What's So Great About the Mazda MX5?

The Mazda MX5 two seater sports car has for a long time been considered the best affordable sports car that money can buy, but why is this? Why do so many people give it such rave reviews? The Mark 1, 2 and 3 have all been outstanding successes and this can't be just coincidence. As an owner of an older Mark 2 MX5 for almost three years here's my opinion:

Speed

The MX5 is fast but not by supercar standards - when you've got the lid down you certainly feel as though you are going faster than what you are. The fact that the car is lower to the ground also makes it feel as though you are going much faster than if you were in a regular four seat car. Most people don't by a mazda for its speed though because It's not the speed though that makes the Mazda such fun to drive, it's also the handling

Handling

If you're out on a nice dry summers day there is no car that handles better. The Mazda MX5 has perfect balance, so its weight is perfectly distributed throughout all four tyres - this makes cornering and high speed performance reliable and predictable. It does have to be said though that if you are not used to a rear wheel drive car you will need to take it easy round corners at first. If the road is slightly damp be very careful has it's extremely easy to slide the back end out. This certainly shouldn't put you off owning one though - as I previously mentioned it is predictable - it'll never take you by surprise and if the road is wet you'll know to take extra care.

Fresh Air

Regardless of the model you have the option of removing the lid completely - nothing beats driving with the top down. If you've never done it then once you have you'll feel cheated for the years you missed out on before. There are three types of roof available for the MX5 - you've got a fold down canvas type roof, a clip-on type hardtop and a mechanical folding roof that comes as standard on the roadster models. If you were thinking of getting an MX5 then the sort you would go for would ultimately be driven by your budget. The standard fold down roof is the cheapest and the mechanical storing roof found on the roadster is the most expensive option.