MORE than one million Mazda MX-5s have been sold across the world in my lifetime.
A staggering amount, but one that’s not at all surprising, given it’s one of the only cars I can think of that’s stayed true to its original concept of being light, fun, affordable and reliable.
What it stands for appeals not only to people like me, who love driving simple, nonsense-free cars, but also those who want to own a cheap-to-run, easy-on-the-eye roadster.
There aren’t many of them about - Fiat’s 124 Spider is possibly the MX-5’s only true rival - but it doesn’t have almost 30 years of class-leading experience to fall back on.
The MX-5 actually made its debut in 1989 - a year before I was born - and the four generations since have followed the same tried-and-tested recipe. All rear-wheel-drive, Mazda held back from following other manufacturers who have opted to bloat proportions, boost power via turbocharging and generally lose the plot in their quest to appeal to more people.
In 2018 guise, the little MX-5 is today what it was 28 years ago - it’s tiny, it’s revvy and it has an unerring knack of putting a smile on its driver’s face no matter what the occasion is - just what two-seater sports cars are all about.
Looks are a subjective topic but I think previous generations - namely the second and third - were disappointing after the pop-up headlight original. The new one, while it is typically MX-5, is much more aggressive - especially from the front - and strikes the right chord from the off.
Its interior is now much-improved, too. There’s still plastic, but it’s not the scratchy stuff that blighted the third generation model. It’s actually a rather nice place to sit, if a little claustrophobic with its cloth roof on, but acres of open air is seconds away.
As soon as you’re up and running, it doesn’t take long to notice just how well this car is set up for the UK’s roads. Its steering has a good balance of weight - it’s lighter at slow speeds and heavier when you want it to be - and the damping is phenomenal.
One thing I took some getting used to was its pedal box’s positioning, as the clutch is extremely close to the transmission tunnel, which juts out somewhat into the footwell. However, it’s a momentary annoyance in an otherwise brilliant first few miles.
Our test car, the 1.5-litre version with 129bhp, fits in with the car’s ethos although the more powerful 2.0-litre, which boasts an extra 30bhp, also benefits from trick Bilstein dampers and a limited-slip differential. A no-brainer on paper, or so you’d think, but the bigger engine doesn’t rev as high, it’s heavier and subsequently won’t have the same frenetic power delivery as its sibling.
I’m not so sure fancy dampers and a diff are even required - the base model is that good. There’s not much like threading a small, 1,000kg car along a country lane on a summer evening with the roof down.
Wild garlic’s pungent aroma fills the air as you marvel at the MX-5’s short-throw gearbox and its sheer tenacity at hunting down corners. The road straightens out and the engine rewards the longer you hold onto a gear - its peak power is delivered at 7,500rpm and that tells you all you need to know about how it goes about its business.
It’s not fast by today’s standards, and there’s little in the way of torque, but it zings if you persevere and does its best work beyond 5,000rpm, so it’s worth hanging on.
It’s a simple motoring pleasure - a rapidly reducing pastime. It coaxes you into taking the longer, more scenic route home from work and you arrive home in a better mood because of it.
