WHAT IS IT?
Everyone knows the Mazda Miata, it’s the best-selling 2-seat sports car in history. Now in its 4th generation (in 2025), it’s hard to remember how basic the early examples were. This example is from the 1990 model year, the MX-5 Miata’s first. It’s also a totally stripped base model, lacking even alloy wheels, power steering, and leather on the steering wheel.
All 1990 Miatas had a black cloth interior, a 1.6L DOHC 4-cylinder engine, and a 5-speed manual transmission. Options included niceties like power windows, the aforementioned alloy wheels and leather steering wheel, air conditioning, cruise control, and a stereo. This example has literally none of those but does, strangely, include a factory removable hard top which was a rare and expensive option. This is a sports car, and a Miata, stripped to its most basic form.
WHY THIS ONE HAS “BEST ONE ON THE PLANET” CHOPS
The MX-5 Miata was an instant hit for Mazda with nearly 140,000 1990 MY cars sold worldwide and most of these in the U.S. Dealers were often asking over MSRP and demand stayed high. As a result, most were seemingly ordered with at least one of two available option packages to maximize profits. This example was sold new with no options except for that hard top. This makes it a fairly rare example of a mass-production vehicle. We can imagine a future Barrett-Jackson auctioneer screaming “It’s one of one!”
This example is only about 4,800 miles from new and looks spotless inside and out. The only modification is a period-correct but unattractive aftermarket stereo in the place of the original factory blanking plate (this car did not even include a stereo from the factory).
Of course, Miatas have proven to be extraordinarily reliable and inexpensive to own, so if one is seeking a car to drive, this might not be the one you want to buy. At the time of writing the bidding was already over $22,000 on this auction with days left to go. Higher mileage Miatas can be had for a fraction of this price and still bring fun and smiles. But this is undoubtedly one of the best examples of a 1st-year Miata we’ve seen and is a true museum piece.
1990 Mazda MX-5 Miata VIN: JM1NA3513L0120420 for Sale – Cars & Bids
That is one clean Miata!