LM: ND Miata

My wife has decided it's time to move on from her 2015 Jaguar F-Type R coupe. She recently rode in a co-worker's ND and loved it. So it looks like we're in the market for one.

As you can imagine, I want the sportiest model/option combination possible. Luckily she wants a manual too. And, from quick research, it looks like the 2019 models got a decent revision? So what do I need to search for when looking for a relatively new but used ND?

2019 got an engine that loves being spun past 6k, the earlier cars were less eager after that point. If you don't go over 6k, you won't notice much difference. The gearboxes were weaker for the first few years.

I like the GT specification myself, and the ND2 (2019+) GT-S with the leather and LSD and Club suspension is the pick of the litter. The Bilstein suspension on the 16-17 soft top cars is not awesome, all the others are good.

Don't pay extra for the BBS/Brembo package unless you are constrained by class rules. 

Keith Tanner said:

2019 got an engine that loves being spun past 6k, the earlier cars were less eager after that point. If you don't go over 6k, you won't notice much difference. The gearboxes were weaker for the first few years.

I like the GT specification myself, and the ND2 (2019+) GT-S with the leather and LSD and Club suspension is the pick of the litter. The Bilstein suspension on the 16-17 soft top cars is not awesome, all the others are good.

Don't pay extra for the BBS/Brembo package unless you are constrained by class rules. 

Thanks Keith. So any GT-S will have leather, LSD and club suspension? And, other than seeing GT-S listed in the description, are there any telltale signs a mode is a GT-S?

Having just finished my search and bringing home a 2019 RF GT-S, the easiest way to tell is looking for a black roof on an RF or the engine bay strut tower brace.

IMO the Recaro seats aren't any better than the standard seats but they're a heck of a lot more expensive. I don't like leather seats so the Club package was optioned the way that I wanted. I think the LSD is non-negotiable for me in these cars, although you could get a Sport trim and add the LSD aftermarket. People will debate to the death over whether the soft top or RF is superior.  I've had three different soft top Miatae and I love my RF, would never go back to soft top unless I absolutely had to have a roll bar. 

Leather and Bilsteins (or the shock tower brace) is a GT-S. It's not a well-known model name, I got it from a Mazda PR guy but I don't know if it was ever used publicly. It's not necessarily the leather I want, but the extra chrome in the interior as well as the extra accessories is why I prefer the GT over Club. Just personal preference.

I took a friends ND for a spin a couple months ago.  That was a mistake.

I think about it often - loved it!

For 2020, Mazda dropped the "GT-S" trim and now every manual GT includes the Bilstein suspension and LSD. All GT's have leather, choice of black or some other color depending on the year (white, terra cotta, oxblood red, it seems to change every other year). I have a 2021 GT and love it dearly. 

I agree, don't pay extra for the BBS/Brembo/Recaro unless you find a really good deal. It's not bad equipment, it's just a bad value for what you get. $5k for 4-piston front brakes, meh wheels that are no bigger than stock, and nicer seats. The regular 2-piston brakes with good pads and fluid are plenty for HDPE's. 

Can't discuss a Miata without talking about height. I'm 6'0" and needed to install a seat-lowering kit. It's a very small car, so go sit in them. Even if you just barely fit under the roof, your sight lines and visibility may be awkward. My seat kit fixed all that.

Soft-top vs RF is a purely personal decision. Both are great, let your heart decide. I have the RF and love it.

Don't cheap out and get a Fiat 124 Spider, even though it's the same chassis and assembled by Mazda. That Italian engine is a turd. Trust me. 

Thanks for the thoughts so far. Please keep them coming!

So far, I think she wants a soft top and I would assume leather, though, here in FL, sometimes leather in a convertible is a bad idea. Is there a trim level that gets the nice suspension and LSD but not the leather? That said, I'm a sucker for red leather!

<edit> Is there a good enthusiast forum for the Miata that includes classifieds? 

Club trim is manual only, LSD, Bilsteins, and cloth seats. 2019 was the 30th anniversary edition, a Club trim with wild orange paint and Recaro seats. They command a collector's premium in the used market.

2020 there was a 100th anniversary edition which was a GT with white pearl paint, red soft top (or white RF), and red leather interior... It's very, very sexy. Pictures do not do the white pearl paint justice. It's stunning in person.

2021 GT got a the option of white leather seats and they're awesome for sunny, hot Georgia summers. I believe the white leather was a single year 2021-only option. I can't find info on which years had which color leather, but they must have switched from white to tan and/or terra cotta in 2022.

Miata.net is the go-to enthusiast owner's forum. 

In reply to dyintorace :

miata.net is the old school one, it's civil but there's a lot of "1 of 30 built on Fridays in 1994 with chrome exhaust tips."  Prices on there seem to match the manufactured scarcity attitude, though occasionally there are good deals to be had  

I've seen maschinenbau's white leather interior and it's really nice. The only color leather I would want here in GA. Think about how much you'll have the top down and choose interior accordingly. I have mine down basically any time it's not raining, so I tend to think of my interior more like indoor/outdoor patio furniture. I don't want to baby it, it will probably spend a lot of the year exposed to pollen, UV, sunblock, it has to breathe, etc. Hence the choice of fabric seats and thus Club trim. I bought mine used and it had Ohlins suspension and FM sway bars installed.  While nice, I've driven my friend's 2020 with stock Bilsteins and sways and I liked it probably as much as mine. There is more body roll but it's fun and predictable, makes you feel like you're really doing something with the car. 

I don't really have a lot to contribute here, except to add another voice to the chorus of encouragement. Mine is a 2021 RF GT, red over black. It's pretty great out of the box, though I strongly recommend adding sway bars (I did the FM ones), since the stock bars allow for a lot of body roll. Other than that, the only things I've changed are the little rubber door bushings (exchanged for the hard FM ones) and the pathetic stock horns for PIAA Sport dual-tones.

The RF vs. soft top is tough - it's so personal. I am not naturally a convertible guy, so while I like to open the top periodically, the security and noise reduction of the hard top were the selling points. I drove mine 5,000 miles in two weeks last summer (NY to WY/MT/SD), doing 500+ miles per day, and it was comfortable and reasonably quiet, at least enough that I didn't feel beat up when I got out at the end the day. I don't know that the soft top would have offered the same comfort, but then I also don't know how many people consider a Miata a road trip car.

02Pilot said:

I don't really have a lot to contribute here, except to add another voice to the chorus of encouragement. Mine is a 2021 RF GT, red over black. It's pretty great out of the box, though I strongly recommend adding sway bars (I did the FM ones), since the stock bars allow for a lot of body roll. Other than that, the only things I've changed are the little rubber door bushings (exchanged for the hard FM ones) and the pathetic stock horns for PIAA Sport dual-tones.

The RF vs. soft top is tough - it's so personal. I am not naturally a convertible guy, so while I like to open the top periodically, the security and noise reduction of the hard top were the selling points. I drove mine 5,000 miles in two weeks last summer (NY to WY/MT/SD), doing 500+ miles per day, and it was comfortable and reasonably quiet, at least enough that I didn't feel beat up when I got out at the end the day. I don't know that the soft top would have offered the same comfort, but then I also don't know how many people consider a Miata a road trip car.

That is an interesting data point regarding the RF. I wonder if I could find one locally that we could drive in order to make a good comparison. 

Sit in the various seats before making a decision.  I had cloth in my ND1 Club and hated them.  Made my back hurt on longer drives.  So when it came time for my ND2, I got Recaros.  A little heavier but way better...for me.  Some folks have the opposite reaction.

I've driven an RF and totally love it. I'm hoping to own one sometime soon. 
 

Im really just posting here to be a lurker and see what everyone else has to say about them. 

Turns out a local buddy has an RF with the Recaros, BBS and Brembos. Pic below. I'm hoping we can go check it out soon!

I love my 30AE.  All of our other Miatas have hardtops, so I got the soft top and no regrets. I like the look of the RF but the blind spots bothered me. I very much enjoy dropping the top on the way home from work.

Dailied a 16 Club for a couple years. It had the BBS/brembos. I wasn't a fan of stock wheels so I liked it, it also seemed to help resale, had a couple buyers tell me they weren't specifically looking for a bbs/brembo car. It was the pre revision engine and before the Recaros so I can't comment on those. 

It was dead nuts reliable, I had an early trans and tried like hell to break it. Probably made a 100 passes in the car on a prepped surface. It was under warranty so I wasn't nice to it. Did a little autox as well. Loved the cat. Initially the 155hp was fine. I did an off the shelf 93 tune and RB exhaust. Tune made a good difference. A little later I did an E85 tune and it made an even bigger difference, completely different car. When I sold it and went back to stock tube the 155hp was disappointing, and I didn't find it as much fun.

I'm 6 ft and visibility wasn't a proble., didn't modify the seat and I could see fine. It was tight especially for passengers, my wife never complained but all my buddies (big guys) did. Very little storage space, which is obvious, but it's worth mentioning. Most of the time the pass seat was used as a storage space. The center console would only fit a stack of timeslips.

I'd get another one, but not without owning something faster.

I'm regretting not getting an RF 30AE. That orange is incredible and they seem to trade hands at near MSRP, even years later

calteg said:

I'm regretting not getting an RF 30AE. That orange is incredible and they seem to trade hands at near MSRP, even years later

Agreed. I'm a sucker for orange cars. And orange Miatas, as shown by my Challenge entrant years ago!

In reply to dyintorace :

...which was later MY Challenge entrant! 

Where is this beautiful creation now?

Nothing to add other than don't drive one if you're not prepared to buy one.

2021 RF GT Deep Crystal Blue over Napa White, just like maschinenbau. 

I'd agree that you may want sway bars, but I'm happy without for the moment.  The one mod I did was to make the RF top one-button & works under 30 mph which makes it a lot more fun and Miata-like.  I know it's "first world problem" but holding down the button for 13 seconds or whatever felt like an impediment to fun compared to an NA soft top of "click click fun."

I've got 19k on mine now, and I'm knocking back 34.9 mpg, daily driven.

calteg said:

Where is this beautiful creation now?

I sold it to a GRMer in FL who doesn't post much, and it disappeared several years ago. Not sure what happened to it.