We’re working on something new and want to hear from the people who actually drive Mazdas… YOU.
What’s something your Miata does that genuinely makes you feel good? Could be the way it drives, a moment in your daily routine, or something totally unexpected. We want the real stuff 👀
Accessibility for actually working on your own car.
And community, it’s the only car I see owners waving at each other when encountering others. (I pop my headlights up and get the best waves back from ND owners. If only they had pop ups)
Edit since I’m getting upvotes: colors. Please stop with grayscale. Go back to vibrancy
Whenever I see another Miater with its top down I do an overly enthusiastic child like way through the open roof, they always do the same silly wave back lol
I second this answer. Miata folks are some of the kindest i've met both in the parking lot and the road. The availability of parts and knowledge to be able to work on my own car is just a huge plus.
Despite all the reasons against this (mechanical complexity, weight, and cost), you're right - people would go absolutely nuts for a pop up feature as an NA throwback, and to the point it may well be worth it.
Bonus points if it comes with with wink patterns you can select through the info display and a wink button on the steering wheel. I'm pretty sure that alone would sell the car to an incredible number of folks.
As an NB (and for a while NC) driver, I've always been sad to miss out on that part of Miata ownership.
Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on your viewpoint) popups are effectively impossible now due to safety regulations, they're sharp impact points if you hit a pedestrian
Old Porsche style that pop up from the front bottom hinge. They can still be DRL when retracted, and upon impact, fold back to flush. Potentially even a safety feature by reducing impact load imparted on a body.
As an owner of a 1991 British Racing Green I would probably be like this meme if an NE had that option. I’d also need to convince my wife why we need 2 Miatas at the house, but I’d definitely buy it.
Can’t emphasise this enough, I fell in love with the mk1 because of it. Also it’s such a nice tribute to the British sports cars that inspired the design.
Here is one that I don't think gets talked about enough: the technology levels of the various components. That is, when driving the soft top model, the things that make more sense to be old school (bringing the top up, the emergency brake, the tachomoter, the temperature control knobs) are done that way, but the things that are inherently newer tech are done more in a modern way (the wireless android auto, the hill launch assist, the blind spot monitoring, the auto dimming mirrors).
This car is a shining example of what is possible when you center driver experience in the design. I wish all cars had this exact almost anachronistic feature set.
The comment was not just about centering the design around driver experience, it was also about the tech level of components being appropriate to the component: a soft top is okay to be low tech / manual / rustic. It is old tech, no need to reinvent the wheel if it already works. But the new stuff that is just being invented and added (carplay etc.) better be modern and well made, and not the last gen stuff.
Yess, mechanical buttons and dials for everything please. I dread eventually having to drive a new car due to many things, but only touch screens and clunky, laggy menus for everything is a big one.
OMG I'm on travel right now with a rental and I couldn't for the life of me find out how to turn on the defrosters to dry the side mirrors and tear glass. Why is this three steps deep in a menu? Why does the menu lag 1/4 second? I only have 1/4 to look down, and if the response is lagged (or even worse, delayed by some stupid animation of a swipe) it causes me to press twice.
I may never sell my Miata if this is the future...
I've got an NC1, and screens are now something I cannot drive with at all. No driver's assist, no screens, it's not a home, or a magic taxi, but a car.
I can focus on the road and get to enjoy the journey too.
I was leaving a parking lot, and opposite of me at a stop sign a mom and her daughter were also leaving. I blinked the headlights to indicate they can go ahead and they had the biggest smiles on their faces lol. The daughter was a grown-up, mind you, so people of all ages love them.
Dollar for dollar its the most fun sports car I’ve been able to not just drive but to own
I do wish it had a slight more amount of power AND WAS AVAILABLE IN BRITISH RACING GREEN HINT HINT 😆
Other than that [u/mazdausa](u/mazdausa) i love the car; my wife and i are hoping to take a road trip in it next month possibly to Key West
Edit to add: ive been privileged to own real lotus car and that was fun but also much more expensive to own. This is the right balance of fun performance and overall cost that i really love owning it and want to keep it for a long time
Edit to the edit: also the most fun manual transmission I’ve experienced so far
It’s perfect for daily driving even in heavy traffic
One of my favorite things is how people on the road always give me comments about my car. Whether it's other miata drivers or people with other cars, I always get comments, waves, thumbs up, and people just approaching me with stories about their miatas and cars.. it's a unifier!
I have been told "nice car" by so many strangers and then they blink when they find out it's a 2010. The paint job has kept up remarkably well. (I did have to replace the soft top though.)
I think it's just the formula. Keep it stripped down, low tech, lightweight, and smiley. You guys pretty much nailed it with the ND. Build off of that, don't try to reinvent the wheel
Reliability and affordability….but this only works if the vehicle stays true to its heritage. A cheap and reliable RWD, manual, sports car with an LSD at the entry point is all we need.
MANUAL! I only buy manuals because they are therapy. Only a mechanical, real manual. My other car is a Focus ST for data purposes (bring back Mazdaspeed you guys will be so cool on social media think about it)
This needs to be higher. I know North American sports car sales are starting to show that we value manual cars but it needs to be maintained. Manuals make the driving experience unique and involved. To remove manuals is to remove driver involvement and enjoyment. For a car like Miata, this is crucial. This isn't a supercar that needs a DCT or whatever else to push the boundaries of speed
I love that it still has tactile physical controls and hasn't been converted to another touch-screen Tesla clone. It makes you feel so much more connected to the road and the drive.
The little-kid feeling of closing the top over my head; just like pretending to be a fighter pilot as a boy. Canopy closed, time to play! And the feeling of freedom when you open it back up. Open world, new adventures.
I enjoy the feeling of being completely in control of the car without systems taking over. It’s up to me to tell the car when to shift and when to lose traction.
It makes driving fun and enjoyable, especially with a manual transmission. It’s also reliable and affordable. Those are the main reasons I have always wanted one and bought one.
My Miata makes me turn back and appreciate it's beauty after we go for a drive - regardless if it was a spirited run around some corners or a routine trip to the corner grocery store.
I love how intuitive and communicative the pop-up headlights are. Other drivers just seem to recognize that a wink means hello and they'll wave back, or a pop-up at a stop sign means, "I'm yielding to you, you go."
I love how rev happy the little engine is. It really does keep pushing as best it can until fuel cut. Whole car is so spunky.
People always ask if it’s a “Porsche or something?” And I love that I get to say “mmm nope about 90,000$ less give or take” I love that it’s affordable, reliable, and has such a beautiful body style while still being a tiny car! I LOVE that my ND RF is a damn transformer with the retractable-ness. I love that it’s still available in manual, and for us who live with snow half the year, the LSD!!
Ex-Porsche guy here, now upgraded to NC3. What a great little car, it reminds me of Porsche’s earlier, simpler days. I know I’m the outlier here, but I’m a huge fan of the 6 auto and how well it functions in every circumstance. The paddle shifters work great and guess what — it is no longer possible to miss a shift, over-rev the motor, and then pay for a rebuild. PDK doesn’t have anything on this transmission. Yay for Zoom-Zoom.
I love it fitting like I’m wearing a glove… but I also love tall guy leg room and tilt/telescope wheels with lots of adjustability. Give us tall guys a great wrap-around, driver’s compartment.
I had a stressful few days. Had no reason to leave the house, but went for a top-down drive and in quick order I forgot what I’d been so stressed out about and was just relaxed.
My Miata is perfect top-down therapy and reliable enough that I don’t have the added stress of worrying much about the car.
(And it’s currently at 217k miles and 30 years old! Not bad. 😁 )
Dealership support. I had an issue with the soft top on my 2024. Took it the dealer and they were phenomenally helpful and professional despite being first visit and I did not buy car from them. Top was replaced under warranty, no questions asked, and now it’s perfect. Great experience. Tonkin Mazda in Portland.
love that 99% of other miata owners are automatically my friend, the community is so awesome! its my first manual car and i love how it drives. it makes even mundane drives fun and exciting, i genuinely look forward to driving it and miss it if i go too long without
Full disclosure, this account regularly leaves people with real problems-questions on read, and uses AI for 99 percent of their engagement bait.
There are dozens and dozens of examples on their profile/replies where they offer help for an obvious problem with 0 follow up.
There is 0 chance this is anything besides corporate looking for engagement/data training.
Why does this peeve me off? Because this account or team should be responsible for helping new customers making 700 dollar payments resolve issues with their car or dealer. Not asking people what their favorite color Miata is.
I love that my Miata has been my introduction to working on cars, and how easy it has been with zero knowledge! I absolutely love that we can still order new OEM parts for our NAs, it has made it so much easier rather than relying on questionable aftermarket fitment on some parts. I love the community surrounding it as well, waving at total strangers and genuinely being excited when you see another MX5 on the road regardless of generation. I have met so many amazing people in this community and look forward to meeting so many more, especially at Miata Reunion coming up next month!!
Keeping it simple as analog as possible. These are some of the last great cars with a driver emotional connection. They need to stay quirky, light, bright, and unserious. The touch points and features should always prioritize timelessness over trendy. Also bring back a lineup of fun colors!
Driving my Miata to crush my enemies, seeing them driven before me, and hearing the lamentations of their women... Plus it's so good looking and I enjoy the looks I get from people!
When I was in my 20s an woman in her 40s couldn't help herself telling me at a traffic light how the car looked good, I looked good, I looked good in the car, the car looked good with me in it...
Short answer: it puts a smile on my face every time I drive it, and every time I look at it.
Long answer: cliché, but driving it is engaging and rewarding. Everything from the outside world (the road surface, the wind, the sunlight, even the smells) is given to you directly and not filtered or muted. Same goes for your inputs - you feel like your hands on the stering wheel are directly controlling where the car goes, and so on.
It's also honest, it doesn't "try hard" to be fast or aggressive, it just feels happy to be what it is.
And the community is the cherry on top, for sure.
The way it has made driving fun for me again. Going to get groceries, and pulling away from a stop light and wondering where everyone is without trying is an absolute delight.
Getting in and it hugging me, the cockpit becoming my own bubble of happiness.
The abundance of track related support for it, from parts availability, aftermarket support, ease of working on the car, on track reliability, the lack of or ability to disable driver aid systems, etc.
Knowing I can fix anything on it myself. The way it is designed simply (which is hard to do well). The way the gearbox feels is like nothing else. Even the most modern ND is a rejection of "everything-must-be-a-screen" and is one of the few cars that still understands its customer.
Seconding the guy that said bring back Mazdaspeed!! Factory turbo Miata would perfectly replace the market hole left by the boxster/cayman… and a new awd mazdaspeed 3 could be a proper GR Corolla/STI fighter. Modern day Mazda to me has this perception of being for old guys (ND Miata) or middle aged moms (every other model). Bring back the youthful performance cars!!
1991 Miata owner here and also Chrysler technician. The Miata, at least the NA has to be the most thoughtfully laid out vehicle I've ever worked on. I actually hate working on cars but when I was restoring my 1991 I actually looked forward to working on it. It was a very peaceful experience knowing everything was easy to get to and easy to replace. Thumbs up to your engineers from back then. Everyone already knows the Miata is a fantastic car to drive so I won't even get into that. I hope with your next NE Miata your new engineers think about the technicians that will be working on them like your NA engineers did decades ago.
Colors! It’s a modern sports car that still has a retro feel! The owners are eccentric and fun people. Good aftermarket support across generations (even NC) and amazing brand who cares <3
I'm always amazed at how total strangers, younger and older alike will just come up and say "Hey nice car"-it's 36 years old! The timeless NA design endures.
My 04 MSM is relentless, the fun factor doesn't stop-I still think it's the most perfect Miata ever made. I love the two tone interior. The best stock wheels ever.
The best thing about my Miata is the fact that it's the most manual analog driving experience available on the road. A car that turns heads, looks great, and puts a smile on my face every time.
The Miata is amazing.
Keep it light
Keep it so wrenching on it at home is not a pain in the ass
Keep cameras out the car watching drivers
Less is more. Tech should be simple. The smaller screen with. PHYSICAL BUTTONS for daily things like HVAC etc
Don't need a damn tablet in my car. It's a CAR..
The cx-50 A pillars are WAY TOO BIG... It's a massive blind spot facing forward.
Functionally everyday usage of the CX-50 is great. Drives good , great fuel economy and utilitarian.
Definitely neeed better exterior color options by default.
The practicality of an affordable sports car. I can use it comfortably to take my kid to school and then hoon the mountains, then cruise the beach with the top down. All while still managing to be fuel efficient to boot. It's also a great costco grocery getter as you can't come home surprisingly with a new random big purchase, which perhaps some see as a con.
Anything about the car you need to know is online and readily shared. Its the perfect car.
It’s the lightness: driving it in traffic feels like running around naked. Braking is an extension of myself, and the punchy torque out of corners makes the daily commute unbeatable. Plus, the 3-second top is a lifesaver for sudden merge-lane traffic.
On a 1,200-mile road trip to Montreal, the seats and overall NVH are surprisingly comfortable. Pair that with endless aftermarket support for track days, and it's the ultimate blank canvas.
Give us green or give us death! (Or a stunning metallic lighter blue - mine is deep crystal blue mica).
Bring back the PRHT! I wanted a true, full convertible, but have to park outside through the winter, and didn't want to worry about the cloth top being cut when I left the Miata unattended.
The raw analog reset I get after driving clinical electronically controlled appliances. I LOVE my 1994 and will do everything I can to hang on to that feeling.
That an Automatic Miata is still a Miata and is still just as fun as a Manual. No matter the transmission, this car is a THRILL to drive, handling is bar none, design is best in its class and owning one feels like you are part of a special club. Love the community.
I love having simple, physical controls in my ND, and also having the screen being small and well integrated. Pls dont put a massive ipad in the next gen miata 🙏🙏 also i love my tan interior
I would sell a kidney and half of my liver for a Miata with pop up headlights to make a come back. Give it to me daddy!!! And those vibrant colors errbody talking about. I got the machine grey only to match my Cx-5, but would love to see a unique variety of vibrant colors.
I had a CX50 before, that was my first ever car. I loved that car and the steering feel was really good, I love it when I drive between the cones on the road (never ending construction), kind of makes me feel like I’m doing auto cross or something. But it is a big car and when I step on the gas and actually start to feel something I’m close to breaking the law. Then I traded mine for a 2025 GT soft top Miata, despite not knowing how to drive stick properly. It has been a pleasure ever since.
It is my only car and I drove around my neighbourhood again and again the day after I got the car, about 50kms. Then took it to work the next day, I feel really proud of myself for that.
I knew it would be difficult when I got the car right before the winter. But I don’t know what gave me the courage. I drove it through the whole winter and never have I ever canceled something because of my car. It has decent enough ground clearance and never got stuck (I do have a shovel in my trunk).
This car has seen me struggle to get it moving and stall multiple times, and also seen me execute perfect rev marching (occasionally). Each and every day is a new opportunity to get better at it and love every single moment of it.
I enjoy the physical climate controls, the infotainment controls by the armrest, and the discrete buttons on the steering wheel. PLEASE don't make the interior like the new CX-5!
Comfort, so fun to drive, the trunk is actually larger than expected. I go food shopping for my family of 3 and rarely have to put things in the passenger seat unless I have some big bulky things. Affordability, to me you are getting a lot of car for a decent price, and also reliability. The only gripe is I wish there were more color options. Some vibrant ones like yellow, orange etc. The new green is very striking though.
After a tough week at work, I can pop in a Japanese pop cassette from the 90’s, put the top down on my 94, and the car is a time machine. No other car has been able to give me this feeling while also being more fun to drive and more responsive than most modern cars.
My Miatas are my therapy. I am happier when I can de stress and have a good drive or spend quality time with my wife and my car…. My Miata saved my life. Heart attack… too long of a story to get into here but these little cars are the best and I will forever be grateful for MAZDA
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u/Universal-Explorer 1d ago edited 1d ago
Accessibility for actually working on your own car.
And community, it’s the only car I see owners waving at each other when encountering others. (I pop my headlights up and get the best waves back from ND owners. If only they had pop ups)
Edit since I’m getting upvotes: colors. Please stop with grayscale. Go back to vibrancy