Hi there
I wonder if anyone could help me as I need some safety information for the Mk1 MX5 (1998)
I need to find out some stats or information on how well/worse MX5s handle and corner compared to other cars.
And are they more or less likely to roll than other cars?
Any help would be so great
Thank you
Sarah
NHTSA carried accident statistics for the Mk1 (Miata); as I recall, deaths and injuries due to a rollover were below average. Of course, that could mean MX5 Miata owners were more careful than other drivers.
But your question needs better framing. The MX5 is not a Chelsea Tractor, and so has a lower centre of gravity, making it less likely to roll than a, say, Range Rover.
The MX5, when it was launched, was lauded as to the design of its chassis; I presume you were drawn to the MX5 because of its reputation for fine handling. In which case, it handles better than most cars. However, a 1998 car, without traction control etc, will likely prove a surprise to someone used to FWD, traction control etc. Thats not a comment on how well the car handles, but more a comment on general low standards of driving ability.
I doubt you will get any answers along the lines of “the MX5 is a terrible handling car, it rolls over all the time”.
Bob Hall, the father of the MX5, summed it up on Miataforum:
Hi Saz9961
Thank you replying. I agree, I have owned my Mazda Mk1 for 5 years and its handling and cornering abilities are better than any car I’ve ever driven (close to my original mini mayfair, but the MX5 wins every time).
The low centre of gravity, rear wheel drive and general ‘nippiness’ of the car means avoiding accidents is easy, getting quickly out of the way of any errant Chelsea Tractors which overflow in the part of London I live in!
But in terms of rolling - I wondered if anyone knew of any stats/technical information which can compare the MX5s likelihood of rolling compared to other cars? I mean, the fact they are such good track cars means that they are basically built to not roll - but is this just because of the low centre of gravity and their anti-roll bars, or anything else?
Sarah
Hi Sarah
Has safety been covered before? 4 months or so back.
These were not built as " track cars" but just like any other can be used as one ,as for the Rolling, that is also the same as any other car on the market, one of these will roll just like any other make and model ,given the right scene and driving conditions ,situation and most of all the drivers skills.
You can set these up the best you can ,but it will not stop nut case pulling across you at the last minute with no worries about anyone else on the roads to put you in that situation of it happening, but i will worry about it when that situation arrives, until then i will do what i bought these babies for which is drive and enjoy them and hope that all my years of driving will save me.
M-m
They were not, as far as I know, designed in the beginning as track cars Sarah but the Mk1 was honed to perfection at huge cost & RnD to mimic one of the finest handling sports cars of it’s era…the Lotus Elan of Colin Chapman’s genius. Your Mk1 is the result of what was nick named “gram technology”…meaning every last piece of weight was designed out, or rather never designed in during it’s gestation period. Result? Your Mk1 will do amazing things if asked with little power or compromise…with a price to pay in ultimate crash protection. Such a car would not be allowed today. Neither would a Triumph Stag etc etc…but who cares? Sure, side swipe a kerb fast enough with both inside wheels impacting together, miss a bend through a twisty and slide down an embankment, or get hit hard enough at speed on the side…it will very possibly roll pretty much as anything else but it would take a lot of doing.
As a current owner both a Mk1 & a Mk2.5 for 7 years(still have both)I’d say they are probably the best handling cars I’ve driven in 38 years.
I think they are fundamentally very safe within themselves, and seem to withstand body assaults very well.
However, I am always aware the Mk1 has pretty much zero passive safety especially with a nice wood & steel steering wheel ready to insert itself into my sternum given half the chance. On the one hand, it’s not got enough power to get into trouble. Equally it’s not got enough to get me out of it…and that goes for the Sport as well which is about as quick as a decent family TDi today.
Consequently, I drive briskly, assertively to let other road users know where I’m going, but very defensively which simply means mirror-signal-maneouver, double checking junctions, you all know the rest.
Essentially, I treat other drivers as if I was on a motorcycle. In short, I don’t trust them.
By and large,in the Mk1 mostly, I get room & courtesy from other road users. I think they sense decent roadcraft and think "fair play"
When I did 2000 UK miles in the Mk1 in a week a while back on a Help for Heroes fund raiser, not once did Iencounter aggression or got boxed in.
These cars (if set up properly) and with good rubber are pretty much fool proof bar “the other fool”. I think it would be the end game to get a solid side swipe from a third party given most bumpers on medium sized car hacks are roughly neck hight for us.
They are what they are…small lightweight buzz bombs waiting for an accident to happen either in the wrong hands or victims of 2 ton stodge-mobiles.
I’d rather enjoy life and take the calculated risks!
If anyone has a worry/concern about roll over safety then maybe a proper roll bar set up & full harness is called for (not the pretty style things which only look good but don’t protect).
I’ve had my 5 on the road for 10 years and have never achieved 2 wheels off the road (well, only over humpback bridges ).
May we ask why you are asking for this information? Is it for some sort of course?
I’m assuming that as you already have a Mk1 and know all about the car’s dynamics then it isn’t from a fear of accident aspect.
Just being nosy. 
Just to correct you Sarah, anti-roll bars are part of the suspension system and do not perform an anti-roll-over function, they are there to limit the amount of lateral body roll in relation to suspension angles in corners.
As has been alluded to, it is possible to perform a simple assessment of a given vehicle’s ‘roll-over-ability’, if you like, by considering the ratio of the height of the centre of gravity (H) above the ground and the horizontal distance from one wheel to the centre of gravity (W) as you look head on at the vehicle, say.
H/W gives you a ratio which you can use to compare vehicles. For example, taking one extreme of a motorcycle where the distance, W, is basically zero (i.e. the centre of gravity is directly above the wheel), the ratio of H/W = H/0 which tends to infinity. On the other hand an MX5 may have H = 300mm (at a guess) and a W = 800mm (approx), giving a ratio of 300/800=0.375. Apply this to the range of cars you are considering and it will give you a rudimentary means to compare. If you took a Bedford Rascal with a piano on its roof, that ratio may be 500/800=0.625 so you would expect it to be more likely to roll over!
If you were a stunt-person hell bent on finding a car that was easy to roll then it all gets more complicated if you want an analytical method to predict roll-over-ability with mass, lateral grip and roll-rate (which is affected by anti-roll bars).
I like questions like this, it’s almost like being back at Uni