MX-5 still has Mazda magic

Published on Saturday 4 October 2008 13:42

IN SHEER numbers Mazda's MX-5 two-seater has smashed all records. Since its launch in 1988 in the US it has sold more than 900,000. The car arrived in Britain in 1989, where it was greeted with a mixture of enthusiasm and informed interest. It was, after all, a rarity in those days when MG had given up making sports cars and there was scant mainstream choice elsewhere.

The MX-5 was a straight-off clone of the principles of British light sports cars. The modest four-cylinder engine was in the front, with a prop shaft taking power to the back wheels. The central spine was strong enough to resist shudder in the body and tremor in the steering.

This was fun motoring, back with a capital M for Mazda. The MX-5 was lively and rewarding, if you got the thing under control. My first mile on a press event in Greece saw me spinning on the second curve, admittedly on roads that were smoother than Nigella Lawson's recipe instructions.

In the 1990s the success of the Mazda inspired companies such as BMW, Audi and Mercedes to do their own two-seaters.

MG came back with the F, a car that challenged the MX-5 on all fronts: looks, ability, price and, imperiously, bulldog Britishness.

The pert, nay lithe, Mazda continued to leave rivals trailing in sales, with boatloads being grabbed by Americans.

For many years I have told anyone who was listening that if I was buying a cheaper sports car I'd go straight for the MX-5. Even today you can buy one new for 15,750 with a 124bhp 1.8 engine.

Now the MGTF is back, resuscitated by the Chinese, a nation of cyclists and hand-carters springing out of the yokes of communism into the capitalists' new clothes.

I tried this Sino-English TF recently and it was fine. The Limited Edition version is fully robed and at 16,399 looks a bargain, albeit with a dated dashboard.

Back to the MX-5, one of the coup models with a folding hard top which, like the fabric roof, does not take up storage room from the boot, into which I put a transatlantic suitcase plus a few softer bags.

I drove it mostly in Wensleydale, one of Yorkshire's four major dales and the most populous. I like it so much that one day I may live there. On the undulations the MX-5 was sweetly sprung. Beneath the walls one realised why Jeeps and their offspring are so familiar here. Roads get flooded too, washing out the potholes and ruts.

Ground clearance on the Mazda was decent enough to tiptoe down a farm track. Acceleration is gentle and unremarkable until the needle passes beyond 4,000rpm – then the motor awakens, and the MX-5 gets brisk and busy until it reaches 8,000rpm, when, to save the expensive bits under the bonnet, you either back off or change to a higher gear.

My personal jurors are still unconvinced by the MX-5's road-holding. I grew up on skittish rear-drive Morgans and even kept the Plus 8 out of the ditch all the time. Possibly the predictable, almost idiot-proof, ability of a sporty modern hatchback points towards the skills necessary to drive a light rear-wheel-drive MX-5 as quickly. Yes, I had a few scary moments.

The MX-5's operational stuff is fine. There are plenty of places for phones, bags, mugs and pens, including a locking compartment on the bulkhead behind the seats. The roof powers up and down quickly enough to do so at most traffic lights.

Prices for the coup start at 18,600 for the 1.8 with the option pack (including 16-inch alloys, stainless steel and leather detailing).