Test Drive Friday - the sequel

So, after a lovely drive in a 2004 (not 2006) Nissan 350Z, it was almost time for lunch. Since I had such a nice drive, I was in a particularily good mood, and decided to buy some lunch for Silvermane and myself, and have lunch with her at work.

After a nice (quick) lunch and watching Silvermane slowly become a Workaholic, I rushed off to Mazda for my 2:00PM appointment to drive the '06 Miata. (Note: She's not *really* a workaholic. There. That'll keep me out of trouble!)

I should note that of all the dealerships I went to, only two of them allowed me to book an appointment via the Internet: One was Honda, and the other was Mazda. Richmond Hill Honda never called or emailed to confrim, but Avante Mazda did. The same day I requested a test-drive, I received an email from Danny Koh to confirm the type of car I wanted, and a time of 2PM.

I arrived precisely at 2:00PM, and met up with Danny who was there waiting bells on. Very impressed, and made me feel valued as a customer (Honda, take note). The first thing we did? Play with the Power-retractable Hardtop (PRHT). :) There is only one word to describe it: Brilliant. You can buy the normal hardtop for somewhere around $1800 from the dealer (doesn't show on Mazda Canada anymore?), or, for for $2195, you can have the power-retractable version. Not much more money, and for that you get an amazing piece of engineering. The roof retracts in about 12 seconds. AND it takes up NO trunk space. NONE. Eat that Pontiac Solstice / Saturn Sky.



Upon taking the car out to drive, aside from a few little things, the car feels very much like the old Miata. Same handling, more power, and the exact same exhaust note as mine (except for the slight rattle mine's developed in the last 9 years). Except now, it's a little nicer inside: There's more room (wider), and the interior is far more elegant. You get more toys. You can even get heated seats.

Like a lot of people, I liked the fact that the Miata was very minimalist on heavy things like power accessories and convenience features. I didn't even mind very much that there weren't any practical cupholders in it. But now, you can have all that, without the weight restrictions: the new MX5 has gone on a binge diet. It has all these extra features, more power, more space, and barely any more weight (about 84lbs extra for the retractable hardtop)! How can you argue with that?

And, how can you argue with the price? Starting at about $20K LESS than the 350Z, I can have as much (if not more) fun. I get a bit more trunk space. I can get a retractable hardtop. And, I don't have to get that terrible, terrible orange interior. I can choose a black interior. That interior was the only downfall of the new MX5 I could find. Well, that, and the keyless-entry was a bit difficult to get used to, since there's no actual key to put in the ignition. I think in time, I would find that never having to pull my keys out to start the car is pretty cool.

Overall? I'd buy this car in a heartbeat, and have a ton of cash to spare!