Click on any of the thumbnail pictures below for a larger version of
the image, or to go to the appropriate web page.
We
are very proud of our little sports car, a 1996 Montego Blue Miata with
the popular equipment package. This picture was taken in our driveway
just a couple days after we bought it in Nov. 1995. Beth claims this is
the only time I have let her drive the car, but I'm pretty sure she has
driven it at least a couple times since then :-). The car has been very
reliable, and the Arizona weather is just perfect for year-round top
down driving.
I
owned a 1960 Austin Healey Sprite when I was a teenager, and mentioned
to Beth that I would enjoy having another sports car some time in the
future. Two days later we pulled up behind a red Miata at a stop light,
and I asked Beth if she liked the looks of it. To my surprise, she was
definitely interested in the car. When we were returning home that same
day, we pulled up behind another Miata at the same stop light, and Beth
said it must be a sign. The next day we started looking at Miatas, and
less than a week later I returned home from a conference and Beth had
made all the arrangements for purchasing the car. What a great surprise!
We
get many comments on the color of the car. Most people enjoy the fact
that it can look blue or green or even black, depending on the lighting
and the angle from which you view the car. We haven't added many
aftermarket products to the car, just some doorsills and the padded
armrest for the center compartment. I also made one of Keith Tanner's windblockers,
which helps even Beth stay warm enough with the top down on cold winter
mornings.
Beth didn't get to drive our 1996 Miata quite as much as she would have liked (I always got up early on Sat. and Sun. and took it to my weekend tennis before she got a chance to drive it), so she decided we needed another one. We both liked the newer Miata M2 body styling, and when we saw the new Crystal Metallic Blue color for 2001, we just couldn't resist adding another Miata to our garage. Here's a few pictures of the two Miatas side by side; you can decide which one you like better.
Several
months after we purchased our 1996 Miata, I decided to create a 3D
model of it using Lightwave 3D on my Amiga computer. (Yes, I know it is
the wrong color, who would ever want a red Miata? ;-). I haven't worked
on it in quite some time, but keep promising myself that I will finish
it up one of these days. But if you are interested, I have made the
current version of the model available in several 3D file formats. Just
click on the image to the left and you will be taken to the 3D Miata
web page, where you will find more information about the model and links
to download the 3D object in Lightwave, Wavefront, and 3D Studio formats.