Culture|Garage

Hello CG’ers! Sorry I’ve been away on a research project to determine any correlation between the migration of snow geese and coffee imports. But I’m back having reacquaint myself back to an old friend….

My wife and I recently spent an afternoon at a trendy West Vancouver spot. After visiting the many boutique shops we decided to just take a break and sit down to engage on “people watching”. The warm summer quickly made us forget about the wet spring and it was open season for al fresco coffee lovers.

“So have you decided yet hon?” asked my wife having already made up her mind.

Such a simple question but the answer is a complex one. You see selecting one’s coffee is not a simple matter of what type of car wash combo. It makes selecting colour schemes for our house feel like a walk in the park! Hanging right above the order counter is a Jumbotron rivaling menu displaying all manners of coffee choices. And I am not referring to the typical mocha or lattes, those are the dull stuff. Well it has those too, but they come in various exotic flavours – African Rooibos…. The Manhattan…. Double Vente Nutmeg Machiatto. Huh? Since when did the New York Island grow cocoa? Tall? Grande? Maximo Grande? What happened to medium double-double? Is there a Tour Guide somewhere?

Why has such a simple activity as coffee-drinking become an exercise of head scratching?

Happily it is not the case (yet) with the Mazda MX-5 aka ‘Miata’. First introduced back in 1989, this tiny sportster became an instant success to the masses. It provided honest top down driving pleasure at an affordable price. Over the years this little Mazda has evolved carefully and unlike coffee shops, it remained true to the soul of a sports car.

This 3^rd generation MX-5 returns to its Tic-Tac shape of the gen.-1 cars. Size is slightly larger, but the cockpit is still snug and driver oriented. Exterior wise the MX-5 is not as curvy as the previous model. In fact to some, it even looks more masculine. Although I do wish Mazda could’ve just lowered the springs about an inch. In its stock form, it seems jacked-up and ready for some monster-truck action. The pronounced wheel arches echo cues from its big brother the RX-8. The result is an upscale physique. More James Bond than Jason Bourne. I find the rear angle of this car to be the only exterior let-down. And they come in twos. Firstly, Mazda in its infinite wisdom decided to appeal to the boy-racer crowd by installing a pair of hideous Altezza clear taillights. To match that, they replaced the single pipe with a dual barrel exhaust system. All for a 2.0L 4-pot engine. Absolutely unnecessary!

The convertible top is a showcase of simplistic functionality and cohesive form. Pontiac and Porsche can learn something from this Japanese company. One only needs to use one’s muscle power to raise and lower the top. I did have a hard time only because I wasn’t used to the new design that requires one to flip a latch. Top down is the raison d’etre of the MX-5 and here the newly redesigned top folds neatly into its own tonneau cover.

My GT tester model came with stunning saddle-brown leather which matches the black exterior well. One is greeted with simple classic analog gauges. No extra lights or blinking diodes vying to catch your attention. I do wish that Mazda kept the excellent Nardi-derived steering wheel of the previous generation as this one felt large and the plastics didn’t complement either. The dash and console is where I feel Mazda really cheapened out. It was awash in hard plastics and on their top-line model, it is a bit disappointing. But who spends time fine combing the interior of this roadster anyway? The MX-5 is built to be driven and drive we shall!

A twist of the key… err, I meant auto-start (since it came with a SMARTKEY), wakes up the 2.0L MZR engine with a sporty bark almost like a prologue that there is something fun about to happen. Having driven other 3^rd gen MX-5s, I found this particular model’s transmission to be quite notchy and not as silky smooth as even the base 5-speed. At my favourite test loop, the MX-5 proved to be as fun as a golden retriever on a warm summer day. Approaching a set of curves, I downshifted to prepare the engine for max propulsion and during such maneuvers, the once notchy feel of the 6-speed proved direct and satisfying. Mazda did a fantastic job in honing the chassis and it shows brilliantly. I love how the suspension tightens up in readiness for an explosive apex exit. As I surf from one corner to another corner, I can almost forgive the ugly steering wheel because it is so fantastically weighted. A few jabs at the happy pedal invoked just enough tail out that illicit a silly grin on this reviewer. It never felt ponderous or vague…just good old plain direct driving pleasure. Unlike many overpowered sub-par handling cars these days, the MX-5’s 166hp allows the driver to effectively wring out each and every morsel of horses. I believe this is thanks to the perfect 50:50 weight balance, superb chassis dynamics and a lithe 2500lb weight. This car reminds me that, you don’t need a billion hp motor nor an alphabet soup of electronics nor teeth shattering springs to have fun nor spewing how many minutes it took to complete the Nurburgring! At the end of the day, it is about that silly grin. And this car delivered pure and simple. During the time I had this car, it averaged a happy 28mpg too.

So yes, our little loveable Mazda has grown up and dropped the ‘Miata’ name for a more stoic MX-5 badge. However its innate nature to deliver simplistic convertible driving experience is still evident. I am glad Mazda did not ‘fatten’ it in an effort to include unnecessary features that its rivals did by sticking true to its roots. Over the years the Miata has never really faced direct competition, sure there are the more powerful S2000 or the more luxurious oriented ‘verts like the Z3/Z4 and Boxster. However to those who want a low-priced simple unencumbered open-air driving experience, the MX-5 always delivers. Recently the MX-5’s playground has crowded a little with the introduction of the Pontiac Solstice and Saturn Sky. And with the gas prices heading to “infinity and beyond”, one can still have a guilt-free driving fun with this little roadster.

Oh and I did order a regular coffee in the end. However the man behind the counter decided to make me a cinnamon flavoured latte topped with fat-free cream instead.

– Alwin Lai

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