A Matter Of Condition: 1984 Pontiac 6000 vs 1996 Mazda Miata

Welcome back! Today we’re conducting a little thought experiment: Given the same purchase price, are you more interested in a super-clean example of a boring but competent car, or one of the greatest sports cars ever made in appalling condition?

This matchup is inspired by yesterday’s little economy cars. Of course the CRX won yesterday, in an absolute blowout. Nobody, including me, wants a Tercel when they can have a CRX for five hundred bucks less. I knew that going in, but how often do you find a clean Tercel of that era? I had to feature it, even though I knew it was going to lose big.

But those two were in about the same condition. The CRX had more miles on it, but ran better, otherwise they were both pretty clean. This meant that most of you probably cast your votes based on the CRX being cooler and more fun.

What would happen, I wondered, if they weren’t in the same condition? If the price is the same, what happens if a near-spotless example of an undesirable car goes up against a badly-abused and poorly-modified example of a desirable car? Would that change things? Just how bad does the “good” car have to be for you all to choose the “bad” car over it? We’re about to find out.

1984 Pontiac 6000 LE – $3,000

Engine/drivetrain: 2.8-liter overhead valve V6, three-speed automatic, FWD

Location: Cheyenne, WY

Odometer reading: 66,000 miles

Operational status: Runs and drives great

General Motors vehicles have often followed a pattern: the engineers come up with something brilliant, the accountants penny-pinch it half to death, the marketing people rush it into production, and then the engineers gradually undo all the damage done and fix the problems. The front-wheel-drive X-body was a mess when it first came out, but GM engineers learned from their mistakes, and the FWD A-body that followed turned out to be a pretty good car, and stayed in production for 14 years.

This Pontiac 6000 is a fairly early car, lacking the refinements of later A-bodies. It still has a carburetor atop its 2.8 liter V6, and its transmission is just a simple TH125C three-speed. But it’s a nice low-mileage example that has had only two owners and has been well cared-for. The seller says it runs and drives “beautifully,” and recently took it on a road trip down Interstate 25 from Cheyenne to Denver. It’s not a long road trip, but it’s encouraging nonetheless.

Inside, it’s an absolute time capsule. I can look at this photo and know exactly how this interior feels, sounds, and smells. I can hear the click of the turn signal stalk and feel the plastic rim of the steering wheel. A lot of you dislike GM cars from this era, I know, but to me this looks like home. This car also highlights what it was like to have a la carte options available; you’d never see a car equipped with a power seat but manual crank windows even ten years after this.

It’s clean and shiny outside, and since Wyoming doesn’t use road salt, it’s probably clean underneath as well. I believe this may have been a fleet vehicle of some sort; I see what looks like a unit number in one photo.

1996 Mazda MX-5 Miata – $3,000

Engine/drivetrain: Supercharged 1.8-liter dual overhead cam inline 4, five-speed manual, RWD

Location: El Cajon, CA

Odometer reading: 121,000 miles

Operational status: Runs and drives, but stalls at stoplights

Who doesn’t like a first-generation Miata? They’re cute, fun to drive, user-friendly, economical, and reliable. It’s no wonder enthusiasts say “Miata is always the answer.” I had one myself for many years, and only reluctantly sold it when I bought my MG and thought it was silly to have two small sports cars. Sadly, I sold mine back when they were cheap; these days, good Miatas are going up in price, as the rough ones age out or get modified to death.

I’ll just come right out and say it: I do not consider this a good Miata, and I do think it has been modified very nearly to death. It has an aftermarket supercharger bolted to its 1.8 liter twin-cam engine, and while I’m sure it has increased the power output, it sounds like it has ruined the Miata’s easy-going nature. The seller says it idles rough and stalls at stoplights. There is probably some tuning that can be done to alleviate this, but honestly, I don’t think a little extra power is worth it.

The questionable modifications continue inside: The airbags are gone, it has that ridiculous katana-handle shifter, and the characteristic “eyeball” vents in the dash have been removed and replaced by gauges related to the supercharger. At least the seats look like they’re in decent shape. The outside is, of course, a greatest hits of terrible ideas: lowered suspension, a hideous body kit, aftermarket wheels, and LED headlights with those halo thingies.

The rear window is shot, and I bet the rest of the top isn’t far behind. Replacing a Miata top isn’t as difficult as some other convertibles, but it’s still a few hundred bucks and a day’s work to do it right. The fire extinguisher is probably a good idea, but the “roll bars” are probably useless. It’s just a sheetmetal shelf under that carpet, and if the bars have a flange at the bottom that simply bolts to it, as I suspect, then it offers negligible protection. A proper roll bar for a Miata attaches to the tub at the sides, along the seat belt towers, and actually stiffens the structure quite a bit. But this is not that.

I’m not being very impartial on this one, I realize, but if you’re a regular reader you probably already know which one of these I prefer. But I’m curious to hear what you all think. Can you make a compelling case for that Miata? Can you allow yourself to “settle” for the Pontiac instead? I’m honestly curious to see which way this one turns out.

(Image credits: Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist sellers)