Karl on Cars

Good take. Keep in mind, the Miata needed to grow to fit a guy my size in it, and I'm only 6'0" tall! Fitting in the first gen, it was easier to drive looking over the windshield than through it. Now... well... I'm still glad I was a wrestler in high school. Anyway, also worth noting that 2000/400= 20% weight gain, par for the course these days.

I find the price of the Miata to have gotten out of hand. Maybe it's partly the usual Canadian gouging but 30 grand for a base Miata (sorry MX-5) seems to be at least 5 grand too much for what you get.

I agree with both scott and bepper.
 
I'm 6'2", and I look overtop of the windshield. Thus, no Miata for me.
 
I really like how the current generation looks though.

Agreed, still true to the original mission despite the size and weight gain. Far better than any of the competitors, anyway - I'm thinking of Solstice and Sky. I might prefer a Z4, but that's in a whole 'nother price range, and I would have a hard time justifying that extra cost no matter how wealthy I was. (Assuming I ever am wealthy, I probably didn't get there by being frivolous, right?) Perhaps a Boxster, but that's mid-engine, doesn't offer the metal convertible roof, and again too expensive.
 
I also think the current generation styling is really good. To my eye, they nailed the 21-st century roadster look. The fender flares work as long as you get some big enough wheels under them. And I don't miss the pop-up headlights here as much as I did on the Corvette, although I'm pretty much over that by now. I hope the next version isn't as swoopy-doopy as the rest of the Mazda line-up appears to be headed. Will be interesting to see how they make it share the family resemblance, different enough from the current version without being too different from the original icon. There's a fine line between "classic" (911) and "retro" which I am getting tired of (New Beetle).

Fantastic car. My family has owned several miatas since 1991 and they've been incredible little cars.
 
Love'em. Light, RWD, best shifter around, great handling, low on frills...

The first generation Miata was a fun car to drive. Remember inspecting them before delivery at the dealer. They sold those Miatas like hot cakes. One Miata (first gen.)limited edition was the Britsih racing with the Nardi wood steering and english leather.
 
The new car looks sharp and follows the classic lines of the old one. Yes, there are more powerfull and expensive options but none of them is a Miata.

We have owned so many Miatas… our first was an ’04 Mazdaspeed, which was joined by a ’99 10th Anniversary Edition (10AE). An ’06 Grand Touring replaced the Mazdaspeed, and an ’06 Sport replaced the 10AE. Both Miatas went away for a while (replaced by two Volvo S60s… a 2.5T and an R--what were we thinking?). Now, an ’08 Grand Touring shares the driveway. And I’m always on the look out for a super cheap first gen to play with. I also sold first gen and early second gen Miatas (in fact, I think I originally sold the 10AE that we ended up with!).
 
Being in a local 200+ cars Miata club, I certainly get to hear a lot of other opinions. Most of the club came to the conclusion that the third gen had jumped the shark. Bigger, more comfy, heavier, strange to look at… But, then they drove it. It basically provided all of the Miata’s thrills while adding creature comforts that the car was sorely lacking. I was hooked the first time I drove the third gen at Mazda’s R&D headquarters in Irvine (a special club sneak peek). The newfound low-end torque added a whole other dimension to the car.
 
The addition of the retractable hard top sealed the deal for so many that were on the edge, particularly long-time Miata owners. I remember I was scorned for being the first one in the club to get the third gen. Now it seems everyone is driving the third gen. And that’s how I know the Miata has not jumped the shark. The first gen owners that swore they would never get rid of their babies… the ones who claimed the second gen ruined the Miata name… they all have big smiles plastered on their faces as they drive around in their third gens.
 
Now, if Mazda could just get rid of the 4x4 ride height… the most popular modification to the third gen are lowering springs! Not only does the car look a whole lot better, but the car’s already razor sharp handling gets amazingly better.

That's cool, I come back to visit your blog after some time and you're talking about the Miata!
 
I have a 2nd gen, and you're right that it was a compromised car. It lost some of the go-kart feeling of the first, but didn't gain a whole lot of comfort. Midway through that generation they 'upgraded' the engine to require premium and the initially optimistic power gain turned out to be very disappointing. But it's my favorite styling out of the Miata generations, particularly the rear and the flanks, and the top is much more convenient (glass window, no zipper) - I raise and lower it all the time so that was a big deal to me. The 3rd generation's top is an even bigger step forward.
 
Thanks to my poor car history, my Miata is the most powerful, heaviest, widest, and most luxurious car I've owned. It's also had the most quality issues. I'm sure that's not typical. But everyone who's driven one knows how much fun it can be... on my way home I keep slowing down or circling until I can get an onramp to myself and that just makes my day.

I have a MazdaSpeed, which is the only second gen I like. Other than that, I'd try to get a first gen R.

"In looking at the Miata's basic specs over its three generations there is an undeniable weight gain -- from just over 2,000 pounds for the 1990 model to 2,400 pounds in the current roadster."
 
That's true for pretty much every car out there. Today's Civic is the size of a 90s Accord.
 
I like the new model the best, I never thought flip up headlights suited this car.

I don't think the Miata ever jumped the shark. It's always been a fantastic racer and it dominated SCCA for many years. It also single-handedly pushed Alfa Romeo, MG, and others out of the US.
 
Would I say it's gotten soft? Sure. But it was so hardcore to begin with that I don't hear people complaining. And 2400 lbs is still a featherweight compared to most cars today. Heck, even the S2000 (it's closest competitor?) weighs 2776 lbs.
 
My best friend has a CPO Mazdaspeed Miata and that thing hauls. It's weird because it's like driving a mini version of my car, which feels small. Very tossable.

When we had our long-term 2006 Mazda Miata, I compared it to my personal car, a (first-generation) 1997 Mazda Miata. You can find my blog posts about the experience here:
 
http://blogs.edmunds.com/roadtests/185
 
http://blogs.edmunds.com/roadtests/194
 
-- Brent Romans, Senior Automotive Editor, Edmunds.com

i love how the car looks and this car is a featherweight by todays standards. it does get a little pricey with the options, but a base model will only run you about $20k, which is also cheap by todays standards.

Although the Mazda has definately gained weight I dont think it strayed away from its original mission. You have to consider additional safety, emission standards as well as market evolution compared to 1990.
 
"Would I say it's gotten soft? Sure. But it was so hardcore to begin with that I don't hear people complaining. And 2400 lbs is still a featherweight compared to most cars today. Heck, even the S2000 (it's closest competitor?) weighs 2776 lbs. "
 
Miata and S2000 arent direct competitors as the S competes in the next segment of roadsters. The only direct competitor to the current Miata..errr.....MX5 is the Solstice.
 
The S2000 has always been a hardcore vehicle although Honda did soften it just a bit with the AP2 versions (04-current). AP1s especially the 2003s (quickest steering ratio) were truly hardcore. Now Honda has the S2000 CR which is the hardest of them all.

Never really driven a Miata, nor really wanted to, (not much of a small car fan...), but I just had to say that I too love flip-up headlights! Unfortunately they're probably one of those things that aren't ever coming back (stupid EPA), unless you count those self-aligning HID's. Truely a Shame.

I love the quick one hand up and down top.
I could sit there for 30 minutes just flipping the top up and down and look like an idiot. It's so mesmerizingly cool.

I don't get people complaining about the first gen miata being too small. I'm 6'2' and it's the most comfortable car I've ever driven. Now if only the drive shaft pulley wasn't so poorly attached it'd be perfect.

benson2175, Edmunds' Director of Vehicle Testing, Dan Edmunds, would probably agree with you. I think he's around 6'2", too.
 
Check out the awesome photos of him racing his first-gen Miata at his CarSpace page.
 
http://www.carspace.com/actualsize

I agree that it's not too small. I'm 6"1", 200 lbs and I fit great in a Miata. I drove lots of them in the 90's when I worked for Mazda and still believe it's the best true sports car on the market. The S2000 is a great car too but it's almost twice the price and it's not anywhere near twice as good.
 
My favourite has always been the original 1.6 base car. Nice cammy engine gives a real sports car feel, more then the torquer 1.8.
 
No power window or locks (easy to reach both doors), no A/C (it's a convertible), no leather (slide around too much) and best of all, a low price.
 
I have 2 little kids now which makes a 2 seater impractical for the moment. In the future I will definitity look into picking up an older Miata to drive when I need a reason to smile.