Folding hard top Miata impressions...

Test drove one in the dark blue colour. Quieter at speed with the top "up" than our 2002. No quicker but has got climate control which our

2002 hasn't. We are in the UK and without air con our 2002 steams up in damp weather and gets unbearable in hot wet weather when we can't drop the top. We ordered one last year and are hoping for delivery in March. The interior looks like it was built down to a price but despite the additional weight it still handles pretty well.

the trunk appears bigger because there is no spare tire in it. they have replaced it with a can of flat fix.

Nope. My '95 hasn't had a spare tire in it either, since, let's see ... 1995.

-- Larry

Strangely, "purty" is the last thing I would call it, especially compared to the old hardtop. The rear window is too steep and it's more of a bubble (a la BMW Z4) than the coupe look of the earlier design.

I don't believe Miatae have ever come with a spare tire. Some have put the RX-7 and RX-8 spares in them, but you're still left with a flat rim and tire that won't fit in the trunk.

I've added a tubless tire repair kit (plug) to mine and with the air pump that comes with the Miata, it hasn't let me down so far. The repair is quite a bit easier than actually changing the wheel.

Jim

Ah, I didn't realize this was a matter of belief. In that case, I believe I've learned how to pack around my Miata's spare tire despite its domination of my trunk. But far be it from me to argue the matter, because politics and religion are not appropriate topics of debate in this newsgroup. :-)

A tire? That's what that thing is? I'll be darned.

My 2000LS had a mini-spare.

I mean ... I *KNOW* it did.

I even used it. Twice.

-- Steve McMahon Green '07 Sport

Christopher Muto wrote: >

Is that so? I looked at the trunk of a new Miata when I was getting my oil change, but I assumed they had simply relocated the spare and jack into a little well under the trunk's carpet, like they did on my '99. I remember when I bought it to replace my wrecked '93, I looked in the trunk and told the salesman "Hey, the spare's missing!" because I assumed it would be up top like it was in the '93. Relocating the spare is one of the nicest little improvements from the NA to the NB.

Yours wdk - snipped-for-privacy@ij.net

Oh come on you guys !!!!! ALL Miatas from 1989 to the 2005 came with a "mimi" spare tire from the factory ! ( in the US ) If your Miata did or does not now have a "spare tire" in the trunk, under the trunk floor (by way of a kit), then it's because someone took it out ! 2006 is the first one to come out with "run flat" tires and a can to "fix" it.

Bruce Bing '03 LS

Wasn't 1990 the first model year for the Miata?

The correct answer is YES and NO.

I believe the Miata was introduced in the summer of 1989 as a "1990" model, since registration laws vary from state to state, there probably exist Miatas titled as 1989 models. FWIW, KBB lists 1990 as the first year.

A somewhat similar situation exists with the Ford Mustang which was introduced in the summer of 1964 as a 1965 model however, AFAIK, there aren't any major differences between the 1989 - 1990 Miata as there are between the 1964 - 1965 Mustang.

The NB is actually similar to something called the "Trunk Model" which Mazda built in order to show how the spare wheel could be relocated. Ironically, with the NC all that effort has gone to waste - you might as well get a NA, leave the space-saver in the garage and take a can of Tyre Weld or whatever it's called in the US.

Agreed. The last four or so tire failures I've had have all been unrepairable. If I'd had a can of flat fix stuff I'd have been totally screwed, as it was I put on the spare tire and drove on.

Which is one reason the current Miata is on my "DO NOT BUY" list until I win the lottery and can afford to have my chauffer follow me with a spare, a jack and a lugwrench!

I thought the age of horses circulating on the roads would be over. My average seems to be around 400000 km between flat tires.

I once helped a nice young lady changing the flat tire on her then brand new Golf V6. Of course she had a spare (space saver), which was buried under lots of gear - she was 1000 km from home. After unloading and changing tires, we found that the big tire wouldn't go in there and had to go into the car (cream leather... at least before the tire going in).

Anyways she lost the day because she couldn't get the tire fixed on Sunday. Did I mention it was raining cats and dogs? A can of tirefix would've been a 5 minute fix and allowed her to go on.

Thinking of that, the first thing that happened to my NA was that the space saver sleeps in the garage now and has been replaced by a can. Compensates for my overweight spoiling the acceleration, too... :-)

cu .\\arc

You're being very unwise IMHO. My last "flat" was a rip from the center of the tread, across the tread to the sidewall and up the sidewall almost to the bead. Let's see you fix that with a can of flat fix!

As I pointed out, none of my last 4-5 flats have been repairable, they've all been catastrophic failures of tread and/or sidewall and all caused by the same thing, someone leaving crap in the road that can't be spotted in time to be avoided.

BTW, I also found, after my last flat, that my Lincoln Town Car won't fit the flat back into the space the donut occupies and the trunk is always full of mobility scooter and scooter lift.

I'm carrying a plastic sheet now to protect the upholstry when the flat tire has to go into the back seat. Lots of work with saddle soap got the marks out from last time....

You seem to have extremely bad luck when it comes to tires; over 14 years of driving and owning twenty-some odd cars, I'm not sure I've had a catastrophic tire failure that didn't also include severe damage to the vehicle making it undrivable--I'm talking major deer collisions and one rollover. Tire issues have just never been a big problem for me, and as such, I've relied on Fix-a-Flat for close to a decade.

Maybe I'm just really good at avoiding things in the road--I choose well-handling vehicles like the Miata specifically to avoid situations like this. OTOH, one of the guys I work with has struck objects in the road three times in the last two years. I don't think it's a coincidence.

I believe certain Miatas are guilty of this. I've never had reason to place one of my Miata's 15" rims in the trunk.

Good idea.

Oh my tool for fixing that is even smaller: it's black, fits into even a Miata's glovebox and says 'Motorola' on it.

Roads must be better where I drive.

In case of the Miata, would you leave the wheel behind or the lady of your heart?

It may be smarter to take the wheel: if you left the wheel, you had to go back later to get it. The lady, most probably not :->

cu .\\arc

My '94 Australian-spec has an "emergency" spare tire. Looks kinda like a wheel pinched from a yellow wheelbarrow. All looks original to me.