Mazda MX-5 roadster: fun to drive

Price: £18,495 - £23,695

Pros: Super reliable, loads of fun, relatively affordable to run

Cons: Cramped interior, very small boot, a bit dated

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

4.2/5, Carbuyer "The Mazda MX-5 is perfect if you want an open-top two-seater that's fun to drive and reasonably cheap to run. There's a new model on the way, which means

Mazda

is offering some very generous discounts on the current car, too. Many see the Mazda as offering the traditional thrills of a classic British sports car, combined with the reliability of a Japanese model.Two versions are available, each with a different roof. As its name suggests, the MX-5 Soft Top has a folding fabric roof, but the MX-5 Roadster Coupe has a folding hard-top roof. As a result, the latter is a little quieter on the move, more secure and only marginally heavier.And it's that weight that explains the brilliance of the

Mazda MX-5

on the move. Even though it's been on sale for a long time, it's still one of the most entertaining cars to drive you can buy – at any price. Couple that lightness with steering that responds immediately to your inputs, a wonderful manual gearbox and just enough power to make the most of the brilliant chassis, and it's no surprise that across three generations, the MX-5 has become the world's most popular roadster."

5/5, Auto Express "Mazda's designers did a superb job, because the simple lines haven’t been ruined by the transformation. Engineered with the help of experts at Webasto, the 20mm thick two-part plastic composite roof weighs only 18kg more than the fabric hood. Add the electric motors, and in total, the hard-top adds an impressively low 37kg to the MX-5's overall bulk."

4/5, What Car? "Speed, agility and bullet-proof build quality - everything you could ask from a roadster. The MX-5 gives you all the fun and style you'd want from a roadster. It's well made and cheap to own, too. The light body and rear-wheel drive chassis give it outstanding balance and just keeps on gripping through corners."

4/5, Parker's "The third-generation of the MX-5 is the most sophisticated yet. The classic charm of the original has been bought up to date and it's now a much easier convertible to live with everyday thanks to a comfortable ride, modern and functional interior and less wind noise in the cabin."