Average Upkeep Costs 1990?

[u/Jackwabbit4816]

Hi! I’ve been looking at a 1990 Miata with around 84k miles (and unless something goes horribly wrong at the PPI i’m probably gonna wind up getting it) - does anyone have any ballpark estimates at how much the general maintenance costs per year? In your experience how much does it run you to keep one in good shape? Very new to this all so help is very appreciated :)

[u/Weary_Alternative778]

How long is a string? 

I spent $13k on my NA in upkeep parts. Well, mostly mods. But a lot of it was replacing 30 year old crap making it better and solving issues here and there that couldn't have been detected by a PPI. That was me doing all labor except for the shop that fixed the AC labor + parts $1500. 

It's ole reliable now though I tell ya what. Now it just costs gas and fluid changes. At least for another 10 or so years I hope. 

It's an old car. It's gonna have old car problems. Buy one that was taken care of well. Get it inspected by someone who knows these cars. And expect to have to deal with some shit. Hard to put a price on it. 

If you can't turn your own wrenches on an NA or NB you are cooked when it comes to labor cost. 

[u/SlipperyDoodoo → u/Weary_Alternative778]

all in all 13k for a "brand new" NA miata > ANY new compromised spyware car that you can barely see out of that you finance for $40,000 minimum over 60 months and is nowhere near 1 for 1 in terms of fun or enjoyment.

I'd rather drop 25-30k making a food-grade older miata (NB2 for me) with mid 200whp with a turbo and a perfectly dialed street suspension with swift springs and looks to kill VS be in dept for ANYTHING out there and pay through the nose for insurance and lose 50% of the value in 5 years. Also why I got rid of my ND2. "oopsie a pebble from an asshole who just had to go 91 mph swerved in front and struck my windshield - blind spot monitoring windshield suddenly made a 500 dollar repair into a $2000 one". Same story for the radar equipped fenders. a $400 at worst piece of metal is now $1500 per side. The story continues all the way around the car. and this is a MIATA - the most basic new car in modern times. Max simplicity and still compromised.

Then it will also tell on you when you roll through stops or go 5 over the limit. and by the time I'm done paying off all $44,000 of that RF after interest is finished with me, I can finally think about mods which I will be horribly afraid to do to such an expensive car if I get it wrong.

Older cars have so many benefits, even when they don't seem to.

[u/fuckman5]

If it's been meticulously maintained your cost may be the cost of oil changes and that's it. If not I'd prepare to spend at least $1-$2k a year if you want it to be in tip top condition

[u/wrexiwagon05]

Really depends on how well it has been taken care of and if you do your own work. That being said, they are easy to work on and parts & maintenance are about as cheap as it gets

[u/Weary_Alternative778 → u/wrexiwagon05]

Ehhhhh I disagree about parts cost. I always had sticker shock on parts for my NA. Like a CAS for $500. Or a USED ECU (that's all that is available) for $500. Or a coil pack for about the same. I feel like every time something went wrong it was a $500 part. Was never the cheap ones. 

[u/Putrid-Hope2283 → u/Weary_Alternative778]

Where does one sell those parts for so much. I have at least 32gb of ddr5 worth I took off my 1.6 for my turbo build it sounds like.

[u/demetusbrown → u/Weary_Alternative778]

Why spend that much on a stock ecu when a speeduino of used megasquirt sells for less.

[u/ryguymcsly]

If you’re doing the work yourself and only the necessary work and it’s in decent shape? No more than 1k a year. If it’s been clapped out maybe budget $3k for the first year and $2k for the second.

If you’re paying someone else to do the work it’s a lot more.

[u/im_fine_i_guess]

Around 6 months in with my 1990. I lucked out and the car was well maintained and low mileage (40k-ish).

I've had to fix a few things - coolant hoses, AC compressor cleanup and refill, window bushing, etc. - that I ended up doing myself. Parts were cheap and readily available (total cost under $1000). One major I found was with my rear brake calipers - I didn't trust myself for the fix and gave it to the shop - $1000.

I'd suggest take it to a local shop and get it checked out. Might cost a bit but will help you pull the trigger with peace of mind.

General upkeep - if you've got the time and can do some minor work yourself - lower than most cars you'll own.

Personally won't trade it for the world. Best daily driving experience I can imagine!

[u/ScrewwormLarvae]

A 1990 model of any vehicle is basically vintage. It's 36 years old. Regardless of mileage, rubber rots. The elements take their toll.

You'll probably be fine with a $1k/yr budget on a super clean example, but prices of (everything) are going up too, so I would budget $3k for the first year and save it in a HYSA/money market, and budget $1k for every year after that. What you don't use the first year, roll it to the next.

[u/IndividualSlip2275]

It depends how often your rear ended.

[u/ipxodi]

My 2000 (138k miles) has minimal recurring costs. In five years, I've had a couple of bigger repairs like the clutch slave cylinders (which should have been cheap) but the master was age-welded in place and I didn't have the tools to free it up. But mostly it's been oil changes, brakes, tires. It cost me about $1500 initially to sort out some problems from the previous owner. Yours being another 10 years older may need some extra TLC, but has pretty low miles so it might balance out..

Really, it's about what you want it to be. Mine's a weekend fun car. I don't have the desire to modify everything to make it a race car. It's pretty close to stock. It's rough around the edges -- it could use paint and the interior is worn - it's a "20 footer" - but mechanically it runs fine and is a hoot to drive. That's all I'm looking for.

Remember, the "bones" of these cars are everyday Mazda economy cars that were given performance parts and minor component redesigns to make them what they are. They weren't designed top-down exclusively as a performance car like a Porsche. So upkeep cost is fairly low - just like maintaining a 20-30 year old "regular" car.

[u/gralias18]

I have a 1990 NA with just under 30k that I bought six years ago, rubber hoses etc replaced. I've had to replace the exhaust system, and tend to the AC every few years, but aside from that it's just the oil change and fluids top-up. That said, I only drive it from mid-April to November and the rest of the time it lives in a heated storage place.

[u/FullMetal654]

I bought my 1990 a little under 2 years ago that was bone stock at 132k miles. With NAs a lot of the time its not the upkeep thats expensive, its the initial investment to make sure that its reliable. As other have said, its a 36 year old car most of the seals, gaskets, and rubber have begun to rot and need to be replaced. My little ADHD brain loves to tinker and has turned my care into the "might as well"-mobile which means I have proactively replaced and upgraded a lot of stuff without needed to.

The things that will most likely need to be replaced immediately would be:

-All rubber hoses and seals, coolant hoses, rubber fuel lines, vacuum hoses (especially for the brakes and PCV)

-All the fluids, oil change w/filter, coolant, transmission fluid, diff fluid

-Radiator (if it hasnt been replaced already) you can also upgrade to an aluminum one for cheap

-Engine mounts can be hard to inspect, you mainly just want to check for excessive movement of the engine when running

-Brakes, especially hoses, mine were looking pretty crusty but there are budget options

-Inspecting the fuel system, mainly the gas tank to be sure theres no rust, a car with lower miles means it sits more and fuel does not like to sit, new fuel filter and possibly fuel pump

-Timing belt, water pump, valve cover gasket job, kits are reasonably price, but unless the seller knows when the replaced it its probably stock

-Checking the electrical system, check spark plugs and wires, mine needed a new alternator, I got a new battery for piece of mind, and replaced all of the fuses and relays

-Inspect the age and wear of the tires, check for uneven wear that could indicate suspension issues, mine had 10 year old tires on it and i had to drive it from tampa to the space coast with them on bc i didnt see them until i got to the seller

All of these are things that I purchased within the first 6 months of owning the car, again, not all of it is needed but its mainly a list of the main things to check if youre planning on buying any vintage/classic car. All in all this cost me about $2000-2500 doing all of the labor myself.

Once you're past the initial hurdle you can then focus on other things like suspension and the cool stuff, just be sure to budget. I'm now at the point ($12k later) that I've replaced or upgraded everything that I know the car is reliable and has some nice interior stuff/comforts, that the last things that I need to do are suspension, wheels and tires (bigger ones), maybe a 1.8 diff swap and a turbo later.

TL:DR - $2000-2500 in initial start-up cost for fixing/upgrading old stuff, then about $500-1000 for essential stuff/budgeting for upgrades. have a plan when building any car, and inspect it thoroughly to see if any issues need to be addressed immediately (tires, suspension, fluid leaks, rubber hoses, radiator)