Speculating on a Sports Car : Out-of-state Miata owners see a chance to make big profits on a small auto that’s in short supply here.

Furniture store owner Ron Behrens of Spencer, Iowa, figures that he can make a quick $10,000 profit by selling his new Mazda Miata sports convertible--in Los Angeles.

“I figure the market for the car might be better out there with all the people and the sunny climate,” Behrens, 41, said Thursday in a telephone interview. “By October, it’s time to put the car away for the winter out here.” He is asking $25,000 for his 2-week-old Miata roadster in a Times classified ad.

Owners of Mazda’s hot new roadster are trying to cash in on the car’s popularity by trying to resell their cars at top dollar, at least in Los Angeles. Miata owners--some asking $40,000 for a car that lists between $13,800 and $18,000--placed 40 classified ads in Thursday’s Times.

The Miata’s unusual design, relatively low price and rave reviews in auto trade magazines have fired the enthusiasm of many car buyers nationwide.

“Everywhere you stop, people ask, ‘How do you like it?’ ” said Upland resident Dan Galindo, 41, of the white Miata he is trying to sell for $40,000. “But there are some bills I’ve got to pay and someone suggested to sell it.”

But so far, he added, there have not been many calls. One man offered only $24,000, and a couple promised to come over to take a look.

Most of those selling Miatas through classified ads are from outside California. News reports of long waiting lists at Southern California auto dealerships--and the region’s well-known car culture--assure them of a better price than they would receive at home, the sellers say.

“Los Angeles has got a lot more money than middle Tennessee,” said a physician in Winchester, Tenn., who placed a classified ad asking $50,000 for a pair of red and white Miatas. “It’s a California car--not a middle Tennessee car,” he added, declining to give his name.

“I heard that there are 200-person waiting lists for the car at a lot of the local dealerships out there,” said Craig Wipperman, 27, an engineer in Huntsville, Ala., who was trying to sell his week-old Miata for $25,000.

“It’s a great car to drive,” Wipperman said. “But I paid $18,500 for it, and if somebody offers me $25,000 I think it will be stupid for me to turn them down.”

Even out-of-state car salespeople are getting into the act. Troy Cutrubus and Carl Burge, who sell Mazdas in Ogden, Utah, placed an ad in Los Angeles after Southern California Mazda dealers called them looking for Miatas.

‘Don’t Mind Keeping’ Car

“They were willing to pay over sticker,” Cutrubus said. “So we thought we might as well advertise out there if we have the clientele.”

But the out-of-state sellers may have overestimated Southern Californians’ appetite for the sporty new car. None of the owners contacted, other than Galindo, had received even one offer.

“We haven’t had a single call yet,” said Leah Whiteside, a video store owner in Dallas who is asking $31,000 for a red Miata with an optional hard top and is awaiting the delivery of a second car she also intends to sell.

“We may give them a price break if they come and get it,” Whiteside said. But “it’s a car you don’t mind keeping if you don’t sell it.”