There are lots of cheap cars
on the market but only a very small number offer truly excellent value for
money.
The Fiat 500 is one, for sure, because just seeing it makes you happy.
The Jaguar X-type is perhaps
the best example of cost having nothing to do with value.
Yes, it was very cheap for a Jaguar. But since it was nothing more than
a Contour in a rented suit, it was
extremely poor value for money. That’s why it never sold well.
And all of this brings me naturally
to the Mazda MX-5, which I think represents better value for money than any
other car on sale. A 1.8-litre soft-top version, as opposed to the one that
comes with a folding metal roof will get you
almost exactly the same amount of fun you would get from a Ferrari 430 Spider.
This is the thing with convertibles.
When the roof is down, the buffeting and the racket mean that any speed above
about 80 is unpleasant.
So you really don’t need a million horsepower or a gearbox that can swap
gears in a billionth of a blink.
With the Mazda you get the engine
at the front, rear-wheel drive and skinny tyres. This, then, is a car designed
to thrill and excite and put a massive smile on your face at the sort of
speed that won’t mess up your girlfriend’s hair.
Put simply, an MX-5 feels more alive at 30mph than most other cars feel at 100.
So, every time Mazda changes
something on its little sports car, I’m worried the end result will be a
bit more
serious, a bit more “driver-oriented”, a bit more anal. And that the original
recipe will have been ruined.
I realise, of course, that an
original can be improved, no matter how good it may have been.
But, for every original that’s improved, there are a thousand that are ruined.
That’s why I approached the recently facelifted version of the MX-5 with a heavy heart and a sense of foreboding.
Let me give you an example.
Mazda has fitted the engine with a forged crankshaft, floating pistons and
new valve
gear. It all sounds like the wet dream of a diehard, adenoidal car bore.
But don’t worry. Despite all the work, the
amount of power the engine produces remains exactly as it was before. And
it’s the same story with the torque.
The only real change is that you can now rev to 7500rpm before you need
to change gear.
And it all sounds a bit more sporty.
The company has changed the
front suspension too, and that worried me as well. There was absolutely nothing
wrong with the setup in the old car, so why fiddle? Plainly it was simply
to keep the engineers out of Hiroshima’s
love hotels, because it is just as sparkling and brilliant as it was before.
Maybe it’s a bit more focused, a bit sharper.
But only if you concentrate, and that’s the thing about the MX-5.
You don’t concentrate: you’re way too busy having a nice time.
Inside, you now get Recaro seats and higher-quality switches, but I didn’t notice these either.
I said recently that the BMW
Z4 is the best of the open sports cars, but after a couple of days with the
Mazda I
realised I was talking nonsense. The BMW is excellent but the MX-5 demonstrates
that its extra speed, extra grip
and extra size is all a bit wasteful. In the little Japanese car you get
exactly what you need, and exactly the space
you need, and nothing more.
I realise that the hairy-chested
among you will be scoffing and tutting and heading straight for this column
on the
internet so you can speak your mind. You will say “girl’s car” and “gay”
and all sorts of other things.
Well, that’s fine. You waste
your money on a Mustang or a Ferrari. The fact is that if you want a sports
car,
the MX-5 is perfect. Nothing on the road will give you better value. Nothing
will give you so much fun.
The only reason I’m giving it five stars is because I can’t give it 14.
The Clarksometer
Mazda MX-5 2.0i Sport Tech
Engine 1999cc, four cylinders
Power 158bhp @ 7000rpm
Torque 139lbft @ 5000rpm
Transmission Six-speed manual
Fuel 37.2mpg (combined)
CO2 181g/km
Acceleration 0-62mph: 7.6sec
Top speed 132mph
I’d give it 14 stars if I could
