Format: bullet cues only, reference not read-aloud. Hosts riff from beats, never teleprompter the page.
Scored as: 2019+ ND2, Club, soft-top · Total: 52/70 · Target runtime: ~6:40, hard ceiling 7:00
Title (curiosity gap): "The Slowest Car We've Ever Ranked Beat the GR86"
Thumbnail word: "UNDERRATED" plus a big 52 on the Board
Order: Deal, Drive, Upkeep, Risk, Daily, Limit, Mods, Board, Verdict
Hook, one sentence (~0:05)
Pick one. All shopper-direct, all designed to hold the person who just searched "used Miata worth it."
- "If a used Miata is on your shopping list, this is the only seven minutes you need before you buy."
- "Shopping for a used Miata? Watch this before you spend a single dollar."
- "If you're cross-shopping a used Miata, we scored it against everything in its lane, and the result is not what you think."
Recommend #1: names the shopper, promises completeness, no wasted words. Cut straight to The Deal on the last syllable. No logo sting, no "hey guys."
1 · The Deal, reveal 8 (~0:50)
Beats
- Who this car is for: enthusiast who wants a sports car for sports-car money, not the most car
- The floor: clean ND1 Club / GT, 40 to 45k mi, ~$17k to $19k
- Lowest recorded ND sale: $10.8k (2016 Club), for context, not a rec
- The inversion: new 2026 base Sport now $31,665 delivered; loaded Club RF crosses $43k
- Trim map (on screen): Club = LSD + Bilstein + DSC-Track · GT = comfort + auto option · Sport = stripper
- Resale beat: good manual examples hold value, so real cost of ownership is lower than sticker
The Deal vs the segment
Buy-in: $19,500Resale 3yr: 88%Trend: Firm, risingTrims: Sport/Club/GT
Buy-in: $23,600Resale 3yr: 78%Trend: Flat, softeningTrims: Base/Premium
Buy-in: $42,000Resale 3yr: 87%Trend: FirmTrims: 2.0/3.0
2 · The Drive, reveal 7 (~0:55)
Beats
- Numbers first, fast: 181 hp / 151 lb-ft (ND2) vs 155 (ND1) · ~2,332 lb · ~12.9 lb/hp · 0-60 ~5.7s
- Pivot immediately: the product is the chassis, steering weight, and the shifter, not the stopwatch
- The head-fake (the retention beat): the 2019 "17% more power" is mostly a raised limiter
- below ~6,000 rpm ND1 and ND2 are nearly identical
- the extra 26 hp lives in the top 1,500 rpm the ND1 never had
- short-shift in town, you cannot feel it · wring it out, ND2 keeps pulling while ND1 goes flat
- payoff: which one to buy depends on how you drive, not what you pay
- Asterisk (say it before comments do): advertised 7,500 redline is 7,200 in 5th/6th · ~168 whp measured
- Score note on camera: chassis adjustment applied, this is a feel score not a speed score
The Drive vs the segment
Pwr/Wt: 8.9 lb/hpHP: 382 hpTorque: 368 lb-ftWeight: 3,400 lb0-60: 3.9s
Pwr/Wt: 12.9 lb/hpHP: 181 hpTorque: 151 lb-ftWeight: 2,340 lb0-60: 5.7s
Pwr/Wt: 12.4 lb/hpHP: 228 hpTorque: 184 lb-ftWeight: 2,833 lb0-60: 5.4s
3 · The Upkeep, reveal 9 (~0:40)
Beats
- New category, define it once in plain English: "what it actually costs to run, day to day"
- ~34 mpg hwy, runs on regular 87 (not premium)
- small cheap 205 tires · light car wears everything slowly
- service 7,500 mi / 6 mo · ~10% of MX-5 repairs rate "serious" vs 12% all-car avg
- insurers read it as a commuter, premiums stay low
- the spread that matters: this is a four-figure-a-year saving vs a V8 pony car
The Upkeep vs the segment
Annual: $3,627/yrMPG: 29Insurance: $1,569Fuel/Tires/Svc: $1,448 · $180 · $430Octane: 87
Annual: $5,850/yrMPG: 25Insurance: $2,500Fuel/Tires/Svc: $1,920 · $650 · $800Octane: 91
Annual: $5,496/yrMPG: 23Insurance: $2,589Fuel/Tires/Svc: $2,087 · $320 · $500Octane: 91
4 · The Risk, reveal 8 (~0:50)
Beats (heaviest-weighted segment, this is why they clicked)
- State the scope out loud: scored as a 2019+, here's why
- The scary one, defused: early manual failure is real but narrow
- soft-tops built before Sept 2016 only · TSB-documented · a 5-minute VIN / build-date check
- The generational one: A/C line cracks from engine vibration, refrigerant leak (CR data + forums, cheap fix)
- The wallet one: 2016-17 infotainment screens delaminate / spider-web · TSB · ~$1,200 out of warranty
- Minor name-drops: soft-top window hazing · collapsed strut top-hats (high mi) · heat-shield rattle
- Honest verdict framing: short on catastrophes, long on cheap annoyances
The Risk vs the segment
Worst Repair: $1,200Concern: Infotainment screenVerdict: Robust
Worst Repair: $1,500Concern: Oil/coolant/gasketsVerdict: Bulletproof engine
Worst Repair: $6,500Concern: Spun rod bearingVerdict: One real risk
5 · The Daily, reveal 4 (~0:30)
Beats (keep it tight, this is the honest ceiling)
- The test: could this be your only car
- 2 seats · ~4.6 cu ft trunk = a carry-on plus a soft duffel, that's it
- kills it: a dog, a Costco run, a passenger plus luggage
- the lever: RF adds refinement and a quieter cabin for a little weight/trunk
- framing so it's not a knock: wrong job, not bad car · brilliant second car
- callback: Upkeep already covered cost, so this is pure space and practicality
The Daily vs the segment
Cargo: 6.3 cu ftSeats: 4 (2+2)Layout: 2+2 CoupeFront Legroom: 41.5 in
Cargo: 10.2 cu ftSeats: 2Layout: Hatchback
Cargo: 4.6 cu ftSeats: 2Layout: RoadsterFront Legroom: 43.1 in
6 · The Limit, reveal 8.5 (~0:55)
Beats (the channel's authority segment, lean on seat time here)
- Frame the category: how it behaves when you actually push it, track and autocross
- Autocross: the ND is the benchmark · dominates SCCA Solo C Street · force in Street Touring
- The reclass story: when the ND2 landed, competitors said SCCA would have to reclass it
- The concrete edge: ND2 2nd gear pulls to ~60 mph, kills the extra upshift on a Nationals course
- Club hardware makes it track-ready stock: LSD + Bilstein + DSC-Track
- Honest caveat: track days need pads + fluid, small brakes fade after repeated laps
- The cross-shop hit, rewritten now the half point is gone: the Miata and the GR86 BOTH score 8 on The Limit, and the Miata gets there with ~47 fewer hp and 0.90 g against 0.98 g
The Limit vs the segment
Grip: 0.90 gBraking: 170 ftSCCA: C StreetHardware: LSD, Bilstein, DSC-Track
Grip: 1.02 gBraking: 151 ftSCCA: Faster StreetHardware: Adaptive dampers, e-diff
Grip: 0.98 gBraking: 156 ftSCCA: Street/STHardware: Torsen LSD
7 · The Mods, reveal 7.5 (~0:40)
Beats (a tale of two paths, that is the segment)
- Path 1, handling: outstanding value · cheap, reliable, deep support (Flyin' Miata / BBR)
- Path 2, power: NA is modest, real power needs boost
- 50-state emissions-legal turbo exists (FM/BBR), genuinely rare, say it
- BUT stock fuel system caps ~275 whp before injectors + pump + built bottom end
- boost stresses drivetrain/trans, oil cooler near-mandatory · HKS kit ~$5,500 to $6,500 before supporting mods
- Payoff line: build a devastating handling car cheap and reliable, or a fast one and now you manage reliability
The Mods vs the segment
Cost → Power: $1k → 420whpCeiling: 500 whpAftermarket: Shared BMW B58 ecosystem
Cost → Power: $8k → 340whpCeiling: 340 whpAftermarket: Shared with BRZ
Cost → Power: $8k → 275whpCeiling: 275 whpAftermarket: 50-state-legal FI kits
The Board + Verdict (~0:55)
Beats
- Total lands: 52 / 70
- Place it among rivals, spec table on screen ~15s, hit only the numbers that differ
- The reveal payoff (callback to the hook): it out-points the GR86 (40 on the old board, still behind on the new one)
- wins The Deal, The Upkeep, The Limit · loses The Daily · with ~47 fewer hp
- Say the "why it wins" in one line: it wins the categories that cost you money and the one we know best
- Verdict, condition attached: "Buy, but a 2019+ Club, and check the build date."
- Skip case, stated fairly: only if it has to be your one and only car
- Point to the full car page / the Board (site CTA), then out
On screen: the 52 hits the Board · Miata slots above GR86 · Buy stamp with the condition line
Close cue: no long outro · one line to the Board · end
Runtime + notes
- Sum is roughly 6:40. If it runs long in the edit, pull from The Mods and The Daily first, protect The Risk and The Limit (the two the audience came for).
- Every score is a proposal until you and Dan reconcile independently. The three numbers most likely to move: The Drive (7, the chassis-adjustment call), The Limit (8.5, the seat-time call), and The Daily (4, how harsh the only-car bar should be).
- Title and thumbnail share zero words per channel rule. Verify before publish.