Hi all, let's talk about the 2003 Club Sport Miatas. I know that 50 were made, and they did not have AC or PS. Was this the only trim in 2003 to not have those options? If not, how else do you tell if a car is a real Club Sport, short of having the VIN?
In reply to thatsnowinnebago :
IIRC they were also all white, and half had a soft top, while the other half had no soft top & only a hard top.
I believe you’re correct that these were the only way you could get an NB2 Miata without p/s and a/c. Also, even almost 16-years later I doubt any current owner wouldn’t know what it was & thus be advertised as such.
From Moss Miata:
Limited production base Miata, no air conditioning, no audio system, no power steering and no windblocker, intended for SCCA competion racing. One option with factory installed hardtop and no convertible top, other option with factory soft top only. Production limited to 50 cars, Classic Red and Pure White only color choices.
Apparently the rear spoiler was the only other option. I'm not 100% confident on the suspension details.
No PS is the tell. The only NBs without PS were the 1999 base model and the 2003 Club Sport.
They were a sales disaster ("but we want a stripped out model!" cries the internet, sitting firmly on undisturbed wallets) so most were sold super-cheap. A very high percentage got modified with turbos and superchargers and suspension mods and radio installs. I know of at least one that got an AC retrofit.
Looks like I might need to send an email then... Did they all have the LSD and sport suspension?
I'm having a hard time figuring out the value of an un-modded one. Cursory searches on Ebay and google haven't shown much, which I guess makes sense for such a small production run.
They did all have the LSD and the Bilstein suspension.
The most valuable part of the car to me is that manual rack - I think the NB implementation is far better than the NA implementation, and they're rare. But the market does not view the Club Sport as being special or desirable at all. They're more likely to sell at a lower price than other NBs due to the lower option level, which makes them a good cheap base for modification. Since there's absolutely no badging or identification, it's likely that most of them are no longer identified as Club Sports.
In short, "Club Sport" hasn't meant anything for years. It's just an NB with no radio, no AC and no power steering as far as the market is concerned - which is really all it ever was.
Darn, I was hoping the rarity would make them more valuable. Thanks to this thread, I've figured out that the cheap 2003 near me is definently a club sport. I was hoping that it would be a flip candidate for a good profit but I guess its just more of an interesting footnote in Miata history.
I guess I should add that I'm almost in the market for an NB. Seeing this one with 126k for $3600 makes me think. It's also been for sale for well over a month now so I imagine that plus the impending rain here might make the owner willing to deal a bit. It's got new brakes and new tires, which is nice. I also like the red color 
Keith: My old miata was a 91 with manual steering. I didn't mind that at all, but I also didn't know any better. Can you elaborate a bit on what's better about the NB rack? Better ratio? Is it worth jumping on or would I be better served waiting for one of the myriad other NBs with PS to come along?
For the price, go drive it- regardless of the package. You will find out if you like it or not.
While it's good to get information about stuff, don't let other people decide for you if you like how a car drives or not. Even IF this is a better steering rack than on your '91, you may not like it. The only way you will tell is if you go drive it. Just like you will know if you are ok with the other missing features. Heck, you may even appreciate them more....
In reply to alfadriver :
That's true. I'm almost trying to get y'all to talk me out of it, but this is the last place to expect that.
I wouldn't buy the car because it was a CS, but if you like it I'd buy it regardless of the CS heritage.
The NB manual rack has the same ratio as the NA unit, but better feel. It'll all be detail changes internally. The NA manual rack was famously developed at the last moment, I think they were able to take more time with the NB. Definitely go drive it. I haven't had my hands on an NB manual rack in years, but I do remember they had great feel without the weird loading I don't like about the NA unit. Maybe it's all that caster they put in the NB subframe.
Is it a soft top or hardtop car?
In reply to Keith Tanner :
Soft top. Having a hardtop included for that price would have been awesome.
You'll need to log in to post.
