Mazda MX-5 2.0 Review
Essence of driving fun

It’s not very often that rain impedes the collection of a car from the showroom. Not for me anyway. But in an interesting twist of fate, I came to Mazda to collect their all-new fourth generation MX-5 and it started to pour just as the previous journalist returned the car.

It’s a convertible sports car – what was I going to do with it if it’s pouring outside? The fact that rain messes up the exterior cleanliness of the car didn’t help either. Whilst I waited for the rain to go away so that we could pour over the car and check through it before collection, I had an indefinite amount of free time to, well, check out the showroom.

The opportunity to examine the car in detail presented itself so I started to look intently at the unit sitting on the showroom floor. The short front and rear overhangs of the car create a compact, easy to manoeuvre impression; the car is low slung with a wide stance complete with a new, more aggressive and slightly bulldoggish front end.

I’ll admit, I’m not hugely captivated by the looks; but overall the MX-5 stays true to its heritage while delivering a modern interpretation of a sleek, lightweight compact roadster.

Mazda won the 2015 Red Dot Award for “Best of the Best”, which means that obviously many other people think it looks very nice. The car caught much attention on the road and in parking lots; I got several admiring looks and thumbs up in just one day. It’s built on Mazda’s Kodo philosophy or Soul of Motion, which is an inspiring way of saying that the MX-5 is the essence of driving; created solely for that purpose.

Convertibles have always appealed to the young and young at heart, because they hold the promise of excitement and unbridled pleasure; the wind in your hair, the feeling of being next to everything around you as you cruise along – it’s all very heart racing.

Mazda has long recognised this concept, and throughout the quarter-century long history the MX-5 has always been designed to look simple, sporty and small. The car doesn’t daunt any first time driver, male or female. Unlike the fearsome looking Lamborghini Aventador Roadster, the MX-5 is inviting, appealing and looks like it will be easy to drive without any sense of overwhelm.