Storz wrote:Woody wrote: *That* is not how I expected stuff to happen. It seems needlessly complex, but I still like the way that it looks when it's all closed up.Very Porsche likeSix months ago, I swore that I was done with Miatas. I'm not sure where I stand on the subject right now.
At a third or quarter of the price!
I know I'm alone on this one, but my response is: meh. Not that I dislike it, because it's sharp looking. And I've been drunk on Miata cool-aid for years...I've owned 4 or 5 of them, and would love to have another. But for me, part of the Miata's charm has always been that it's a convertible and has a ridiculously easy to use soft top. So the hard top stuff doesn't do much for me. Given a choice between this new model and the traditional one, I'd take the soft top 10 out of 10 times.
This is probably the most satisfying bit of disappointment I have experienced in a while. I said I would be disappointed if it was just a folding hardtop. But this is somehow so much more even though I realize that it is essentially just a folding hardtop...go figure.
If I can still crawl into a sportscar when I am done with the FRS, I will go looking for a used one south of the border. I suspect that here in Canada this model is going to break $60,000 by the time it is in the driveway. Weak dollar, lower volumes and 13% sales tax sucks.
^ I suspect more like $50k in arctic pesos.
I think the regular ND is an attractive car. I'm surprised this looks so much nicer!
Video added of the RF doing its thing at the debut last night:
So........a targa top with the added complexity of a folding hardtop?
Seems just a fixed roof is what many are clamoring for and would be cheaper, easier, and allow more storage space with a stiffer chassis.
In reality, don't really care either way since I'm not in the market for one.
i like the shape, if this had a fixed roof i would consider this.
All i'm doing now is looking over to Fiat and saying "and yours?" to them.
Feedyurhed wrote:Storz wrote:At a third or quarter of the price!Woody wrote: *That* is not how I expected stuff to happen. It seems needlessly complex, but I still like the way that it looks when it's all closed up.Very Porsche like
Don't forget the back window disappears in the Miata too. Be interesting to see what the difference is in cockpit wind buffeting.
I don't want the Porsche Targa at all, but I'd consider the Miata. I'd want it more if it were a true hardtop/hatchback or a simple targa.
I've had three Miatas, and I've removed the entire soft top assembly and bolted hardtops onto two of them. I don't need the sun beating down on me when I'm driving.
I just hope that it's easier to mount a race seat into than it was in my other Miatas. I hate harness bars, but I may have to trust the Mazda engineers to make that targa bar strong enough. It doesn't look like a roll bar is going to be an option, as it would be with a coupe.
The color of the car is perfect! The way the top works is pretty cool, the car looks great in any configuration.
The mainstream market probably demands folding hardtop to operate this way. I'm glad the designers keep the buttress section exposed.
I think I would rather have it as a hardtop coupe or a manually removed targa to save weight. Mazda has made a lot of good decisions without my input, they're probably right on this one too!
Woody wrote: I don't want the Porsche Targa at all, but I'd consider the Miata. I'd want it more if it were a true hardtop/hatchback or a simple targa. I've had three Miatas, and I've removed the entire soft top assembly and bolted hardtops onto two of them. I don't need the sun beating down on me when I'm driving. I just hope that it's easier to mount a race seat into than it was in my other Miatas. I hate harness bars, but I may have to trust the Mazda engineers to make that targa bar strong enough. It doesn't look like a roll bar is going to be an option, as it would be with a coupe.
Based on our install for our SEMA car - no easier than other Miatas. It's not a big car.
Given that the targa bar is not solidly attached to the car, I think it's fair to assume it's completely non-structural.
That makes me rethink my entire ND stance. I'd actually take a look at that when I'm done with the BRZ. It does look good. These days I simply do not want a convertible, and like Woody, I typically bolt on the hardtop, so short of a Miata with a fixed roof, this would be the next best thing.
Keith Tanner wrote: Given that the targa bar is not solidly attached to the car, I think it's fair to assume it's completely non-structural.
In some of the pictures you can see the roll hoops that look the same as in the convertible. I doubt Mazda would leave those in if they were not necessary.
I run a permanently installed hardtop on my daily driver NA because the sun here is wicked. Interestingly, when I bring home the shop NC PRHT or ND, I find I'll often drop the top. I never do on the NA or NBs when I bring them home.
I would rather have the hard top. I have no soft top in my NA anymore just a Harddog and a hard top that usually stays in place.
Woody wrote: *That* is not how I expected stuff to happen. It seems needlessly complex, but I still like the way that it looks when it's all closed up.
exactly what I thought. I mean, a targa top isn't very heavy especially if made of lightweight material. Would much prefer something manual than all that weight and stuff that could break to do what should be a simple task. That single image has tempered my initial high interest in this car, because it's just stupid.
With the back glass gone isn't it going to feel more like an open car with a roll bar than a traditional targa?
Yeah that isn't fastback. No sloped glass. Looks like the flying buttress off of a Gen 2 MR2 with removable glass like a Del Sol
Mind you none of that is bad. I like the way it looks. I think it will kill in sales.
Everyone keeps saying MR2 and Del Sol. Nobody says 308...
Keith Tanner wrote: Everyone keeps saying MR2 and Del Sol. Nobody says 308...
Hah, you're right! Mazda should offer it in bright solid red, and give you a free Tommy Bahama shirt to go with it 
Keith Tanner wrote: Everyone keeps saying MR2 and Del Sol. Nobody says 308...
308 didn't have a dropping back glass did it? I know the Del Sol did.
I'm more interested in the flying buttresses than in the minutiae of how the rear window worked in this case 
Keith, I see the similarity to the 308 -- especially with the black window section of the 'fast back'. But the proportions of the Ferrari, with its huge overhangs -- it's very different than the ND. I don't think most people will see it. For most people, targa roof, short overhangs = Del Sol.
In reply to LuxInterior:
So, it's a baby 308.
WildScotsRacing wrote: In reply to LuxInterior: So, it's a baby 308.
Uh no. It's not a baby 308. That's a different car.
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