MX5 Donor - What mileage and price?

[skov]

I wouldn't worry too much about mileage, the engines are fairly bombproof.
And remember if you're looking at imports the odo is in kms, not miles.
Just look out for the usual stuff you would for any car (milky oil, smoke, rumbling bearings etc, etc).
A fair bit of tappet noise is normal when cold, but should stop after a few minutes.
The 1.8 fetches a premium over the 1.6, and £875 sounds reasonable if you're looking at the bargain bucket end. All depends on condition though.

You should be able to sell most of the bits you don't use without too much trouble.