2024 and newer. The ND3 cars added a limited-slip differential, a DSC-TRACK stability mode and a better steering rack. If you want the most car per dollar, 2019 is the year, because that is when the engine went from 155 to 181 horsepower.
Four Good Miatas, Four Different Reasons
Every Miata is a good Miata. That is genuinely true and it is also unhelpful when you are trying to choose one, so here is the version with actual years attached. Thirty-five years of continuous production means the question is not whether to buy one, it is which era of the same idea suits you.
2024 to 2026
ND3Mazda spent this update on the chassis rather than the spec sheet. Manual cars get a newly developed asymmetric limited-slip differential and a DSC-TRACK stability setting that lets the car move around before it intervenes. Every trim gets a new steering rack with less internal friction and a retuned power steering system. The infotainment finally became an 8.8-inch touch-capable unit. This is the most sorted Miata there has ever been.
2019 to 2023
ND2The 2019 engine rework is the biggest single jump in the ND's life: 181 horsepower at 7,000 rpm, up 17 percent, with the redline lifted from 6,800 to 7,500 rpm. Mazda also added a telescoping steering column, which sounds trivial until you are tall. You get most of the modern car's character without paying for the newest one.
2006 to 2015
NCThe largest and heaviest Miata, which enthusiasts say like it is an insult and daily drivers hear as good news. It has the most room, the most comfort and, from 2007, the option of a power retractable hardtop. If you want rear-wheel drive and a proper manual gearbox for the least money, this is where you look.
1990 to 1997
NAPop-up headlights, a 1.6-litre engine at launch and a 1.8 from 1994, and about as much car as a good bicycle. The NA is now a classic rather than a used car, priced and cared for accordingly. Buy one because you want that specific thing, not because you want a cheap Miata.
Every Miata Generation, in Order
Four generations, one idea, remarkably little drift. The letters are how everybody actually talks about them, so they are worth knowing before you read a classified ad or walk into a conversation about one.
| Generation | US Model Years | What Defines It |
|---|---|---|
| NA | 1990 to 1997 | The original. Pop-up headlights, 1.6-litre at launch and 1.8-litre from 1994. Light, simple and the reason the other three exist. |
| NB | 1999 to 2005 | Fixed headlights, a stiffer body and more power. The United States skipped the 1998 model year entirely, so there is no such thing as a 1998 US Miata. |
| NC | 2006 to 2015 | Bigger in every direction and more comfortable with it. The power retractable hardtop arrived for 2007. The most usable Miata as an everyday car. |
| ND | 2016 to present | Mazda deliberately reversed course and made it small and light again. The RF joined for 2017, the engine grew to 181 horsepower for 2019, and the chassis was retuned for 2024. |
Model years shown are for the United States market. The MX-5 Miata has been on sale continuously since 1989, with 1998 the only gap in the US lineup.
Back to topND1, ND2 and ND3, Explained Properly
When somebody asks about the best year for a Miata, nine times out of ten they mean the current generation, and the answer lives inside these three phases. Mazda never marketed the names. Owners invented them because the changes were significant enough to need them.
ND1, 2016 to 2018
The generation that put the Miata back on a diet. It is a wonderful car and it makes 155 horsepower, which is enough to be quick on a good road and not enough to be quick anywhere else. The steering column tilts but does not telescope, so sit in one before you commit if you are over about six feet.
ND2, 2019 to 2023
The important one. Mazda did not just remap the 2.0-litre for 2019, it went inside: pistons 27 grams lighter, connecting rods 41 grams lighter, a larger valve opening angle and a wider exhaust manifold. The result is 181 horsepower at 7,000 rpm and 151 lb-ft at 4,000 rpm, with the redline moved from 6,800 to 7,500 rpm. It revs where the car has always wanted to rev.
The telescoping steering column arrived the same year, 30mm of travel, and it quietly fixed the single most common reason people got out of a Miata and decided it was not for them.
ND3, 2024 onward
No more power, and that is the point. Mazda spent this one on the parts of the car you feel rather than the parts you quote. Manual cars get a newly developed asymmetric limited-slip differential, which behaves differently on and off the throttle, and a DSC-TRACK stability mode that allows a genuine amount of slip before stepping in. Every car gets a new steering rack with reduced internal friction and a retuned power steering system.
The cabin caught up too, with an 8.8-inch infotainment screen that finally accepts touch input for Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, plus new LED headlights with the daytime running lights built in. The 2026 MX-5 carries all of it forward.
Soft Top or RF
Once you have picked a year, this is the question left. It is less about specification than about what you want the car to be, which is why arguing about it is pointless and driving both is not.
Soft Top
Lighter, cheaper and quicker to open than any powered roof will ever be. You reach up, unlatch it and throw it back with one hand, sitting down, at a traffic light. Sport, Club and Grand Touring trims are all Soft Top, and Club is where the Bilstein dampers and the limited-slip differential live. This is the purist's answer and it is not a close-run thing.
RF, Retractable Fastback
A power hardtop with fixed buttresses, so it looks like a small coupe with the roof up and something stranger and rather good with it down. Quieter at speed, more secure when parked, heavier and pricier. The RF range starts at Club rather than Sport. If the Miata is going to do real mileage rather than just Sunday mornings, this is the one to drive first. See the 2026 MX-5 RF.
What to Look at on an Older Miata
These apply to any older two-seat convertible from any manufacturer, and they matter more the further back you go. On a two-year-old car most of this takes 30 seconds. On a 1994 car, take your time.
Work the roof, all the way, twice
Up and down, latched and unlatched, and look at the rear window while you do it. On a soft top the window and the seams are the parts that age. On an RF, listen to the mechanism and watch it complete the full cycle rather than stopping short.
Get underneath it
Sills, floor pans and the area around the rear wheel arches. Any car that has spent 20 winters outdoors deserves a proper look, and a convertible that has spent them with a fabric roof deserves two. Bring a torch and do not do this in the dark.
Ask whether it has been tracked, then decide how you feel
Miatas get used, which is a compliment to the car and a question for the buyer. Track use is not automatically a problem if it came with matching maintenance. Undocumented hard use is a different thing. Look for a roll bar, harness mounts and unusually good brakes as your clues.
Check the clutch and the shift quality cold
The Miata gearbox is one of the best in the business, so you have a very high reference point to judge against. Second gear on a cold engine is where a tired one tells you about itself. If it feels notchy in a way you would not describe as pleasant, ask more questions.
Sit in it before you fall in love with it
This is the Miata-specific one. It is a small car and the pre-2019 cars have no telescoping steering column. Fit is not a detail here, it is the whole ownership experience. Come and sit in a current one to calibrate, even if you end up buying an older car somewhere else.
If you would rather have somebody else do the inspecting, that is roughly what Mazda Certified Pre-Owned is for. And if the Miata is one of several Mazdas on your list, our guide to the best used Mazda models covers the rest of the range.
Fuel economy figures: EPA, fueleconomy.gov.
Current model specifications: Mazda USA.
Miata Questions
What is the best year for the Mazda Miata?
What is the difference between an ND1, ND2 and ND3 Miata?
Why is 2019 such an important Miata year?
Which Miata generation is the best value?
Should I buy a Soft Top or an RF?
How many model years of the Miata are there?
Is the manual or the automatic the one to have?
What fuel economy does the current Miata get?
Is a Miata practical enough to be a daily driver in the Triangle?
Sit in One Before You Decide
Every argument about the best Miata year ends the same way, which is somebody getting into one. Ours are 15 minutes off I-40 in Durham.
Sport Durst Mazda, 4515 Durham-Chapel Hill Blvd, Durham, NC 27707
Model years and generation boundaries shown are for the United States market. Equipment varied by trim and by year, so confirm the specification of any individual vehicle before purchase. Fuel economy figures are EPA estimates verified at fueleconomy.gov for the 2026 model year and require premium fuel. Your mileage will vary with driving habits and conditions. Vehicle availability changes daily. See dealer for complete details.
