How to value a miata?

So I haven't been following the values of miatas, other than they've gone up since Covid, just like everything else.  I went to see a somewhat interesting one yesterday and am wondering what's a fair value for it.

2002 140k miles, yellow with matching factory hardtop.  PW/PS/AC.  Flyin Miata Voodoo turbo kit, Vmaxx coilovers, nice wheels, paint is in great shape, wear on the drivers seat, hard dog roll bar, Robbins soft top with glass window.  Drives nicely, not huge power, but is eager.  Needs tires and probably the timing belt service plus a better condition drivers seat wouldn't hurt.  Also not sure, the door cards look like they're black leather (vinyl?) but it's got fabric seats, that normal?

I initially looked at it as maybe a cheap(er) car for the track so I could retire my 911.  Well, as most of you guys know, I don't fit well in miatas and this one is no exception.  With my helmet on, I barely fit underneath the hardtop and I'm well above the rollbar.  So that means installing a drop floor in it and even tho it has 140k miles on it, the car is way too clean for me to do that, I'll feel far too guilty about cutting it up.  So that makes it a street car for me and while the 911 isn't a convertible, the mission purpose of it and this miata do overlap.

Asking price  $13,900.  Figure there's maybe $1000 worth of needs in it between tires, timing belt and whatever else a 20 year old car with 140k miles needs.  Plus tax/title/plates. So basically I don't want to over pay for it, because after a few years if I decide I just don't really have a good use case for it, I don't care to lose thousands of dollars on it.  The mileage is the X factor on it.  Most miatas here in Colorado aren't peoples daily drivers, so very few of them have 140k miles on them.  So, asking the collective, who definitely know the miata world far better than I, what do you think it's worth?  Not a steal price, but a good price that's not robbery for the seller or put me in a position where I'd struggle to sell it in a few years or lose my shirt on it?

That seems high, even by today's standards. I'm probably wrong though.

That seems like a crazy high price to me. I know prices have gone up but I overpaid pre-covid, and it was still $8k for a 32k mile 2000 NB1 (stock no hardtop to be fair). If you're quick on the track you'll probably want something other than vmaxx and I'm not sure the turbo kit would hold up either... Not sure if we are talking w2w, TT, or just track days though.

For the price you could get get a NC or stretch to an ND, not sure what the Toyoburu prices are like now... Point is you could get a lot more value for your dollar IMO, especially if its going to be a track focused car.

Pretty sure OP is referring to this car:  https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/cars-sale/2002-miata-yellow-turbo-and-more-mine/255962/page1/

As someone who's bought and sold a few turbo miatas over the years, they're worth what someone is willing to pay for them. $5000-15k seems to be the range. I've bought running, driving, semi-sorted turbo cars for $5000, though it seems like they actually change hands around $10k. $15k would be the top of the market. 

Most "sorted" turbo miatas will still need $5000-6000 invested to run reliably on track. Wheel bearings, heat management, head gaskets, etc etc

In reply to spedracer :

It'd be a street car, maybe the occasional auto-x.  For it to work as a track day car for me I'd have to get a drop floor installed, plus race seats and probably a big brake kit.  Even with the high mileage it's too nice of a car for me to cut up with a drop floor. 

I just want to know what's a fair price for it, I just don't know the market on them at all.  Mods generally don't add all that much value to the car, but these will some as the wheels and turbo kit are top quality.

In reply to calteg :

Yes, that one.  It's fairly local to me and I know the owner from NASA track days.  It won't be a track car for me, too much irreversible work (drop floor) needs to be done to it for me to fit in it properly.  So $10k is a fair price for it with it needing probably $800-1000 in tires and timing belt/water pump?

There are lots of stock NBs listed at $10K without the turbo kit, hardtop ($2K) or the relatively rare yellow paint. I don't like where current Miata and all used car prices are, but that seems to be the market these days. You could offer less or wait and see if the price just comes down. I've waited for price drops on a couple of cars this year and the ads disappeared. If you snooze you lose sometimes.

I just got a mazdaspeed for 9500 with no hard top and none of the extras. I think that is right on point given the mods actually add a lot of purpose. 

Did anyone see this in ClassicMotorsports? There are deals on them still. Maybe this one was full of Mud (Bondo)? 

For that money and purpose, I'd be looking at an NC. Much better street car IMO, and I'm on my second NB. My current NB is autocross only, otherwise I'd rather have an NC. 

It's probably a pretty accurate price.

I'd want near $15k  for my turbo Miata but it has the roll bar, brakes, seats, and all the rest to be a track day weapon.

I'd say this is probably your best bet for getting a feel on turbo miata pricing:

https://www.miataturbo.net/cars-sale-trade-6/

Lotta cars around the $15k mark. Also a lot of cars that appear not to have sold. 

MyMiatas said:

Did anyone see this in ClassicMotorsports? There are deals on them still. Maybe this one was full of Mud (Bondo)? 

Speaking as the guy who wrote that item, that did look like a pretty good deal.

So, what happened? Wrong car for the venue? Did the car not look as good in real life? That is sometimes the mystery of an auction. 

I will say that if a foamectomy hasn't been done on the seats yet, that does a great job of correcting the helmet-to-hardtop lean issue if you're near the edge, but the real solution is to grab a set of sparcos and a seat mount. 

In reply to WonkoTheSane :

Nope, that doesn't do it for me.  In my old NA, I put in a factory seat that I'd totally stripped the foam off of, so I was sitting on the metal seat pan.  With my helmet on I was something like 1/4" below the rollbar.  There's simply no way for me to comply with a 2" broomstick rule in one of these without a drop floor. 

A foamectomy would probably make it more comfortable for me to drive on the street, otherwise I feel like I'm looking through the windshield header.

Calteg, yeah, the asking price vs selling price thing.  People can ask $15k or whatever they want but I'm curious as to what they're actually selling for...

I think the cheaper miata market went nuts, the nicer modded miatas i dont think have gone as crazy. 
That said,  really nice examples with all the right upgrades have appreciated but i think not as much as the entry level cars. 
 

the yellow NB we are talking about, I think the price is right in line for what it is. Its got all the good mods, known background and is known to Flyin Miata/Keith. Get it, enjoy it, do a seat drop if needed. Its not like you are going to try to drift it(and destroy it) on a mcdonalds budget like a kid.  

In reply to TJL (Forum Supporter) :

I just don't see myself taking it on track.  I'd have to do the seat drop, seats, harnesses, bbk, etc, etc.  Don't really want to put thousands into it like that.  If I get it, it'll be a street car for me, something I throw the dog in and don't care

Don't ask me.  I bought one, put the purchase price back into it in deferred maintenance and toys, and sold it for less than I paid for it.  I guess than makes me a pro, ask my advice, and do the opposite.

In reply to docwyte :

I raced my NA Miata with an aluminum race seat bolted directly to the floor and no pad under the cover.

In reply to DeadSkunk (Warren) :

I don't fit without a drop floor, period.  A stock seat with no foam in it at all basically is practically the same as sitting on the floor of the car without a seat and I still only had 1/4" of space from the top of my helmet to the top of the rollbar. 

I appreciate everyone chiming in on that, but that's really not what I'm asking for in this thread.  I'm far more interested in what the car is worth....

I dont have too much to ad to the thread but these two things:

1. Buying a car from a known person, in my opinion, has value. I would pay extra if I trust the person, just for the piece of mind. 

2. IMHO, Miatas are not for you. You already bought one a few years ago and promptly sold it. Sounds like you want to like them but you just dont fit in them. 

David S. Wallens said:

MyMiatas said:

Did anyone see this in ClassicMotorsports? There are deals on them still. Maybe this one was full of Mud (Bondo)? 

Speaking as the guy who wrote that item, that did look like a pretty good deal.

So, what happened? Wrong car for the venue? Did the car not look as good in real life? That is sometimes the mystery of an auction. 

I'd be worried about why a low mileage, supposedly "clean" car needed a new paint job. Plus, if you're looking for a low mileage first year collector's car you probably want the original paint. 

David S. Wallens said:

MyMiatas said:

Did anyone see this in ClassicMotorsports? There are deals on them still. Maybe this one was full of Mud (Bondo)? 

Speaking as the guy who wrote that item, that did look like a pretty good deal.

So, what happened? Wrong car for the venue? Did the car not look as good in real life? That is sometimes the mystery of an auction. 

Bringing a car with a repaint to a high dollar collector car auction, that's what happened. It might be a quality repaint, but it's no longer the sort of car you salt away to make money on. So it sold under market. There were a few thousand dollars left on the table, but not tens of thousands.

The only stock NAs approaching $30k are ones that are lower mileage and perfect.

Yellow cars are love em or hate em.

If you love it and you can't build it for the price, buy it.

If you are ehhhh on the color don't buy it, since no one else will buy it either.  Its a rare color for a reason.  

In reply to 93gsxturbo :

Note that this particular color is rare because it was only offered on a car you had to buy online, which was a pretty interesting experiment in 2002. They never hit showrooms.

I'm staying out of the pricing discussion for this car.