>> i should mention that i recently replaced the front license
>> plate - have driven without it for eight years, finally got a
>> (parking!) ticket, and the outside temperature has been in the 90's &
>> 100's most of the time - which i though might be a factor
>
> Not "a" factor, it's THE factor. Something in your cooling system isn't
> right, but running plateless was compensating and masking the problem.
> Now you need to troubleshoot the cooling system and fix it. You probably
> need a new radiator.

I wouldn't be so sure. I have a '91 Roadster which has always got very hot
when the ambient temperature is above about 28 centigrade. When I first got
the car and noticed this I went through everything, replacing the thermostat
and the radiator. Nothing did any good (and cranking up the hot air vent did
cool it off significantly straight away). Someone else here mentioned the
license-plate thing so I tried that - I moved the license plate from in
front of the air intake to on the front of the bumper. That did it, problem
solved. It would appear that this is a common problem with early MX5s, so my
recommendation would be to first get a license plate plinth like the one I
got - http://www.mx5parts.co.uk/product_in...roducts_id/222 - before
going for something more expensive like a new radiator (though it's worth
checking the thermometer since that's fairly cheap). I'm not sure that the
missing license plate was masking a problem with the cooling system.

Eric