....every dealer I came across here in Michigan was/is a five star dealer...'cause they ALL had Crossfires on hand.

Keep in mind that if you haven't signed up for a Crossfire yet, there are some great deals to be had. It's a buyer's market. One alternative that I had considered before purchasing my 2005 coupe was buying a slightly used one on e-Bay. 2004's are all over e-Bay for around 20G, and it costs $500 to ship a car across the country. Even factoring in a plane ticket to check out a prospect on the other side of the country, and hitting the "buy it now" option afterwards would put you well ahead of the game. I went with my 2005 new, because I had a trade to unload. Curiously, my trade was also a Mazda (2003 Protege5). But, a Miata is a much easier car to sell private party, especially if it has a bunch of aftermarket stuff on it. Oh yeah, and I paid $24,300 for my Base Coupe.