Long-term tests aren’t new. Putting a vehicle through its paces over several months had long been a car magazine staple, but it wasn’t until the ’90s that MotorTrend’s program began to look like the Garage you know today. The shift began in September 1991, when we began publishing monthly updates on our fleet. We aspired to drive real cars the way real people did so we could provide useful info on the ownership experience. We covered maintenance costs, common problem areas, and vehicle idiosyncrasies. Unlike today, though, we also relied on you. Each verdict we published in the ’90s included information gleaned from reader surveys.
In the following article, you’ll find two such verdicts covering vehicles in niche segments. The Mazda Miata of the early ’90s resurrected the open-top roadster. Three decades later, it soldiers on as one of the few accessible convertibles left. The Dodge Dakota, introduced in the late ’80s, sought to offer a just-right blend of everyday maneuverability and utility many pickup drivers wanted. Unlike the Miata, the Dakota met the end of its road in 2011, though Ram is exploring the nameplate’s possible return on a new midsize offering. Will it satisfy a fresh generation as it did truck owners of the ’90s? We might have an answer after a future long-term test.
VERDICT: 1990 Mazda MX-5 Miata
After about 8,000 miles behind the wheel, we bid farewell to a little roadster we loved.
BASE PRICE/AS TESTED
$13,800/$15,799
($32,700/$37,450 in 2023)
ORIGINAL WORDS
Daniel Charles Ross
COVER DATE
December 1991
There are few cars one long-term Miata has been about as popular around our playground as Miss September, and a darn sight more accessible.
