Just drove the car in hard rain today and realize I hate it (the rain, not the car). The top leaks at the seals around the window so when it's a downpour I get dripping constantly on my shoulder, ugh!
In the rain I'm good, but when I wash the car I must avoid the top of the windows as much as possible to prevent any leakage..
Oh yeah, how do u guys(who still have them) take care of your soft tops? I have a robbins vinyl that likes to get ashy after a few washes, I've just been using amor all. Been thinking about getting the cleaning supplies from moss motors.. thoughts?
To clean and protect the top 303 Aerospace Cleaner and 303 Aerospace protectant
The latter you can use on all interior plastics and vinyl as well. You'll find it in marine stores since it's what you use on boat vinyl so you know it's meant to withstand the sun better than nearly anything else. Also it's well-loved on autogeek and detailing sites.
I got sick of the ragtop and how I couldn't clean it like I clean the rest of the car. That was 95% of the reason why I got a hardtop. The other 5% was the 20-25lb weight reduction of having no headliner, spec miata brackets, and lexan window.
Shop smart; it's real easy to find a cheap Miata. Finding a good cheap Miata is a lot tougher. Rust and overdue maintenance are the two biggies to look out for, and then you have to look to see if previous owners modded it, and how badly they might have done that.