Car & Driver: Better Racer, Lesser Bargain: Mazda Improves Its MX-5 Miata Cup Race Car for 2017

[FeedBot]

-

When Mazda announced last year that its purpose-built MX-5 Miata Cup race car would sticker for $53,000, we lauded the racer’s affordability. Having sold 108 (!) MX-5 Miata Cup cars, Mazda and Long Road Racing, its partner that actually assembles the Miatas, is gearing up for a second year of production and has implemented a few changes. The good news is that the changes improve the Miata race car. The bad news is that the price has gone up.

-

Although race cars don’t exactly follow model years, it’s safe to categorize the updated Miata Cup car as being ready for the 2017 racing season. The price rises from $53,000 to $58,900, thanks to a new racing-spec transmission, motor mounts, differential-housing bushings, and engine-computer tweaks. The changes are aimed at enhancing the car’s durability, namely the gearbox, which keeps a number of stock components but has been upgraded to last longer between rebuilds. Mazda has been rolling out the changes to existing customer cars (remember, the Battery Tender Global MX-5 Cup is a spec racing series, so the cars must all be the same), and it’s even throwing current owners an incentive to buy the new car (should they want another): Buy a new MX-5 Cup car by mid-September, and the price will be the same as last year. After that point, it jumps to the new, higher price.

-

-

---

-

• -
• 2017 Mazda MX-5 Miata RF: The Fastback You’ve Been Waiting For, Only Better-
• 9 Things You Need to Know About the 2016 Mazda MX-5 Miata Cup Race Car-
• Mazda MX-5 Miata Research: Full Pricing, Specs, Reviews, Photos, and More-

-

---

-

Nearly $60,000 may seem steep for, well, a Miata, but consider that this is a brand-new turnkey race car. It comes with a full safety cage, a sealed engine, a stripped interior—basically everything you need to go racing save a seat, which Mazda specifically leaves out so drivers can pick their favorite chair. Front-running used Spec Miatas, based on either the first- and second-gen Miata, can cost nearly $40,000, so to be able to purchase a new race-prepped Miata for a bit more seems worthwhile.

-

-

View the full article