New Car - 1999 Mazda Miata

New Car - 99 Miata

Hi there! My name’s Hunter, and I’m excited to share my story about my ‘99 Miata right here on this website. And what better place to start than at the beginning?

Back in March 2021, I was on the hunt for a second car. At the time, I was rocking a really nice 2014 Honda Accord that my grandma had passed down to me when she gave up her license. But as much as I loved my Accord, I wanted something I could tinker with and customize on my own. Unfortunately, the CVT Earth Dreams engine in my Accord wasn’t exactly screaming “mod me.”

Being a recent high school grad from the class of 2020, my budget wasn’t exactly baller status. I had my heart set on a 2008 Mustang GT, but with prices ranging from $15-20k for the model I wanted, it was a no-go.

Then, my stepdad, Michael, sent me a link to a review of the Mazda Miata. I hadn’t really considered Miatas before; to me, they were just cute little cars with pop-up headlights. But as I dug deeper into research, I started to see the potential. I saw the car as a cheap, reliable ride that was also easy to work on. It seemed like the perfect project to start while staying within my budget as I worked toward purchasing the Mustang.

I had my heart set on a 1997 M Edition Miata. Why? Honestly, I think it was because my friend Logan had one, and I loved those pop-up headlights. One day, Michael sent me a link to a ‘97 M-Edition Miata at a place called Expoline Auto. However, when we called, we found out it had already been sold, though it was still listed on their website. The owner encouraged us to come check out their other models since they specialized in Miatas.

Michael ended up making the two-hour drive to visit their shop, and while they didn’t have the ‘97 Miata, they did have a ‘99 Mazda Miata that fit my budget. Michael test drove it, called me, and said he really liked how it drove, but there was one minor detail the guys at Expoline mentioned: it had a salvage title from a car accident in 2019. With Michael’s advice, I thought, “What the heck, let’s do it.” And that car has since become my greatest love, even if I probably care about it a little too much.