Tired of your Miata? Throw a kit on that whip!

The world of bodykits and aftermarket aerodynamics is a weird and wonderful world of automotive personalization. On the quality side there’s decent stuff, and there’s shlock. Companies like Dobi and Zender came up in the seventies with spoilers and the first aero sideskirts for mass production – before that people did their own flares and spoilers. On modern imports "Combat" and other aggressive kits add gaping radiator intakes, wings, spoilers, side skirts, vents, and flares in occasionally cartoonish proportions. Retro-inspired kits have traditionally been more popular in Japan than US, and the Miata is a popular basis for a total makeover. Here are some examples – with varying degrees of sacrilege. Below Pit Crew Racing takes a Speedwell Sprite front end theme and molds it with a Datsun Roadster rear end taillight treatment – I kind of like it.





The Hiroshi 2000GT kit attempts to capture the glory of the Toyota 2000GT roadster (from Bond film fame) and the detailing is impressive. The rear end overhang proportions leave a little to be desired when compared to the black and white image of the real thing.






The Manta (below) is a generically Italian themed bodystyle – sort of a shrunken Iso Grifo front end.



Miata based Cobra gets it all wrong. Cobras were also copied on MGA’s and MGB’s with similar success.




Ah, the Mustang Miata – this is just weird, but the detailing is disturbingly accurate. Who’s to say there isn’t a Monster Miata 5 liter Ford underneath.




The Aston Martin is a little difficult to pull off, but it looks better than the Cobra.


Miami Vice light – a small reproduction of the Corvette based 365 Daytona Spider replicas. Brilliant!

Perhaps this is the worst, the 1955 MGTF Miata… You could park it next to your Mitsuoka Galue in the garage…

Progress: '49 Ferrari 166 vs. '08 Mazda Miata

By Martin Swig

I'm about to take delivery of a new Mazda Miata, because I think it's the best new car out there. My conclusion is based on the idea that it offers so much and asks so little (price, fuel, maintenance) in return.

Sports cars always were lean and lithe, with wind-in-the-hair, small dimensions and tossability. Then something happened and they got bigger, heavier, overaccessorized, and very expensive. Many became more an object to be seen in rather than to be enjoyed.

The Mazda redefined sports cars by incorporating all the good stuff in a bullet-proof, low-maintenance, long-life package. Its designers did everything right; more importantly, the car's greatness was determined by all those things they could have done, but didn't, in misguided efforts to make it "better".


The original Ferrari 166 Barchetta that won the 1949 Mille Miglia redefined things in 1949 terms. It occurred to me to compare my Mazda to two early Ferraris. Look at the table below, and you'll see a good definition of "automotive progress."

There's no denying the greatness of the Ferraris and the huge influence they had on the automotive world. That probably balances the joy that the Miata has brought to hundreds of thousands of owners.

So, on I.P.U.P, or influence-per-unit-produced, maybe the Ferraris win. But side-by-side in Del Monte Forest or Torrey Pines, I'll bet the Mazda would leave either Ferrari for dead!

New Market Report at MotoringJStyle.com

The MJS Market Report is back… and with good news to report! The market is strong and as predicted, interest in vintage Japanese cars is growing. With The New York Times and other major media outlets reporting on the scene semi-regularly these days, it’s no surprise prices of the 60s/70s/80s cars are creeping up. Witness the $12,000+ paid for a street modified Mazda RX2 this month, and a stock 150,000 mile AE86 bid to almost $6,000… with the seller rejecting the bid! It’s happening… and we’re here to cover it!

October 2007 MJS Market Report