HomePick of the DayZoom-Zoom! 1994 Mazda Spec-Miata race car

Zoom-Zoom! 1994 Mazda Spec-Miata race car

Let's go racing! This Spec Miata is a great car to learn -- or hone -- your craft, and many opportunities exist to get on track in club and vintage racing

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In the 21st Century, channeling your inner Jackie Stewart, Mario Andretti or Brian Redman is much easier than in the past. Track days, club racing and a plethora of vehicles to take you on that ride are readily available.

It is said, that on any given weekend, more Mazdas are raced than any other marque.

1994 Mazda Spec-Miata race car

The Pick of the Day is a 1994 Mazda Spec-Miata race car offered on ClassicCars.com by a dealer in Stratford, Connecticut. The seller says it’s ready to race, and a first-generation Miata is a great way to go racing.

The first MX-5 Miatas were powered by a 1.6-liter inline-4. Later in the first generation, beginning in 1993, the engine was upgraded to a slightly more-powerful 1.8-Liter four. This  car has the 1.8.

The SM (Spec-Miata) class in SCCA and NASA has advanced at the most competitive levels to the third-generation cars. This left many of the first- and second-generation race cars unloved and collecting dust. That was, until several sanctioning bodies of vintage and historic racing began classes for the older Spec-Miatas.

1994 Mazda Spec-Miata race car

In 2017, I was invited by Mazda USA to run a race weekend in a first-generation Spec-Miata during the Sportscar Vintage Racing Association’s (SVRA) first Mazda Heritage Cup at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California. The circuit was a Roval: a combination infield road-course and the front straightaway, turns one and two and half of the back straight of the banked oval.

I have driven far more powerful race cars in my day, but the Miata was a really fun car to drive, and it will run close to your competitors.

The learning aspect of a Spec-Miata is that it is a “momentum car.” To get good lap times and be quick, the driver needs to be smooth and light on the brakes to carry speed. Not that these cars are slow, as on the banking in the draft, we were hitting top-speeds of 125-130 mph.

This is the type of car that would be ideal for a beginning racer or a less-expensive option to be a weekend warrior. The engine, chassis and five-speed transmission are very reliable and can go many, many races without rebuilds. Simple maintenance is more par for the course with these cars.

1994 Mazda Spec-Miata race car

According to the seller, “The car has been upgraded with Spec Miata class-compliant Bilstein shocks, an Advanced Autosports roll cage, Blind Apex HUD-9x LapTimer, AutoMeter Water Temp Gauge, AutoMeter Oil Pressure Gauge, Ultra Shield Spec Miata Road Racing Seat, RaceQuip 5-Point Harness, and an Upgraded Koyorad radiator.

“It was originally built and owned by Advanced Autosports, a highly respected name in the Spec-Miata class and was purchased by Vintage Racing Services to race alongside our own Spec-Miata build. The car is ready to race.”

The seller also mentions that the pictures show the car transport wheels/tires.The asking price for this vehicle to the grid is $9,800.  At that price, the casual racer might be able to put more dollars towards hotels, entry fees, food, fuel, transportation… And get ready for a ride like no other.

To view this listing on ClassicCars.com, see Pick of the Day.

Tom Stahler
Tom Stahler
Tom Stahler is the Managing Editor of the ClassicCars.com Journal. Tom has a lifelong love of cars and motor racing – beginning with the 1968 USRRC race at Road America, in a stroller, at eight months of age. His words, photos and broadcasts can can be found on a myriad of media. He has won the Motor Press Guild’s Dean Batchelor Award and a Gold Medal in the International Automotive Media Awards.

3 COMMENTS

  1. I have 5 questions
    1. Am I correct that this is a roadster with a removable top?
    2. Was this little racer imported in such a way that it can be registered & licensed for street driving?
    3. Do you have a price to ship this little beauty to Scottsdale, AZ?
    4. Is there movement on the asking price?
    5. By the way is the owner willing to guarantee that as the car sits today it is fully operable? Even better will the owner guarantee that it is race ready? If not what work might it take to make it so?

  2. How much fun would this be…..I have a vintage 1990 Miata MX-5 Roadster.
    I’ve change most of the parts out from bumper to bumper.
    It’s so much fun to drive.
    Get off the couch and enjoy motor sports at its best….and affordable.

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