New guy on the block!
 

Hey everyone.

Just recently purchased my very first Miata, a 1996 mx-5. Only 112k on it, but the body has seen better days.

Any advice on how to approach the vehicle as a whole? Things to look for, things that go wrong, pro's and con's? It needs a valve cover gasket, that's all I've seen mechanically. PO replaced a coolant hose on the back of the motor to the heater core, but that's all he hinted at going wrong. I'm just not sure of common failure points on these vehicles, and any advice would be appreciated!

Thanks so much!

:)

Welcome to miata forumz! Well, I don't know if this will help you much, but if your windows are winding up and down slowly, it's an easy and cheap fix if you have an afternoon to spare :)

Do you have two meet and greet threads?

The car you have is probably pretty solid. There are things that can need help, but they are minor.

I think I might've accidentally posted twice, thinking I was on a different site LOL.

It really is solid, but unfortunately I talked to the previous owners mother today and she said he beat the living hell out of it, so now I'm really watching it closely and just noticed it vibrates like crazy if I chirp the tires from a take off.

Keep this in mind with your 96 .If the ECM/ECU brain goes bad only another 96 will work 97 and up are different do not let anyone tell you different
Fought that bear for a year
Keep a eye on the temp gage if it even starts to over heat pull over and get it cooled down. This
is one of the main killers of a Miata engine that and not changing the oil and filter
These are good little cars but do not tolerate much overheating either. I fought that problem for a long time
If you have everything working correctly and you have not modified the car and you are not racing it, then no reason to have to
change the system or add anything to it. In other words if it starts over heating find the problem and fix it
don't start adding stuff and buying radiators bigger than what it calls for and changing to bigger fans
I have two and run them all day with A/C on in temps from 100 to 106 for 100's of miles and no over heating
once I got everything correct

What would be considered "normal" for the temp? It seems that my car steadily runs right below the 3/4 marker, sometimes in between halfway and 3/4, but normally right before the 3/4 mark.

normal temp
 

are you sure you are looking at the temp Guage
Mine only has three marks cold center and hot
If it is past center then it is running hot.
It should run just before the 12 noon position
actually about 1130 to 1145 past noon is trouble
you need to find out if it is really hot or if you have a
bad guage or sending unit

I actually took a picture today. I'll post it up shortly, once I get home.

https://www.miataforumz.com/attachme...ine=1375292314

that's during driving. I live in NC, so it's been hot and muggy.

https://www.miataforumz.com/attachme...ine=1375292314

This is a cold start.

https://www.miataforumz.com/attachme...ine=1375292314

and this is it!

Thats your oil pressure gauge :) it will rise as you rev the engine