   2014 Mazda MX-5 GT roof stowage. Click image to enlarge |
About that roof. It opens and closes by pressing a release and pulling a latch (and if you’re not a clumsy oaf like your writer, without pinching your finger in it), then pushing and holding the roof-open button until it beeps to let you know the compartment is latched again. You can’t do it with the car in gear – it must be stopped and in neutral – so make your decision before you start your drive or risk annoying your fellow travelers. It’s a neat unit though; it doesn’t intrude on the cargo space at all – which is handy because it’s small at just 150 L. I’ve drunk that much in beer of a weekend, but still I fit two rugby kit bags in the trunk.
  2014 Mazda MX-5 GT centre stack. Click image to enlarge |
The roof was thoroughly enjoyed by my daughter, who thought holding down that button was the coolest and most important job she’d ever been given. Turns out, you CAN put a booster seat–ready child in the front seat. The weights in the passenger seat prevent the airbag being activated until there is over 40 kg sitting in it, so she was able to sit safely in her booster. Being allowed to ride up front was cool enough. Being allowed to change radio stations? Oh. My. God. Being allowed to open the roof? “Oh thank you, thank you, thank you Daddy!” I should have filmed it for when she’s a teenager.
“But everyone else has a nose ring! I hate you!”
“No you don’t. Remember this?”
The most fun times I’ve ever had in a car happened during my week with the MX-5 while driving it with her alongside waving at passersby was life affirming. It’s less a function of the car itself I suppose, and more one of necessity, but if you’re a single parent or even just wondering if your household can really practically use an MX-5 as a second car, the answer is yes. Yes you can. And it will be a blast. Please note, I’m not advocating blasting down the highway with a child in that seat, but a few short runs to the shop or to kindy drop-off will be achievable and no more dangerous than a child’s bicycle seat.
So there is some practicality there – I mean, not wagon-like abilities, but some. And it won’t cost you a fortune in juice either. I finished the week at a respectable 9.2 L/100 km, which is under the EPA’s combined rating of 9.4. City and highway figures are 10.7 and 8.4 L/100 km respectively.
But I still can’t quite wrap my head around the asking price. I’ve been told my whole time here that the MX-5 is sensational value. It really is for those people who want a pure driving experience – but those people are not in the mainstream.
For sure, you can get in to one for $29,250 but in that one you lose the six-speed manual (it gets a five speed), the front-strut tower bar, the LSD, Bilstein shocks, and 17-inch wheels (it gets 16s). You also lose the hard top (you get a vinyl convertible roof), heated seats, power mirrors, proximity entry-and-start, and a few sundry appearance package items – like the silver-trimmed roll bars. There are some who’d make the argument for the base model but I wonder how much edge it would take off that life-changing corner performance?
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Then again, what else can you get at this price that is rear-wheel drive? A BMW? Sure but it’s heavier, and not as kart-like. The Toyobaru twins give it a run for its money, but with fixed roof only, they’re a tad more serious and less fun-loving, you could say.
So that’s the key really, if you want something that is just fun, something that performs when the road gets twisty, makes you look like a hero at the autocross, and something that wins you over every single time you put more than a quarter-turn of lock on, you need an MX-5.
Pricing: 2014 Mazda MX-5 GT
Base Price: $29,250
Base Price (GT): $40,250
Freight and PDI: $1,795
A/C Tax: $100
Price as Tested: $42,145
Competitors:
Mini Roadster
Subaru BRZ
Scion FR-S
Crash Test Results:
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)
Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS)
