From the moment I heard the original Miata was coming, I wanted one. A 2200-pound, extremely agile, perfectly balanced roadster powered by a sixteen-valve engine--Mazda had checked off pretty much all the boxes on my late 1980s wish list. You've got to remember, the roadster market was dead back then. The Audi TT, BMW Z3, Mercedes SLK, Toyota MR2, and such were still many years off. Without the success of the Miata those cars would likely have never seen the light of day.

Yet I've never quite made the leap to actually purchasing a Miata. Living in Chicago and Detroit since the early 1990s likely had something to do with that. The small roadster doesn't get along well with snow. Then the kids came along, and the last few nails were put in that coffin.

Even today, when a sports car as second car seems to be in my future, I'll probably get something more practical like an RX-8. But maybe not. Mazda has totally redesigned the Miata for 2006. The new car promises to be more livable--which shouldn't be hard given the nervous nature of past Miatas.

Mazda wants people to think of the car as the MX-5. Why they'd want to abandon as strong a name as Miata is beyond me. Then again, the poster in the dealership window said "MX-5 Miata," so it seems they're having some trouble letting go.

Very curious about whether the new car would be as fun to drive as the old, I took the new MX-5 for a test drive. The car I drove was in Touring trim, meaning 16-inch wheels, five-speed transmission, and cloth. For larger wheels, a sixth gear, and the optional sport package you need the Sport or the leather-trimmed Grand Touring and Limited.

Update: I have now driven and reviewed the Saturn SKY. Click the link to go to that review.

Styling

The original Miata's shape, based heavily on British roadsters of the 1960s, was consciously classic. The MX-5 has the same basic shape, but adds the prominent, somewhat futuristic fender flares of the RX-8. I'm personally less than crazy about the results. In photos the car looked okay, but the three I've seen in the metal were underwhelming. Nothing to incite lust here.

I have different issues with the Pontiac. The Solstice has a more interesting shape, but it's too bulbous for my taste. To my eye, the upcoming Saturn version, with edgier lines, is considerably more attractive than either the Mazda or the Pontiac. Hopefully the Sky will lack the fussy flying buttresses that grace the Solstice's top. I for one don't find them attractive, and they significantly complicate the task of raising and lowering the top.

One possible further issue with the Pontiac: the front-hinged hood is a huge clamshell like that of the C4 Corvette. With the Corvette this design resulted in high repair costs, and thus high insurance costs. I'd expect the same here. In contrast, the Miata has always been inexpensive to insure compared to other sports cars.

Inside, the new MX-5 also achieves mixed results. Various bits now make stabs at futuristic and edgy. The piano black trim in the car I drove was sharp, and the center stack was nicely done. The grooved rubber armrests are a bit iffy. And the hard plastic instrument panel and center console look and feel much cheaper than those in the old Miata. Sitting in the 2005 MazdaSpeed Miata in the showroom, I preferred the ambiance of its more substantial, more classically styled interior.

On a positive note, the black cloth in the Touring both looks sharp and feels durable. The leather in higher trims is also nice.

In comparison, the Solstice's interior looks and feels cheap. Way too much hard plastic that looks like hard plastic, especially on the prominent center console.

Accommodations

You sit much lower in the new car. This is mostly a good thing. I always found the windshield header in the Miata a bit low for my visual comfort. And having the mirror planted right in the middle of the windshield never scored points with me. I wanted to lower the seat in that car, but it was not adjustable for height.

While you sit lower in the new car, we're not talking Audi TT low, just average sports car low. Maybe not even as low as the average. I do miss the lower doors in the old car, but far prefer the view forward in the new one.

You sit lower still in the Solstice. This wouldn't be much of an issue if the windshield were not very small. The view forward in the Mazda is far more expansive.

The MX-5's seats are not heavily bolstered, but are very nicely shaped, especially in leather. (I sat in a leather car last week.) Most sedans should have seats this comfortable. There's no lumbar adjustment, but none is needed.

In contrast, the Solstice's cloth seats are well-bolstered but also very mushy. They remind me of the seats in 1980s GM products. The leather seats might be firmer. If so, I'd advise getting them.

The MX-5's trunk remains small. Figure a couple of medium-sized soft bags. Figure even less in the Solstice's trunk, which is nearly nonexistent when the top is down.

The MX-5's top raises and lowers very easily. Like the last MR2, it folds to leave its semi-hard forward portion facing up and locked in place, obviating the need for a hard tonneau or boot.

The Solstice's top is more complicated, and takes longer to raise and lower, but at least there's also no boot to fuss with. Why does GM like to grace its convertibles with complicated tops? The one on the Allante had to be redesigned multiple times, and quickly likely still never worked well.

On the Road

The new MX-5 relies on an uprated version of the Mazda3's 2.0-liter four for motivation. The stats of 170 horsepower at 6700 RPM and 140 foot-pounds of torque at 5000 RPM suggest a fairly peaky engine. In practice, the engine behaves much like the related 2.3 in the Mazda3. While certainly at its best when spinning fast, it's very driveable at lower RPM and there's no obvious transition from soft to furious. Just smooth, linear power.

If anything the engine feels considerably more energetic at low RPM than even the 2.3 in the Mazda3, especially at low speeds, but this is likely owes more to the roadster's considerably lower weight than to the engine's ten extra horses (compared to the 2.3; the 2.0 in the Mazda3 kicks out 148). At about 2500 pounds, it's much lighter than the new porker from Pontiac, if a few hundred pounds heavier than the original. Airbags and an ever-more-rigid structure have taken their toll, but less than they could have.

The engine note is generally good, even invigorating under a heavy foot, though it can seem a bit farty at slow speeds. The 2.3 in the Mazda3 has a blander soundtrack.

The Miata has always been known for a tight, precise shifter, one with very short throws and a very direct feel. The five-speed in the car I drove shifted easily enough, but was not as involving or nearly as distinctive as those in past Miatas. The lever itself felt overly tall, suggesting a quick fix. The aftermarket should have a number of solutions to choose from.

The new car doesn't turn is as quickly as the old one, and generally feels less darty, but still feels more agile than ninety-nine percent of the cars on the market today. The steering provides very good feedback, but isn't as communicative as it used to be.

The car's best aspect might be its superbly balanced chassis. It doesn't take much gas in a turn to kick the tail out, but such behavior always feels well under control. Unlike in the pre-2004 S2000, where the rear end often seemed to have a mind of its own. Much like the RX-8, the MX-5 is both very easy and very rewarding to drive along a curvy road. For an extra margin of safety, stability control is optional with the leather-trimmed cars.

Ride quality is quite good for a small sports car. While certainly not that of a luxury car, the suspension takes the edges off small-to-medium road imperfections and never felt jittery. With the top down noise is not an issue. With the top up both wind and road noise intrude from the rear. Nothing that might drive one crazy, but you're very clearly in a small soft-top.

The ride is good enough that I suspect the sport suspension, optional for $500 with the six-speed trims, would be my preference. Especially if it yields considerably quicker responses and more of the go-kart character present in the original car.

In base trim, the MX-5 manages to be both fun to drive and considerably more livable than the original car. I could see taking this one on long trips, as long as the weather permits putting the top down.

Mazda MX-5 Price Comparisons and Pricing

A recent issue of Car & Driver suggested that the new Pontiac Solstice costs thousands less than the new MX-5. This is what happens when magazines compare as-tested prices. If you compare similarly-equipped cars and adjust for content differences, you'll find that the MX-5 in its lower-level trims costs a bit less than the Ponatic, and in its upper-level trims costs just a little more. I wrote up this example in more detail on my site at www.truedelta.com/pieces/prices.php.

Prices change frequently, and differences will vary based on feature level. To quickly generate these and other comparisons with the specific features you want, visit my Web site, www.truedelta.com. (It's the only site that provides true "apples-to-apples" price comparisons.)

TrueDelta's page for the MX-5:

http://www.truedelta.com/models/MX-5.php

Last Words

My feelings towards the new MX-5 are far more mixed than they were towards the original Miata. I prefer the new car's driving position, more refined engine, and easily modulated chassis. But some of the old car's edginess has been lost, and the new exterior and interior styling won't age nearly as well. Heck, I'm not crazy about it even now, when the car is brand new.

This is a fun car, even a very fun car, that offers a lot for its price. But it's just not as special as the original. I'd like to have one, but I'm not dying to have one. With sales well below their peak during "Miata Mania," and new competition from Pontiac to replace the departed competition from Toyota, I'm not sure this is good enough. Maybe with the sport package?

Hopefully I'll be able to drive a Solstice soon. Until then, I'm predisposed towards the MX-5 because of its superior driving position, seats, and trunk.

A Note on Mazda MX-5 Reliability

I cannot practically cover reliability within the context of this review. However, many people are interested in such information, so I've started collecting my own data. Results, once they are available, will be posted to my site, www.truedelta.com, with updates every three months.

Unlike other sources, TrueDelta will clearly identify what difference it will make if you buy an MX-5 rather than another vehicle by providing "times in the shop" and "days in the shop" stats (among others). You will be able to specify the number of years, annual miles, and types of repairs to include in Mazda MX-5 reliability comparisons.

Before I can report results, I need data on all cars--not just the MX-5--from people like you. To encourage participation, those who help provide the data will receive free access to the site's reliability information. Non-participants will have to pay an access fee.

For the details, and to sign up, visit www.truedelta.com.

A link to this website and alphabetized links to my other vehicle reviews can be found on my profile page.

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Some of my reviews of related vehicles:
Honda S2000 review
MazdaSpeed Miata review (2005)
Mazda RX-8 review
MINI Cooper review
Saturn SKY review