The market is BEGGING....

[Dave]

But if I had 24k to spend, and I was looking for something "sporty" I'd pass over this for some other options that offer a bit more for meh dollahs.

Please provide what other options you would truthfully consider, other than the GTI you suggested.

Miata is slightly different for a few reasons, one it's a convertible, two, it's had the entry level sports car segment by the balls for nearly two decades, and 3, its marketed to men in their 40's in the middle of the income range, 3 things these cars don't have or do.

Coupes and verts have been competitors for decades, why do you think so many coupes end up having convertible versions made of them? Regarding point 2, a high barrier to entry is an economic challenge for bringing a product to market, not a reason for why two products aren't competition. For point 3, I think it remains to be seen how the GT86 is going to be marketed to the mass public, or how they will respond. So far it has been a metric assload of internet talk on car forums & sites because car enthusiasts are excited that a manufacturer finally seems to have executed on what a small niche of people have been asking for - light, RWD, nimble, and fun to drive. That sounds like the very definition of the Miata we all love.
As you said, the differences between them are slight, but that doesn't make them different classes of market competition. In terms of practicality, GT86 seems to have a leg up on the competition in some areas.


I just hope that everybody who has said they would buy one if it was built ends up going out and doing it. It may send a signal to the industry that this is something that will get buyers excited and that they need to develop a business plan to include it, which only benefits us as the manufacturers compete for market share. If they had pulled this off 2-3 years ago, I'd probably have one in my garage...