't see anything I thought looked like rust starting in the trunk (but then I am no rust expert). Should I be able to pull up the carpet on the passenger side to check over there?   One thing I forgot to mention before is that I could see where the top was patched once on the drivers side of the car (the opposite side of the leak). Looks like it might have been slashed. The patch looks solid, but maybe this cable was also damaged at that time. Is it easy to determine if this cable you are talking about is broken?   How would one go about arranging a third party inspection when the car is sitting on a big dealer lot? Would I just ask them to let me drive it over to a shop myself? Replies to this message: kymike (Oct 25, 2004 12:18 pm)
#3831 of 4340 by locke2c Oct 25, 2004 (9:42 am)
yes, that's exactly it. you will have to pay for the inspections out of your own pocket but the few hundred dollars will be WELL SPENT.   in 1998-99, they were referred to as the 10th Anniversary Edition. everyone then called them the 10AE. I particularly remember them because the leftovers of the very long '99 model year were still around well into '00 and my (then) wife (now ex-) almost bought one but it sold. they got down into the $18k range and I'm talking virtually undriven cars, not ones with 500+ test drive miles.   ~Colin
#3832 of 4340 Re: [revdrluv] by kymike Oct 25, 2004 (12:18 pm)
Replying to: revdrluv (Oct 25, 2004 9:38 am) A patched top may or may not hold. I would really either negotiate to have the top replaced with a OEM replacement or factor a replacement into your offer. You never know when it will start leaking again. This alternative should not be much more expensive than all of the resources being spent to repair / inspect the top.

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