This past weekend’s selling price for a 1992 Miata wearing the highly desirable Sunburst Yellow: $12,200. This one sported a hardtop, the stock daisy wheels and just 52,000 miles on the odometer.
Predictions as to what a car like this will bring a year from now?
(And remember that time we bought one for $700 and turned it into …
What's interesting about that car is that it's not exactly pristine. It has clearly seen a paint booth (which is acknowledged in the auction) with the deletion of the black rockers, the addition of black to the windshield surround and the color-matched mudflaps. The lower body modifications make the car look stodgier IMO and the black windshield surround doesn't work well with the hardtop. But more importantly, they are clear modifications to the one thing that makes this car notable.
Well sold :)
Yup. It's close but not A+. But, still, I wonder what the market will say a year from now.
Keith Tanner said:What's interesting about that car is that it's not exactly pristine. It has clearly seen a paint booth (which is acknowledged in the auction) with the deletion of the black rockers, the addition of black to the windshield surround and the color-matched mudflaps. The lower body modifications make the car look stodgier IMO and the black windshield surround doesn't work well with the hardtop. But more importantly, they are clear modifications to the one thing that makes this car notable.
Well sold :)
BaT is weird! It just takes the right conditions and buyers for the price to take off. Sometimes that won't happen, I guess it has to do with getting that intial attention and keeping momentum going throughout the auction. Last minute interest also can lead to some bidding fun since BaT doesn't technically end if people keep bidding.
Personally I've bought 1 car and sold 1 car on BaT and I don't think I will go back, it was fun to watch but it really didn't gather more than if I would have sold it on a Facebook Group or Forum (those that still exist other than GRM!).
In reply to Keith Tanner :
And I'm with you on the rockers. Painting them body color makes the car look chonky, while the black windshield surround clashes with the hardtop.
The front bumper was clearly repainted as well because nobody bothered to put the Mazda logo sticker back on - a common failing because they were NLA for a long time. I made my own out of vinyl.
I will probably be selling one of my own Miatas soon - gotta thin out the fleet a bit. It's not a collector car, but I'm really tempted to put it on BaT because the FM name is so well known there and it'll do well. I could put it up for sale on GRM but I'd feel bad asking for what I could hopefully get on BaT. Gotta do a little cosmetic cleanup first though.
Wow, that feels like a lot. Low miles but it's far from perfect.
The windshield surround and rocker panels are kinda weird choices - it's like they took the contrast away from the areas where the car needs it, and added it to where it doesn't. It looks like a big yellow bar of soap with the top down. I'm not a fan of the body color mudflaps either.
I wonder if this is an artifact of the lack of mechanical variation on the 1.6 cars? It seems that most of the time when a car with a lot of examples becomes collectible, the ones with high value are the models that are mechanically different and less common -- bigger/better engine being the most obvious factor. Mazda doesn't really do that though, almost all of the "special" Miatas are mechanically the same with just cosmetic differences .
I've said for years that my pick for the collectable NA is the black and red with the unique interior and (unfortunately) the first appearance of the R Package suspension. Yellow is close behind but it has a stock interior, it was literally just an optional paint color.
100% agreed that in the lack of notable mechanical variation, it all becomes about the colors.
The color matched hardtop is what sent this price into the stratosphere. A decent hardtop is a $1500 proposition currently. Now add that it's an uber rare color, I'd guesstimate that added $3000 to the price of the car
You guys don't what to know what we did to our Merlot hardtop...
Good hardtops have always been about the same price. I remember being excited to get one out of Quebec for $600 back in 1993 when the going price was more like $900. Now do the math :)
Pristine NA BRG/Tan cars seem to bring a pretty penny too.
If I had my choice, BRG for me. (So, wrong to wrap my white one in BRG?)
David S. Wallens said:If I had my choice, BRG for me. (So, wrong to wrap my white one in BRG?)
I painted the rockers on my car BRG. It's subtle but works pretty well.
I've never thought the NA looked good in BRG. It likes bright primary colors. But if you're selling the dream of an old English Sports Car but without the hassle, you have to do BRG/tan :) And hey, you know what they say about opinions.
My NA pick would be a 94 R in Laguna Blue.... or chaste white. I really miss my white R that I sold. That was a mistake. I rarely have sellers remorse with a car, but that one I do.
The used car market is crazy right now in all aspects. I have a car on BaT right now and it met reserve in less than 48 hours. It will be going to a new home.
Since you guys brought up BRG and tan combo......Marketplace - 1991 Mazda Miata Special Edition · Special Edition | Facebook .........$12,500
I think any collector-clean NA with tan leather interior will bring the bucks because the leather they used on those seats was more like paper. I don't think I've ever seen a driver's seat that wasn't shredded to bits, a clean original one would be seriously rare.
All-original chaste white cars would also be really rare because every chaste white Miata I've ever seen had the paint flaking off in big chunks.
Note: Crystal is the 1990-93 color that has a tendency to flake, Chaste is the 1994-97 white that seems to stick.
And yeah, the leather sucks. And it still sucks based on what I can see on our NDs.
Chaste (stock) vs Crystal (Martini). You can see why I chose Crystal for the base of the livery.
David S. Wallens said:If I had my choice, BRG for me. (So, wrong to wrap my white one in BRG?)
Me too. I still miss my 
BRG, number 403.
White is always my first choice for a car. Living in Florida is a big factor in that, but besides the fact that it doesn't absorb as much solar radiation, I think it just looks good.
I agree with the choice of crystal white when you see the two of them together, it's a really nice color.
I just brokered a 96 with 18K miles for 14.5K in a undesirable color with low options. Buyers are out there for these things. I wish I had held onto my 94 R.
There was considerable discussion of this particular Sunburst car among the 'collectors' on Miata.net... many subtle defects noted, including the obvious bodywork/paint. There was even a thread there on the same car in 2018 when it was previously for sale.
The consensus amongst the serious Miata collectors there was it sold well above what it should have. Once again, BAT brings the $$$.
18-22k easy in a years time for pristine low milage example.
Am I the only one that doesn't see that as a crazy price? It's a low mile, fun car, in a cool color.
'we can debate the "flaws" all day long, but to me it's a lot of car for the money.
put the top down and go for a ride.
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