Mazda Miata Becomes Off-Road Buggy With Ferrari 250 GTO Styling

We've seen many an off-road Mazda Miata in our time, from ones with V8 engines to ones with a Subaru motor up front. But we've never seen one styled to look like a Ferrari 250 GTO. That's just what we've now encountered in this 1992 Eunos Roadster up for sale on Cars and Bids.

It's tough to know where to start with this, but we'll begin by explaining its name. It's called a Eunos Roadster because it was imported from Japan, where the MX-5 Miata was sold under Mazda's Eunos sub-brand for tax purposes. Because it comes from Japan, it's a right-hand drive model, but despite this, it is fully US registered with a clean Florida title, displaying just 76,900 kilometers (47,800 miles) on the metric odometer.

The Roadster has been extensively modified since its importation in 2022, but it wasn't exactly stock when it arrived. The current owner purchased it in March this year when it already had the Ferrari 250 GTO-aping body kit on it from Monocraft. At the time, it also had the Bride bucket seats and the fastback-style hardtop.

Subsequently, it's been jacked up on a Paco Motorsports lift kit and had the fenders cut to accommodate Bassett Racing 15-inch wheels shod in 235/70 Forceum ATZ rubber, while bolt-on overfenders give it a wider, more aggressive stance.

The doors are missing from the car as is, but are included in the sale. In their place, RaceQuip safety nets keep you in your seat when you're flying across the desert.

Inside, it's got a completely revamped interior with carbon-look trim, a Nardi steering wheel, Auto Gauge gauges on the center stack, a radio delete, and new pedals.

Despite the heavily modified exterior and interior, one aspect of this build remains stock - the engine. It's a 1.6-liter inline-four producing 118 horsepower and 101 lb-ft of torque, sent to the rear axle through the stock five-speed manual transmission. The only change to the drivetrain is the new 1.5-way limited-slip differential at the rear to help it manage traction on the dirt.

On the whole, this looks like a pretty clean build. The seller notes minor issues like cracks near the passenger-side headlight, a missing lower steering column cover, torn upholstery on the headliner, and some rust on the exhaust and suspension. However, the car was recently serviced and the fuel filter and spark plus were replaced at the same time.

With two days left to bid, the current bid is sitting at $5,800. We expect it to double before the auction ends.

The concept of an off-road Miata may seem sacrilegious, but it's something Mazda engineers are a huge fan of. Earlier this year, Mazda Vehicle Development Engineer Dave Coleman told CarBuzz he'd love to see coupe, shooting brake, and off-road variants of the Miata, even telling us how he's building his own off-road MX-5 on the third-generation NC chassis.