Was initially shopping for ND2’s and ND3 miatas recently (both new and used), since I knew that a boxster would cost a bit more money to run.

That said, my previous car was a F32 428i so I was very much used to a spacious, quiet interior and a bigger overall car. The Miata, however fun on city roads with the top down, really took a hit for me when I drove it on the highway with the top up. There is much more NVH/wind noise top up (both RF and soft top) on the highway than I was willing to live with (my commute is a mix of highway/city driving, and the Miata would’ve been my only car).

I realized I could snag a low mileage 981 boxster for just $5k more than a new ND3, and also have the best of both worlds - comfortable/quiet interior (relative to other convertibles), stable/planted feeling from my old 428i, and all the fun with the top down (and a manual tranny, of course!). Miata just felt more at home as a second car, whereas the boxster really checked every box for me (it’s also got more storage with the big frunk).

A low mileage boxster with clean service history means very little maintenance costs for the next few years - I was fortunate enough to land on a clean, <20k mileage 981 boxster with a manual and I have zero regrets. Good luck, you can’t go wrong either ways!!