So I have watched far too many videos now about the new 2024 model and have also had a look at the one my local dealer has and there are a few things that don’t seem to be getting highlighted and I wondered if anyone else had noticed…
Fog light have changed
Reverse light is in the rear light cluster now I believe
DRLs have been replaced by fake vents (a lot of reviews say they have gone, not that they now have fake vents in place)
Recaro seats are now available in the UK outside of as special edition (to the best of my knowledge they were only available in the Recaro Edition, RF Launch Edition and 20th Anniversary Edition until now)
USB-C is the only port option now (no USB-B or AUX)
Or is it just me being picky?
Then there is the rest of the well discussed changes:
Most of those changes have been highlighted in every review I have watched. I like the new headlight cluster but I’d miss the older style low down DRL’s. All the early reviews got way too hung up on whether the steering was any different.
I’ll upgrade from my 2018 at some point but likely in another 3 years or so.
The rear lights have been highlighted but that is mainly in reference to the main clusters, I haven’t see any mention the fog lights
I am also feel it is a shame the DRLs from the bumper have gone!
A significant and mainly invisible change is the CAN architecture of the 2024 ND. A bit geeky, but if you’re interested…
Previously MX-5 ND had a single high speed (HS) and a mid single speed (MS) can network with the instrument cluster being the gateway module. The Data Link Connector (DLC2) (OBD port) was connected to both HS and MS networks.
The 2024 ND has what I’d consider to be 7th Generation CAN architecture akin to that used on Mazda’s other 7th generation vehicles (Mazda3 BP, CX-30 DM, MX-30 DR and CX-60 KH). The current model ND has up to 10 (depending on spec) HS CAN networks with the Body Control Module (BCM) being the gateway. The DLC2 is wired only and directly to the BCM.
Taking the D.R.L out of the bumper is a big shame,you now have something dummy to fill the hole,they were so individual and different before,I assume this is to save a small amount of money,looks awful in my opinion.
All best Simon
Dummy vents are a Carlos Fandango bodge job, no point removing the DRL and leaving the hole there:)
Also, the ‘fang’ DRL has been there 9 years - long enough to become an identifiable MX-5 styling feature. Why change it unless it’s a cost thing?
Doesn’t matter to me. Ours 7 years old, it won’t be rusting away and if it breaks we’ll fix it. I like it just as much as I did in 2017. It wears its paint chips with pride.
Here’s a few random changes I’ve noticed having had mine for a few days. Some of these in-cabin ones might be down to me making different choices in the Settings.
There’s no longer a beep when reverse is selected.
It beeps twice every time the speed limit is exceeded. The beeps seem to be delayed if you’re slowing down from a higher to lower limit, but if you don’t get to the lower limit it then beeps twice. The sounds can be switched off using one of the buttons near the door, but it appears to disable the sounds for all the safety features, so I’m living with the beeps for now.
The ALH (lights) is active with the left stick in the middle position, whereas in the ND2 the stick had to be in the pushed-away position. Pushing the stick away in the ND3 is permanent main beam.
Cruise control stays engaged when changing gear, both up shifting and down. In the ND2, unless I was doing it wrong, I always had to hit the Resume quickly after a gear change. In the ND3 I don’t, but it does feel weird changing gear without touching the accelerator.
The built-in navigation has maps by Here and 7 years’ of updates, which is nice. I like to keep it updated even though I also use CarPlay. The software to update the SD card is very different to before, and doesn’t use the Mazda Toolbox I had for the ND2. The new Mazda Update Toolbox is named MazdaMapUpdateGlobalAdv.exe, is tiny (under 2MB) as opposed to 70MB+ for the previous toolbox, and my laptop (Win 11) asks me to specifically trust it before it downloads. However, it does work, but the process is not as refined as it was with the previous toolbox.
Very interesting to get an opinion of someone who is now living with one!
I could probably write the same between a ND1 and a ND2 now I have had my ND2 for just over a month
I believe that is a setting on the car (or at least is on my ND2:
Settings > Vehicle > Speed Alarm
Although with all the safety stuff that seems to be coming in that might have been removed
I have never used that functionality in either of mine as I just wasn’t a fan (let me make the decisions etc.) but is likely because they had so many complaints they didn’t get it quite right and manual intervention would do nothing
You are correct, both ND1 and ND2, as soon as the brake or clutch are pressed cruise control disengages which I think is the correct behaviour
My mum has a fear of cruise control after having a Mercedes that didn’t disengage when she hit the clutch (had moved her foot while cruising on the motorway and ended up on the wrong pedal)
Yes, it will have been done to save money, both in manufacturing costs but also possibly the cost of insuring/repairs, as with the “fangs” DRLs they could possibly be damaged in a minor shunt as well as the bumper. Now it would be just the bumper. I agree the fangs DRLs make the car instantly recognisable. I personally hate “dummy” anythings, such as pretend vents, the blanking plates where the illuminated marker lights are fitted in some markets and blanking plugs on switchgear panels. Why couldn’t they have used those vents to aid cooling the brakes or something even if it is a token effort. All they are now is somewhere to catch road debris?
I reckon thought about ‘insurance companies’ would probably not be at the forefront of their minds when ditching things. If that were the case, I’d imagine cars of all brands would ditch ‘things’ which could save insurance companies money lol
If it was due to manufacturing costs, well, that would be a piece of cheek, given they’ve bumped the prices up £2k or so.
Well perhaps so, but the cost of insuring some cars is putting people off buying them. Look at the cost of insuring Range Rovers in London, which I know is for a different reason (ease of theft). Range Rover are having to take action with their cars to try to remedy the situation. Also cars are also very easily written-off nowadays. For example the headlights for an ND2 are around £600 each, that must impact on insurance costs for what in the past would have been a minor bump now cost a fortune to repair. Also making cars cheaper to manufacture is not going to prevent manufacturers from raising the price, it will just help to maintain their margins. Mazda get fined for every MX-5 sold in the EU because of the emissions that is why the MX-5 has increased in price so much the last couple of years. The increase in price will result in lower sales so they will have to try to redress the balance by making the car cheaper to manufacture.
I think it was said that the DRLs have been incorporated into the headlamp to align the signature light design with the other models in the Mazda range.
