Miata History The first Miata made its public debut in America at the Chicago Auto Show, in February of 1989, and went on sale in July, as a 1990 model. Today, more than 700,000 Miatas have been sold around the world, and more than half a million are still running strong.

The Mazda Miata has a 16-year history on the road, although Mazda’s engineers began to study the development of a lightweight sports car in 1983. The first Miata made its public debut in America at the Chicago Auto Show in February of 1989, and went on sale in July as a 1990 model. It featured a 116-horsepower, 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine, backed by a five-speed manual transmission. With a curb weight just over 2,100 lbs., this two-seat roadster was an instant success, and 23,052 units were sold by year’s end.

The next year saw the addition of a four-speed automatic, and eventually a Special Edition British Racing Green version complete with tan leather upholstery arrived to great fanfare. For the 1994 model year, dual airbags and better structural bracing were added, in addition to more displacement (1.8 liters) and horsepower (128).

An all-new second generation Miata surfaced in 1999, including a fresh design and glass rear window while preserving the Miata essence of ‘zoom-zoom’ that was now heralded throughout the world. A performance-tuned Mazdaspeed MX-5 Miata arrived in 2004, with 178 horsepower pumped out of a turbocharged 1.8-liter engine. But by then, Mazda had sold over 300,000 Miatas in the U.S. alone, securing this lightweight roadster as a classic and not simply a passing fancy. Today, more than 700,000 Miatas have been sold around the world, and more than half a million are still running strong.