Gerry & Arlo,
Now that we're well into psychoanalysing cars or owners, I wonder if it is
also a matter of supply and demand. From what I've seen of the Miata (and
I've never driven one or ridden in one), the design and construction are
excellent. If the car has any downside at all, it is "to common." Imagine,
you can walk (drive) to your nearest Mazda dealer (and in most cases there
is at least one within 100 miles) and order one or pick one up. Imagine
that you then notice that "the kid-on-your-block" has one just like it.
Imagine if the "kid" is of the female kind [this just for you male
chauvinists ;-)]
Imagine now that instead of a Toyota badge, the car sported a Lotus badge
and that there were only two Lotus dealers in the US and one in Canada and
that you had to wait five years just to get one in whatever colour it
happened to arrive.
Whether the Miata will follow the same path as the Sprite will depend very
much on what arrives next on the horizon. Why, just the other week, the
Winnipeg Free Press featured an article on a restored Nash Metropolitan.
Just some thoughts.
Chuck Vandergraaf
'52 +4
Pinawa, MB (that's "Manitoba" for those of you who are wondering)
> ----------
> From: Gerry Willburn[SMTP:Gerry.Willburn@trw.com]
> Reply To: Gerry Willburn
> Sent: February 18, 1999 11:16 AM
> To: alevisen@gdhscats.org; Morgans@autox.team.net
> Subject: RE: Responding - again.
>
> Arlo,
>
> I think the point is NOT whether a well maintained Miata will last until
> 2028. As you point out ANY well maintained car will last another 30
> years.
>
> I think that the question was rather, will Miata enthusiasm last another
> 30
> years, or is it another passing yuppie fad and that the Miata is doomed to
> the same oblivion as the Sprigets and Spitfires (and there will still be a
> few of them around in 2028).
>
> Gerry
>
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: Arlo J. Levisen [SMTP:alevisen@gdhscats.org]
> > Sent: Wednesday, February 17, 1999 10:55 PM
> > To: Morgan Mailing List
> > Subject: Responding - again.
> >
> > DFL'ers:
> >
> >
> > Secondly, I think it is a bit of a stretch to assume there will be few
> > Miatas around in the year 2028. My particular car is a 1991 edition
> > with 65,000 miles on it and I have yet to fix any part of this car.
> > There are Miatas in the Club that have reached 300,000 miles and are
> > still running well.
> >
> > It is hard for me to be pessimistic about the potential longevity of
> > well-built, well-cared-for automobiles.
> >
> > Later,
> >
> > Arlo Levisen
>
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