The Great Classic Trade-up – Our second car revealed…

We’ve now secured our second car – a 1993 Mazda MX5 Mk1 Eunos Roadster V-Spec Type 2 Edition – and we’re in love!

We’re truly smitten with our new purchase at Lancaster Insurance HQ – a beautiful MX5 with all the bells and whistles, due to it being a V-Spec edition, which is a rarer model than the standard Eunos Roadster. V-Special models come with power steering, electric windows, under seat and headrest speakers, air con, V-Spec floor mats (in mint condition too), a CD player and LSD for improved handling, all as standard.

Other things that stand out on our Eunos Roadster are…

• Mint condition tan leather interior, with matching door cards and original roof cover
• Original wooden steering wheel and handbrake
• Chrome mirrors
• Only covered 60k miles (90k KM)
• Five previous owners all in the UK
• Has original import documentation as well as a folder of receipts and paperwork going back over 20 years
• Was dry stored by the previous owner for many years
• No rust underneath or on the body work we can see and has been undersealed recently
• Last year it had a new water pump, timing belt kit, drive belt, new thermostat, new rear brake discs and pads, full service including oil and air filters, new HT leads and spark plugs – all work completed sept 2021

There are also a number of things we’re going to do before we sell it:

• Put original 14” Enkei Lightweight alloys back on it (it currently has Japanese style aftermarket wheels) – we’ve already sourced some from the Isle of Wight
• It has a slight blow in the down pipe, so we will replace the down pipe with a stainless steel one
• Full Valet and detail including paint mop, roof and engine bay
• Rubber hoses kit for the radiator and engine dress up
• Change of coolant and we will fit a performance air filter
• Original front grille and number plate relocation

If you’d like to make an early offer on our MX5, you can email us at restochallenge@lancasterinsurance.co.uk.

Meanwhile, we caught up with Phil Weeden at Classics World to see how things are going with the E36 BMW 323 convertible they purchased for their second car…

“Having sold the cute campervan for £5000, we were looking for something a bit different. After a few diversions, including a potential W124 Merc, we located this rather splendid 1998 E36 323i Convertible.

I’ve always been a fan of the E36 BMW. While its predecessor, the E30, might have been seen as a left-field choice back in the 1980s, in the fashion conscious 1990s the E36 became the medium executive car of choice, eventually outselling the mainstream Mondeo. And it’s not hard to see why: with a diverse range of engines and body styles, there really was a BMW E36 to suit most tastes and budgets.

Our 323Ci is a late example, and therefore sports the M52 edition of the six-cylinder engine, with 2.5-litres displacement and around 168bhp. Mated to a four-speed automatic gearbox, our example is never going to be an all-out performance machine, but it’s smooth and responsive enough. And after a long drive back from Newcastle, it was running superbly.

Overall condition is remarkably clean, the silver paintwork in fine fettle, with none of the common rust spots round the wheel arches. The interior is in good condition, with the leather trim in fine order and the dash is unmarked. But our Beemer has other delights…

For one, it’s got a factory hardtop; and while its headlining may need some attention, it is in otherwise good order, and makes the car instantly more sellable as an all-year round classic. Second, it was shod with what appear to be genuine M3 alloys wrapped in some fresh Michelin rubber. Complementing those were a rather fetching set of M-Sport side skirts and door mirrors.

Now, this being a challenge about leveraging value out of a purchase, we reckon the wheels and door mirrors are worth more to someone else than they are on this example. So our resident video guy, Joe Miller, duly sourced us a set of 17-inch ‘Style 68’ original BMW alloys which we’ve bolted on ahead of us selling on the M3 wheels. We’ll do the same with the door mirrors, as, rather conveniently, the original door mirrors were in the boot. The new rims look great on our 3 Series convertible, and it certainly doesn’t feel a lesser car for having the smaller wheels.

I’m hoping to dispense with the factory hard-top and savour some proper roof down motoring. Not for too long, mind, as we need to get this marvellous Munich motor moved on so we can crack on with purchase number three… If you or anyone you know is interested in owning this Bavarian beauty, then drop us a line at restochallenge@lancasterinsurance.co.uk.