Putting a luggage rack on a 2010 MX-5 Miata NC2 PRHT

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I’ve been working on getting a good camping setup that is the least annoying, all while taking my dog along as the passenger. This makes space tight so I’m looking at adding a luggage rack to move the tent out of the boot.

For those with an NC 2006-2015 model you’ll find there’s any number of racks for the NA, NB, and ND. For the NC it wasn’t the most popular model at the time, and it’s been out of production since 2016 which are the reasons I can come up with to explain the shortage of racks for it – and for the PRHT it’s even harder. There are a few though once you dig far enough so I’ll go through what I have found.

I just want a rack for my NC PRHT, what’s the quick answer?

For the go-to temporary solution, get a revo rack.

For a removable but not permanent solution, get a modern tourist trophy rack from Moss Miata.

Which Type should I get?

There are 3 types of racks generally available across all the MX-5 / Miata generations – Permanent, Removeable, or the Revo Rack. They all have their pro’s and cons, prices, appearances, sizes, etc. You’ll see the Revo Rack everywhere so let’s start with that.

Revo Rack

This is the most common answer you’ll see online regardless of whether you’re looking for NA, NB, NC, or ND – because it’s temporary, it is easy to attach and detach, it is reliable, and fits pretty much anything. It comes in polished silver or black.

The way it works is it attaches with vacuum cups. Each cup is rated to a large amount of weight so with all 3 it’ll be solid. These are large and flat so they don’t damage the paint, and will easily last through a day without any issues.

Pros:

• Attaches in minutes
• No damage to paint or bodywork
• Holds the same amount as removeable racks
• The most common
• Looks great in silver or black
• Fits pretty much any vehicle (NA, NB, NC, NC PRHT, ND)
• Available in many countries and many retailers.

Cons:

• The cost – it’s the second most expensive rack I found – by a long way.
• The vacuum pads may require re-calibrating during the day (the instructions say to remove the rack each night)
• The pads detract from the look, and the tube is fairly thick and oversized
• MUST be removed if not carrying luggage

If you have the money, and odd shaped vehicle, and don’t mind the appearance of it then it’s the one to get. I know that I would constantly worry about it detaching, and the look wasn’t for me, so I ruled it out.

Permanent

These are the ones that are attached permanently which require drilling through the boot lid. If you have a soft top and a fairly standard or common colour then this is a great option as spares would be plentiful – so you could swap the entire boot lid to remove it if not needed. There’s a number of these and they’re not really restricted to a specific generation, ND’s are a tiny bootlid so they might miss out on the more common ones.

Pros:

• One of the cheapest options
• They look fantastic and usually in classic styles
• Can securely hold much more than the other options, with no real risk of losing your luggage.

Cons:

• Physical holes in the boot lit – you need to make sure it’s there for life.

https://mossmiata.com/244-010-factory-style-luggage-rack

https://www.boot-racks.co.uk/mazda-mx5-rc-prht-hard-top.html

Removeable

There was actually a genuine luggage rack released by Mazda for the soft top, which is of removeable style. These tend to have a clamp over the edge of the boot lid, using screws to allow the rack to press down on the lid itself. Fairly common, and in the middle of the price brackets. The modern 3rd party variants tend to make the clamps adjustable so they can suit most generations (NA, NB, NC).

Pros:

• Removeable yet secured
• Mid-range cost wise
• Available in a variety of styles
• ALLEGEDLY doesn’t need to be removed if not carrying luggage as long as a compliant light is fitted correctly.

Cons:

• Risk to the paint and panel if not done correctly
• Availability outside of America and Europe is costly – if at all possible.
• Sometimes the look is detracted from the mounts
• Lots of work to do to meet local regulations (bolts, 3rd brake light)

https://mossmiata.com/901-600-removable-luggage-rack-modern-style-by-tourist-trophy

https://mossmiata.com/901-610-removable-luggage-rack-vintage-style

What about the PRHT?

So there’s a couple of things to know about the NC PRHT which changes the decision. Permanent racks are fine as long as the dimensions are good. Revo rack is fine as most people use these. Removable racks are where the issues come in…

• The boot lid is physically different to the soft top. The PRHT lid is steel, the soft top is aluminium. Also the dimensions are different – both lids start same width, but the soft top tapers more than the PRHT where there’s a 2.5cm difference on each side once it reaches the back of the car. The PRHT lid is also about 4cm deeper/longer. There’s also a curvature difference between the two – the PRHT is flatter. So where a removable rack is made for the soft top and doesn’t have adjustable feet or brackets, it won’t fit a PRHT.
• The roof mechanism – to allow the PRHT to continue to function it needs to clear the front of the rack. Most racks will work (IMPORTANT – WITHOUT LUGGAGE ATTACHED), however if the rack is too deep (or mounted with the raised rail towards the front of the car) it will cause the roof panels to bump into it and fail in a very expensive way.

So if you’re looking for a particular style that is only available in removable, you might need to let it go, or work out how to adjust it to work. The one removable rack that the majority seem to use with success on PRHTs is the Modern Tourist Trophy from Moss Miata (pictured above). If you want a no-nonsense removable option then go for that!

Which luggage rack have I chosen for my PRHT?

For me it’s so expensive to get one in Australia – there is an Australian retailer called mx5mania but the selection isn’t huge and prices are so high – this is fairly typical due to the cost of getting things here in the first place, and we just don’t have the population. I don’t want to damage the boot by drilling holes through, and I know the suckers on the revo rack would have me worrying constantly. So removable it is. And because the price is high right off the bat, I want it to look nice and be worth it even if it takes a bit of work, and the Modern Tourist Trophy just doesn’t quite gel with me, so I have chosen the Vintage Tourist Trophy from Moss Miata.

Initial fitting

This is how the Tourist Trophy/Surco Vintage sits on a PRHT straight out of the box. The squares are just foam offcuts so I can put it in place.

The fitting is extremely close, the side brackets would work just needs slightly longer bolts, even the strap for the front would fit but it’d be tight. The glaring issues though are:

• The roof definitely won’t open – The rear roof cover that lifts first bumps right into it until it’s moved about 10cm back – meaning the rear feet don’t have anything to sit on.
• The feet are flat whereas the boot is very curved
• The front bracket would probably fit very tight as-is but it’ll block the roof
• The side screws are too short by 20-25mm.

So this is extremely not compatible with the PRHT – but that’s why we’re here so we can fix it up. And because it’s stainless steel we can adjust the depth. So my answer is to chop ~10cm out of each side, get longer bolts for the sides, get an extra bracket and bolt to span the bigger gap due to shortening the whole rack, and make some angled padded blocks for the feet so it sits flat and doesn’t damage the boot. Of course if you’re not worried about the roof opening/closing then you only need the padded feet and longer bolts for the sides. And if you’re not looking for a project and just want a rack, get the modern variant.

Shopping list

• 4 x rubber blocks of some sort, about 1cm thick. Made with a dense foam but not too dense, or a sandwich of neoprene and closed cell to spread the load and self-level to a degree. Update: I have made a 1cm high stepped neoprene circle which works as a test, and I discovered there’s yoga wedges which are the correct angle and dense foam. Update: yoga wedges are close but not right, very difficult to shape. Shifting my focus to a transparent silicone rubber solution 🤞
• A sheet of flat rubber so make the feet non-slip, depending on the feet sponge material
• 4 x M6 70-85mm stainless steel bolts for the additional gap to the sides
• 1 x small flat stainless steel bracket (or u-bolt baffle) of 70mm x 25mm or so (must support two bolt centres 50mm apart), in order to extend the factory front bracket.
• 1 x M6 12mm bolt and nut for the extended bracket
• 1 x Stainless Steel pipe cutter (22mm+) or a bi-metal/cobalt 32T hacksaw blade <- this is a better choice as the feet need trimming also
• 2 x 100mm (19mm) stainless steel pipes for the sleeves – It’s 22mm pipe currently with a guess of around 1.5mm internal thickness due to the light weight (~3-4kg).
• 4 x M4 8mm stainless steel rivets for the sleeves – get some spares, and make sure the stick is stainless also
• 4.5mm, 3.5mm, & 2mm cobalt drill bits
• Epoxy (Araldite) for the sleeve adhesive – get the slow cure, and make sure it’s fantastic on stainless steel.
• Loctite 243 for the various bolts around everywhere
• PPF for underneath the rubber – I already have some of this ready but it’s a good idea if you’re using a removable luggage rack like these.

I can get to cutting before everything else arrives, to make sure I can get the sizing right. That’ll be the next update.

Cutting the rack

On to the cutting so I can see if the internal pipe sleeves fit!

Before gluing it and such in place, I need to test fit it. I can do this by strapping the two sections together with velcro ties or cableties or similar, and placing it the right distance according to the brackets I have until the proper one arrives. If it doesn’t arrive or work I can always glue the long bracket on top of the hooked bracket anyway.

Positioning the rack

There are 3 things required here after the cutting & joining is complete. They are:

• The bracket that hooks over the front-most lip of the boot lid. On other racks they say not to use this on a PRHT, probably because it moves it too close to the mechanism. However we still want to use it so we can place the rack accurately, and prevent the rack from moving back any further once it’s clamped and loaded.
• The foam feet – these need to be angled as the vintage rack is designed for the soft top which has a much flatter lid. If nothing was placed underneath, the inner edges of the feet would dig into the boot lid as the PRHT is much more curved. So we’re solving this with thick angled foam pads.
• The side hooks/brackets. The rack comes with 60mm bolts which works if the feet sit flat. On the PRHT they don’t sit flat, so I need to account for the extra distance. I have got 70mm to account for extra height if required.

Ok so now we know everything is lining up nicely. The rack fits, the feet are on a decent part of the boot lid, the foam angles are good, the roof can still function, and it’s easy enough to position. The only bits remaining are the bolts, the ubolt baffle at the correct distance, and to rivet & glue it together.

PSA: Drilling holes in stainless steel tube is the second-least fun activity in the world. So I might only be putting 4 rivets total. Do everything in your power to drill as few holes as possible. Update: I put only 4 rivets – there was something odd about the smaller 19mm tube that made it impossible to drill. Between that, the epoxy, the non-slip feet, the bracket, and the offset pipes I think the rack will stay together.

Getting the flat feet to match the boot lid curve

The foam angles have just arrived and they’re the right density and almost the exact angle I was after. So these are yoga foam wedges incase you’re looking for cheap dense foam at the correct angle.

I bought double, and should be able to create at least two feet from each block without too much trouble. I might have to glue some non-slip material to the top and bottom so it doesn’t shift when clamped.

Ok I crafted angled feet bespoke to each corner, and I have test fitted the rack and tried to screw in the little clamps and failed. The foam feet are way too tall, and the flat feet on the rack itself stick out too far for the brackets to sit on the correct angle to screw in. So I’m going to have to cut some of the feet off of the bracket. Not the worst job as the hacksaw works really well.

So I’ll order some 70mm bolts, and hacksaw the flat areas of all 4 feet. Then for the foam I might go back to the original stacked neoprene idea to see if I can at least get something working.

** LEGAL REQUIREMENT ** A rack needs to have no sharp corners, wingnuts, bolt ends with threads exposed that could snag someone walking by the car in a carpark. So the 70mm bolts is the right call as they don’t poke through the bottom like shown in the above photos. Also I’ll be putting clear rubber tubing over the exposed threads to make sure there’s no question. I may need to put more rubber over the actual mounting holes for the bolts I’m not sure yet. I think it’s making sense why this classic version isn’t sold here yet the modern version is…

Ok the feet have been trimmed and I have test fitted all brackets which I’m able to screw them all in. Two opposing corners are tightest so it might have to sit on a very slight angle. This is the completed rack.

The feet padding has become a bigger problem than I expected. foam is hard to get right, squishies I believe would be too soft, and clear rubber tape is great but sticks to the car better than to itself. The ideal solution would be to pour my own 4 custom feet using curable silicone gel but hoping I don’t need to go that far. My next attempt is with silicone gel heel inserts for shoes as these are wedges in various heights. Hoping I can just trim those and they’ll look ok.

** LEGAL REQUIREMENT ** There needs to be no movement between the rack and the boot lid. With the screws tightened I’m able to push on the rack and the entire car moves rather than the rack.

3rd brake light

Because the rack is blocking the 3rd brake light on the MX5/Miata, we need to add what’s called a temporary 3rd brake light. Let’s get to the plug first as that’s a given.

I already ran a reverse camera as part of the double din stereo upgrade – you can see the pink wire in the image below – which required tapping into the rear left light cluster to get the reverse positive, then running the wire all the way up through the boot lid grommet. I’m thinking of doing the same for the brake light and putting the plug up there. That avoids all the messy PRHT bits.

I received a couple of lights and tested them, easily bright enough but I’m not keen on the thickness or how to mount them yet – most of them make the wires poke directly out the back but I have a pipe there. I’ve ordered a few more which might sit a bit better and have wires to the side.

With that said, there are a number of legalities around just what you can use for a light this so this is what I have found:

• It must be >= 30cm2 in lens area
• It must be ONLY red, not a combination of orange and red, and I believe even the shade of red needs to be correct.
• It must be a solid light, cannot flash, and no delay compared to the factory brake lights.
• It must be centered
• It must be visible 200m away in daylight, and visible from various angles.
• It must be ADR compliant* and approved
• Motorbikes have different rules, don’t use them as a guide.

On the ADR compliance, the easy answer is if you want no grief about it eg. if you get pulled over for a check, or if your insurance is questionable, then just get an ADR compliant light. However apparently there’s a grey area where if you have a TEMPORARY rack and you fit a compliant* light to your rack or luggage while the rack is loaded, then APPARENTLY you’ve done your best. It’s the temporary/semi-permanent that is key. Let’s explore that.

• Temporary = Can be removed without tools. A revo-rack would be temporary, a boot bag would also fit this category. Anything that users suckers or straps is temporary. Those bike racks that clamp on to the towball and have straps over the boot lid are temporary. Basically if you were transporting a ladder, and had it held down with ratchet straps, that’s temporary. Caravan towing mirrors (the screw-on kind) are temporary. All of these things legally need to be removed if they are not serving their purpose eg. if you’re not carrying any luggage at the time.
• Semi-permanent = Needs a tool to remove it. The rack I’m using is in the semi-permanent category as it needs an allen key to undo 5 bolts. Those bike racks that are held on between the towball and the tow bar are semi-permanent. These don’t necessarily need to be removed when not in use, but should be if not used for an extented period of time. If you’ve taken your luggage off and you’re popping down to the shops, that’s ok.
• Permanent = The vehicle has been modified eg. the rack has been bolted through the boot lid.

** This is NOT legal advice ** So you might be able to make a light that matches the requirements if you’re using temporary or even semi-permanent and removing the rack when not in use, however if something is considered semi-permanent or you don’t want to risk it, get an ADR approved light and mount it according to the regulations.