Press Release
A Message from the Mazda MX-5 Programme Manager:
"At the 2006 British International Motor Show, we at Mazda are unveiling a new version of our modern motoring icon. It’s called the Mazda MX-5 Roadster Coupe*, and it opens up a new dimension of fun and versatility for people who love open-top sports cars.
The Mazda MX-5 Roadster Coupe is a brand-new counterpart to the third-generation MX-5, which we launched in 2005. It has the same responsive performance and emotive styling as the soft-top model. But at the same time, it’s equipped with the unique Power Retractable Hard Top — the first-ever electrically retractable hard top that doesn’t sacrifice any boot space.
The third-generation MX-5 embodies Mazda’s belief that the MX-5 experience should centre on driving enjoyment. And the key to that driving enjoyment is our dedication to Jinba Ittai — an intimate driver-car relationship that can be likened to the synergy of a rider and horse moving as one.
With the new MX-5 Roadster Coupe, we’re delivering an undiluted MX-5 Jinba Ittai experience. At the same time, the Power Retractable Hard Top means a wider range of people can join the worldwide circle of MX-5 owners and enjoy the exhilaration of driving an open-top, lightweight sports car.
The MX-5 Roadster Coupe is ready to spread the fun of lightweight sports cars in diverse and distinctive new ways. I’m certain that this new version of MX-5 which creates the purest-ever expression of Zoom-Zoom motoring, is going to be another winner for Mazda."
Takao Kijima, Mazda MX-5 Programme Manager
* The model name differs from market to market. In Europe, it is ‘Mazda MX-5 Roadster Coupe’. In North America, it is ‘Mazda MX-5 (Miata) Power Retractable Hard Top’. And in Japan, it is ‘Mazda Roadster Power Retractable Hard Top’.
The Evolution of a Modern Motoring Icon
Worldwide Praise for the Third-Generation Mazda MX-5
Since its launch in 1989, the Mazda MX-5 has been a smash-hit product around the world. It’s so popular that it holds a place in the Guinness world records as the world’s top-selling lightweight, open, two-seater sports car, and it has won over 150 industry awards around the globe. Demand is as strong as ever and by the end of May 2006, cumulative production stood at 769,454 units.
The current MX-5 — the third generation of this modern motoring icon — made its global debut at the 2005 Salon International de l’Auto in Geneva. It’s an uncomplicated open-top, lightweight sports car in which Mazda further evolved the Jinba Ittai-focused dynamics of the previous MX-5 generation for even greater driving enjoyment. And sports car enthusiasts around the world have overwhelmingly endorsed it.
Customers’ high evaluation of the third-generation MX-5 has been echoed in the form of many prestigious industry honours including the Car of the Year Japan 2005–2006 award, Wheels magazine’s 2005 Car of the Year award, BBC Top Gear magazine’s Roadster of the Year 2005 award, a Car and Driver 2006 10 Best Cars award, and selection as one of top three contenders for the 2006 World Car of the Year award.
Jinba Ittai and the MX-5 Fun Factor
Since its debut in first-generation form, the MX-5 has been distinguished by an incomparably high fun factor. So when Mazda began developing the third-generation MX-5, the development team remained faithful to all the attributes that give the MX-5 its ‘lots of fun’ personality.
The MX-5 is lots of fun because its Jinba Ittai-focused dynamics give the driver the fun of feeling fully in command of the car and the fun of an open-top driving experience in which the driver feels in touch with his or her surroundings and can enjoy the fresh air and sunshine. At the same time, the MX-5 makes everyday life more enjoyable for the owner because it’s fun to look at, fun to personalize, and adds to the fun of getting together with friends. In other words, it’s outstandingly fun to drive, fun to own, and fun to use.
Since Jinba Ittai has always been central to the MX-5’s ‘lots of fun’ personality, a fishbone chart was created to precisely define all the attributes necessary for a further-evolved Jinba Ittai experience in the third-generation MX-5. Mazda engineers then worked in each of six fishbone-chart categories — driving, braking, cornering, listening, touching, and styling — in pursuit of those attributes. And throughout this effort, Mazda’s unique philosophy of Kansei engineering, which focuses on immeasurable Kansei values such as pleasure, beauty, and emotional attachment, was applied.
The MX-5 Roadster Coupe: What, Why, and How?
A number of retractable-hard-top cars have been launched in recent years. Amid this trend, many Mazda MX-5 users have expressed a desire for a smartly designed electric roof that would allow them to enjoy open-top driving in greater comfort.
Mazda felt an obligation to satisfy these customers and realized that a model with a powered, retractable hard top would be an ideal way to expand the MX-5 fan base. So with the third-generation MX-5 as its starting point, Mazda began developing a retractable-hard-top model in which the essence of a lightweight sports car would not be diluted in any way.
The goal with the MX-5 Roadster Coupe* was to further heighten the fun of the third-generation MX-5 open-top driving experience by incorporating a hard top equipped with a user-friendly open/close system. Realizing this goal meant also delivering the Jinba Ittai-focused dynamics that make the MX-5 fun to drive and the distinctive roadster design that make it fun to look at. Mazda also envisaged a new kind of fun for owners: the fun of having a car whose novelty, trendiness, and premium quality would attract attention.
The MX-5 Roadster Coupe: Challenges and Achievements Lead to a World First
Delivering an undiluted Jinba Ittai experience together with the unique benefits of the Power Retractable Hard Top in a car that’s truly fun to drive, fun to own, and fun to use meant overcoming numerous technical challenges. The benefits are clear:
1) Jinba Ittai-focused dynamics make the MX-5 Roadster Coupe fun to drive.
The light, compact, stiff body that forms the basis of Jinba Ittai-focused dynamics benefits from an optimally light, compact roof and from reinforcements that stiffen the body opening without creating excessive weight. The low yaw-inertia moment needed in a lightweight sports car benefits from the weight distribution yielded by storage of the roof in the cabin (as opposed to storage of the roof in the boot) where it’s close to the centre of gravity.
2) Instantly recognizable styling makes the MX-5 Roadster Coupe fun to own.
While meeting the need for roof stowability, the MX-5 Roadster Coupe inherits the unique roadster identity that was first seen in the first-generation MX-5. Its low, flowing shoulder line and neat, sleek roof lines mean it looks outstanding whether the roof is open or closed.
3) User-friendly features for open-top driving make the MX-5 Roadster Coupe fun to use.
The Power Retractable Hard Top has no impact on boot space and can be operated with ease and peace of mind by any driver or passenger. The MX-5 Roadster Coupe eclipses other retractable-hard-top cars in terms of user-friendliness.
An Overview of the Mazda MX-5 Roadster Coupe
- The world’s first electric roof-retraction system that has no impact on boot space
- The roof retracts in three sections into a space behind the seats, leaving the boot completely unaffected.
- Roof operation is easy and quick (12 seconds: the quickest of any electrically retractable hard top on the market today), so it doesn’t interrupt driving enjoyment for long.
- A wider range of people can enjoy the exhilaration of driving an open-top, two-seater lightweight sports car.
An undiluted MX-5 Jinba Ittai driving experience
- Users enjoy a new evolution of the fun-to-drive nature of the traditional lightweight sports car.
- A light, compact body, a low centre of gravity, a low yaw-inertia moment, and the optimal front-rear weight distribution realized by a front-midship engine layout yield incomparable controllability (only 37 kilos more).
- The MX-5 Roadster Coupe has the same great-handling chassis, high-performance powertrain, and throttle-response-enhancing powerplant frame as the third-generation soft-top model.
- The suspension system is tuned to accommodate the unique body-stiffness characteristics and other unique attributes of the MX-5 Roadster Coupe.
- Reflecting the pursuit of balanced performance, body stiffness is just as high whether the Power Retractable Hard Top is open or closed.
- A refined and composed road feel reflects the MX-5 Roadster Coupe’s premium quality.
Sports-car design that’s both emotionally stimulating and welcoming
- The distinctive side silhouette and low, flowing shoulder line convey the identity established in the first-generation MX-5.
- Boldly contoured rear fenders complement a newly designed rear deck.
- Neat, curved lines give the closed roof a sleek, compact look.
- Chrome-plated body parts add refinement to sportiness (availability differs by market).
- A new range of body colours combines a look of sportiness with a high quality appearance (availability differs by market).
Comfort-oriented features for enjoyable open- and closed-top driving
- The aero board is optimized to maintain the pleasure of an open-top experience in which users feel in touch with their surroundings and can enjoy the fresh air and sunshine.
- The same specially developed climate-control system as that of the MX-5 soft top model allows users to enjoy open-top motoring in comfort on more days of the year than ever before.
- With the hard top closed, exterior noise is effectively kept out for a refined, composed ride befitting a premium model.
Craftsmanship that heightens the pleasure of using the car
- The Power Retractable Hard Top is easy to operate and moves in a way that looks and feels natural and reassuring to the user but also promotes user excitement.
- Controls with natural-feeling textures and shapes make driving smooth and easy in line with Mazda’s unique ‘dynamic craftsmanship’ concept.
- The same snug, supportive, adjustable seats as those of the soft-top model help users enjoy the car’s performance in comfort and with confidence.
- The sports-car engine sound that enhances the enjoyment of driving the MX-5 is the same as that of the soft-top model.
- Stringently checked durability of the Power Retractable Hard Top ensures ample reliability for frequent operation.
Safety and environmental compatibility matching those of the soft-top model
- High visibility, controllability, and braking performance enhance the driver’s ability to see and avoid hazards.
- A high-crashworthiness body made with a high proportion of high-tensile steel is complemented, among other safety features, by an airbag system developed specially for the MX-5 to promote occupant protection.
- Advanced security systems give the owner peace of mind.
- Fuel-efficient, low-emission engines, high recyclability, and minimal use of substances that place a burden on the environment address users’ environmental concerns.
