63_Fairlane said:Miatas can hold there own on a road course or auto-cross, but I agree the Z3 was a much better car. Then again, the Z3 was really an MG. BMW "borrowed" the design from MG in the early 90's.
As for the price of cars, they have followed the price of all other durable goods including houses. Houses that cost 20K thirty years ago are in the 120-150k range now. I agreed that the level of inflation is rediculous, but it is across the board.
You also have to look at the content of the car. A new 05 will be equiped with at least a 6 speaker CD/MP3 stereo with XM as an option, airconditioning, overdive, airbags, three point seatbelts, possibly leather, 17 inch tires, 12.5 inch front brakes, antilock, taction control, halogens(possibly HIDs, 3 valve overhead cam heads, fuel injection, stock 300 HP (something on the order of ~400 HP by the old gross standard of the 1960's), windows that actually roll up and seal, etc...
So you are paying for some engineering in there somewhere
By the way, how far from Greenville do you live?
In Greenville.