Miata Mailing List: May 1993, Message #16
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   From: (none)
Subject: glory days
   Date: (none)


Peter "hotsoup.peng!" indicated an inquiry about the glory days of gouging
in buying and bartering of Miatas...

The first I heard about a Miata was from the March '89 issue of Road & Track
which had a Nixsan 300zx and a pre-production Miata on the cover with the 
text proclaiming "Sports Car Revolution!".  After that all the press gushed
on and on, and USA Today documented the frenzy of profiteering that was
going on.  I was excited about the car and admittedly about making a profit
myself.  In the fall I found a dealer selling at sticker price, $1,000 non-
refundable deposit required, take-what -comes-in, wi      wait 7 weeks.
When I saw one up on the rack, I was convinced.  Impressive!  Finned diff-
erential, driveshaft bracing, (Power-plant frame), independent rear, TWIN
A-ARMS, it was cool!  So I got on the list.  My time for my first new-car
purchase was finally come, though rushed a bit by circumstance, and a
little higher than my price range allowed... but maybe I would be able to
sell it.  If not, it was a win-win situation.  Anyway the sticker pricing
was soon discontinued and I got a blue "A" package.  Like a dummy I hardlly
drove it so as not to put mileage on it... though I did put a little on 
with the speedometer cable disconnected.  (I've never admitted that....)
(I went so fast around a certain corner around my workplace that I truly
scared myself.  But I couldn't tell how fast, and I couldn't tell why I
couldn't tell, to my fellow workers.  Later on, I repeated these speeds.
certainly much faster than they would have believed had I known.)

Anyway, It quickly sold to another dealer for $1700 over sticker.  It hurt
to give it up.  Not much profit, either, what with taxes eating almost $1000
of that.  But I was hooked and bought the first red one I could get for
sticker again.  It took about 4 more months.  18,000 mi. and one year later
I traded that in on a BRG one in '91.  In two years it has 40,000 miles on
it and I don't drive it in the winter!  

I may buy another one sometime, but the green one won't ever be sold again.
Interestingly, it was the third one I bought for sticker.  Guess I'm a 
sucker... Then there's the story of how I was going to get a $100 bird-dog
fee if I brought a customer in to buyon        buy one at the dealership
who bought my first one and sold me the second.  After my freind bought his
red base model, (Sandy Meek.me) having repeatedly reminded the snake-man 
(sorry, SALESMAN), ABOUt MY $100, he tried to stiff me by $50.  I screamed
and hollered and yelled, driving customers out of the showroom literally,
that he wrote me another check for the other fifty.  I split it with Sandy.

Now I'm going out for a drive...

-this was Bix.