Mazda MX-5 25th Anniversary Movie and new ‘ND’ model

If you haven’t already heard, this year is the 25th Anniversary of Mazda’s iconic MX5.
In celebration of this, Mazda have released a special 25th Anniversary Edition of the car, with only 1000 units being made.
They also released this inspiring video on the history, inspiration and ethos behind this iconic car…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ip_iK4mfSF4

Inspired by early British sports cars and modernised with a combination of Japanese technology reliability, and affordability, the MX5 really is a drivers car for everyone.

“A car that makes driving truly joyful.”

You could say that a lot of what is said in that video is simply marketing propaganda put out there by Mazda to get you to buy their product. Though having owned an MX5 myself, I would tend to agree with a lot of what is said in the video. Despite the typical comments (that it’s a woman’s car or a hairdresser’s car etc) that comes along with owning an MX5, usually from people who drive boring run of the mill diesels, I can honestly say I enjoyed every moment of ownership.
OK, the car isn’t the fastest thing on road, but what it lacks in power figures it makes up with other redeeming attributes, such as how light and nippy the car is and it’s epic handling. In an ideal world I would have loved to have put the top down more often when I had my MX5, but unfortunately being from this part of the world that isn’t always possible. On a rare occasion when the sun was shining and putting the top down was an option, it was impossible for me not to smile. Pushing it’s high revving engine through the short ratio gearbox on the local twisty B-roads, with the sun over head and the wind cooling your face was indeed truly joyful and you soon forget about any of the nonsense people spew at you when they hear you’ve bought an MX5. I would genuinely encourage anyone who has a love of cars or driving to experience an MX5 at least once in their life.

Now in it’s third guise, with the NA, NB and the more recent NC model, Mazda will surely release a new edition of the world’s best selling sports car.

This image was leaked recently and will apparently be the new ‘ND’ model of the MX5…

If you compare it with the 25th anniversary edition revealed earlier this year, there are a lot of similarities, you can see it retains the smiling front grill that’s been present from the start and also the wider shapely body that was introduced in the ‘NC’ model. The main difference at the front being the change in the shape of the headlights.

Earlier in the year Mazda revealed their all new Sky Active chassis technology at the New York Auto show and it will be the underpinnings of their latest sports car. Mazda confirmed the engine will be positioned behind the front axle and closer to the car’s centre than ever before, plus the centre of gravity will be lower than previous generations, all of which are factors that should improve the the fantastic handling Mazda achieved in previous editions. 
So what will power the new car? In the past the MX5 has been offered in 1.6L and 1.8L engine variants (for the NA and NB model) and later a 2.0L engine was an option in the NC model, therefore it is likely Mazda will stay true to the cars roots and offer an engine similar in size to their previous offerings, while focusing on weight saving and cutting carbon emissions for what will be the fourth offering of this much loved sports car.

As someone who is passionate about driving, I salute Mazda for their contribution to the driving world with the MX5 and in the same vein as Toyota’s GT-86, I hope that more car manufacturers follow in this trend in bringing back cars that focus more on fun and the driving experience, as opposed to power or economy figures and here’s to hoping the MX5 will continue to be made in another 25 years.