how many of you guys owned miata before graduating to boxster?
 

It seems quite a few of the forum members owned miatas before. Myself owned 1993 and 2001 miatas before moving up to 2004 boxster S. I still love miatas for what they can do.
Don't really care for the 3rd generation's styling though.

I had a '91'
 

a great car, albeit a bit small for long rides. With the exception of the 3 batteries I went through, a very reliable and fun car to own.

Sold it when we got out '99'. I really like the new car, BTW. I think the styling id dead on and there is a lot more room inside. For $25k, I think it's a great car.

Miata is a great value for the money. Tons of fun, years of fun for very little money.

:cheers:

02 Here
 

I had a 02 LS I traded in when I got my 04 Box.

I thought it was a great little car for the money. I bought it primarily for my daughter to drive while in H.S. but did use it on occasion.

It unfortunately needed to be a auto which gave a whole new meaning to slow but I don't think speed is where this car excels anyway.

I would certainly consider another and have been meaning to go test a 06.

few cars corner like a miata on KYB's, JR Sways and Falken Azenis.
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hey Perfectlap,,

i had those BSP low profile headlights and TSI as well, on my 93 red.
ahhhhhh.. memories..
I donated 93 for tax credit.. It had 250000 miles on it. Other than a new radiator, everything was still original. That was one sturdy car.

I had a 91 package "B" Miata. It was a simple, no frills sportscar. I loved how I could throw it around as it was so neutral. In the 4 years I had it, the only thing that went wrong was that the radio switch malfunctioned and the rear window cracked due to extreme cold. Both items were fixed under waranty.

Steve, I too had a couple miatas.. a 94 and a 2001, traded in the 94 for the 01 on a whim and the 01 was totaled by someone pulling out across traffic in front of my wife.. pics here post 2

http://986forum.com/forums/show-tell-gallery/3629-replacement.html

Now have a 2000 S and really like it, of course. although already the parent of one of my wife's tutoring students backed into it.. 1200 bucks later (they paid not wanting to get insurance involved) I hope its all good. Also picked up a nail in a rear tire and had to have that patched... grr..

Anyway, while waiting at the dealer last month, I decide to stroll on over to the Mazda dealer and check out the new Miata. It looked nice and a bit bigger but I was shocked to hear that it had porked out to over 3000 pounds!!! holy crap, my 94 was about 700 pounds lighter as I recall!

Funny, I told the sales guy who wanted to show me around it that I just got a boxster but he was still trying to tell me how well it handled and that the bigger 2 liter engine with 170 hp could be a better car...hmmm, down over 80 hp and 200 pounds heavier...

The power of the boxster, the two boots and styling are all so great but the best thing is theres so much more interior room. I now feel like I'm driving a real car, not a go cart that I'm a cramped into! The only thing I really don't like is the plastic rear window.. on a car the originally cost 62k... kinda weak...

Sold my 97 "M" to get the Box. Had the Miata for 5 years. Only maintenance other than oil/rubber was an elec. window motor went out, and a new set of spark plug wires. Perfectly neutral on Hankooks, loved the handling. Complaints - not enough leg room for tall guys, needed a few more HP. 2006's have solved the legroom, not sure about power. FOT with the Boxster is more fun... :)

and its one of the most represented cars in grass roots motorsports. My buddy's sister was joking about "who goes from a Miata to a Porsche?!" I guess very few people know how many people actually track and autocross their miatas.

Had a '02 LS...
 

before my Boxster. Really liked that car alot. Sounded great w/ aftermarket exhaust. 6 speed was excellent.

Dare I enter this thread?

I owned not a Miata, but a del Sol.

Fabulous little car, I loved the turbine rocket sound as the VTEC kicked in. I think it was a highly underappreciated car. At 200k miles I came to a decision - trick it out for racing, or spend that money on a Boxster. So I got the Box, but looking back I always wish I knew how my del Sol would have faired with new intake and exhaust, sway bars, wheels and tires...

I bought my 99 Miata just after the second generation hit the market in June 1998. After many mods (coil overs, s/c, roll bar, bling-bling, etc.), I still have it and now use it as my daily summer driver. Was going to sell it to help pay for the Box but my wife and daughter talked me out of it. Glad they did.

I had one of the first ones brought into the US as I had a friend who worked at Mazda. I loved it and kept it for 9 years, selling it for a 325i convertible. I hear now they're just going to call it MX5 and drop the Miata name because it sounds too feminine or something. Go figure.

Guilty as charged
 

Had a 1996 M for five years before pulled the trigger on an 01 S. Loved it, hated to sell it, and still think the shifter on it was marginally better than Box. No regrets now, though. Obscure downside of the Miata was the name of the color: Mazda's version of navy was "Starlight Mica" at the time. "Lapis Blue" is better. (Or "Moro Blue Pearl" on my new S4 "need-a-back-seat-to-drive-the-small-kids-around" car.)

OMG I can't believe you stuck a DelSol in this thread... :barf:
Maybe the second worst "convertible" I have ever driven. Honda and brakes a match made in hell. The worst? the Chrysler Sebring. I bet if you drove off a pier it could float away as a tug boat.

Yep, I had an '01 Miata LS.

04S
bob

Me too - Had a new '90 and then a '92. Both great cars!

+1--'91'
 

Sold it 8 years later with 37K on it for , IIRC, around $8K. Terrific car, but not something I'd recommend for a long trip on a interstate. Hat's off to mazda for recreating interest in small,2 passenger ragtops--particularly, reliable ones.

by the way, I'm not sure I can entirely say I "graduated" to the Boxster. The Boxster is faster and bigger but doesn't have that extra something that a Miata on lowered and adjustable suspension with Falken Azenis has. People often say that the 1973 911 RS is the closest thing to a go kart, I often wondered if they ever drove a Miata(which had a much cooler sounding engine and exhaust, aftermarket of course).


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I'm here becasue I am considering getting rid of my 97 Miata for a 03 Box S. It's tough for me, the Miata (H&R Springs, Konis, Sways, Falkans' etc) is an autocross king and has been abused for 115k miles without any real problems (i cracked the radiator once). For me the only car I like driving more than my Miata is a Boxster - although the Boxster is more of a real car and less of a go kart. Can anyone who has made the switch give me any advice or suggestions. Also looking at a new 06 MX-5, I mean Miata.

Tim

Hi, I went from an '01 Miata to an '04 Boxster S. I think the key difference outside of horsepower is the Porsche is just so much more refined in every possible way! But, you'd expect that from a car that costs twice as much! Also, a key point the P-car is targeted at a hi-level market. As a result, and I'm never sure why this is? It costs more (much) for up-keep.

I can't speak to the new MX-5, so I strongly recommend driving it before ruling it out.

The 986's and 987's are great cars, and if you were to buy one you would not be unhappy--from a drivers POV.


good luck

'04S
bob

03 Boxster S is a good choice. You get a glass rear window with that one and some nice body changes to the rear.

The Boxster and Miata are both rear wheel drive, nicely balanced, sit low (stock) and have nice and loud high revving engines.

The Miata is a little more fun to toss around because the BoxsterS is soooo predictable and so well behaved. Its very German, it does everything its supposed to do and nothing more or less. But on the downside is that with the extra 100 HP over the 1.8 Mazda, even though the BoxsterS is extremely forgiving, you won't be getting away with Mistakes in the Boxster like you can with the Miata. In that respect starting off in a Miata is excellent and since you've already learned all of the fundamentals with the Miata moving up to the Boxster should be much easier than someone learning everything for the first time with a $50K Porsche.
The biggest difference is the tali happy nature of the Miata. Fun in my book because with experience you can really manipulate that and boy what fun that is.
THe mideninge dynamics of the Boxster put an end to all that oversteer.

if you go with the 03 call warranty direct or try to extend your Porsche warranty before there is a lapse in coverage otherwise they'll be unlikely to extend coverage. Maintaining this Porsche isn't so bad but its the unexpected repairs that will kill you. As far as Porsches go this car is as reliable as any they have built so far.

I've owned five Miata (two '92, '94, '00, '01) and my 1992 Black and Tan with 43,000 miles is my daily driver. My wife recently traded her S2000 for a Cayman and we've both been extremely pleased with it's feel and performance.

OK, be honest now. Does anyone regret switching from a Miata. Don't get me wrong, I love Porsche, but I don't quite consider it carefree cruising. I could really push my Miata and not worry so much about bending it up a little if I screwed up. I could park it almost anywhere. Can't do that with a Porsche.

would you park this just anywhere?

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I do have to admit the Miata did have an old school "connected to the ground'
feel about it where you could hear all the gears, I could hear my shocks squishing and compressing, etc. Kinda like being in an old 911.
I think it would be cool if Porsche built a barebones Miata type car like the Lotus Elise with a 2.7 with a targa top and my GT3 seats and light weight wheels and ....

Perfectlap, you Miata is beautiful. Love the rims. Hope you didn't sell it.

Had to let it go. Single guy with two cars that only have two seats? That would have been excessive. The 1.8 bullet proof tin can with 90,000 miles went to the new Florida owner for a measley $7,000 (twice the private seller blue book). I think I've spent that much on my Boxster upgrades already :confused:

Well I just made the switch, so I'm still on the new car "high", but I fear I will regret it come later this summer. With my 92 Miata that had no upgrades, faded seats, repainted, etc. I was able to go to run to a shopping center leave the car parked anywhere I wanted with the top down, unlocked and never worry about it. It was great for those errand days when running from one big box strip mall to another. I doubt I will leave the Boxster parked like that, and thus will end up with less top down driving :-(

What I won't miss is any Miata highway trips over 15 minutes :rolleyes:

Rob

These are two beautiful cars!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am currently anguishing a transition from my 91 Miata (got her as a barter for some legal work last year with 47,000 miles on her), to a Boxster. I have some upgrades on the Miata (new rims and tires, racing beat intake and dual tip exhaust, Hard Dog roll bar in the garage waiting installation) but before I go crazy with forced induction I'm exploring the options of becoming a Boxster owner (hence my trolling on this forum). Attached is a photo of the Miata.

are those the OZ super laggera's? I considered those before I went with BBS RK's and the full Racing Beat body kit, and Racing Beat Cold air intake, Racing Beat Exhaust, Racing Beat sways, KYB AGX shocks, FM Springs, FM Rear Shock mounts, Low Profile lights...hmmm... why did I sell that car again?

OH YEAH TO BUY A PORSCHE!!!

The BoxsterS is the ONLY car I would have sold that Miata for.
(well maybe Lotus Elise but you can't get three girls in that car like I did with Boxster one night).

Yes they are the OZ's. OZ is discontinuing them in favor of a new model so I got a pretty good deal on them. I had these same rims (in 17") on my STi and loved them. Handling is unbelievable after the installation of these rims and tires. I went with the Koni sport kit with yellow adjustables. Very nice. I'm 6'2" and while I fit pretty well in the Miata, my left knee wedges between the door and the steering wheel so autocross is a bit of a challenge.

Need to drive a Boxster to see how the fit is.

STI and a Miata? nice did you have an AutoX in your backyard too?
I'll never understand how big dudes ever drove the Miata. My friends father was the firs person I knew to own one and he was easily 260 lbs. Yet he drove that thing every day without a single complaint. (He later lost about 80 pounds on weight watchers)
This weekend I did the broome stick test to email some photos for someone interested in GT3 seats so I had my friend who is 6-1 230 lbs. put on my crash hat and get in my Boxser. No dice, He definitely would have needed the the roll bar extension. But that thing is good for everyone in general.
The Boxster will seem like a all expenses paid vacation compared to sitting in the Miata. No tilt steering but it does extend or retract closer to the dash. It took me a few weeks to get used to all the interior space. I hear the Cayman is even better.

Well, I gave up my 2000 Miata SE with 43,000 miles for an 2002 Boxster S with 18,000 miles last spring. I am still debating as the cars are so very different. The Miata is probably a more fun/carefree car and is certainly cheaper to maintain; however, the Boxster S is more a force of nature and more likely to attract attention.

While I do miss the carefree attitude of the Miata, the performance of the Porsche more than makes up for any loss.

Actually, I still miss the 914 I rebuilt back in the 80's.

john d
'02 Lapis/Grey/Grey S

No AutoX in the back yard unfortunately but I did get to run a Rally school course in Lake Butler, FL in the STi. That was a blast. To further confound, I also used to have a classic Mini. It was a riot to watch people as I pulled my 6'2" offensive lineman self out of that car. Surprisingly, the Mini had a bunch of room.

I like the low repair cost feature of the Miata since my other car now is a Dinan Stage 2 BMW 540. I've been real lucky with repairs on that car but I drive quite a bit - 36,000 miles last year - so it is nice to have the low cost alternative available.

Yep,

Had a 1991 silver Miata with a hardtop.
I did not really upgrade it is more like I totalled the car.
I got rear ended in a snow storm by a Lincoln Navigator while waiting at a stop sign.
The whole trunk was gone !!!!
I had a sore neck for about 2 months. :(

I'm considering making the switch to a Boxster from my 94 M Edition Miata. I would enjoy the additional space and power of the Boxster, but the Miata is a lot of fun to drive.

I have a 1990 Miata (MX5 in Australia) and recently purchased a 2003 model Boxster S (with 18 inch GT3 wheels). I couldn't part with the Miata so am in the process of convering it to be a club racer. I will keep it road registered so that I can run it in road rallies.
There is no doubt that the Boxster S is a much more competant machine, but the Miata is also a very tactile raw little machine and is allways fun to drive, particularly when you remove the soft edges that Mazda built in so it would apeal to a broader market. I will never sell either they are both motoring classics.

Tony W

Funny little pic I found..
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c134/JMaddness2345129/motivatora4d20ddb085de04a910e376bee.jpg