Hank it is easy to see why car shopping is an ordeal for you. You are all over the board and trying to compare apples and oranges. Cars for use are not investments and what type or brand might retain value this week might not next year.
Well what’s killing me is the mini was an easy choice. Back then there was no question. I instantly loved driving the mini. I liked the way it looked, it was practical, it was in budget, at the time mini’s were keeping their value amazingly well. I figured getting the last of the first generation would mean all the bugs had been worked out. I just had to pick my options and order a car. I didn’t have a place to do repairs so keeping my old Celica was not an option.
I’m not finding any car right now that’s the total package. The Miatas fun but too small. The mustang is great looking but not fun to drive. The wrx is fun to drive but doesn’t have the looks. The Mazda 3 if ok but everything about it feels like a compromise. The civic hold a lot of promise but isn’t available yet.
GTI? Not great reliability, but a step up from the Mini.
@Hankscorpio Driving a Wrangler on a daily basis is PUNISHMENT, unless you live in rural Alaska where the car’s capabilities would come in handy. Reliability is dreadful and gas mileage poor.
Forget about insurance costs, it’s only part of the overall ownership costs.
To be thinking about a Miata and a Wrangler on the same page proves you have NO FOCUS, which makes it hard to chose anything.
Maybe if you tell us your 1) marital status, 2) age, 3) working or student, 4) location 5) children, if any, and how much you can afford to spend (not how much you can afford per month), WE can give you some rational advice.
By the way, we do this all the time and most posters thank us for helping them with the decision making. But pleas get rid of the Mini Cooper, it’s a permanent money pit.
Hank, all I know is that I know a young single mom who wonders every morning if her old beater will start who would LOVE to have your problem. And I know that there are millions like her across the country.
My recommendation is to keep what you have running, and keep trying to narrow down the choices, until you’re finally ready to make a decision. My sense is that the need isn’t great enough quite yet.
Sincere best.
This is off topic but can you imagine Hank and Ed Frugal attending a new car together.
FYI the wrangler was never even a serious consideration. I was just blown away finding out about resale and insurance.
GTI was on the list really didn’t like the clutch and didn’t see it as enough of an improvement for the $$$ over the already great golf. However in my book Mazda 3 defeats golf and civic defeats 3.
If you can’t drive stick though the vw DSG trasmission is great.
@Hankscorpio Yes, everything in life is “a compromise” You and I are both compromises. I love music but lack coordination to learn to play an instrument. I love golf but am not strong enough for long drives! And so on. If you were to get married, the girl will seem perfect, but like all humans, she will be a compromise. Successful politics is based on compromises. The only crappy compromise was the Missouri Compromise.
Only Jimmeny Cricket could wish upon a star. Walt Disney did not have to deal with reality.
A friend of mine loved the Miata, bought one and then found he had a bad back and was over weight, and it was a pain to get in and out of one. He sold it and bought a…Mazda3 Sport and found it to be perfect for him. His wife wanted an all weather vehicle that could cross the Rocky Mountains in any season (she has a son on the West Coast) , and she bought a Subaru Forester and equipped it with good winter tires. A Hummer might have been better, but she has a lot of common sense. This couple has enough money to buy whatever was for sale.
Soooo, go drive a Mazda3 Sport for a day and let it grow on you. My wife is a lot older that you but drives like most 25 year olds. And she loves her Mazda3 Sport.
I drove a 1996 Miata for 3 years as an only car with no problems. It would hold 3 big bags of groceries in the trunk. Of course I had no dogs. It was the most “balanced” car I ever owned with adequate power and flawless handling. Every time I ran it through the “twisties” my smile matched the perpetual one it had. I had a buddy with an Irish Setter and a MGB. The dog loved riding shotgun!
I have heard the Mazda Miata described as an MGB that starts every morning.
@BLE Yes, the Miata is everything the MG B should have been and never was.
I wholeheartedly agree with the Miata/MGB comparison. As a matter of fact I’ve read that the original Miata design goal was to replicate the feel, sound, and fun of the old MGB. I remember reading that they even spent time working to create the MGB sound in the exhaust system.
What is interesting to me is that the Mazda Miata is considered today’s MG B and the MiniCooper is.today’s Morris,850 (or the identical Austin 850. Both designs have stood the test of time–_I test drove a Morris. 850. back in 1960. It drove better than most cars of that day., The MG. B goes back to the early 60s.
Interesting comparisons. I agree.
Both the MGB and the Morris Mini Minor 850 were instant classics. I do have to say that the Miata is a much better replication of the MGB than the BMW Mini is of the Morris. The BMW Mini borrows the looks of the old Morris, but the feel is totally different, and the cost the opposite of the Morris. The Morris was designed as an inexpensive, highly utilitarian mode of transport for a European market still recovering from WWII. The BMW Mini was designed as a niche car and priced well beyond its utility… a premium price for those who can afford it. I was surprised at how high the price was when BMW came out with its mini. IMHO it’s way too high for what you get. I test drive one with my son at the time, and was also surprised at how rock-hard the ride was.