Mentioned in November 2009 Road and Track mag

[lotos]

It's on page 11, an editorial about the longevity of the Miata:

The Miata is a survivor because it was the right car at the right time when it was launched for the 1990 model year.

Proving the point, it has outlived the Alfa Spider, the Lotus Elan and the Mercury Capri, the reincarnated MR2 Spyder and the Pontiac Solstice/Saturn Sky. Of course, the Alfa was nearing the end of its life cycle (and the Italian automaker's US presence), but the Elan and Capri, while their hearts were in the right places as open-top 2-seaters, their driving wheels weren't. There's something about a front-drive roadster that just isn't right.

[tweetdriver63]

It's on page 11, an editorial about the longevity of the Miata:

The Miata is a survivor because it was the right car at the right time when it was launched for the 1990 model year.

Proving the point, it has outlived the Alfa Spider, the Lotus Elan and the Mercury Capri, the reincarnated MR2 Spyder and the Pontiac Solstice/Saturn Sky. Of course, the Alfa was nearing the end of its life cycle (and the Italian automaker's US presence), but the Elan and Capri, while their hearts were in the right places as open-top 2-seaters, their driving wheels weren't. There's something about a front-drive roadster that just isn't right.

Yeah, I'm sure that was it. Probably had nothing to do with the Miata being a cheap, mass-produced Japanese car. The Capri was just an ugly POS, while the Elan, even though it was better-looking and better performing, as well as exotic, was priced out of the market.