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What is an MX5 donor worth these days?
ChrisW - 28/2/17 at 12:03 PM

Reason I'm asking: I'm looking at doing a project based on an MX5, but I am notoriously bad at finishing projects and actually I have no idea if this will work and I may just end up trashing a perfectly good car (body, not mechanical).

So my thinking is that 'worst case' I will end up with what is essentially a set of donor parts for someone building an MX5-based kit and trying to work out what my losses would be if that happens.

Car I am looking at is a 1998 mk2 1.8 with 90k miles on it. It has an LSD rear end.

Can anyone give me a guide as to what a donor package from this car would be worth? By that I mean all the mechanicals without the body.

Chris

theconrodkid - 28/2/17 at 04:37 PM

prolly be better to find an MOT failed MK2,the front chassis legs rot out so they go super cheap,once they are a pile of parts,people realise how much they are worth as parts rather than a rotten MOT failure.
people have picked them up like that for £200 or so,worth a look on mx5nutz tho a lot of the people on there seem to be muppets with atitude

Smoking Frog - 28/2/17 at 05:13 PM

Approx £300 to £500 depending on condition. Could be more if you could sell other items that kit builders don't generally need such as sub frames, that beam that connects front to rear, fuel tank, radiator etc.

907 - 28/2/17 at 06:10 PM

A bloke two doors down payed £100 for his Mk1. He had a change of plan and decided to MOT and run it for a year
and it's still going two years later.


On the other hand I've just been helping with the super charging of a Mk1. It's "one lady owner" and garaged all it's life.
Absolutely immaculate and went straight though the MOT and cost £800. My fave colour as well. Hayter Green.


How much things cost depends on the amount of searching you wish to do.

coyoteboy - 28/2/17 at 06:14 PM

Couldn't give away a MkII the other week, it went to the big crusher in the sky.

ianhurley20 - 28/2/17 at 09:38 PM

My donor cost £360, a 1998 Mk 2 1.6 and the bits I didn't need I sold for £560 so my bits for the roadster cost - er - minus£200.00 !

Slimy38 - 28/2/17 at 11:06 PM

quote:
Originally posted by ChrisW
Reason I'm asking: I'm looking at doing a project based on an MX5, but I am notoriously bad at finishing projects and actually I have no idea if this will work and I may just end up trashing a perfectly good car (body, not mechanical).

So my thinking is that 'worst case' I will end up with what is essentially a set of donor parts for someone building an MX5-based kit and trying to work out what my losses would be if that happens.

Car I am looking at is a 1998 mk2 1.8 with 90k miles on it. It has an LSD rear end.

Can anyone give me a guide as to what a donor package from this car would be worth? By that I mean all the mechanicals without the body.

Chris


To me, a 'donor package' is worth less than an entire car. There's the profit to be made from the rest of the car (rendering the donor package free or in profit), but there's a fair bit of other stuff that can also come in useful that could be forgotten in a donor package. For example, I saw one that didn't have a wiring loom or ECU (which I needed). Another didn't come with wheels or brakes.

Oh yeah, and many donor packages don't come with the parent vehicle details, so are well on their way to a Q plate (which also devalues it in some people's eyes).

I'd suggest you try and break even with selling the body, then it doesn't matter what happens with the donor parts if you don't use them.

ChrisW - 1/3/17 at 03:38 PM

quote:
Originally posted by Slimy38
To me, a 'donor package' is worth less than an entire car. There's the profit to be made from the rest of the car (rendering the donor package free or in profit), but there's a fair bit of other stuff that can also come in useful that could be forgotten in a donor package. For example, I saw one that didn't have a wiring loom or ECU (which I needed). Another didn't come with wheels or brakes.


That's an interesting thought. I had always considered a donor package to be more valuable than a complete car (assuming all parts were present that were required) as it saves a lot of effort of dismantling the donor, having a shell hanging around, getting a scrap car too/from the place of dismantling etc.

I take your point about bits being missing though and being useful to have the car around during the build but I think the reality is that most of us don't have the space to keep the donor whilst the kit is built.

Anyway, I think I've convinced myself that the car is worth the asking price in bits (or whole if that's what the buyer wants) so I'll probably take a punt on it.

Chris

miskit - 1/3/17 at 04:42 PM

There have been a couple of donor packs sold over on the MEV boards for the Exocet. Take a look there.

I paid 1k for a Mk2.5 in great condition - specifically because the parts go for more than the Mk2 (and I got the most popular colour too). Over 2K sold in parts and I still have the engine/loom/box etc I need. BUT- it is a bit of work. For example a complete door will sell for £50 "collection only" - but strip it down to windows, locks, regulator, handle, seals... and its £150- £200. - Still cant shift the door shells though !

Don't drive the donor for too long or you will fall in love and have to buy another one to actually take apart!