Questions for ND & RF owners

Buying a ‘5 and Insurance advice Buying Advice
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Questions for ND owners.

My current car is a 2008 NC PRHT. 79k miles.

Whilst I like the NC very much, the ND has been calling recently, particularly the RF. From posts on the forum, it’s difficult to draw conclusions on certain aspects of ownership - internal space, noise, etc. so I decided I would have to try one.

On Saturday, I went to my local Mazda dealer to look at a 1.5 RF in red. 20 plate, 7k miles. Sadly, it had been sold about half an hour before I arrived.

I test drove a 2.0 RF, 20 plate 41k miles. At 5’11, I didn’t find it hard to get comfortable. I discovered that the seat rails go lower the further the seat is pushed back. On start up from cold, the engine sounded like a bag of spanners in a washing machine - is that normal? It quietened down once warm. The service overdue light was showing. I was told it would be quieter than my PRHT with the roof up but I thought there was very little in it. With the roof down, I was surprised by the amount of noise generated around the rear pillars. Travelling anywhere at over 60mph for any length of time would drive me insane. The test drive was quite short and on a fast road (A14). How is it to live with on minor roads and lower speeds with the roof down? Is there a generally accepted speed where it becomes intrusive? I also found the suspension quite harsh. At times, the car was bobbing (best description I can give), much like when I owned a Skoda Yeti with a reasonably short wheelbase. Aside from that, it was a nice car to drive, albeit I felt it was poorly presented - scuffed wheels, service overdue and melted chocolate in one of the cup holders. I know dealers don’t want to spend anything before a car is sold but it was indicative of something that’s not been loved.

Back at the dealership, I asked whether different models have different suspension set ups. I think product knowledge was lacking a little and was told that they are all the same, but 16 inch wheels have more rubber that might make a difference. Is it the case that suspension set up is common across all models?

I was then invited to try a 1.5 soft top. 23 plate demonstrator 1500miles. A lower spec car, but I thought it was quieter than the RF with the roof up, and much better with the roof down. I could tell it was the smaller engine, but I found it a nicer car to drive.

From my own research, my understanding is 1.5 cars have 16” wheels with 17” on the 2.0. On that basis, a 1.5 RF would be good, if I can live with the additional noise with the roof open. Yes, the short answer is to arrange for a longer test drive (if they get one), across a mixture of roads. In the meantime, the final and closing question is, how do RF owners fare with said wind buffeting?

To preempt the ‘well buy a soft top then’, I prefer the styling of the RF. I’m not a fan of the soft top for security (probably not valid), maintenance and how it looks with the roof up.

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To answer one question the 2 litre engine shouldn’t sound rough on start.

Was the noise in the RF with the windows up or down?

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So there can be a few differences:

  • The 1.5 has commonly been noted as the more responsive engine
    My understanding was the changes made to the 2.0 for 2019 went some way to address this
  • Generally (I have known of some that didn’t) 2.0 cars come with:
    • Front strut brace
    • Bilstein dampers
    • LSD
    • 17" wheels

I have had my ND RF for almost 5 years, covered over 80k and completed multiple ~4 hour motorway drives with the roof down; I have never really had a major complaint about the buffeting :man_shrugging:
I have also done lots of drives on minor roads with the roof down and thoroughly enjoyed myself :sunglasses:
One of the main things for me that I think a lot have agreed on is lowering (Eibach/Mazda springs) and a spacer really helps the handling, along with a good alignment of course!

I do find your comment about car turnout from dealers interesting, I have also noticed it recently where they don’t even seem to attempt a simple vacuum and wipe-down of the interior before taking photos! Generally less effort seems to be being put into presentation :confused:

But as you say, try and get yourself out for a longer test drive to see for yourself. One option could be to see if you can accompany an RF owner as a passenger on a club drive to get a feeling.

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I’ve had my RF for four and a half years. Personally I find roof open on the motorway a bit wearing so only for short distances, more than 40 minutes it’s shut.
For A roads where mostly 60 or so the roof would be open, yes there’s noise from the pillars but I don’t find it a problem.
With heated seats and heater going, I drive in winter as long as it’s not raining. Note the manual says not to operate the roof below 6(?) degrees, I guess if frozen rubbers may tear; that said I think I read similar for the soft top.
I rarely have the side windows open; unless it’s above 24 degrees I find the blast of air round the front screen too cold. I assume this would be same for the soft top? My theory is the modern car is too aerodynamic, I could drive my old Spitfires in the pouring rain with everything open, the dirtier eddying would keep the cockpit dry whereas flow round the screen on the ND pours up the side window unless it’s open!!
I have driven the 1.5 and yes it’s no lugger but in the real world it just needs to be revved more which is the point! 1.5 drivers on MX5OC drives never seem to have any issues keeping up.
Personally I agree the RF is the better looking, especially roof up.

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When we changed our NB I test drove both a 1.5 RF and the 2.0 soft top.
I preferred the 1.5 over the 2.0. There is no denying the RF is a “looker”, but it does not feel like a convertible when the roof is down, and there is (IMHO) excessive wind noise. Needles to say we opted for the 1.5 soft top.

(May have been a diffrent choice if this car was going to be our only car and driven all year round??)

…and no, the 2.0 should not sound like a bag of spnners on start up…avoid!!

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I wouldn’t call the engine noise on start up a bag of spanners, but they do have a cold start function where the engine sounds unpleasant for a number of seconds, it has a different map to aid with warming the cat up, apparently you can override it by starting with the car in reverse gear.

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I don’t own an RF but have a 1.5 soft top which is what I wanted. I would guess the PRHT on the NC gives the full open top experience, while the RF is somewhat lacking in that department. If you’re sold on the looks that’s fine, but you will be getting a different experience.

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With windows up

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Good points and you have hit the dilemma on the head. If I went for the ND soft top (or RF for that matter), through financial necessity it would be an all round daily use car rather than the weekend toy the NC is.

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Thank you. I wasn’t aware of that. It certainly lasted more than a few seconds. It was such that I considered turning it off and going to tell the staff that it wasn’t me that broke it!

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Thanks all. Some interesting comments and food for thought.

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The engine sound on startup sounds a bit like there’s a small hole in the exhaust and it’s running on three cylinders! The length of time it lasts probably varies dependent on temperature but I’ve never timed it.

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Love my 1.5 ND soft top - roof up or down.
Quite like the engine start up noise - a growl, before settling down to a purr.
Having to drive through the gears in the 1.5 is just great. really’ torquey’ feel and a sense of control through bends.
Just my thoughts :+1: :sunglasses:

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I have the 1.5 ND Skyactive soft top and have done 40k miles in 2 years in her with work. Regularly serviced but otherwise all original spec and she’s a dream to drive. I do sometimes wonder if the 2.0 might have been a better choice when I’m on long (2-4 hour) drives but hey, I do get 55 MPG from her! I’m 5, 11 too and whilst headroom is limited, any excuse to drop the roof is taken and otherwise, not really a problem.

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This sounds counterproductive, but I much preferred my RF top down after removing the wind deflector between the headrests.

Taking it out allows more wind in, but over a larger area and removed the “whistling” around the pillars for me.

I had a gap of several years and several cars between my NC PRHT and my ND RF, but the RF felt a much nicer “long distance” \ regular use car, even with 17"s and Eibachs. My 2.0 didn’t sound rough on startup, but it was an ND2 which had some engine changes.

Definitely shop around or consider a private purchase if a dealer car is tatty!

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If you want to run an ND, either soft top or RF without wind blocker you will have two holes in the trim that you might want to close off. A pair of these 50 x 20mm plugs cut down to half height will do the job nicely.

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I actually separated the two parts and ran the “base” only without the clear part to keep it neat, but those plugs are a great solution also.

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I feel like everything has been answered already but I’ll share my thoughts/experience (owned 18 plate RF, and hopefully will soon be in a 70 plate RF, both 1.5)

The SkyActiv motors do sound a bit ‘rattly’ on bone cold start up but shouldnt last more than a few seconds, and I wouldn’t call it an unpleasant sound by any means
I agree with your point, the RF is not a solid roof unlike what most people think, it really isn’t that quiet with the roof up
Despite being a huge lover of the MX5, I’ve never been a convertible guy and I used to scoff at people driving convertibles with the roof down on the motorway. When I had my 18 RF, I tried roof down on motorway once (with windows up and wind blocker on) and I was hooked, not overly windy and not overly loud either - I would say certainly much quieter than any other car with the windows slightly down for airflow. Noise level was probably similar to a Corsa I had with wind deflectors - not intrusive at all.
On minor roads and at lower speeds it was even better! And I find the RF goes a long way to not make you feel overly exposed when stopping at traffic lights where the pavements might be busy.
There is certainly a level of firmness to the suspension, but I never found it overly harsh. I may be wrong here, but I’m fairly certain the 2.0 has a more sporting suspension setup. I test drove a 2.0 soft top and that was certainly firmer than my 1.5 RF - still not what I’d call harsh though.

I would certainly steer clear of the RF you test drove, doesn’t sound like it’s been cared for at all, and the dealer certainly doesn’t sound like it cares - don’t settle! I have recently been looking at cars too (also looking for an RF 1.5) and I also found the presentation to be absolutely atrocious - even at main dealers!

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