20 Years of MX-5: Then and Now

Despite the beyond passe' pop-up headlights, despite the rinky dink wheels, and despite being a Lotus Elan ripoff in the styling department, the 1st gen is still the best looker in my eyes (except when the top's up).

New one looks soooo much better (minus the smiley face)....

I'm pretty surprised by the "average" handling rating. Is it a case of a fun car not necessarily translating well to the slalom test?

Great cars. Family has owned a few and they've been bulletproof.

All I can say is the Miata is a great car. And I hope that Mazda stays true to its in the future as well.

the happy car has just gotten happier.

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the happy car has just gotten happier.

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whoops, double post and missing colon

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I find it so sad how everyone digs on the MX-5 Miata for being some chick car. Anyone who has ever driven one knows that this car guarantees to leave you grinning everytime you get out from behind the wheel. The most impressive part is how Mazda has held true to the course and not blown this up into anything beyond being a wonderful roadster.

I have not yet driven the newest iteration, but look forward to doing so at my earliest opportunity. Someday, when my family situation aloows (read: the kids are out of the house!) I do intend to own one of these!

The Miata name is 21 years old! Its old enough to drink legally!

Personally, i was wondering. How excited would anyone be if there was a Mazdaspeed Mx-5 with the RX-8's rotary engine or the Mazdaspeed3's Turbo? Either way, that will be one great roadster!

@autoboy16: With the turbo it would be fun, but I'm not sure I'd want the rotary, too many problems, plus that would probably drive up the price too much.

I love my '08 Miata, and am disappointed by the new smily face. Let people call it a chick car all they want, if by that they mean it attracts the ladies, because it certainly does.

Per AutoNation 65% of Miata owners are actually male. It's basically middle-aged, married men that buy them. Call it a mid-life crisis toy.

I drove a 1990 model right when they first came out, and fell in love. Here was an astonishingly popular car that actually met the hype (unlike the New Beetle and PT Cruiser that came later).

I bought a 1993 model used and owned it for 8 years. Besides replacing a worn-out soft top and scheduled maintenance, I spent a grand total $10.74 in repairs over those 8 years. There is no simpler car, no easier car to work on.

This year I traded it in when Mazda started clearing out the 2008 models. My new one is a hard top, which makes it a good coupe as well, 2 cars in 1.

I do miss some things about the original. I was lighter, though did it really weigh 2100 lbs? I thought it was more like 2300. Either way, the controls were lighter and the seats were more comfortable. It was a very easy car to drive.

The 2008 is a lot sportier. Much more lateral grip, much better braking, and a whole lot more power and torque.

Fortunately, it's still a Miata. While BMW and Mercedes build roadsters for $50 grand or so, Mazda succeeds while charging half the price, and giving up nothing in terms of driving experience.

Toyota tried to compete with the MR2, and failed. Honda failed with the S2000. Even Pontiac and Saturn failed to get the formula right and cancelled theirs recently.

Kudos to Mazda for keeping the affordable sports car alive. I don't think there will ever be a time in my life where I don't have at least one in my driveway.

In fact I sort of regret selling my '93, wish I kept them both.

After more than 20 years still here. Others came bigger more HP but they are history.

Yes, the Miata is an icon. If I could run HPDEs with just a roll bar I'd have a Mazdaspeed Miata for my track car.
That said, I love the first generation MR2; my wife and I rented one for a weekend back in 1986. I loved it.

autoboy16;
Sad to say, the Mazdaspeed 3 engine won't fit in the Miata. The camshaft driven fuel pump(CDFP) is the culprit.

Way back in the 1990's, a company called Monster Motorsports in California shoehorned in Ford's 5.0 V8 from a Mustang. The company went under after doing about 90 cars.

Looks like one of the original guys setup shop as Monster Miata. Looks like they concentrate on the older cars.

I own a 2005 Mazdaspeed MX-5. Drives like a big go-kart on steroids! Leaves a smile on my face every time I put the top down and go cruising on a beautiful day!

Link relating to Farvy's post: http://www.monstermiata.com/

"Toyota tried to compete with the MR2, and failed. Honda failed with the S2000. Even Pontiac and Saturn failed to get the formula right and cancelled theirs recently."

I think the MR2 missed an opportunity to really compete but the '01 S2000 I owned was bulletproof, easy to work on, lightweight/nimble, and the suspension and road feel was superb.

According to various sources, Mazda sold about 800,000 Miatas between 1989 and 2009. Honda sold about 110,000 S' roadsters between 1999 and 2009. That being said Mazda seems to have completely dominated the small roadster sales but I wouldn't say Honda "failed" with the exciting S2000.

I'm uncommonly qualified to comment on this. :-)

As the owner of a supercharged '01 S2000 AND having driven my best friend's turboed 2005 Mazdaspeed Miata, I can tell you they are both fantastic cars. The Miata, even heavily modified, feels enthusiastic but controlled. The Miata will never scare you. The S2000, however, is scary at the limits. It feels like a Miata with boosters attached.

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Also Josh, you're forgetting one very important car of the late 80's/early 90's: the Alfa Romeo Spider Veloce. It was lightweight, simple as can be, extremely sharp in the corners, and cheap to buy (though not to own). I'm also unusually experienced in this realm as well as I used to drive an '86. :-)

not to flame but i just dont understand why all the hype about this car... i think the main reason is that i've never driven one. wouldn't the S2000 be more fun to drive because it has more power and still handles beautifully? (maybe not now since its discontinued).. and call me crazy, i'm one of few people who actually like mazda's smiley front.

I think after owning the 01 S2000, that the two cars appeal to different buyers. I haven't driven the Mazda but just looking at specs I think the Miata offers a different type of power as well. Also comparing 09's the S2000 starts at $34,995 and the Miata soft top at $22,500.

Like estreka, I'd say the S2000 was almost scary it was so quick to change directions and the back end would get out quickly (modified car also).

"Honda failed with the S2000."

As the owner of an S2000, I fail to understand how you think Honda failed with this car as the S2000 WAS NOT a direct competitor to the Miata. The S2000 was direct competition to the BMW Z3, Porsche Boxster, Mercedes SLK. However, like the original Miata, the S2000 was a pure, no nonsense sports car.

The S2000 was created to celebrate Honda's 50th anniversary. Honda planned for this to be a short run of cars but the car created so much interest and demand Honda was basically forced to produce more.

Yes, the S2000 is no longer produced but it never was meant to be a long term product in the 1st place.

"Slalom: Lightning quick steering sometimes feels unmatched with slow-reacting chassis which can cause car to get out of shape at the second cone. Needs more roll stiffness. Fun and easy to flick once, but more than that and you'll need opposite lock."

Funny that the exact same description of the '09 also applies perfectly to my '94 that I still have. I guess Mazda wants to retain the original characteristics.

The S2000 did not fail so much as Honda decided not to spend money at this point to keep it fresh and alive. The S2000 is different in that it has more of a go-kart feel and a much peakier engine. The original 2.0L just plain screamed to 9000 RPM's, but were pretty flat under 5000. There is nothing wrong with this, it is just a different, sharper approach than Mazda's. Both are engaging cars to drive. The Miata is just easier to live with.

I know several people who own Miatas along with a Mini or 318ti. A small and lightweight car with a responsive engine is a lot of fun to drive, even if it may not set a record in the quarter mile.