The iconic Mazda MX-5 Miata has been in production for 25 years with sales reaching almost 1 million units worldwide, and I have never even sat in one… that is, until this week when I got the keys to a brand new 2014 Mazda MX-5 GT with a full tank of gas and a beautifully warm spring morning to do some driving.
My first impressions of the car were “wow, this thing is small and very low to the ground”. The seating position is very go-kart like – not that I’ve been in a go-kart since I was a kid – but I’m sure the go-kart comparison is valid. The seating position is one of the lowest I’ve ever experienced, and it was further exaggerated by the fact that I just spent a week behind the wheel of the CX-9.
Pricing
In Canada, the Mazda MX-5 with the soft-top and 5-speed manual transmission starts at $29,450 in the GX trim. Step up to the MX-5 GS model, with a starting price of $36,045, and you get a 6-speed manual transmission, larger wheels, and a hard-top among other goodies. The top of the line MX-5 GT has a starting price of $40,250 that builds on the GS model and adds stuff like heated leather seats, BOSE sound system, and Xenon lights. The car we reviewed for a week was the 2014 Mazda MX-5 GT with an as tested price of $40,250 plus $1,795 Freight & PDE. Quite a steep price but there are currently incentives available.
Performance/Driving
All Mazda MX-5 Miata roadsters come with naturally aspirated 2.0 liter 4-cylinder engines that produce 167 horsepower at 7,000 rpm and 140 pound-feet of torque at 5,000 rpm. Our car came with the 6-speed manual but you can get the 6-speed automatic for an additional $1,200… but why would you?? I wouldn’t. In fact, the first thing I checked when I saw our review car was to see if it was a manual, and I wasn’t disappointed.
I’m sure, like me, you’ve heard praise of the Miata for decades; how it feels like a go-kart, it’s very fun to drive, and how you won’t regret buying this car. By spending a week with the Miata, I can see why this little car gets all that praise and how this is the bestselling roadster in the world.
Sure the 167 HP may not seem like much on paper – and it really isn’t that much power – but the Miata is a car made for canyon carving rather than drag racing. Personally, I would’ve liked a bit more power, especially for getting off the line but once you get the engine going, it really does come to life. Take it over 3,500 rpm and the engine really starts to sing with a pleasant engine and exhaust noise, and it feels really lively. Shifting gears through the short-throw 6-speed manual is quite fun, the gear changes are smooth; this is one of the nicest 6-speed manual I’ve experienced in a while. Also, the clutch is buttery smooth and extremely light. After spending a week in this car, when I went back to my car, I thought there was something wrong with my clutch; it felt extremely heavy. Then I realized I just spent a week with that feathery light MX-5 clutch.
Not that you’d care too much about fuel economy in a car like this, but I’ll give you guys the numbers anyways. According to Mazda Canada, the MX-5 9.7 Liters/100 km (24.25 US mpg) in the city and 7.1 L/100 km (33 mpg) on the highway. I was able to get 9.0 L/100 km (26 mpg) in mostly city driving and twisty roads where I really pushed the car. So the mileage was pretty good, I think I could’ve easily reached Mazda’s numbers if I drove conservatively; but who wants to drive a Miata conservatively?
In the MX-5 you sit very low to the ground and that makes the driving experience that much more fun; you feel like you’re going a lot faster than you really are. You don’t need to go fast to enjoy this car, and the car begs you take it on twisty roads. The steering feel is great and it’s refreshing to feel a real steering wheel instead of all that electric crap the new cars have. You actually get to feel the bumps and twist in the road through the steering wheel. I loved it!
As much as we love technology here at Unfinished Man, there’s just something special about a simple car with back to basics approach; just you and the road, pure driving pleasure.
Styling
The Miata has grown a bit over the years, gone are the 80s flip up lights and a very basic design. The 2014 MX-5 takes some design cues from the RX-8, which is especially evident in the front fenders with bulging arches. But the overall shape is the same, and this car won’t be mistaken for anything else on the road. The front features a very happy/smiley face. I didn’t like the smiley face on other older Mazda cars, but it works here. This car just wants to make people smile; the MX-5 almost looks like something from the Cars animated movie.
Interior
The interior on the 2014 Mazda MX-5 Miata is no-nonsense, old-school. The center stack has the look of something you’d find in cars from the 1990’s and early 2000’s; you won’t find massive infotainment touch screens with backup cameras and navigation systems here. As simple as the interior may be, it really works in this application. This is a car for the purist, all about the top-down driving pleasure, no need for distracting gadgets. Beside, who needs to be connected to their Facebook account via their car, while enjoying a beautiful sunny day on some twisty roads? I certainly don’t, and I really enjoyed the simplicity of the interior; never once did I wish I had a backup camera, a blind spot monitoring system, navigation, or other fancy stuff I’ve written about in other cars.
The seats are very comfortable and come with manual adjustments; they were perfect for my 5’ 8.5” frame and there was plenty of room for me on the inside. The materials used throughout the car are hard-touch plastics, but they also work in this car. The interior is noisy and the hard-top doesn’t do much to reduce road noise, but this only enhances the feeling of being one with the road.
Overall Impressions
After hearing so much about the Mazda MX-5 Miata over the years and finally driving it for a week, I can say I wasn’t disappointed. The car felt great and I constantly wanted to go for drives to nowhere, and spent hours searching for twisty roads. The MX-5 is probably one of the last back-to-basics sports cars with a noisy interior, not much tech gadgetry, and a simple design… and that’s what makes this car so special and popular.
Mazda is said to be working on an all-new MX-5 Miata for 2015, the only things I’d change is give the car a bit more power (maybe around 200 horsepower) and make the car a bit cheaper. $40,000 is a lot of money, in my opinion, for this car. For more information, check out Mazda Canada‘s website.
2014 Mazda MX-5 Miata Review Photo Gallery
