7 Reasons The AE86 and The Miata Are Overrated
The Miata and the AE86 are great cars and it’s hard to deny that. However, it seems as if their imagined performance doesn’t live up to their actual performance. Both of these cars are very similar, so I thought I would save some time and do one article including both. My article about overrated BMW’s was probably one of the worst articles ever written, so this time, I’ll try my darndest to get this article right; here we go.
ONE Both the AE86 and the Miata aren’t that fast.
It seems as if many JDM cars suffer from exceedingly high expectations and hype. The Mark 4 Supra and Skyline GTR are both cars that are associated with big speed and big power. However, in stock form, they aren’t as fast as they’re hyped up to be. Same thing goes with the AE86 and the Miata. In Initial D, Takumi is beating drivers on the touge in cars that are much faster than his car in a Toyota Corolla. However, fanboy’s dreams of the capabilities of the AE86 never live up to the reality of what the AE86 really is. It’s 0-60 MPH time is about 8.5 seconds. To put things into perspective, a 1997 Toyota Camry could the same sprint 1 second faster. The Miata is also plagued by slow acceleration. The 0-60 sprint for a 1996 Mazda Miata takes 8.6 seconds, also slower than the 97 Camry. The Miata and AE86 are the opposites of sleepers, they are expected to be fast, but aren’t.
TWO If it weren’t for Initial D, the AE86 wouldn’t be very popular.
A stock Delorean was a terrible car, but ever since it starred in the Back To The Future movies, it’s become a car people drool over; the same thing has happened to the AE86. Because Takumi delivered tofu and raced in an AE86, people are willing to buy them for big amounts of money. AE86’s in good condition cost about $14,000, a bit much considering it’s a 40 year old car with 128 horsepower. If Initial D never aired, I’m sure AE86’s would be selling for half the price, and half of us car guys would never know about the Takumi mobile.
THREE The Miata has unshakable stereotypes.
Car stereotypes include truck drivers are compensating for things, BMW drivers never use their blinkers, Audi drivers tailgate people, and the Miata is a hair dresser/chick car. You’ll get jokes from car guys and non cars guys alike saying “Have you told your parents your gay yet?” and “Where in the car do you keep your hair dryer?” Because of this, people feel like they need to be more manly to compensate for this (Alex Kersten maybe?), so people become persons that they are not; just be yourself.
FOUR The AE86 is basically a souped up economy car.
The Toyota AE86 Sprinter Trueno is a Corolla. When most people think of a Corolla, they think of a small sedan that they can use to commute to work, not to the racetrack. The Corolla AE86 is worshiped by car guys while a brand new Corolla S is ignored by the same people. It seems like a little bit of a double standard, don’t you think?
FIVE The 80’s Supra is arguably a better sports car than the AE86.
The 80’s Supra can make up for what the Sprinter Trueno lacks, power. You can get a Mark 2 or a Mark 3 supra with a variety of larger turbocharged engines. This makes it faster and easier to make faster. Car and Driver named the Toyota Supra as one of the coolest cars from the 80’s, while the Sprinter Trueno was nowhere to be found on that list.
SIX The Miata blinds people to other alternatives.
It seems as if Miata owners talk about Miatas 24/7, even though there are other cars they could blabber about. MR2, Nissan S Chassis, Mg roadsters, there are a million light front engined RWD cars out there that are fun to drive. The pedestal we put the miata on blinds us from an assortment of choices, better, faster and cheaper ones. Remember, there are plenty of fish in the sea.
SEVEN You have to modify both cars in order to be competitive with other sports cars
A stock Miata can be a great learning tool for the track, but at some point you’re going to need more power, better brakes and better suspension. These cars fail to teach you how to control real power. Driving a Mustang GT or a Camaro SS will teach you to control power, not a Miata. Because the miata is overhyped, it drives up the prices of used ones. This means the Miata fails to serve its purpose within the car community, being an affordable blank canvas to hone your driving skill in or being a good project car. The Miata is just a start, it leaves the factory as a blank slate, waiting for you to make it into what you want, and what you need to drive. If the Miata left the factory with a turbocharger, that should fix things pretty good.
Comments
You know Tannet Foust once took Miata, when they were given a “Budget trackday car” challenge on TG-US. He is a professional racer you cant challenge his choise. #PEACE
I said in the beginning of the article that I like Miatas
Can I continue looking at the 90s Supra as a fast/quick car? I drive an old truck.
I would initially agree with you, except after reading all of it, I find this to be the most biased, unjustified way to make this review.
First of all, the AE86 and Miata are completely different cars, so one’s characteristics do not apply to the other: The AE86 is a fun RWD econobox with cheap and boring driving, and an even cheaper suspension setup. The Miata on the other hand excels on it’s technical features, while disregarding practicality and looks. The AE86 got it’s “street cred” from the Anime, yeah sure. But also from early grassroots drifting events. The MX5 earned it’s way to the top purely for it’s technical properties: Right from the moment it was launched in 1989 it was participating in races in Macau. There are videos of that race on youtube. And it’s been that way until today where it still races in the MaX5 series and has made a name amongst enthusiasts as a great trackday car. The one thing these cars have in common is that they are a ton of fun, and that is all that matters.
Now think about it… How many “sportscars” are actually that fun? Not that many despite their performance. And they don’t even perform that good from stock…
Maybe you should check out N2 racing before you say that 86s got all its popularity from initial d and grassroots drifting.
A lot of people miss the point of Initial D which is gone over many times. Its about someone so good at driving that they overcome the handicap of using an old slow vehicle. Not a realization that AE86s are spectacular cars. They were cheap, light and RWD but thats about it. Most people ended up with them because of the price point. Which it doesn’t have anymore. Its a great place to start, but it is outshined by many vehicles that the modern car community shuns.
The reason why they are a good cars is because they are under powered. It is harder to over drive them unlike the higher hp cars. They are good to start off with, and as your skills grow, you can either get a “better” car or just upgrade the one you have. The AE86 is going to be 30 years old this year by the way. Their claim to fame is not big power, but good handling, that is why they are down hill cars, where handling and braking are more important.
Uhh before you say I am a hater please do hear me out. The AE86 and the Miata are not that fast, yes that is true. The numbers don’t lie. But these cars were not meant to go straight. Clocking times like 10 seconds on the quarter mile. It was built as an affordable “sports car” meant to be driven fast on the curvy roads on the countryside. Sure it old and such. And yes, the AE86 did get most of its fame from Initial D. But, if you were to drive it (even tho i haven’t) same as the Miata as well, they look and seem to be enjoyable to drive. i saying this for the very least that these two awesome cars, has someone to back them up.
Completely missing the point of both cars. For one AE86 was in ID because it was popular with drifters and togue racers due to it’s pretty nice balance. It was also only a Corolla in the US, and either way it would essential make it a hot hatch but with RWD.
Secondly 0-60 times have very little to do with anything, those cars are all about cornering and driving feel, not outright speed.
Thirdly, yes there are alternatives to Miata and all the cars you posted are great but Miatas are the most cheap and plentiful of them all. Good luck finding an MR2 in good condition, especially a stock turbo, for less than 10 grand.
Fourthly, slow lightweight corner carvers will teach you a lot more about car control than a big power car. In order to post good times in a Miata you have to know how to carry speed through corners, a Mustang GT will make up the times on the straights if you mess up cornering because of its power. That’s not to mention that in a powerful car you are going to have less time to react and likely crash. You crawl before you walk and you walk before you run. Once you understand throttle control, line selection and braking learning to handle power is easy.
To be honest this entire post sounds either like trolling or someone who doesn’t have much experience with cars.
chuckled a bit at the bottom because I have a lot of respect for Chadkake, but looking back at the post, it does kinda look that way.
The miata is a f*ckboy car, unless it’s just a coincidence that every person I know who drives one is…
I think people just like the car for its style. If you buy either of those two cars its because you accept it doesn’t have a lot of power but love the design of it.
Lots of cars are slow as stock, but people love them because they are so tuneable, and that is the case of the AE86. It runs faster on the touge than some GT-R´s and supras because it can be setup to be nimble and light. I´ve never heard of initial D until like a year ago (not everyone had cable tv as a kid) and i always knew what an AE86 was. I also appreciate the miata a lot. So yea this article doesnt make much sense to me. If you are going to hate some cars because they are slow as stock you are gonna have a bad time, since you won´t probably have the time to hate all of them.