The MX-5 Miata of the Month from

February 1998

Susan Malinowski

Congratulations to Susan on the selection of her Miata, as our February
Miata of the Month!

Let me take you back to 1966, the year of my first job and first car. The job was a complete bore, so in order to make up for all the hours that I wasted there I decided to find the perfect car. My projected price range being 1500 to 2000 dollars had its limitations. After searching diligently for weeks and rejecting a WIlly's jeep station wagon (well what can I say - I was in the Sierra Club) because I had to stand on the brake to stop it, I found it. It sat there low to the ground, four wire wheels shining in the sunlight, the color of the forest in the spring, long sleek front end speaking to me of classic racing cars.

I was in love. I adopted it. I took it home over my parents objections. Every day was an adventure. No matter that it never had side windows. No matter that sometimes the motor would die when you put the headlights on. No matter that it blew two head gaskets, or that I had to push start it more times then I allow myself to remember, it was fun! Boys would stop to admire it. I would even let some of them try to start it with the hand crank. I drove it up Highway 1 in California and Going to the Sun Highway in Montana (stopping well before the bear traffic jams.) I would ditch school and drive to Malibu (ditching was a recent phenomena as I had escaped from Catholic girls school.) My 1959 MGA became a part of me, a part of my history.

So here I am, quickly approaching the big "five-oh" and my husband tells me to pick a car. Steve at work says, "You have to try a Miata. I'm in love with it. It is the most fun I have ever had." So I do. And he is right, except that it is the second greatest fun car I have ever had. Of course it has side windows and it is reliable. But more importantly sometimes when the light is just right, I look out the rearview mirror and my Montego Blue Miata is the same color of my beloved MGA.

Previous Miata of the Month Winners

Will you be next?