mgs
[Top] [All Lists]

Re: Nostalgic Design

To: Wildbil923 <Wildbil923@aol.com>, mgs@Autox.Team.Net
Subject: Re: Nostalgic Design
From: Jim Carlile <j_carlile@yahoo.com>
Date: Tue, 5 May 1998 19:53:05 -0700 (PDT)
---Wildbil923 <Wildbil923@aol.com> wrote:
>
> I guess I need to jump in here.  I own a Healey, MGA, and a Sprite. 
And I
> love them all.  I also own a 1990 Miata.  The Miata's a great sports
car in my
> estimation.  The MGB's a great car too, if my memory of driving an
early B as
> a lad of 17 serves me well...

Don't get me wrong-- I don't hate the Miata, or newer cars. It's just
that I was really disappointed in it. It does maneuver well, but
there's something missing there. I'm not that old, so it's not a
nostalgia thing. I think what put me off originally was all the hype
from Auto-mag Brit bashers who, while getting paid off to promote it
in print, kept rolling out that old defamation that our LBC's were
"notoriously unreliable"  or some other slander.

I bought my B new, and a more reliable car could not be imagined--
especially for those years. Every problem I ever had was easy to fix,
and usually the result of my putting off PM. When I hear about how
much better made the Miata is, my blood starts to boil-- most British
cars have suffered this unfair comparison due to:

1. Incompetent DIY maintenance over a long period of time,
or
2. Guys with XK(E) Jags in the early 60's having their local gas
station do carb tunes or valve jobs on them.

There's nothing really wrong with the Miata-- I'm just tired of its
owners (almost) always needing to defame  the Brits. in comparison. I
guess the ride is a matter of taste, but I really admire the design
philosophy of those old Limeys!

Jim
'74B


<Prev in Thread] Current Thread [Next in Thread>