1994 Mazda MX-5 Miata

Mazda Miatas are the most common car in all of Sarasota Florida. An affordable 2 seat convertible with a sporty look makes a great ride for the retiree that doesn't want a used Mercedes-Benz E-Class and cannot afford a Maserati (I see at least 3 Maseratiis a day and they usually have elderly women with enormous earrings at the wheel.). The Miata was built in Hiroshima Japan and has one of longest runs of a Japanese car model in the USA. (The Honda Accord & Civic, and Toyota Camry & Corolla have run longer). The Miata appeared on the market in 1989 with an MSRP of $14,000 (around $25,000 today) The car was huge hit and the factories could not keep up with demand for them. This example most likely has a 1.8L inline 4-cylinder under the hood. (The engine was standard in 94, Mazda made no body alterations from 89-99 so it is hard to pinpoint the year of make without the VIN number) The engine made 131 horsepower which doesn't sound like much but in a car the weighed just barely 2,000 pounds it was plenty. A 4-speed automatic transmission was available but most buyers opted for the 5-speed manual shift. The success of this car is due to the different lives it could lead. 1. It was cheap for a sports car which made it available to a much larger group of people. 2. The styling is very European and it looks right at home among the Jaguars and BMW's at the country club. 3. It gets good fuel mileage 19 city/25 highway, 4. Reliable,  a lot of high end sports cars spend more time in the shop than on the road. The Miata could be driven daily without much worry. 5. With a little bit of tuning they are wicked fast. Miatas are a common sight in amateur road-racing. The Miata is to amateur road-racing what the 4th Gen Monte Carlo is to amateur stock car racing. Street tuners like them too there is a wealth of aftermarket go fast goodies available for Miatas. So if you wanted a sports car to cruise to the country club in or if you wanted to turn some fast laps at Willow Springs Raceway without breaking the bank the Miata could do both for you and bring you home at the end of the day. This example has lived a long life in the Florida sun as evidenced by the damaged rag top and I would be willing to bet if we looked inside we would see an odometer that is over 100,000.