After seeing the disarray that the white Miata had become, I was feeling a bit discouraged. However, I still hopped onto Craigslist that evening to continue my search.
I found a 1992 Miata that had been listed only the day before.
From the photos, the car looked to be in fairly decent shape, and the price was certainly reasonable. I called the seller to ask him some questions about the car. He said that it did run well, and that he's had it for the past 7-8 years or so. He also said that there was no rust on the body, which was great to hear. I arranged to see the car after work the next day.
Within an hour, my phone rang. It was the seller.
"I just wanted to call and tell you, before you make the trip..."
My heart sank. I was sure he had sold the car to someone local. I knew it was too good to be true.
"I wanted to let you know I did find a little spot of rust on the car. Just wanted to make sure you still wanted it."
Wanted it?! Yes, I still wanted the car, which apparently had two small spots of rust. The seller said we could "talk about the price" which I thought was more than fair to begin with. You could say I was sufficiently excited about this car.
Monday morning at work was relatively slow, which allowed me to escape long enough in order to make the trek to see the Miata. I borrowed my boss's Ford Expedition and set out to pick up my tow dolly, and then down to the car.
I arrived in Somers Point mid afternoon, to a plain, small ranch house with an empty driveway. I got out of the Expedition and walked a few steps towards the house, when the seller, a short, slender man in his mid to late 60s greeted me from the driveway. He shook my hand and I followed him to the back of the house.
I walked past an immaculate fox-body Ford Mustang notch-back, and a 90's Dodge Ram 1500 that looked like it had never seen salt. In front of me as I turned the corner, was a late 80's RX-7, and the Miata, looking much better than I had expected.
"It looks good", I said, trying to hold back my enthusiasm until I drove the car. It took a real close inspection to find the spots of rust on the lower body in front of the rear wheels, but it appeared to be fixable without having to do major bodywork. The car had been painted once, but appeared to be a good job, as it shined up nicely, and all of the emblems were back in the proper places. I wasn't a big fan of the aftermarket wheels, but the rest of the car looked great!
The seller gave me the keys and I got in to take it for a ride. To my surprise, this car was equipped with the very same aftermarket radio which my first Miata had. This was a small, but funny coincidence. On the road, the car felt planted. The clutch engaged well. The brakes worked and did not pulsate. The top looked to be in good, usable shape as well.
I returned to the driveway after my short test drive, and smiling, asked the seller why he was selling the car. He said he wanted to spend more time on his other cars, and pointed to his garage where I saw this Camaro. No further explanation required! What a car!
I was confident that this Miata had been in the hands of someone who could take care of it, and purchased it for $2300. I think it was a great deal, considering the others I had looked at.
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