06 Solstice or 03 Miata?

Question

Scotty, I own a straight drive 2006 Pontiac Solstice Roadster with ~149,000 miles, a bad top, and a worn clutch which I bought in March 2021 for $3,000. I’m looking to buy a 2003 Mazda Miata MX-5 Shinsen for $2,500. Site says it has “~99,000 miles, has a good motor, good transmission and clutch, good limited slip rear differential, cloth top is in great shape with no rips or tears and new tires on aftermarket wheels.” The site also says “It has a REBUILT TITLE! It has extensive RUST on both quarter panels and some on the rocker panels below the doors. It also has RUST on the front section of the FRAME forward of the motor. It has a leaking rear brake caliper and may or may not be safe to drive due to possible structural damage from the rust.” Should I stick with the fat sports car Bertha, or should I go for the Silver Bullet?

Here’t there site if you wanna look at it:

https://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledetails.xhtml?listingId=611351844&zip=29073&referrer=%2Fcars-for-sale%2Fsearchresults.xhtml%3Fzip%3D29073%26city%3DLexington%26extColorsSimple%3DBEIGE%252CBLACK%252CBLUE%252CBROWN%252CBURGUNDY%252CCHARCOAL%252CGOLD%252CGREEN%252COFFWHITE%252CORANGE%252CPINK%252CPURPLE%252CRED%252CSILVER%252CTAN%252CTURQUOISE%252CWHITE%252CYELLOW%26startYear%3D1990%26incremental%3Dall%26modelCodeList%3DMIATA%26makeCodeList%3DMAZDA%26transmissionCodes%3DAUT%252CMAN%26listingTypes%3DNEW%252CUSED%26vehicleHistoryTypes%3DNO_ACCIDENTS%26sortBy%3DderivedpriceASC%26location%3D%255Bobject%2BObject%255D%26maxPrice%3D1000000%26state%3DSC%26searchByDma%3Dfalse%26firstRecord%3D0%26marketExtension%3Dinclude%26relevanceConfig%3Ddefault%26searchRadius%3D0%26isNewSearch%3Dfalse&listingTypes=NEW%2CUSED&startYear=1990&numRecords=25&maxPrice=1000000&searchByDma=false&firstRecord=0&modelCodeList=MIATA&makeCodeList=MAZDA&searchRadius=0&makeCode1=MAZDA&modelCode1=MIATA&clickType=listing

InThrustWeTrust · Answer

Posted by: @samuel21bxcs “It has a REBUILT TITLE! It has extensive RUST on both quarter panels and some on the rocker panels below the doors. It also has RUST on the front section of the FRAME forward of the motor. It has a leaking rear brake caliper and may or may not be safe to drive due to possible structural damage from the rust.” Stick with Bertha. Spend a little on a new clutch kit and top and be glad you don’t drive a structurally unsafe car.