When Mazda announced last year that its purpose-built MX-5 Miata Cup race car would sticker for $53,000, we lauded the racer’s affordability. Having sold 108 (!) MX-5 Miata Cup cars, Mazda and Long Road Racing, its partner that actually assembles the Miatas, is gearing up for a second year of production and has implemented a few changes. The good news is that the changes improve the Miata race car. The bad news is that the price has gone up.
Although race cars don’t exactly follow model years, it’s safe to categorize the updated Miata Cup car as being ready for the 2017 racing season. The price rises from $53,000 to $58,900, thanks to a new racing-spec transmission, motor mounts, differential-housing bushings, and engine-computer tweaks. The changes are aimed at enhancing the car’s durability, namely the gearbox, which keeps a number of stock components but has been upgraded to last longer between rebuilds. Mazda has been rolling out the changes to existing customer cars (remember, the Battery Tender Global MX-5 Cup is a spec racing series, so the cars must all be the same), and it’s even throwing current owners an incentive to buy the new car (should they want another): Buy a new MX-5 Cup car by mid-September, and the price will be the same as last year. After that point, it jumps to the new, higher price.
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