Earlier I shared a glimpse of my friend Greg's car and I promised to do a feature one day soon. The time has come. I share with you Greg's magnificent NA6C Mazda MX-5 Roadster.
Greg's car is unique as it started life as a left hand drive European-spec car that was imported to the Philippines where he lives. During his first few years of ownership, Greg tricked out his ride with a Mazdaspeed (Eaton M45) supercharger, Mazdaspeed seats, steering wheel, shift knob, etc.
But then, in September 2009, his beloved Roadster was tragically flooded during Typhoon Ketsana. While many enthusiasts would scrap a flood car, Greg decided to rebuild his car even better than before. The car was entirely disassembled and meticulously restored piece by piece. Greg used this opportunity to add some very rare tuning parts.
Here are the results.
Words just cannot do this car justice. I can't even being to describe all the hard work that went into restoring this car to its current glory. Pay close attention to all the details and you begin to see how this car is truly a labor of love. Greg has finally attained his vision of the perfect Roadster and he deserves a round of applause. Be sure to click the link to follow his rebuild thread where you can see just how much effort it took to fix this car up.
This 1959 Borgward Isabella Coupé, found on eBay in Clarksville, Maryland, USA, is a very unusual vehicle. Although more than 200,000 examples were made between 1954 and 1961, it is very rare to find them outside of Germany. Some Borgward cars were sold at GM dealerships in the States and they reportedly had decent build quality but it was never a sales success in the USA, making them very scarce.
What makes this car even more unusual is the Mazda BP engine and transmission located under the hood. Although the 1.8L motor (from a 1995 Mazda Miata) certainly helps driveability, the non-original engine likely hurts its value and appeal to collectors.
Here is the holy grail of aftermarket headlamps for the NA Mazda Roadster. Body Shop Hayashi made very few of these kits in the 1990s, most likely because they were very expensive when new. Advertisements in old issues of Road&Ster magazine show them costing approximately ¥155,000, which is the equivalent of $2,035 USD in today's money.
What makes these headlamps so unique is the mechanism that lifts the rear and tilts the light forward when turned on. While low profile headlamps are stylish, aerodynamic, and lighter than the factory pop-ups, most all suffer from poor optics due to the spread of the light beam catching the top of the front bumper and creating a shadow right in front of the driver. The Body Shop Hayashi headlamps attempted to solve this problem by lifting the light above the front bumper to eliminate the shadow and increase the amount of light projected onto the roadway.
The beautiful Aston Martin Racing Green NA8C you see here belongs to my friend Greg G. from Manila, Philippines. In September 2009, his beloved Roadster was tragically flooded during Typhoon Ketsana. While many enthusiasts would scrap a flood car, Greg decided to rebuild his car even better than before. The car was entirely disassembled and meticulously restored piece by piece. Greg used this opportunity to add some very rare tuning parts such as these Body Shop Hayashi headlamps.
Stay tuned for a full feature on Greg's car at a later date. In the meantime, enjoy the pictures and the videos at the bottom.
I've never seen this before. Here is a one-off custom NB8C Mazda Miata with Alfa Romeo Giulietta Spider inspired coachwork. I don't have any details about who built it but it appears to be an amateur creation. The car just sold on eBay in Cape Coral, FL, United States for $4,975. In a way, it reminds me of the Ducks-Garden Roadster 311. The idea was inspired but the final outcome is not so favorable.
My dear friend Peter has reluctantly decided to offer his gorgeous Laguna Blue NA8C Pit Crew Racing Roadster for sale. While all Pit Crew Racing Roadsters are special, The Blue Potato is the most special to me because of its owner and because it is the one I am most familiar with. Pit Crew Racing parts are very rare in the USA and the vintage style front end conversion is no stranger to controversy: people either hate it or they absolutely love it. I'm one of the many people who absolutely love it.
Peter has put years of effort into perfecting his pride and joy. The details are astounding. The Blue Potato features a veritable "Who's Who" of boutique Japanese tuner parts and this car truly represents la crème de la crème. Peter and The Blue Potato are in large part responsible for my own passionate interest in the Mazda Miata and aftermarket parts tuning and we both share a similar vision when it comes to sports cars in general and the pure joy that comes from driving such finely tuned machines.
I would buy this car if only I could afford to keep multiple Roadsters in my garage. It is sure to provide the next owner with a lifetime of happiness and pride. I can only hope that the next owner will take such good care of it as Peter did. It will surely be missed but it is leaving to make room for a new project that Peter has been dreaming of for a very long time. I can't wait to see how this new project develops. And Peter will remain part of the Roadster family; fortunately, he and his lovely wife own a fine Sunburst Yellow NA6 called The Sweet Potato that they will continue to enjoy.
