All Mazda MX-5 reviews

"I was afraid the MX-5 would show evidence of middle age spread. I'm delighted to be proved wrong"

There's something about the latest Mazda MX-5 that engenders a feeling of cultural dislocation. Mazda made no secret of the fact that the original MX-5, launched on February 9th 1989, was based in philosophy on classic British sports cars and the phenomenal global success of this car tends to mask the fact that this is a very Japanese car indeed. Tasked with replacing the MX-5 with an all-...

"Part of the essential joy of this MX-5 is its predilection to be ragged within an inch of its life."

Unusually in the sports car field, power isn't really all that important when it comes to Mazda's MX-5. There will obviously be raving performance nuts out there that yearn for turbocharging, a V6 engine or both to launch the little roadster off the line but they're missing the point. The MX-5 produces enjoyment through the oneness it assumes with its driver. Rocket ship acceleration is...

"The whole process of folding and deploying the roof is remarkable simple."

There can be little doubt that Mazda hit on a winning formula with their MX-5 roadster back in 1989. Prior to the launch of the latest third generation model, a massive 725,000 MX-5s had been produced and getting on for 200,000 of those models had found homes with European customers. In light of this record-breaking showroom performance for what remains essentially a niche market product, Mazda would have been m...

The British may have invented affordable open-topped sports cars but it was the Japanese who popularised them in the modern era. It was an era started by just one car ' the Mazda MX-5. Designed by an American, its shape shamelessly mimics that of an old Sixties Lotus Elan and still looks good today alongside much more modern competition. Demand is huge for this affordable little ragtop on the used market, so prices stay high. Still, as an extra car for fun, you can hardly beat it.

In th...

There aren't too many modern cars which have achieved quite the level of success enjoyed by Mazda's MX-5. Launched in the UK in 1990, it quickly established itself as the benchmark affordable roadster and went on to be listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the world's best selling sports car. In 1998 an extensive revision was visited upon the MX-5 and with tougher rivals entering the fray, the Mazda no longer had it all its own way. A well looked after late shape MX-5 does make a very saf...

There aren't too many modern cars which have achieved quite the level of success enjoyed by Mazda's MX-5. Launched in the UK in 1990, it quickly established itself as the benchmark affordable roadster and went on to be listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the world's best selling sports car. In 1998 an extensive revision was visited upon the MX-5 and with tougher rivals entering the fray, the Mazda no longer had it all its own way. A well looked after late shape MX-5 does make a very saf...

There aren't too many modern cars which have achieved quite the level of success enjoyed by Mazda's MX-5. Launched in the UK in 1990, it quickly established itself as the benchmark affordable roadster and went on to be listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the world's best selling sports car. In 1998 an extensive revision was visited upon the MX-5 and with tougher rivals entering the fray, the Mazda no longer had it all its own way. A well looked after late shape MX-5 does make a very saf...