Mazda MX-5 2015 Review

Mazda’s original MX-5 re-wrote the book on affordable sports cars. Then through two more generations, the story lost a little of its focus. With the all-new fourth-generation ND-series MX-5, however, the world’s best-selling roadster has returned to its essential best and the result is an engaging, responsive, entertaining and value-packed sporty which in 2.0-litre engine form delivers significant performance gains. Pricing is yet to be confirmed but don’t expect to pay a huge premium over the $32K starting price of the beautifully balanced 1.5-litre entry-level model.

You’ll pay more for the 2.0-litre version of Mazda’s all-new MX-5 when it arrives Down Under around November. But the extra dollars will, for many, be of little concern. For Aussies, size usually matters.

Nonetheless, that you have a choice is a major change for the car-maker and a first for ‘the little roadster that could’ locally. And now we’ve driven both the 1.5 and 2.0-litre versions of the new MX-5, we understand why Mazda Australia has taken the decision.

In very simple terms, in the 1.5, Mazda has built an MX-5 for purists. The 2.0-litre car on the other hand is aimed at enthusiasts who want the MX-5 experience at a higher rate of knots.

It will be instructive to see how Aussies ‘vote’.

motoring.com.au drove the two MX-5s back to back in a pre-launch drive in Scotland this week. Our first prototype drive listed chapter and verse the technical step change the car has undergone. Rather than recite them again, we’ll concentrate on the differences between the 1.5- and 2.0-litre cars.

Aside from the engines themselves, the list isn’t long. All Aussie-spec 2.0-litre cars will arrive with 17-inch rather than the 1.5’s 16-inch alloy wheels and there is a corresponding tyre size change – from 195/50 to 205/45-section. In addition, a brake package upgrade sees the disc rotor sizes increase from 258/255mm front/rear to 280mm all around.

Gearbox and final drive ratios are unchanged. There’s likely some spring and damper tuning to cope with the added mass of the larger 2.0-litre engine but Mazda is keeping those details to itself. We noted minor trim differences but as our test cars were early production examples from a range of markets (we drove US, Japanese and UK-spec cars), the details are probably not relevant to our market.

For the avoidance of doubt, the 1.5 is the model you’ll buy at the new range’s recently announced $31,990 starting price. We’re yet to learn exactly how much Mazda Australia will charge for the larger engine variants. There will, however, be base and high-spec versions of both engine variants.

Powered by a wonderfully responsive and eager 96kW/150Nm direct-injected petrol engine, the 1.5-litre car displays exquisite balance and better than decent real-world performance. Indeed, where the most recent couple of generations of MX-5s may have strayed a little from the path, the new 1.5 is absolutely true to the company’s original 1989 concept of Jinba Ittai – the often joked about ‘horse and rider as one’.

This is in a large part thanks to a ready-to-roll weight of just over 1000kg. The 2.0-litre car adds only 25kg (plus another 15 if auto idle-stop is specified).

The magnitude of this achievement is demonstrated by the fact the MX-5 betters all but a handful of much more expensive and significantly less liveable sports car alternatives and yet requires no real sacrifices from a buyer.

There’s a full-spec fully-integrated infotainment system, airbags, reverse sensors, cruise control lumped into the total mass and even lane departure warning and other safety systems available on the car. Oh, and the roof is draft-free, can be raised or lowered one-handed in seconds and works a treat (Alfa Romeo 4C fans take note).

With more than enough performance to keep you entertained, the 1.5’s emphasis is firmly on tactile response. No surprise then that for MX-5 development program head, Nobuhiro Yamamato, it’s this 1.5-litre version that represents the most ‘pure’ of the new generation.

So what of the inevitably more expensive 2.0-litre car? Is it a nose-heavy aberration? Does the 22 per cent more powerful and 25 per cent more torquey 2.0-litre version miss the mark?

No… The great news is that it is just more of a good thing. Yes, there are handling, ride and steering differences but none of a magnitude that spoil the party.

There’s real precision to the way the both cars react to control inputs but purists will argue the 1.5’s absolutely pure steering response is dulled ever so slightly in the 2.0-litre.

Turn-in is still accurate, but the almost instinctive reaction of the smaller car is not as obvious. We also noted some degradation of ride quality on the 2.0-litre’s 17-inch rubber.

That’s not to say overall the 2.0-litre’s chassis should be deemed inferior – just different. Indeed, drive the 2.0-litre car in isolation and if you’re a keen driver you’ll be entranced. Even more so when those extra Newton-metres translate to just a smidge of line-tightening oversteer on the exit of your favourite corner.

Of course, the reason many will opt for the 2.0 initially is that extra urge and straight-line performance. With 118kW and 200Nm, the 2.0-litre has a significant engine-room advantage over the 1.5. On paper this translates to better 0-100km/h times (7.3 v 8.3sec) and higher top speed (214 v 204km/h).

Although the 2.0-litre is also thirstier, the margin’s not likely to break the bank — 6.6L/100km for idle-stop versions versus 6.0.

While the MX-5 ‘experience’ has never been about outright power or straight-line performance, in the real world there’s no escaping the fact the 2.0-litre accesses this performance more readily.

I’m a great fan of the new MX-5’s rifle-bolt-like, short-throw gear change in the 1.5, but you can afford to be a touch lazier when driving the 2.0-litre car. There’s more torque available right across the rev-range and as well as the shenanigans alluded to above, this manifests itself via a significant point-to-point pace advantage.

The 2.0-litre also ups the performance-oriented ante with a more ‘talkative’ powertrain. There’s an extra dose of induction growl and a touch more rasp to the exhaust note, which is pretty addictive.

Bottom line is demanding roads put a smile on your face in both cars. Indeed, if in simplest 1.5-litre form the new MX-5 demonstrates everything is on target again for the world’s most popular roadster, the 2.0-litre slams the point home.

As far as accessible, affordable open-air sports car performance goes, the MX-5 is again in a class of its own.

2015 Mazda MX-5 2.0 SKYACTIV-G pricing and specifications:
Price: From $36,000 (estimated)
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol
Output: 118kW/200Nm
Transmission: Six-speed manual
Fuel: 6.6L/100km (ECE combined)
CO2: 154g/km (NEDC combined)
Safety rating: Not tested