SgtSpike

Hi, new here, and looking to pick some more experienced minds.

Alright, I love roadsters. I'm trying to decide what to do in the coming years, whether to keep my existing Miata or buy a different one or a different roadster altogether.

First off, I'll tell you all that I'm not much of a car guy. The furthest I've really gone in auto repairs is to change my own sparkplugs and brakes. I just don't like working on cars much, lol.

My current car is a '95 miata, 126k miles with numerous problems. It's a salvage title car with some sort of subframe damage on the drivers-side front which causes that wheel to ride about 1" lower (into the wheel well) than the other three. It's been repainted (yellow), and the front-end is now completely polka-dotted with chips in the paint, not to mention it's starting to peel in a few other places. The top leaks at the windows because it doesn't fit properly (probably because of the frame damage). It's got a crankcase leak ($1k to fix in the shop), a chip in the alternator pulleys which causes alternator cables to go bad quickly, and a new problem recently cropped up where my windshield wipers won't stop once I turn them on unless I fiddle with the fan speed ****... go figure.

There's probably other problems with it that I can't remember right now, and that's not even including the problems I've already fixed. I've replaced the clutch, the alternator belt numerous times, had a spark plug pop out while I was driving and had to have the mechanic put in new threads for it, had all the water hoses replaced, had the head gasket replaced, general tune up, etc.

All that aside, it doesn't take away from the fact that this car is a BLAST to drive. My dad bought a Miata a few years back and got me sold on roadsters, the Miata in particular. Handling is excellent, I love doubling the corners and getting the tires squealing. Acceleration is alright, not the greatest. It's got a flying miata 4-2-1 exhaust header, so that helps a little with the HP, but I'd really like something with a bit more power behind it, and that (along with the problems my current car has) is what is getting me looking to buy something different.

So, I can either turbo my Miata, buy a turbo'd or super'd Miata (or a Monster Miata, now that'd be fun!), or buy another roadster that's already got a good deal of power, such as the Z3 or Z4, S2000, Boxter, or Solstice GXP. I don't really like the Solstice because there's no trunk space with the top down. The others I don't believe have that problem. The biggest advantage with the Miata is that it's cheap.

Opinions? Thoughts? Also, where's a good place to look for turbo'd miatas? Autotrader and Vehix don't have any, lol. I noticed a few sold ones here, but none currently for sale.

kotomile

iTrader: (24)

If it's an already built turbo miata you're after, just check back here from time to time, there'll be one for sale.

tronik

iTrader: (5)

I got through less than half of your post.

Sell that car. Don't spend any money on it. Miatas are too cheap right nowto get that thing to any point where it would be worth spending discretionary money on it.

SgtSpike

Not around here... if my car was in decent shape, it go for $7k here in Oregon at least. They're a rare commodity. I bought this one down in California, so I got it cheap, but if I want to buy another, I'm going to have to cough up a couple more thousand than it is worth or fly/drive to California or Washington again. Which is why I'd like to make a second car worth it, and get a turbo'd.

I've been only fixing things absolutely necessary to keep it running thus far, but I'm getting tired of things not working properly... so, I'm in a bit of a tough spot. I'm thinking maybe next summer I'll have some money to buy a new car. My wife and I are both still in college and just bought a house, so money is slim right now, lol. So I'm mainly looking for options for the future.

I'll keep checking back here though for anyone selling any turbo'd miatas, cause that would be awesome. I don't want to put one in myself because I'd have no idea what I was doing, and I don't want to pay to have someone do it because it'd be insanely expensive, so buying one with a turbo already installed seems like the best option...

tronik

iTrader: (5)

lol wut? a salvage miata with 126 for $7000? tell you what - I'll sell you my 99 NB with under 75k for $10g's. I'll even ship it to you. That's a steal, right? Hahahahaha

SgtSpike

Well, a non-salvage title '95 with 126k miles would probably go for 7k here, yes. At least... A 99 is currently listed for 9k. Prices on cars here are ridiculous... just look at autotrader.com for the zip code 97402 and you'll see what I mean, lol.

patsmx5

iTrader: (16)

Uh.....

I paid 5700 for a 99' NB w/111K miles back in August 06'. Needed a soft top. You can find good NA's for 2-3K all day long. If you aren't seeing them, then you're not looking in the right places.

tronik

iTrader: (5)

pssst...na with hardtop $3k
1991 MAZDA MIATA
NB 5k
1999 Mazda miata

SgtSpike

That '99 is a good deal...!