Veloce_Rosso

My 2005 Alfa bleeps on the top display if you over 70 mph: "Speed limit exceeded. Slow down!" I've never known this on any car, my brother said even his daughter's BMW M Sport X5 doesn't have it.

Good video. I understand why some want to improve or personalise a car, although it's never been my bag.

Well, I turned up but waited ages for a cup of tea, the morning was shared with the scooter and biker boys and classic Austin and Morris meet. A number of Evoras, a couple of Esprits, one Elan and one JPS Europa. Didn't take hardly any photos.

My daughter and I were out shopping and went for ride round the lanes. She pulled in Effingham jct railway station car park to make a phone call, and instantly drawn to this lovely Emira. Don't know if belongs to anyone on this forum or not. Absolutely gorgeous.

Just received a text from the 2007 I test drove. He's dropped the price to 3k from 3.5k. I wouldn't be interested mainly due to the rust on the inner cills. Unless you guys think it's a bargain bucket price.

Totally understand the Mazda and Alfa are different but I have no other car, apart from my daughter's Mini Cooper, to compare it with. Playful or sure footed? Bit of both really. It's hard to explain unless you've driven both. The GT 3.2 is a beast. These fast FWD Alfas can go wild, but I've had a Quaife limited slip diff fitted or Q2. The handling is dynamic without fear of wrapping it around a tree. I will try and test another MX5, either newer or one of the original models.

Thank you. Looks a sassy example. Had a shed load of work carried out but it looks like it's abroad.

Perhaps I was expecting too much, having driven my daughter's 2007 Mini Cooper, with a Peugeot built engine, and now the MX5, I appreciate more how good Alfa Romeos are to drive - purposeful, sure-footed & very driver focused. Although you need to spend more money on upkeep and to buy, why choose a Elan-esque over a genuine Elan?

The suspension on the one I drove was fine. That said, I was a little disappointed with cornering. I was expecting better from a low slung two seater. Put it this way, my 156 Sportwagon 2.0 powered felt more reassuring around the tight, twisty Surrey lanes. And although power and performance isn't the be all, 0-60 on the Mazda is 9 secs, while my SW has a sub 8 secs. And the Mazda felt like it was lacking too.

I don't buy this magazine, but apparently Evo (Feb edition) devoted a section called the 'Greatest Misses' and they devoted some space for the MK3 MX5, the version I drove. The earlier marques, up to 2005 were the best as well as the 2015 onwards cars. The MK3 was improved but based on my experience, not enough.

This in our petrol station. Even the owners wife thought it was amusing. What a car. Also love the colour.

Well, had a good couple of hours Mazdaing it. Went to see two but only drove one. The one I drove was a 2007 1.8. They feel quite nice to drive, although the gearbox took a lot of getting used to - the gears are so closely grouped, instead of going from 2nd to 3rd I went straight into 5th gear. After a few gear changes I got used to it. The sills are a MOT advisory due to rust, but the rest of the body seemed very clean & rust free, inc the wheel arches. The leather seats & bolsters need a bit of TLC and the gear knob has seen better days. The car is in standard form other than he's fitted Bluetooth. The 2013 one is a hard top and there is rust bubble around the bottom of the roof. Couldn't be bothered to drive it after he told me I couldn't park my car in his parking bay - he is a back street Arthur Daley. How did the 2007 version drive? Quite nice, the steering was precise and it handled the bends well; no clonks from the suspension - nothing nasty. However, I'm not sure, given the reputation, whether I was expecting too much from a £3500 85k miles car, but I wasn't blown away by the driving experience. Nothing wrong with it, just didn't have the X factor I hoped for.

I'm going to view a 2013 MX5 SE with a hard top this afternoon. I'll let you know what I think.

Rather have a horse & cart than a laptop on wheels. Old Musky can go and 'do one.' A flame thrower (or projector) of over 20' already achieved in the First World War by a ironically refrigerator designer called William Livens.

Exactly my point. Batteries have to be carted off to the far east somewhere to be dismantled and then either dumped at sea or a huge landfill. Do they go by electric ship or plane?

No, not a long-term solution. The bro-in-law has recently purchased a Tesla Model 3 second hand. Tesla only offer a warranty for the battery for 8 years. The cost of replacement batteries aren't cheap. My Alfas are over twice the age of a Tesla battery. What happens to the batteries afterwards? You can't refurbish them. Probably scrapped somewhere in the far east. The Teslas are built in the US, do they come over electric ship? Nope. Also, around 40% of all our electricity still comes from fossil fuelled power stations. Unless they can make a car that's solar powered or hydrogen, electric cars are only a stop gap.

Over the weekend I thought I'd spend time cleaning & polishing my Alfa. Come up quite nicely for 19 year old paintwork. Very rare Gabbiano blue with a rarer Alcantara interior. Wait for another couple of dry days to clean the GT.

Seems a bit nuts talking about a Mazda on a Lotus forum. Think I'll carry out more research before making anymore additional posts on this subject. Thank you all for your collective contributions. I'll only update it if or when something spikes my interest.

Standard. Even though I would class myself as a petrol head (5 Alfas since 2006), I'm more of a purist. The only upgrades or mods I would consider would be for safety and not for performance reasons.

Having quite extensively looked on the Internet since starting this thread, the power and 0-60 times vary so much, anything from 9.4-6.6 seconds. Generally, as with all makes and models, there's a sweet spot for economy and performance. Which is the best choice for a MX5?

Thanks.

Ah, right. It's a non interference engine, which is quite rare in modern engines. I can only think of cars with rotary engines that non interference. Thank you.

Hope you guys don't mind a couple of questions, re servicing and upkeep? Do they have cam belts or chains? If it's the former, how often do they need changing? And does the water pump need changing? Is it recommended to use a certain engine oil, if so what one? The oil I use is either Petronas Syntium or Petronas Selenia 10w 60. Best wishes.

I did see the JayEmm video. Not a fan of his reviews, but yes, I remember him commenting on the open-mindedness of Lotus owners. Love the Lotus name and heritage... IMO Chapman was a genius. My two fav brands of all time is Alfa & Lotus.

Good video. Mazda certainly looks a good car for cruising around windy lanes. You can buy upgraded exhausts for my 3.2 Alfa, usually Wizard Cat-back system. Makes a great noise but can grate if the car is used on a regular basis, so I've kept mine as a stock exhaust. Never realised there was so much love for the MX5, especially on a Lotus forum. Might be tempted to try one. Thank you.