where the heck have I been? this is the first i've heard of these versions!!

 

what?? they don't make a hard top miata - they have a hard top option like the S

 

They get a retractable hardtop option this year. The ads for it are already in my latest C&D.

 

wtf??? cool just looked it up

very cool

 

NICE!!

 

ok.. good thing im not the only that missed these

 

the killer is that it only adds 70 lbs and the additional cost is around 2k but if you buy the separate hard top which is 1.5k so its only a 500 extra

 

http://www.edmunds.com/apps/vdpconta...ticleId=116621


The incremental weight also didn't show up while whipping the car around on our test track with the timing equipment watching. Acceleration, braking, slalom and skid pad results were all within reasonable production variation, compared to the last MX-5 we tested. One measure that did show a difference was interior sound levels. That soft top registered 77.0 decibels at 70 mph; the new PRHT, just 72.9. That's a big change, one we especially appreciated in the final hours of a freeway haul back to Los Angeles from the Monterey Historic Automobile Races.

Remarkably, the stack nestles into the same area the soft top used, so this retracting hardtop does not impinge on trunk space or usability. Actually, though the spec is unchanged at 5.3 cubic feet, a slightly higher rear deck surface creates marginally more cargo volume than the soft top car has!

 

I think these convertible hard tops will be the next big thing. Over the next few years I expect all manufactures having these.

 

My understanding is that these hard top convertibles are all the rage in Europe. There are several reasonably priced European models which have this feature.

Also, I was driving by the Mazda dealership on Rt. 9 in Wellesley and spotted one of these with the top 1/2 way down. It looked like a pretty slick mechanism.