As automakers continue to raise vehicle prices, Dodge may be looking to fill the sports-car-under-$30,000 space that is mysteriously Miata-shaped.<\/p>\n
TheDrive\u00a0<\/strong>recently dug up an interview it had with Dodge CEO Matt McAlear, which discussed that under-$30,000 market. McAlear confirmed that there have been discussions about a sports car under $30,000, but it wouldn’t be super easy to get there. When they caught up with him at the New York International Auto Show last week, they asked if Dodge was still trying to figure this out.<\/p>\n He said: “Yeah, there\u2019s absolutely a market for affordability. There\u2019s a market for affordability in something that nobody else offers and that separates us from the pack.” He’s not wrong. Americans have been begging<\/em> for cheap options for years now.<\/p>\n McAlear added that Dodge owes their consumers more affordable options \u2014 that are still fun to drive and have “style, attitude, and performance.” He noted that the industry needs to be “challenged” on its classification of an entry-level, base vehicle.<\/p>\n However, Dodge couldn’t confirm or deny if it was currently working on a cheap sports car.\u00a0 Said McAlear: \u201cI would love to see something happen, but it doesn\u2019t mean we\u2019re actually going to do it.\u201d<\/p>\n Now would be the perfect time to unleash a cheap sports car. The Mazda Miata MX-5 made headlines when it tiptoed over that $30,000 threshold. While it’s still just $31,600 to start, it’s still a sign that new cars are becoming more expensive<\/a>. The average price is over $50,000, and the Miata is just one stand-out.<\/p>\n The Miata has always been seen as an affordable sports car. Or\u00a0the<\/em> affordable sports car. That’s what it stood for from the 1990s to today, including used models. Said Tsutomu “Tom” Matano, the father of the Miata: “One of the important issues for strategies is controlling prices of used [Miatas]. It is necessary to have a substantial number of accessories and repair parts that the second owners are able to use to customize their vehicles.”<\/p>\n Despite this, the Miata has gone up in price due to the Trump Administration’s tariffs, economic woes, and shifting customer wants and needs. Mazda has been trying to find creative ways to deal with the financial issues<\/a> but removing some fancy stitching won’t off-set millions lost from tariffs. This has left a very enticing segment of the car market basically empty: a sports car below $30,000. Most automakers are ignoring it, busy making the biggest and most luxurious<\/a> things they can think of over a misconception that Americans want over-the-top SUVs.<\/p>\n Will Dodge step in?<\/p>\nThe Miata has left the “affordable sports car” category wide open<\/h2>\n