'91 Miata: Long, long, long, really-long term test
The accepted wisdom among professional misers is that there certain things you should never buy new. I can't remember the exact list but I do remember that books, DVDs and cars ranked high on it. This maybe fiscally sensible but we buy, and are sold, cars based on emotion not cold logic. The only logic and financial considerations to a petrol-head buying a car are, “What is the sexiest car with the most horse power I can afford?” And who doesn't love that new car smell? It's our god-given, American birthright to drive around in an over-powered, new car every few years!
But I am not a real American and I am not a professional miser but I am a card carrying petrol-head without a lot of disposable income to my name. This is as true today as it was 13 years ago when I took possession (read: bought) this test car. I had just moved from England to San Francisco which wasn't cheap but I needed to buy a car. I wanted something reliable, fun and sporty. Back in the UK I'd driven a Spitfire which I loved to drive but spent much more time working on it in the garage than I did behind the wheel in the drivers seat. Basically, I wanted a reliable, affordable English roadster. Back in 1995 there was still only one choice if you wanted a car in this genre; the Japanese Miata (MX5 as we knew it in Europe and the rest of the world). Being strapped for cash I didn't look for a new Miata, my no-nonsense Dad had pounded into me the fact that only a fool buys a car new and loses all that money in depreciation just driving it off the lot. I searched the local paper's classifieds (the internet and Craigslist were still in their infancy) and there were several 1990-3 cars I could afford as long as I didn't mind common red. After a horrible experience in a hard-sell dealers (I was kidnapped when they 'lost' my driving license) I resolved to only buy from a private party. I drove several examples but then found a totally base and stock '91 with low miles that a yuppie needed to sell for the down payment on a new M3. $10,000 bought me few creature comforts but exactly the car I had been looking for. From day one, every time I went to get in it, it put a smile on my face. A large part of the reason I had moved to California was to escape English winters so I took perverse pleasure in driving around with the top down whenever the weather permitted; I didn't really care how cold it was as long as it wasn't raining. The first Christmas I stayed in the US, though I was a little home sick, I delighted in telling all my family on a long distance call that I'd been driving down Highway 1 with the hood down just for fun that morning.
The Miata performed exactly as advertised. It was 100% reliable, cost little to run but was every bit a true roadster. Don't confuse 'roadster' with 'sportscar'; they're not the same thing. A sportscar is designed to be powerful and to go fast and is usually expensive. A roadster is designed to be fun. A roadster can be quick but the engine shouldn't be overly powerful. It should feel quicker than you are going; 60 should feel like 80 in a normal car - 90 should shake your teeth out. The driver should feel part of the car and should not be isolated from what is going on; you should be able to feel the road through the seat and steering, and hear the air rushing by and the exhaust disappearing behind you. It should be designed to be a rag top from the get-go not have the tin roof cut off a coupe a couple of years after launch to boister slowing sales. A roadster has 2 seats, the engine in the front and the power going to the rear wheels. A roadster is all about handling; it must be light, nimble and balanced. It should be practical enough to be a daily driver if you are willing to put up with a few compromises in convenience and comfort; in fact it should be impractical enough to put off those who just want a cute car. A roadster must have a manual gearbox that has to be worked to get the best from the car. A roadster should look good without being overly flashy – everything on the car should be there for a reason – there's no room for fake brake ducts or empty bonnet bulges on a roadster. You should want to drive a roadster more than you want to wash and clean it so a roadster looks good covered in bugs and brake dust.
This may be only a personal definition of a roadster but by my standard the Miata delivered every day.
People who dismiss the Miata as just cute, or worse, just a hairdressers car just don't get it. The Miata is every bit a drivers car. Just because it isn't that fast 0-60 or through a standing quarter doesn't make it less so. It is a rewarding car to drive without being aggressive or expensive or exotic.
For 13+ years my Miata was my daily driver on my work day 45 mile round trip commute. The clock is fast approaching 200,000 miles but the engine, transmission and running gear are all still solid and it bellies both its age and mileage. I have looked after this car but it has not been babied. The paint is a little faded in places but waxed and polished it does not look old (unfortunately, the same cannot be said for it's driver). It has had its oil changed every 3000 miles, 1 new top (after some thug decided to jump through the roof for giggles), 3 new batteries, a new clutch @ 120k miles. It's due another timing belt change about now and it would really benefit from new shocks but I'll leave that to the new owner.
From the factory this was the base 1.6 long nose crank (more reliable) car. It came without power steering or air conditioning; “Just two more things to add weight or to go wrong” my Dad would have said. It came with steel wheels which were one of the few things I swapped out when I treated myself to simple 5-spoke alloys a couple of years after I bought it. As cassettes gave way to CDs, which then gave it up for MP3s I've swapped out the audio head a couple of times, supplemented with replacement speakers and a cheap power amp without which voices on NPR aren't audible over the wind noise on the freeway with the top down – my concession to civility.
The car has had minor damage occasionally. A couple of years after I got it a truck chewed up my fender with his lug nuts when he merged into me without looking. Last Christmas a pickup hit me from behind at about 10mph when I was stuck in traffic on a local off-ramp. A year ago some yahoo stole my driving lights while the car was parked outside my house. Before that some jumped through the hood and tried to kick the stereo head unit out of my dash. It's the usual litany of urban living and car ownership which slowly takes it's toll on a car. When I bought the car there was only one shape of Miata; we're now on the third and waiting for news of the fourth. From a distance the car still looks good but up close it is starting to look a little tired. I could keep driving it for a couple of years until it really became impractical to maintain but I've decided that it is time to let her go. I'm 'upgrading' to a newer model but staying with Miatas and I'll be sad to see my old friend go but it is time. I can't bring myself to drive her totally into the ground and then watch her scrapped or parted out. I'd rather see her drive off with a new owner looking for an automotive bargain and keep my fond memories of her as shinny, 100% reliable and 100% fun, every bit a roadster.
Postscript: I bought a 2004 MazdaSpeed (turbo) Miata. I then put my old '91 on CraigsList for $1900. I sold it to the first person who came and drove it for the asking price.
Comments