I kept seeing a silver 2001 Miata in Auto Trader that was priced below what other dealers were charging, so I figured it might have been a junker. Finally, just to see whether I should continue to obsess over it or disqualify it summarily, I decided I would go and look at it. It was a base model that looked good and had a matching silver hardtop. I had driven a '97 Miata just before this that had been a huge disappointment - rust in a lot of places and the engine was very weak - my wife's Suzuki Esteem wagon could run away and hide from it. But the 2001 had a strong engine and only slight rust on the windshield header and one of the wheel arches. It has taken a while to get used to cruising at 4000 RPM on the highway but it could also run away and hide from my old RX-7 convertible, mainly due to the short gearing and lighter weight. And it was only $500 more than the owner of the '97 was asking.

So on 04 June 08, I bought it. There are no mods so far other than a vacuum gauge slung under the glove compartment and an STR oil filler cap that I got at a garage sale for $1. When finances permit, I may be looking to unleash a set of mods on it and it looks like this is the right forum to learn about adding power.