Today’s Miata comes in black over a biscuit interior and wears the all-weather hardtop. It’s a bit worn around the edges, but we’ll still have to decide if its price makes it something you’d like to keep around.
The seller of yesterday’s gushed over the car, even to the point of asking for the first right of refusal to buy the car back should a future owner wish to pass it on. Based on the comments, that affection for the car wasn’t a feeling shared by many of you. To be sure, the driving experience of the 3-liter car is quite a compelling argument in its favor. Sadly for the Milano’s seller, its $8,500 asking price wasn’t. That fell in a surprisingly aggressive 67 percent No Dice loss.
Perhaps today we can find a car that we can all agree upon? Maybe something like this .
As we all know, the Miata is oftentimes touted as being the perfect car for all occasions. This NA edition looks to be in solid shape and comes in a fairly rare black over tan color scheme. Now, “Black & Tan” is fine if you’re ordering a beverage consisting of Guinness over Bass. Just don’t call it that in an Irish pub or you may end up .
In the Miata’s case, black isn’t this edition’s most flattering color. That being said, the paint on this 196,000-mile car looks to still be doing its job. The factory wheels also seem to be holding up their end of the bargain, with none of the wear evident on the center caps that is a fairly common occurrence on these models. Having both tops additionally increases the car’s attraction.
Leather covers all the main tactile surfaces in the cabin, as well as the two sculpted bucket seats. There’s a good deal of wear noticeable on the driver’s seat and on the steering wheel. None of it seems egregious, but there should be some new upholstery envisioned in this Mazda’s future. An aftermarket stereo sends tunes through the stock headrest speakers and some sort of add-on bass box. Other amenities include A/C, cruise control and power windows.
On the downside, the Miata is being sold with an airbag light displaying on the dash and some chipping in the paint. The latter is to be expected of a car of this age and miles driven. The 1.6-liter four and five-speed manual both seem to run just fine and are supported by 21 years worth of maintenance records and a clean title.
The NA Miata is a car that has already reached its nadir in terms of value and is now steadily marching back up that ladder. This one asks $6,500 to own. Pretty soon we’ll be looking at five-figure prices on cars of this caliber and will be happy not to be paying even more. Just ask anyone keen on a Datsun 240Z how that all goes.
Until then, we need to evaluate this Miata and that $6,500 price. What do you think, does that seem to be a fair deal for the car as it is presented? Or, does that price leave you with too many unanswered questions?
You decide!
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