!!! MX-5 Miata Of the Month !!!

My indulgence in sports cars came rather late in life, at a time when I have retired from the practice of law and when boredom can easily set in. I did have some flings with small cars in the sixties -– a Karmann Ghia and a two-door British Ford (not a Capri which I had earlier assumed) whose name I cannot quite recall. But these were short episodes that soon gave way to the demands of a growing family.

My affair with the Miata was love at first sight that took so long to consummate. I have seen them on the road for a long time since the 90s and I often wondered how it would feel to drive one. I finally had a close look when Joey Bernardez, a classmate of my son, Martin, took his newly-acquired Miata to our house and proudly proclaimed that it was one of the best cars he had ever driven. From then on, he would frequent our house and all you could hear form him were superlatives and we were getting constant updates of the accessories he would install every so often. That car, however, was totaled by a bodyguard simply trying to park it.

Still, I had some doubts if it was a safe car, considering its size. I was impressed when Joey smacked his second Miata at top speed into a flower box at the intersection of EDSA and Quezon Avenue. The flower box was demolished at the point of impact and the Miata was a total wreck, but Joey came out sobered and unscathed. Still, I wondered if it was because the Miata was a sturdy car or that Joey was, as we say, “bad grass.”

A few days later, Joey was driving his third Miata, now black, which he has miraculously preserved to this day. He chose black probably to mourn the untimely demise of the two others.

Finally, Martin became a convert and bought his British Racing Green Miata from Allan. He would let me drive it and I was beginning to enjoy the thrill of it all. Positive reinforcements came from other unexpected sources. A classmate in law school drove his daughter’s red Miata to a gathering of colleagues and he lavishly praised it for its reliability, something he could not claim for his Mercedes “Mr. Slim.” A female cousin arrived on vacation from the U.S. and saw Martin’s Miata. She turned out to be another Miata die-hard, having acquired one the first time it was introduced in the U.S. in 1990 and has been driving it to work every day since. To this day, she has not encountered any major problem and she swears by its efficiency and forgiving nature.

I attended Miata Club meetings with Martin and it was only a matter of time before I got hooked. Word went around that Enzo was selling his silver Miata. It was in mint condition and sported Momo mags which I was later told is quite rare here. I lost no time in liberating it from his clutches, much like you would grab a pretty girl from her boyfriend. But I have a feeling that this Miata is for keeps and would eventually end up with my daughter, Ruth, who gets to drive it occasionally when she gathers enough courage to repel dirty looks. Ahh! It feels good to be young again.

 

Teodoro B. Pison