Description
This Mazda Eunos VR-Ltd 1. 8 is now offered for sale by Goodwood Sportscars. Its a 1996 model finished in Excellent Green Mica with black leather seats and trim. Spec includes electric windows, power steering, a Momo steering wheel, stainless steel speaker surround s and sill tread plates and an immobiliser. Its covered around 220000km which is about 135000 miles and has just had a fortune spent on it. Yes thats quite a few miles BUT read on to why this isn’t such an issue with this car. Before I tell you more, let me tell you about Goodwood Sportscars and why should you buy from me:I have been buying and selling Mazda MX5s for over 20 years now. While I'm a car dealer, I consider myself to be a car enthusiast above all else. I'll only sell cars that actual interest me as an enthusiast. I live, sleep and breath quick cars and have sold literally thousands of performance cars over a thirty year period. I have competed in various forms of motorsport including the Scottish Hillclimb Championship (in an MX5 of course). So I'm pretty good at spotting a good car and at making one work to the best of its ability. I've had many thousands of MX5s through my hands and know their strengths and weaknesses well. The VR-Ltd was a special edition produced for the Japanese market in two 'flavours'. These were known as the Combination A and Combination B varieties. The 'A' was finished in Vin Red and 700 were produced while this one, the 'B', was finished in Excellent Green so they are quite rare cars. They feature the later ‘Type II’ upgrades which include an improved ECU, lightened flywheel, extra chassis bracing, a Torsen lsd with shorter dif ratios and lots of minor tweaks and upgrades, all fitted as standard by Mazda. Power is up from its standard 130bhp to 133bhp. Not a lot but the combined net result of this lot is that they just drive a bit better than a standard 1. 8 and performance is a bit snappier with noticeably quicker in-gear acceleration. Bodywork is pretty good with no rust and wheel arches, sills and wings are all good. Its had repairs to the sills and wheel arches previously and all are solid if not perfect. Underneath, there are two or three repaired areas but again, its all strong and sound. There is the odd stonechip and area of paint that isn’t as well finished as it might be but its still a smart and solid, good looking car. Its sitting on a set of original VR-Spec 15” Enkei alloy wheels, all fitted with good tyres. The soft top is a black mohair one from a Mk2 and has a glass window and it also has a tonneau cover and a wind blocker fitted. Inside, the black leather seats are in good order with a few creases in line with its age but no holes or splits. I have just replaced the complete dashboard (the last one was badly cracked thanks to sun damage). Everything works as it should, other than the air con, which is tired and probably needs a re-gas at least. Its fitted with anew Pioneer DAB stereo along with Focal door speakers; however the DAB aerial hasn’t been fitted so its just standard FM radio. All sounds good though. Where it gets interesting is regarding the amount of new parts recently fitted along with various upgrades which improve the car massively. Within the last 10-12 months, its had:New water pump, rollers and cambeltNew CAS ‘O’ ring seal and cam cover gasketVarious coolant hoses replaced along with a full coolant changeNew front and rear crank oil sealsNew clutch, along with new slave and master cylinders and hard lines fitted. New radiatorAn IL Motorsport stainless steel exhaust system from the cat backNew Meister R adjustable suspension complete with protective covers. These are adjustable for both height and stiffness. Replacement camber boltsThe complete braking system was overhauled with new calipers, new brake discs and pads and the old rubber hoses were replaced with new stainless steel braided items and of course the brake fluid was replaced. Both handbrake cables have been replaced too. The braking system overhaul alone was £1500. New battery. Full service including new oil, filters and new oil in both dif and gearbox. This lot cost an absolute fortune but as a result, the car drives just beautifully. The exhaust is a touch louder than standard but it seems to have woken the car up and the engine feels exceptionally strong. In fifth gear, it will pull cleanly from under 1000rpm and is happy revving to 7000rpm and beyond. Gearbox and clutch are just as they should be and brakes are particularly strong. Thanks to the Meister R suspension and a recent new wheel alignment set up, this handles really well – much better than a car on standard suspension. The car feels incredibly responsive with superb handling and steering feel and I still reckon fitting upgraded suspension like this is one of the best performance upgrades you make make on any MX5/ Eunos. The car has just been through my 80+ point checklist and has been well prepared. Its been serviced and MOT tested again (the latest MOT expires in August 2027) and it comes complete with two keys and immobiliser fobs and a good collection of paperwork and old receipts. I know this car well as I have owned it twice in the past and its a lovely example. Its not perfect and I would strongly advise any potential buyer to watch the Youtube video I have produced which show its minus points (mainly paintwork related) in more detail. Here’s the link to that: - details above is a really quite lovely car and its particularly good to drive and price is £6500. I'm based in Berwick on Tweed, near the Scottish Border and I can collect any prospective buyer from the local train station or I can arrange to have the car delivered by a trusted transport company at extra cost. I’m well known in the MX5 world and know these cars well. Please do not hesitate to ask any questions – if you are genuinely interested, you’ll have plenty and I’m happy to talk about MX5s all day. I'm also happy to give you an honest description and if there any faults or issues with the car, I much prefer to tell you up front, so you are clear about what you are buying.
