girlfriend is looking to buy an mgf for around 3k,anybody owned 1?common faults?every mechanic i speak to tells me of the head gasket problem,but how many miles should you expect to get out of a new head gasket?dont want to be shelling out 300 quid plus every 6 months!
tryed to talk her out of it but she "knows best" and insists on mgf!

 

Just fixing a friends (girl obviously) MGF, gearchange mechanism is rubbish.
Under engineered car has done 60000, there is so much play in the bushes
that gear selection is very difficult. Numerous aftermarket sources for remanufactured and replacement units most around £200 + fitting.
I would check the free play (lateral) in gear shift and factor this into your negotiations

 

MAZDA MX5 ....................

Buy a MGF and buy loads of trouble!!

Pete

 

wife had mgf...roof a little leaky...now she got wrx...much better car

bought it and lost a load of cash on the MGF but they are fun to drive for a while

 

Must agree a MX5

 

tryed to talk her into a mx5 but she insists on mgf(also tryed a subaru like mine which she nearly cried at).drove an r plate yesterday and although im not a mechanic i thought straight away that the bushes were gone,seemed to crab under braking and accelerating.walked away.this a common thing?
whichever i do decide to let her have will be going in a car wash to check roof b4 buying,so no probs there.Just really cautious of head gaskets,water pumps,reliability issues????:

 

anyone know of a decent example? northwest wa11?but will travel for nice one?thanks!!!!

 

An MX5 can be had for £3000 ...... and it will still be reliable

A £3000 MGF is a pile of trouble .............. you really, really, need to tell her the MX5 is by far the better option!

Pete

 

There are NO nice ones for £3000 ....................... really, I know!

Pete

 

Avoid like the plague.

Sister has just traded her MGTF in for a new Mini, it was the worst car i've seen and she lost so much cash on it - paid £16k new 2 years ago, just got £5k for it from the Mini dealer

 

Had an MGF VVC from new for 3 years (don't tell anyone) did have some problems with it but never had HGF. Wouldn't have another, probably have the new shape MR2 (roadster one) if I was buying that sorta car again. Test drove the MR2 & MX5 before buying the Elise & thought the MR2 was better than both the MX5 & MGF....Not a patch on the Elise though

 

Head gaskets on the K-series are rather fickle, you can't say when it'll go. And it's not singular determinate cause. Some go after 20K, others will go as long a 80+K

Basic ingerdients for it blowing are: Driving too fast/hard when the engine is cold, failure to change coolant as per service intervals, failure to throughly bleed the cooling system after it is changed/worked on. Failure to regulary inspect coolant level usage and keep it topped up.

Although, they still sometimes blow even after you've paid attention to all of the above. Still, its not too hard to repair - and most independent garages are well reheresed in head gasket jobs on K-series (these engine are a good money earner ). It's more of a minor inconvienience (it's cheaper to fix than a dealer cambelt service on a Subaru in comparison )

As a whole the car is 3rd rate in build quality, you do exepct to see gremlins, but barring the gasket most are minor annoyances (leaks, wind noise, rattles etc. ) Also ealier models with the Metro suspension need to be pumped up every now and again. But otherwise, there isn't much else to them.

Having said that, I still wouldn't touch one with a barge pole


As for MX-5s there loads of dogs out there, so you still need to watch out - ignore what people say about them being Japanease an ultra reliable. Beacuse there are so many about that have been driven into the ground, that although reliable, would need money spending on them to get them to drive as they should (also watch out for broken woodruff keys on highmile 1.8s as it's need a new engine to fix. and also look out dodgy gearboxes).

 

Partially disagree, the MGF looks far nicer than the MX5, its Mid engined so is a proper sports car. I had a VVC for a while, the Head Gasket went, they are garaunteed to fail, cost nearley a grand to put right. But other than that it was fine. Get a good one thats had the head gasket done! So yes MX5 is reliable but the MGF has more Charictor and is far better looking..

 

The mid-engined, FRONT wheel drive MGF is more of a "proper sports car" then the MX5 . Have you driven a MX5? The original 1.6 had sublime handling and has evolved without loosing this trait. The MGF can at best be described as quite good in it's very latest guise.

FWIW I wouldn't touch a £3k MGF with a barge-pole. I find myself in the uncomfortable position of having to agree with PiSLewis...

 

I have driven the second version MX5, it was not comfy and i strugled to get my knee between the sterring wheel and centre consoul. I'll leave you with this proper sports cars -911's Mid Eng RWD Porsche Boxster mid engine RWD, MR2 Mid Engine RWD, MGF Mid Eng RWD, Ferrari ect ect need i go on!!! mx5 front Eng RWD But i did conceed the MX5 is far better built.

 

They are absolutely awful cars, show your GF this thread to try and get her to see sense.

If she still insists on getting one then please have a camera ready for when the 'I TOLD YOU SO' moment occurs.

Like everyone else has said get an MX5

 

Point of Order they are REAR wheel Drive

 

JTaylor is a gimp on the highest order, what a ****

 

Point conceded - having driven one of the early non-VVC efforts I was convinced they were front wheel drive. Must have been the allegro suspension. Thanks for picking me up on it

 

LOL, no probs. As for the alegro suspension, its a good set up if its charged up properley. - i think its the way ahead

 

Depends if was hinting on it being the front end of a FWD Metro bolted in the rear

 

opened a can of worms here haven t i?
told girlfriend tonight about this thread and she's going to have a look at all your comments about mgf ownership.
told her about the mx5,but having looked at autotrader these seem to hold value very well,obviously due to their good value for money.Still hard to swallow paying 3k for a h reg rollerskate?
any one got any other suggestions for a decent rag top for circa 3k?
cheers

 

MGB Roadster

 

a lot of unfair bias against the mgf - they aing as bad as you say altho i'm not in a position to argue....the thing is, with it being the highest selling roadster in the uk, some will have problems - as the tales continue then the story gets more widespread.

If you look after them right, as with any car, they will be fine. They normally break for a reason....

 

Yep i second that, and the fact that it was the highest selling roadster in the UK - incidentley knocking the mx5 off the top spot - says something about them, whether looks, charictor or whatever.

 

Westlife sell a lot of albums, they are still fooking ****e though

 

not the buy of the century then

 

Last time I checked, the 911 had the engine in the back, NOT in the middle.

As for implying that cos the MGf is mid-engined makes it a 'proper' sports car, what POPPYCOCK. It all depends on how well the car has been set up. I'll wager my Westfield is FAR FAR more of a 'proper' sports car than half the cars you care to mention that are mid-engined. There are good Mid engine cars and crap mid engined cars, simple.

Ferrari have Front engines (575 etc.). merc SLR - front engine, also Caterfields, S2000s, . Porsche 968/944 etc in the front. The list goes on. There are also some FWD cars that are great drivers cars too - Type R hondas, Corrados, Clio sports, 205 gti, golf gti etc.

 

Type R hondas, Corrados, Clio sports, 205 gti, golf gti etc - Love these cars but there Not sports cars, there hot hatches, As for 911's with each new model the engine hangs out of the back less and less. Porsche 968/944 have rear seats (2+2)technically they and the 575's. 550's ect come under the genre of Gran Tourismo automobiles if you read the Porsche club magazines and ferrari fan sites http://www.ferraristi.net/cars/ferrari-550/index.html. Ask google the definition of a sports car A sports car is type of automobile designed for sporting performance. While opinions differ as to the exact definition, most sports cars have two seats and two doors, and are designed to excel at a combination of acceleration, top speed, braking, and maneuverability. Great emphasis is often placed on handling—the ability of the car to remain in the control of the driver under challenging condition such as when the car's tires begin to lose their grip on corners.

 

My wife wanted a MGF and she got it. Junk. Any body want to buy it, S plate 45k on the clock, red. £3500 I just want shot of it. Junk.