How many miles is too many..? [Archive] (2024)

MX-5 Miata Forum > All Miatas > Pricing and Dealer Discussion > How many miles is too many..?

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uzukiel

18th July 2012, 22:08

I'm sure this question gets posed a lot...but I'm soon to be looking for a new car and I've been in love with Miata's for forever. I can't decide if I'd rather have a cheap sport bike, or a cheap Miata, and in my search I found this down in Nashville. $3500 seems cheap for an NB that's not in rough exterior shape...and there aren't any pictures of the engine bay, but the car is being sold by a Mazda dealer, so that kinda gives me hope, despite the 190k+ miles on the odometer.

I guess my question is...is this too good to be true?

http://www.usedautosnashville.com/Used-1999-Mazda-MX-5-Miata-For-Sale/VehicleDetails.aspx?ps=15_1_4_0&av=18ab7bee-08ca-405d-9d01-9af8cb377dc5

Want

18th July 2012, 22:26

190k is a lot of miles. Probably explains the price.

uzukiel

18th July 2012, 22:31

Greg 713

18th July 2012, 22:34

What I'm looking for in a car right now is something that will get me the 20 miles to and from work every day without any major drama for a year or even two. I'm not against turning a wrench now and then. Just want a car that isn't going to break the bank in replacement parts for a couple years while still being fun to drive.
If rust free then consider the car. It will require maintenance but with care it should give you two years with little drama. The car is in it's sunset years so don't expect a lot out of it when you sell it. Advantage over a bike is it can be driven more often. Disadvantage.... well the right grip on a bike can be pretty fun to twist. :-)

uzukiel

18th July 2012, 22:35

So can the right tires/shocks/struts on a miata ;)

Larry-D

19th July 2012, 08:21

They've had that car for awhile so you may be able to get them to lower the price. Don't know anything about it other than seeing it advertised. Here's the Craigslist ad:

http://nashville.craigslist.org/ctd/3089172827.html

tom4416

19th July 2012, 08:51

Way overpriced for the miles IMHO. Looks like some really crappy tires on it, shocks are probably original and need replacing, no idea of maintenance history so plan on timing belt/water pump routine. You'll put at least $1500 in that car, more likely $2000 to bring it up to "needs nothing" condition and then you'd have $6,000 in a $4000 car.

I would never buy a car with those miles unless it was (a) dirt cheap or (b) I had detailed maintenance records since new and it was never neglected.

zen

19th July 2012, 13:10

To answer the question posed by the title of this thread, some people will buy a car with 190k, but the sale would be conditional.
I would never buy a car with those miles unless it was (a) dirt cheap or (b) I had detailed maintenance records since new and it was never neglected.
I would agree with tom, except that I would make the (a) and (b) conditions CONjunctive rather than DISjuntive (IOW, it would have to be dirt cheap AND have good paperwork).
This car does not meet condition (a). That ends the inquiry for me. Since it is at a lot, I would doubt it meets condition (b). That ends the inquiry even if your conditions are disjunctive.

p10anniv

19th July 2012, 13:39

I would say that 200k or more miles is too many

Billy

19th July 2012, 13:42

With the goofed up dash and black wheels, it screams 'kids car' to me.

If it was local to you, it might be worth a look over. Since it's not, I wouldn't bother.