Saturn Sports Cars
MX-5 Build
MX-5
Build Guide
Build Guide for conversion of Haynes Roadster to MX-5 MK1 as donor vehicle
Background
These plans and guide is intended to be used in conjunction with the “Chris Gibbs – Build your own
Sports Car on a budget” Haynes manual with the purpose of utilising the Mazda Mx-5 Mk1 as a donor
vehicle for running gear as opposed to the Sierra based car outlined in the manual. The guide includes
amendments to the chassis rails where required, chassis plates and more so the wishbones in order to keep
the running geometry similar to the Sierra based car. One major structural advantage to using the Mx-5 as
donor is that the original rear uprights can be re-used from the donor negating the need to fabricate new
uprights. The plans are freely available from NTS Engineering website and are being put out to continue
and enhance the self build culture built around the Haynes Roadster manual.
As many builders have found the Sierra is now becoming a rare beast and certain items do attract a
premium as other suppliers are aware of the demand for parts. There are many Mx-5 cars freely available
and will meet the demand of the kit car market for a number of years to come. Unused parts from the
donor can also be sold where some builders have recovered most of their outlay for the purchase of the
original car.
MX-5
MX-5
