Definitely. This is why I ended up selling my Miata and getting a WRX.
You might be able to find a used Flyin' Miata Voodoo Box but they don't make them anymore. I don't know of any other piggyback systems made specifically for a Miata.
Sometimes you can find a deal on good used turbo stuff but it's a crapshoot.
You could also get a plug-and-play ECU like Megasquirt and swap everything back to stock for the emissions test. Or at least swap in the stock ECU and injectors and wire the wastegate open so it doesn't make boost.
Not sure what you mean by fuel cards but if it's pre-OBD2 (1995) you should be able to pass the tailpipe emissions test with a Megasquirt ECU or similar. There's also piggyback systems that work with the stock ECU if the emissions test requires that.
Looking forward to this dude's project car updates
If you want to look on the bright side, if you can replace the head gasket yourself that means you're capable of pretty much any other repairs that might come later
I haven't heard "Ute" used much in America except to refer to the Native American tribe. I'm not sure what the official word for a car-based pickup would be, but colloquially people have used the suffix -amino as in the Chevrolet El Camino. So if someone chopped the roof off of a Volvo station wagon and made it into a pickup it would be a Volvamino.
If driver tests were more rigorous it would make it harder for people to get to work and the line would go down.
I don't really know what the advantage of air brakes over hydraulic brakes would be, except that they make cool noises
Kei trucks are very unsafe (your knees are the crumple zones) and difficult to find parts for when they break down. Other than that, they're great!
Maybe the battery in the sensor is running low?
Is 40 psi the recommended tire pressure? That seems high, unless it's on a truck or large SUV.
I've used Rain-X spray on my windshield before, it's supposed to make the windshield more slippery so that water runs off it more quickly, but I don't know if it makes the squeaking less. If you end up going with KY jelly let me know what your results are. I also wonder if water-based lube in the coolant would make your water pump more efficient 
My guess is there was some kind of arc flash
lol