Back in October 2024 when I was adding a bunch of mods to the new blue Miata I was visiting the the local dealer’s parts department quite often, the same guy was always behind the counter. We got to talking as car guys do (he has a tastefully modded Mazda 3 hatch) and on my 3rd or 4th visit HE came back with the part I ordered and another item he thought I might find a use for, an official Mazda Miata Club badge. His manager had asked him to throw it out because it had been sitting around so long and there is really no demand for it anymore because it was on only certain Miatas in a 3 year span a decade ago.
The third generation Miata ran from 2006 to 2015 and in 2013 they replaced the Touring trim with a Club trim that was more sportier than the Sport trim (really the base car) and harder core than the Grand Touring trim level. The Club got a limited slip differential, some different shocks and a nifty badge that went on the driver’s side front fender. This badge was my gift from Mr. Parts Guy.
I wasn’t sure what I was going to do it at the time. When the fourth generation car came out in 2016 the trim levels were again called Sport, Club and Grand Touring. The Club trim was the still the “sportiest” version of the Miata, but they weren’t putting the Club Badge on them anymore. This meant that I didn’t want to put the badge on the new car because it was the Grand Touring trim and that seemed a little like sacrilege to do so.
Fast forward to January and I was now the proud owner of second generation car and that version of Miata didn’t ever have any trim called Club, I felt that is the car I could put the badge on. After all I’ve added new shocks, springs and a freer flowing exhaust to make it more Club like. I put the badge on the left front fender like it would have been on those 2013-2015 cars. In Mazda parts bag along with the badge there was a template on where to put it on the car. Of course the different generations made the template not exactly right, but I fudged it and I think it looks good where I stuck it.
Those early cars only had the one badge, but I thought if I could find another one I’d have badges on both sides. eBay to the rescue, I found one for sale and bought it, it came today. Bucky is now ambidextrously badged.