A sports car, with nothing complicated, is enough for the huge majority of sports car drivers and owners – we want a car that is above all, enjoyable to drive. Enjoyable is not the same as “quick” or “faster” – enjoyment comes as much from balanced and responsive handling, good roadholding and enough power to enjoy it as from 0-60 and standing quarter times. And a folding hood of course!
As a basic concept, “nothing complicated” would sum up most popular sports cars of the last 70 years, from the MG TC through the MGB, TR7, Fiat Spider to the latest MX-5. If they did go complicated – examples such as the Lancia Beta Monte Carlo and MG F come to mind – record suggests it went wrong too, even if the going wrong part of the story was not directly attributable to the mid engined configurations. But it can come right.
The MG TC was certainly nothing complicated – the T series succeeded the Midget PB in 1936 and dropped an OHC engine for an OHV and the T series (culminating in the TF) used semi-elliptic springs, running boards and exposed headlamps until 1955. So, nothing complicated there. The TC is used a marker as this was the first version exported to North America, after the WWII, in right hand drive. The usual story is that the GIs stationed in Britain drove them; what is not recorded is how they got the petrol allowance to do so…
From 1955, the T series (CC here) was superseded by the significantly more contemporary MGA (CC here), though still with a body on frame construction. The styling was modern, low and attractive and the suspension a step forward too – independent with coil springs and wishbones at the front though still a live rear axle with semi-elliptic springs. Steering was by rack and pinion. So far, so good then. But then MG added a twin cam version, in 1958, which came with a range of reliability issues centred on the engine and sales of just 2000 in 2 years, compared with over 30,000 single cam cars. So, great looking, but complicated and unreliable, or uncomplicated and not very exciting really, given it had the engine from a Morris Oxford saloon and a suspension to match: your choice in 1958-62.
MG followed this with the MGB in 1962 – I guess I don’t need to say much about this car in this forum except to say that the differences between a 1962 car and a 1970s car or even a 1980 car were minimal, and centred mainly on the large black bumpers fitted in 1974, at which time the ride height was also raised to enable the headlamp position to meet regulations. Linked with the deletion of the anti-roll bars (sway bars), the handling was distinctly worse than before, also. Production stopped in 1980, with no replacement. Nothing complicated in 1962, inarguably not complicated enough by 1974, and no longer done properly.
The Triumph TR7 – need I say anything more – an inherently simple concept but challenging styling, no convertible initially, appalling build quality, inadequate performance…
By 1982, the mass production British sports car was dead – a victim of international economics and its own conservatism and inadequacy. Fiat was still producing, with Bertone, the mid-engined X1/9 but sales were now very slow and the market appeal fading.
But, just as the British cars were dying, the Japanese were starting, initially with the Toyota MR2 of 1984, although this was not offered as convertible until 1986. Even then, it was a T-bar roof with removable panels – not the full wind in the hair British roadster event MG and Triumph had made their own. In effect, it was an update of the Fiat X1/9 concept, not of the MGB. This is a clear distinction in many eyes – not least as it seems complicated – but also because the MR2 was bigger, heavier and slower than the MX-5.
Meanwhile, partly stimulated by ex-Motor Trend editor Bob Hall, who joined the company in 1982, Mazda also looked at the space vacated by the British and evolved ideas to create a compact sports car, much more directly in the MG roadster mould. This was the origin of the MX-5 (also known as the Miata or Eunos Roadster, depending on the market) – it was conceptually very close to the MGB and TR7 convertible and picked up some styling cues from the 1960s Lotus Elan. Key technical features included all round independent suspension, twin cam four cylinder engine, 5 speed gearbox and a rigid structural connection, known as the power plant frame, between the engine and gearbox at the front and the differential at the rear, sharpening the throttle response and adding structural rigidity also.
When you take a look at what Bob Hall and Mazda ended up with, on the market in 1989 in Japan and the US and 1990 in Europe, and measure it up against an MGB, the similarities are so strong they cannot be ignored – the first MX-5 (the NA series of 1989) is just 2 inch shorter in wheelbase, 6 inches wider in track and width, giving more cockpit space, 2 inches longer, 1 inch lower, just 100lb (less than 5%) heavier, even with the extra width, the 1990’s body construction and interior, a 5 speed gearbox, a waterproof hood and fairly weighty pop up light mechanism.
May be it’s those pop-up lights; may be it’s the fact that here’s a sports car that is not threatening or aggressive in style and nature; may be it’s the tight and compact nature of the whole car; whichever it is, driving an MX-5 NA will often result in a friendly welcome and driver-to-driver camaraderie.
But, there’s more than just the camaraderie to driving the MX-5 – there’s the driving itself. The car has independent rear suspension, using wishbones, 4 wheel disc brakes, almost perfectly balanced weight distribution (the engine is mounted well back in the bay under an aluminium bonnet and the battery is in the boot) and cockpit that puts the driver in just the right place. Whilst I have no qualifications in roadtesting, words like response, balance, agility, sensation, immediacy and contact all make perfect sense, and will be heard from almost anyone who has driven or ridden in an MX-5. It has a very simple but effective and well thought out interior and dashboard, providing all you need with no unnecessary distractions. You can add addictive charm and sheer outright, straight forward entertainment as well. And reliable, which also distances it from the MGB or TR7, and the Fiat X1/9.
Arguably, there was little that was innovative about the MX-5 as a concept in 1989, or much that was complicated – twin cam engines, fuel injection, 5 speed gearbox and multi link suspension were all common solutions at the time. But, compared with many preceding sports cars, it was done properly – the car has a great, smooth, eager to rev engine (at 4500 rpm, it just wants to keep going faster) that starts on the button, not something from a plodding saloon with an extra carburettor, it grips well and handles superbly, it will cruise when you’ve finished and want to go home, the seats require no compromise between reaching the controls and backache, the small switch-like gear lever can be moved with literally just a flick of wrist, the hood can be raised or lowered by one person at the lights (try that in a TR7!), it is reliable, the enthusiastic amateur can do much of any maintenance, and it gets the looks you want. It isn’t the fastest car ever – the early models had a 1.6 litre engine with 115bhp and 100 lbft, but weighed only 2100lb – and the handling more than compensates – and even now it is more than able to keep its place in traffic, and then some. Like I said:, nothing complicated but executed properly.
There are few cars of this generation that have the character and ability to not only endure, but also to offer the classic car buzz that brought you to this site; the fact that is still seen as a daily driver year round is testament to that. It also has a strong appeal to the track day enthusiasts, given its front engine and rear drive configuration and the ease with which the many available modifications can be added.
But, really there are still fewer better ways to check out England’s country lanes on a summer’s evening, and if you’ll excuse me, that’s just what I’m going to do!
With two daughters that needs to be taken to/from school I couldn’t go for the MX-5.
That’s why I ended with an old ’94 SAAB 900 Convertible.
No thrills, wrong-wheel-drive, but the 2.0 Turbo and manual transmission brings the smile on my face once in a while.
I was offered an ’87 convertible about ten years ago. Beautiful condition, the price was very right. It was an automatic. No deal. Although I liked it enough that I came very close to biting on it anyhow.
I love my 9-3 Aero ‘vert. I have the 6-speed and sports suspension. It flies. Sucks in traffic, which is why it is relegated to weekend duty.
Tomorrow is beach day with dad!
Sporting cars equate to roadholding rather than quarter mile times and these have it in spades those are the kind of cars I like and currently own and I could quite happily drive one of these, they are cheap and plentiful in NZ though many are the Eunos brand with automatic trans those I wouldnt have as a gift manual trans only here, I might drive automatic shifted trucks but thats for money and they are proper manual gear trans not the slushy variety.
A truly watershed car, although it does amuse me to read the specifications that passes for basic and simple nowadays. Somebody who would dare to build a small sports car with an OHV engine and solid rear axle would be laughed out of the market.
I’ve looked at MX-5’s (it’s taken me about five years to start calling them that, in the States their still Miata’s, no matter what Mazda says) on a number of occasions now – and for some reason never ended up buying. Test drove a couple of NA’s, most were higher mileage than I wanted, and well into my search I test drove a Porsche 924S. End of search, I’m a happy Porsche owner for the next four years.
Only shortcoming of the 924 is that it was a coupe, and I’ve always wanted a roadster. Start search again, this time my budget is larger so I’m looking at NB’s and early NC’s. Just for the hell of it, I take out a Pontiac Solstice. Then a second one. And I now own that second one. Yes, its supposedly a seriously inferior car to the MX-5. The slagging GM got for it in the reviews is legendary, and, having lived with mine for two months now I’m really convinced a lot of it was politically correct slagging-a-company-on-its-way-down. I like the Solstice better than the NB, other than the admittedly abysmal top (one person can do it, two is much easier) and the lousy rear vision.
Now, I’m looking for a cheap NA for the girlfriend as an occasional play toy. Something that needs a bit of work is acceptable, as she’s not going to be able to put it on the road immediately, anyway. Then . . . . . . . I really, really, really want a TR-7 someday. To hell with its reputation. And if I could only have a chance to drive an MG F/TF (the mid-engined version) just to see what they’re like.
One nitpick: In the paragraph on the MGA you’re talking single cam car. Don’t you mean OHV? I don’t remember any SOHC MGA’s.
If we’re really being picky, all MGAs are OHV , but single-cam cars have pushrods and twin-cams don’t.
For the record, the reliability problem that afflicted the twin-cams was caused by a vibration of the carburettors that frothed the petrol at certain speeds, causing weak mixture and burnt valves.
Nice piece, Roger. I wish I was hopping in one right now!
I’ll repeat my futile request for a shooting brake, and maybe even a Veloster-ish three-door. A true two-seater is just not practical for non-retired non-teenaged adults who lack Stembridge-like storage space. 🙂 Why not get better economies of scale from that fine RWD platform?
I have enjoyed my 2002 NB Miata since new.
I call it my ‘stress-reduction machine’. It only takes a few minutes to dissipate any trace of stress and anxiety, and bring a smile to my face. The fact that it has been bullet-proof reliable only enhances the stress-free experience.
It feels a lot faster than it is, so one can enjoy a spirited drive without being a menace on the road.
And +1 to Roger’s comment about the Miata inducing a friendly welcome and driver-to-driver camaraderie. Just last evening, a young woman playing with her two young children waved enthusiastically as I drove by on her quiet village street. I even get an occasional wave from Harley riders.
First-gen Miatas look to be a pretty economical choice here in the Midwest. I see them on Craigslist all the time for $3500-7000, and because they tend not to have been daily drivers they tend to have lowish miles.
Yup cheap to buy used “fun car” and yes few were used as daily drivers. If you must have a convertible and really only need to take your significant other and a weekend bag with you my first recommendation will be the Miata.
Having owned a new 1962 MGA and a now 22 year old 1991 Canadian BRG NA Miata that was 19 years old when purchased, the Miata took the best qualities of the ’60’s English sport cars and improved on their qualities in just about every area. I don’t call her the Little Green Time Machine for no reason. 🙂
Little Green Time Machine – brilliant definition!
I sold one for exactly $3756 here in Atlanta. 95′ model with 100k, 5-speed, red. That price also happened to be how much I was owed on it.
Part of me would have liked to have keep it. But I have always believed that if someone loves a vehicle more than me, I’ve done my job.
Owned my ’99 NB for almost 9 years and only parted with it due to my two daughters coming along. My littlest (now 6) still says I need another car like I used to have; “You know, dad…Where the top goes up and back?”
I tend to agree with her.
Any-who, I bought it used with 24,000 miles and when I sold it it was approaching 175,000…All I EVER did was routine maint., replace the coil-pack at appx. 60,000 miles and replace the top when the car was about 10 years old. The little thing was damn-near bulletproof and put a smile on my face almost every time I drove it. Loved that car and someday soon, before all the NAs are used up, I’ll own one of those as well.
grew up in Arizona. older brother had at diff times MG TC, MGA and 53 corvette (huge mistake when he sold that!) my first car in college, ’72 – a 69 Triumph TR-6, Brit racing grn. gorgeous styling. too heavy, not enough power, still drove great on longer rides. then got married…sigh. now long divorced, back in AZ and when gas peaked here in 07, looked for a cheap ragtop. with good gas mileage and zero repairs – not like the TR-6. eventually ended up with Miata. When the first came out, looked like like a stewardess car, but with obvious similarity to Lotus Elan. (Yes Mrs Rigg – Avengers came to mind). sat in a new one just to see what it was like. very nice, could not afford. looked Craig’s/Car’s.com/etc and found a 93 for sale at $4000. 64k mi. during the test drive discovered that Mazda had nailed the cockpit position, as i had read. Exactly like my TR-6 – perfect, my hand fell off the wheel directly on top of the shifter. that does not happen in Toyotas – i checked out Celica roadsters too. So of course, i said yes immediately. Unfortunately, it needed transmission work, and had a funny rattle in right front wheel. Rule of thumb, any used car will need $1000 put into it right away, so was not surprised. I even financed it, $100 mo for 3 yrs. ‘beer money’. I have 145k mi on it now. needs more work now. but since econ crash (architect – sucks), had to sell SUV, and drive this exclusively. It has been a great purchase, fun to ride, and yes, 5 yr old girls holding their mothers hand in crosswalk almost always point and say ‘look Mommy’. has to the the kids animation ‘Cars’. I Usually give them a ‘Miata wave’, that gives the little kids a start and they start to laugh. (hit the pop up headlight button) And strangely, young black and Mexican teenagers, usually associated with low riders and Chevy Impalas now give me the thumbs up! one young black kid, in the hood, always shouts at me, ‘Hey give me a ride!’ i shout back, ‘Buy your own!”. last time he also added, ‘I want a ride in your ‘Smurf car!” mine is red not blue.. but guess that makes me a smurf now funny kid. also had an Infiniti SUV pull out in front of me a few years ago. no place to go. hit the brakes at 45 mph. impact at right front quarter, tore the front of the SUV off. he couldnt move, i was able to back up. yeh, lots of bent metal. but surprising feel of ‘delivering a punch’ to that SUV. 45 mph to zero in 1.5 sec. Only real fear after impact, look in rearview for a Cadillac Escalade — none coming, so was able to take a breath…..
Sorry you had that SUV accident, glad it wasn’t so bad and good for you for “punching out” that SUV. That’s the only sort of thing I worry about driving my ’93, being seen. I have the headlights on much more often than I’d like just to make sure the bozos see me coming.
There is a mod for turning the front parking lights into daytime running lights, like they do in Canada. I’m thinking of putting some bright LED driving lights for daytime use on mine.
Hey Mike,
When I imported my ’93 LE into Canada, I had a fuse switch installed that ran the parking lights anytime the ignition was on. That was the cheapo solution to avoiding a costly conversion to DRLs. The fuse magically “failed on its own accord” about a month after passing my inspection. I swear your honor. 🙂
In 1989 down in Yorktown, VA, attending a multi-week Air Conditioning school at the CG Training Center there, I took my 86 Fiero SE 2M6 down to the local Mazda dealer to check out these new Miata’s.
What got my attention was the 2500 to 3000 grand “Dealer Mark Up” on the window sticker. Those cars were the hot thing on the road at that time and everyone knew it was a winner. And I’m sure those marked up Miata’s got every penny the dealer wanted!
I’ve had a chance to sit and drive in one. Much more cramped then my old Fiero’s by a country mile. Even my current Opel GT seemed to be more roomy inside. But a lot of folks thought otherwise and because of it, the small, 2 seat sports car, something I thought was as dead as Triumph and MG was a major player on American roads again.
I think this is the car that saved Mazda in America.
I used to have an ’84 Fiero 2M4, currently have a ’90 Miata.
My recollection of 1990 was the article in Motor Trend? Road & Track? suggesting everybody take a trip to the Mazda dealership just to try out the shifter! So I did.
Comparing the two, in my own personal opinion the Pontiac was the superior car. The Mazda is a touch more powerful – but the 2M4 handled better, had a superior chassis, and had superior roll-over safety. The removable sunroof was practically the same for open-air experience. The mileage was even better on the 2M4. And the 2M4 will never show surface rust, whereas of course that’s what will happen to non-babied Miatas.
It’s funny how much people hated the Fiero, but were so enamored with the Mazda. Don’t get me wrong, I do enjoy the Miata. I got a fair deal for a low-mileage example and spent a bundle on a new soft-top, so I’m kind of stuck with it now. But I really miss my old 2M4 for its handling prowess and all-around manners. Even if it’s shifter, e-brake, and pop-up headlight motors were not up to snuff compared to Mazda’s.
In harkening back to the classic British sports cars of the early 60s, the Miata skipped over the new wave led by Lotus Europa, Datsun Z and Porsche 914. Then came those treasures from Giugiaro. I suppose the folded paper look had become a bit passé and the retro Miata was refreshing in 1990.
But it’s been around so long and the round / jelly bean / bar of soap look has spread to everything. Now the Miata is just boring.
The Datsun roadster and all those look-alike MGs do nothing for me either. I’ll take a Mk 1 Scirocco any day of the week. Ironically that look has become the most retro of all!
Ooh, I’ve been looking for a clean Mk1 Scirocco and Mk1 GTI for a while now. I can’t seem to find any. They’ve all been butchered up or driven into the ground. The Mk1 and Mk2 Sciroccos are the only watercooled VWs that I haven’t owned that I still lust for (ending a sentence with a preposition, my middle school teacher would have a fit!).
I’ve owned a 1978 Alfa Spider and a 1994 Miata. The Miata was the “better” car in terms of roadholding, reliability and overall comfortable daily driver (both were my daily drivers at the time). I still love my Alfa more, maybe because I was younger and it was my first convertible.
But that first gen Miata was a great car. I had a base stripper, only option was air conditioning and no power steering! Can you believe a car in 1994 without PS? With slightly bigger aftermarket wheels and tires, it was a workout to parallel park.
Brilliant! Wonderful article, Roger. That’s the beauty of it, a perfect modern example of Colin Chapman’s favorite maxim, “Simplicate and add lightness.”
I adore my ’93. One of the best things about a Miata is the fiberglass hardtop. Even though the fabric top is perfectly dry and snug even in the heaviest rainstorms, it’s quieter in the car with the hardtop on. Looks so fine too. Makes the Miata into one of the best-looking coupes ever made.
Here’s a picture of mine from January. Hardtop’s off now of course. Time to take it for a sunny top-down errand-run right now.
Oddly enough, my 1990 Miata becomes very creaky & groany with the hardtop in place. Maybe my car suffers more chassis flex than yours.
I’m not into roadsters — I prefer to have a roof over my head, so I’d never buy one. But I’m really glad that these exist. It’s encouraging that a car could capture the spirit of driving without attempting to be completely wasteful, over the top or unaffordable.
“Arguably, there was little that was innovative about the MX-5 as a concept in 1989”
For the US, it was innovative in the sense that the roadster was dead until Mazda revived it. Mazda is always flirting with financial failure here, so it’s more likely to take moonshot-style risks. It’s fortunate that this one paid off.
I simply love these, and have come close a couple of times to getting one. The first gen models are my favorite. As Jim Grey said above, older ones are fairly common around here, often not driven that much. Another cool thing is that these are one of the few cars out there that are most commonly found with stick shifts. Someone looking for an older automatic Miata will have a bit of searching to do.
I hope to get one of these some day yet. Your writeup was quite nice.
The Miata really is a rare case of a sports car being so profitable for a mainstream automaker that it ended up saving the company.
When Mazda was developing the Miata, they really had envisioned selling the car at a low price point; just over $10,000.
However, in customer clinics before the car went on sale, customers were asked what they’d expect to pay for the car, and the numbers were several thousand dollars more than Mazda had intended to charge. So, Mazda put the base model on sale for $13,800. Loaded up models would exceed $17,000 in the early years, and as some of you found when you looked them when they were new, the dealers also marked them up by a few more thousand.
When Mazda went off the rails, due to a recession both in the US and Japan, a general collapse of the sporty car market (Mazda had four entrants in this market – the MX-3, Miata, MX-6, and RX-7, which burned a lot of development money), and the scrapping of the Amati luxury marque, they didn’t have SUV profits to fall back on.
It was only the happy accident that Mazda had developed the Miata to sell for about $10k and ended up selling for nearly twice that, that provided the profits to keep the company afloat. The Miata sold quite strongly throughout the NA generation and the beginning of the NB, after which some profit started to come in from the Protege5, Mazda6, and Mazda3.
Na MX5 must be one of the few cars that are cheaper here in the UK than the USA. I paid £750 for a V-spec Eonous Roadster,, BRG paint ,tan leather,a/c LSD etc..
I had a 2002. I bought it in 2005 for $8800 including tax with 31,000 miles on it and a salvage title. In the 3 years I had it , the car needed a crankshaft sensor and not much else. Mine had an automatic. That sounds like sacrilege but I could torque it to give me launch control and I could generally take out another Miata that had a manual gear box.
The first time I drove it at speed down the Arroyo Seco Parkway from Pasadena to downtown LA I had the biggest grin on my face that I have ever had in my life. My daughter learned to drive in that car and took her drivers test in it. I wonder if it is considered cheating to use such a small car for the parallel parking part of the test. In the month after she got her license she put 5000 miles on it before going back to college for her senior year.
I was going to give it to her when she graduated but on tax day, April 15th the next year some guy in a Tacoma rad a red and I t-Boned him at about 40. I walked away from the crash without a scratch and even with the hood folded up I was able to drive it home. It had 78,000 miles on it.
However the insurance company wrote it off and cut me a check for $7000 for it. I could have bought it back for $900 and by internet shopping could have put it on the road again for about $2800 in parts. But I did not want to give my daughter a twice salvaged car so I let it go.
She just bought herself a brand new Mazda 3 GT a couple months ago.
To me they will never be an MX-5. They are a Miata!