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Introduced last year as a 2006 model, Mazda’s third generation MX-5(the new Miata) continued the iconic roadster’s nature of slicing through traffic, carving backroad corners, perfectly apexing on-ramps, and doing it all with scalpel like precision. But can it do all of these things in a cold, wintry December? Well, the answer is yes and no. Although generally considered a second car, a fair weather toy to be played with on sunny summer weekends, a few brave owners have thrown on snow tires, a removable hardtop and a couple of sandbags in the trunk and proceeded to play in the snow and ice. Recently some of my colleagues have written a fair bit on how with the addition of the Power Retractable Hard Top (PRHT) the MX-5 is now truly a four-season car. As you may already know, Mazda announced earlier this year that for 2007 they would add the trick folding hardtop to the MX-5 lineup, increasing its curb weight by a mere 80 pounds or so without taking up any valuable real estate in the trunk. A few people wondered why Mazda would add unnecessary weight to the MX-5, whose engineers are so obsessed with lightness they even shaved precious grams from the rearview mirror. Still, they produced it. In fact, until the end it was unclear that a retractable hardtop was in the running. Rumors abounded for years about Mazda producing a Miata coupe, although the PRHT is a nice compromise. With the top up or down the car looks fantastic, and overall
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| We try a summer car beefed up for winter, in the winter. Unfortunately, winter did not cooperate for long. (Photo: Steven James Day, American Auto Press) |
the new body style is very pleasing to the eye, although it could use a bit more aggression. Mazdaspeed does make a beautiful body kit, consisting of front and rear bumpers and side skirts that add that aggressive nature.
Since my goal was test the MX-5’s winter viability I was able to borrowone from Mazda outfitted with a set of Pirelli 240 Snow Sport high performance snow tires on the stock 17-inch rims. Oddly enough, in the winter months they don’t get a lot of requests for the MX-5, so it was arranged that I would have one for two weeks. My sporty tester was finished in Copper Red and came with Dynamic Stability Control, Traction Control, as well as a Limited Slip Differential (LSD), so I was well prepared for anything that winter could throw at me. However, the weather neglected to cooperate, so in my two weeks with the car I ended up having only the first two days to try it on heavily snow covered roads. On my second night with the car I picked my son up from school while it snowed, the kind of heavy wet snow that really slushes up the roads.The MX-5
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| Roof looks a tad bulbous from this angle, but it works a treat when the weather gets cold (or on the highway). (Photo: Justin Couture, American Auto Press) |
handled it all with ease. I then tried to find the heaviest snow covered roads I could, to really get a feel for things. The DSC kept everything in check, even when I purposely pushed the car too hard around corners trying to upset it. I even started in first gear with the DSC disabled, and as long as I was light with the throttle, starting off wasn’t a problem and wheel slip was kept to a minimum, even in 3 inch deep snow on a slight incline. Trying to take a corner too fast would result in the car understeering, but driving normally was just fine without the DSC enabled. Giving the MX-5 lots of throttle and counter steering, especially around corners, was just plain fun. I also drew a lot of looks, most of which seemed to express amusement at the crazy guy in the sports car forced to drive it in this weather. Although, I would no doubt cringe while driving around on the salted roads if the car were mine. After living in the white stuff for a couple of days I certainly think the MX-5 is a four-season car, but tire choice is critical as I was most certainly helped by the fantastic Pirelli snow tires. Still, I really would have liked to test the MX-5 some more in various winter conditions. I even drove
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| My tester had performance goodies such as LSD and Bilstein shocks. (Photo: Steven James Day, American Auto Press) |
up north for a weekend to visit my Mom and there was no snow there either. If it sounds like I’m complaining it shouldn’t, since I actually put the top down twice, which in December is something to write about. I kept the windows and windblocker up though, while keeping the heat cranked. But still it’s December!
So for the rest of the two weeks it was all dry roads and unseasonablywarm temperatures, perfect for 8/10ths driving that I thought I wouldn’t get to do again until May. The 166 horsepower all aluminum DOHC 2.0-liter engine is sweet. It revs freely, moving the little roadster very quickly and sounding fantastic, just as a small 4-cylinder roadster should; raspy under full throttle, with a nice burble under lighter loads. You really hear the engine and exhaust while in the MX-5, just the way it should be in any sports car. Fuel economy is actually pretty good too, but it does require premium fuel and the tank is a bit small. You don’t sit in the MX-5 as so much wear it, which helps since it's like an extension of the driver. The composure of the chassis is absolutely fantastic, especially since it’s matched with perfect steering that has such incredible road feel, an immediate change of direction is a quick flick of the wheel away. The shifter is the best I have tested, in any car
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| Not to mention steering wheel mounted controls... but not heated seats or keyless ignition. (Photo: Justin Couture, American Auto Press) |
at any price. It’s just pure joy to row through the gears, and when paired with perfectly placed pedals, heel and toe downshifts can be executed with precision. The brakes are excellent, but the car dives a bit under really hard braking. It’s also easy to steer the MX-5 with the throttle. Push a bit too hard on an off-ramp, for example, and step the rear end out ever so slightly, you just need to ease off the throttle a bit and the nose will tuck back in tightening the car back to your intended line. The MX-5 is geared quite high for snappier acceleration and getting to 60 mph requires 2 shifts. Even with the six-speed manual, the engine revs quite high on the highway and top speed is a redline limited 130 mph. But the MX-5 is certainly not some high-strung sports car, and around town it’s easy to drive and, therefore, was my main car for two weeks. I ran errands with it, took it on a three hour drive north, dropped my 6 year old off at his school with it, all without feeling fatigued from driving or wishing I was in my larger, more spacious hatchback. My son loves when I have two-seat cars, since he gets to sit up front. I had no problem putting him and his booster seat in the MX-5, plus the airbag automatically shuts off. The trunk, which can’t be described as cavernous, easily held several bags of groceries, Xmas gifts and my son’s backpack. Mazda has hollowed out the trunk trim on the driver’s side to
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| Folding hardtop roof was actually lowered during the test. It consumes no space in the trunk, though. (Photo: Justin Couture, American Auto Press) |
ensure that it will even hold a set of golf clubs.
Inside the MX-5 is comfortable and everything is of a very high quality. I really liked thepiano black trim that cut across the dash and how the gauges were each housed in their own binnacle. The cloth seats were also comfortable and supportive on even longer trips. Since my tester wasn't a top-line Grand Touring model, there were no heated leather seats, nor the Bose 6-disc CD changer. I didn’t miss the leather, although I could have used the heated seats. The Bose stereo, mind you, would have been nice, since the MX-5’s standard single disc CD player is not MP3 compatible. An iPod adapter is a dealer-installed accessory, but it would have been nice to have more than 40 minutes between CD changes since interior storage space is at a premium; really, there's nowhere within easy reach to store CDs. Contorting your body to reach around behind you to retrieve CDs from the cubby between the seats, or reaching over to the glovebox while driving is a bit of a hassle. Much has been said about the MX-5 having only two seats, but four cupholders? And while the one on the driver's door sometimes interferes with my left leg during spirited driving, I found it more useful than the ones between the seats, which when occupied interfered with my shifting.
Cupholders in the way or not, I’m a very big fan of the new MX-5, and after two weeks I really didn’t wantto return it to Mazda. Pondering on how I could tune the suspension (more on that in a moment) and hit the track,
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| Good engine and transmission combo makes the MX-5 feel quicker than it actually is. (Photo: Steven James Day, American Auto Press) |
I went for a test drive wearing my helmet to see how much room there would be with the top up. It was pretty good but in really hard corners the helmet would tap the inside hinge of the roof, however, on most of the autoslalom or track days I attend the weather is usually nice enough to have the top down. There is nothing, not the chassis, not the steering, not the engine, not the transmission, that is the least bit disappointing in the MX-5 when you drive it hard. The problems arise when you decide to drive it really hard. Since it was introduced in 1989, one of the MX-5 Miata’s outstanding abilities was to perform at a level comparable to much more expensive and powerful cars in just about any motorsports discipline, short of drag racing or keeping up on long straights. A Miata’s owner could just throw on a set of R-compound tires and start winning events. The redesigned second-generation car that debuted in 1999 was even better. But while the new car is certainly better than the previous one on the street, it is lacking on the track. The sole culprit is the suspension. Even when fitted with the sport suspension upgrade, which includes Bilstein shocks, upgraded springs and thicker sway bars, it's just too soft for hardcore autoslalom or track use, and at the 2006 SCCA Solo 2 nationals the new MX-5 just wasn’t competitive. A lot of SCCA competitors are calling for Mazda to stiffen things ASAP. Mazdaspeed does offer parts through their motorsports arm, mainly aimed at those competing in the MX-5 Cup spec race series, but they aren’t eligible for a stock class.
If you aren’t like me, mind you, and don’t want to spend as much
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| With what snow we got, the MX-5 PRHT proved itself worthy of being four-season capable. (Photo: Steven James Day, American Auto Press) |
time possible competing with your car, the new MX-5 is perfectly fun to drive. It's a roadster for everyday use, even in the winter. 2007 MX-5 prices start at a very reasonable $20,435, although one with the retractable hardtop will cost you a minimum of $24,350. Still, that's not much to pay for a well-designed fun to drive roadster that offers clever packaging, quality materials, and one of the best chassis' out there, although it wasn’t enough to keep the MX-5 at the top of the affordable sports car heap. The Pontiac Solstice, which is stunningly beautiful and a very decent roadster, but does possess some serious compromises and questionable interior pieces, outsold the MX-5 in the U.S. last year by more than 3,000 units. That doesn’t even include the sexy hard-edged Saturn Sky, whose looks I prefer to the Solstice. I spent some time last fall in the Red Line version, and while it doesn’t feel like an extension of your body it does have enough attributes to merit a test drive if you are shopping in that category. Speaking of the Sky Red Line, while I don’t think the MX-5 needs to be a point and shoot horsepower monster, nor do I want Mazda to ruin the lightweight
tossibility of the car, I am convinced that they need to make this the next model they send to Mazdaspeed. The chassis is simply so good (just stiffen the suspension) that it could easily handle a 50-60 horsepower bump (MZR DISI Turbo?) and not be overwhelmed. Price it under $40,000 and not only target the Sky Red Line/Solstice GXP but also the Honda S2000 as well. While I didn’t get to test the MX-5 for two straight weeks of a traditional midwest winter like I had hoped, I think that I was able to achieve a somewhat accurate picture of how living with an MX-5 all year round would be.
