Miata Beaters

Oh, no. I had intended that second paragraph to be separate from the first one, as a "even ignoring the impacts of age, the cars have very different characters so would appeal to different people" statement. :)
 
Alright...?

You are comparing apples to oranges. used cars will always be cheaper at front for the reasons listed below (labor costs can go either way though).

You can, but if someone is going to, it's fair to bring up disadvantages, too. Things like lack of warranty, higher maintenance costs, higher fuel costs, the impacts of an aging interior...
 
And some people like apples, others like oranges.

I will never buy a new car. I don't think maintenance costs on an NSX would come close to depreciation on a new MX-5. And if you actually keep the car, eventually you will have to pay maintenance costs as well. Cost aside, the NSX looks better, sounds better, goes faster, is infinitely more special, and in the end, I just like it so much more.

I've had a go in 'modifying' cars. They are just never as good. If you want a faster car, buy a faster car. The best engineers are the ones who work for the car makers. Not the ones who fabricate LS1 mount-kits for Miatas. I would rather have a stock, or mildly modified MX-5 over one with a V8. If I want something with a V8, I'd buy something purpose built and engineered for a V8. As long as a Miata comes with a 4 cylinder from the factory, I will never own one. It's not worth the effort to swap in a different engine, and a boosted 4 is still a 4. I don't like them. Here I am defending my ideas of alternatives to Miata's in a thread devoted to alternatives to Miatas, to Miata faithful who clearly cannot be reasoned with, nor have the good sense to stay out of a thread, by design and intent, counter to their own opinions. Well, equiraptor at least.

So, it's become a thread about people proposing cars that are different and in someways better, someways worse, than a Miata and then Miata owners listing off reasons why it is inferior. It makes my head hurt.

And some people like apples, others like oranges.

I like apples. Is it my mistake that I thought this thread was for people who like apples?

Oh well.
 
They handle horribly. They're very brutal. When a green or blue student brings one to the track, we know we'll see spins. That's definitely not a Miata beater. More convertible muscle car than a car in the British roadster tradition.
This was only half serious. I know they handle terribly, too much power for that chassis. I do love them to death.
S13 Vert is much less rigid than coupe or hatch. Coupe is the most rigid out of the 3. Vert has a lot of added bracing and with a cage could be improved, but the Vert is also about 300lbs or so heavier than the Coupe.
Interesting... I was told that because of the bracing required for the vert it was more rigid than other S13s.
 
This was only half serious. I know they handle terribly, too much power for that chassis. I do love them to death.
Ah, I missed that part. They have their appeal, it's just very different from the appeal of the Miata.

And some people like apples, others like oranges.

I like apples. Is it my mistake that I thought this thread was for people who like apples?

Oh well.
I thought this was a thread for people who like apples... and oranges and bananas, where we could discuss the differences.
 
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Also. Here are some cars you could get for the price of a new Miata. However unfair these may seem to be, it is definitely the reality.

2009-acura-nsx-1_460x0w.jpg

(might be a little hard, but possible in the price range I think)
You would be fairly hard pressed to find an NSX in decent shape for around 20K. Also keep in mind insurance costs, an MX-5 will be quite a bit lower.
Exactly, there is still that 2%
100% of them are slow, can't handle for shit and will set themselves on fire at some point :p
I thought this was a thread for people who like apples... and oranges and bananas, where we could discuss the differences.
I don't like oranges they make my teeth hurt because of the acidity.
 
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You would be fairly hard pressed to find an NSX in decent shape for around 20K. Also keep in mind insurance costs, an MX-5 will be quite a bit lower.

100% of them are slow, can't handle for shit and will set themselves on fire at some point :p

I don't like oranges they make my teeth hurt because of the acidity.

I did say 15-30k :p

edit:
http://dallas.craigslist.org/dal/ctd/2338478375.html

25k for a very clean (from the looks of it at least) model. 103k miles isn't much for a Honda V6.

29K for a lower mileage example
http://dallas.craigslist.org/ftw/ctd/2352117774.html

I admit, an NSX is pretty far away from the concept of the Miata. It would still be a tempting alternative to a new one, if the goal is just 'sports car for <$30k'
 
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This entire thread comes down to personal preference. For ME the Miata does everything I want and if my 02 were to die I'd probably just replace it with another instead of even looking at another model.

You would be fairly hard pressed to find an NSX in decent shape for around 20K. Also keep in mind insurance costs, an MX-5 will be quite a bit lower.

Exactly just about every car he posted would have insurance rates that would turn off a lot of buyers or have a billion miles on them.
 
I think we are looking way too hard into the details on this. Insurance rates? C'mon...

Anyway this thread was meant to be a not so serious discussion of Miata-ishy cars for those of us who like to look beyond the Miata realm. So lets stop being pedantic.
 
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I will never buy a new car. I don't think maintenance costs on an NSX would come close to depreciation on a new MX-5. And if you actually keep the car, eventually you will have to pay maintenance costs as well. Cost aside, the NSX looks better, sounds better, goes faster, is infinitely more special, and in the end, I just like it so much more.

Your argument here is "new" vs "used" which is different than Miata beater.
 
Your argument here is "new" vs "used" which is different than Miata beater.

I'm just suggesting cars in the ballpark price range of a new miata.

If you look, I have also made such suggestions as an FB RX-7, AW11 MR-2 and a few others I can't recall at the moment. :lol:
 
I think we are looking way too hard into the details on this. Insurance rates? C'mon...

Anyway this thread was meant to be a not so serious discussion of Miata-ishy cars for those of us who like to look beyond the Miata realm. So lets stop being pedantic.

This is a car forum for car lovers (well lovers of a couple car themed shows) we ARE pedantic.
 
I did say 15-30k :p

edit:
http://dallas.craigslist.org/dal/ctd/2338478375.html

25k for a very clean (from the looks of it at least) model. 103k miles isn't much for a Honda V6.

29K for a lower mileage example
http://dallas.craigslist.org/ftw/ctd/2352117774.html

I admit, an NSX is pretty far away from the concept of the Miata. It would still be a tempting alternative to a new one, if the goal is just 'sports car for <$30k'

I agree with you on NSX being a great car and that ~30K is not too bad for it. Does anyone ever buy a new Miata? I mean it seems to be a fairly steep price for what you get.
 
I agree with you on NSX being a great car and that ~30K is not too bad for it. Does anyone ever buy a new Miata? I mean it seems to be a fairly steep price for what you get.

They couldn't be common unless a lot of people buy them new. Which they do.
 
This is a car forum for car lovers (well lovers of a couple car themed shows) FG we ARE pedantic.

Well I can't argue with that. At least this hasn't turned into an all out flame war yet which is almost inevitable in a 10 page thread on a touchy subject.

Insurance rates are too pedantic though, even for Final Gear.
 
I'd disagree, money and running cost issues (insurance included) are never too pedantic if we're comparing cars. And if we're talking cost of maintenance, those lovely light aluminum body parts on the NSX are expensive to repair or replace, which can be problematic in daily driving or racing; it also drives up the cost of insurance.
 
I think Miatas are a bit too expensive new. But most of their customers are women and old men so straight line performance isn't necessarily an issue.
 
I agree with you on NSX being a great car and that ~30K is not too bad for it. Does anyone ever buy a new Miata? I mean it seems to be a fairly steep price for what you get.
People do, but people often get rather steep discounts on them. I was considering trading in my '06 GT on an '09 Sport when the Sports had an MSRP of $22,000 and a $5,000 rebate AND it was a leftover on a dealer lot. Some of the new, less-than-100-miles Miatas were going for $18,000 at the time.
 
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