NMNA - great condition Miata hardtop, black

Best condition hardtop I've seen in the Midwest for a while. It's got me thinking about trading out mine instead of re-painting!

https://tulsa.craigslist.org/cto/4998502026.html

I will be taking delivery of a NA with hard top in the next few weeks. Before I put the top up for sale, why are they so popular. Is it a safety requirement for racing? Car details NA 5 speed 120k miles, runs rough, all stock. My plans for the car are Rallycross and DD. Once the car is running properly I will need free or cheap parts to update worn stuff and upgrade. My recent Lemons addiction is eating my car budget so this will need to be super low buck. Selling the top will reduce the cost of the car to the point that I can stay married. I am in Michigan, send a message if you are interested in the top or contributing to my cause with used leftover parts.

You can't rallycross without a hardtop, so... uh... don't sell it.

It's a strong suggestion / requirement for racing. They're also great at making the car a bit more stylish and secure in urban areas. They're a reasonably uncommon option. Finally, people want them, so that drives the price.

I'm also in Michigan and may be interested in the top. The hitch is, I already have a roll bar installed, so I'd kind of need to test fit it to be sure it would clear before I know if I'd be interested.

As for why people want them: NO, they are absolutely NOT safety equipment, but many racing series (probably most importantly, Spec Miata) require them, I think more for keeping "flying stuff" out of the cabin than for any sort of rollover protection. A lot of people also want them for cars that are daily driven since they hold heat/AC better, lower cabin noise and, by some accounts, help a little bit with chassis flex. Before you cut it loose, you may want to be sure you don't need it for rallycross events with whatever your host organization is going to be.

Thanks for the input. Now for those parts, the car is coming with one bent aluminum wheel. Anyone have a spare stock 1990 wheel?

akylekoz wrote: Thanks for the input. Now for those parts, the car is coming with one bent aluminum wheel. Anyone have a spare stock 1990 wheel?

I have a few, located in Bowling Green, Ohio.

akylekoz wrote: I will be taking delivery of a NA with hard top in the next few weeks. Before I put the top up for sale, why are they so popular. Is it a safety requirement for racing? Car details NA 5 speed 120k miles, runs rough, all stock. My plans for the car are Rallycross and DD. Once the car is running properly I will need free or cheap parts to update worn stuff and upgrade. My recent Lemons addiction is eating my car budget so this will need to be super low buck. Selling the top will reduce the cost of the car to the point that I can stay married. I am in Michigan, send a message if you are interested in the top or contributing to my cause with used leftover parts.

I would wait for a month or so before you decide to sell it. They don't pop up THAT often unless you're in a Miata hotspot, and you might find you love it. I certainly love mine. The convertible part of the Miata matters very little to me.

kazoospec wrote: As for why people want them: NO, they are absolutely NOT safety equipment, but many racing series (probably most importantly, Spec Miata) require them, I think more for keeping "flying stuff" out of the cabin than for any sort of rollover protection. A lot of people also want them for cars that are daily driven since they hold heat/AC better, lower cabin noise and, by some accounts, help a little bit with chassis flex. Before you cut it loose, you may want to be sure you don't need it for rallycross events with whatever your host organization is going to be.

You're allowed to run without a roof in Spec Miata, but the aero penalty is huge. It's naked cage or OEM hardtop. Spec Miatas don't have soft tops.

I agree; they won't keep you safe in a rollover. If you do not have a full roll cage, most racing organizations require your car to "not be a convertible" before they'll let you on track. Even if an organization allows convertibles with a roll bar, you have to pass broomstick without a hardtop. All of these things make hardtops desirable (and essentially required) for PDX/CTT/HPDE track days.

SCCA RallyCross has a strict "hard roof only production car" requirement. Bolting on a hardtop is the only way to satisfy this requirement. Cages or roll bars don't matter; just the roof. Horray for insurance requirements.

BMWCCA doesn't like convertibles so you'll want the hardtop for their track days. They'll probably want a roll bar too.

SCCA PDX will let you run with a hardtop bolted on and no other safety equipment. They'll also let you run with a broomstick-friendly roll bar and race seat combo.

I will look into my local rules. Can't believe the hardtop would help much in a roll, so if allowed I would prefer a bar and sell the top. The top will only get used by me if it is required.

On a muddy day I'd rather roll with the top on then the cage tubes sinking into the mud exposing your head to the weight of the car.

Just say'n

In testing, the hardtop is worth 7mph at the end of the back straight at Sebring, and 10mph at Daytona. If you run without it, you will have to use arm restraints, which aren't expensive, but annoying to have to keep up with, as they are easily lost.

Wow, thanks for all of the help. I didn't mention that I'm getting this car for $500. It has rust and runs rough, with only 120k on it I'll bet I can make it run right, if not or it's too rusty it may get passed along.