But you do have more room than the ND. 
Excellent. Wouldnât it be great if they started making the NA again. Iâm thinking like the Lotus 7/ Westfield of course. Utterly impossible with the current over blown safety regulations I guess. 
Agreed. 
Must admit, I loved the cosy ND interiors on the Mazda UK VIP drive day these years back.
Iâm only 5 11 so no issue. I drove a fewâŚthey were rather epic. Bar the over light steering but I quickly adapted. Ergonomics were for me bang on. I doubt Iâd use the toys thoughâŚbut Iâm a bit of an anti gadget Luddite.
I thought it was so Mk1 in concept, but designed to survive the 21s Century. And that is how I described in in my report into a now dead 5 forum. " The Mk1 for the 21st Century".
I still really want an RFâŚbut Iâm generally concerned for expensive outcomes so I doubt it will happen.
Iâm sure SWMBOâs next wheels will be a carefully sourced Suzi Swift.
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Now on my 3rd ND ST (how did that happen⌠
) and have what for me is the sweet spot.
1.5 Engine with V5 gearbox
Not quite poverty spec gadgets (SE-L Nav+) so it has the Navigation but does not have
- Steerable headlights, nice though expensive to replace
- iStopeloop, saves some fuel/co2, adds weight and complexity
- Bose sounds
- Failing left instrument display (seen quite a few of these now though donât know yet if itâs endemic or a bad batch), most of those that do fail seem to be going very close to 3 years.
Like all NDâs it does have the rear suspension bushes made of chewing gum that eventually seem to give up, again remains to be seen how many affected and when, at least there seem to be more reasonable repair options available now.
It also has the pedestrian safety exploding bolts and electronic black box that requires replacing/resetting, again going from a recent thread there seem to be sensible repair options appearing.
and itâs an absolute blast to drive, the 1.5 gives you more car more of the time, use the rev range of the engine and you wonât be embarrassed in normal use, youâll have a great big grin.
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Yes Iâm much the same, donât like gadgets and only 5 foot 6.
Thanks for the info worth knowing. I thought the ND would be bullet proof.
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Haha - you forgot âwhich are the best tyresâ 
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or mention the word âsuspensionââŚ
There is no such thing as a bad MX-5. They all have strengths 
and points that could be enhanced. The overall experience and package for the price point is excellent.
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What a lot of opinions. Whoâd a thought it?
Obviously thereâs only one best MX-5.
Built to modern safety and emissions standards requires a lot more âtechâ to get there so each generation of car has more things to go wrong, the ND is an outstanding car to drive and enjoy for its price point.
I think we should all enjoy whichever one we have whilst petrol is (relatively) affordable and motoring as a hobby with an internal combustion engine has not been legislated out of existence.
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In my view, the ND or any specification is the best handling âout the boxâ 5 produced so far.
The pre-production ones I drove (IanH was there too) all these years ago were probably rebadged Eunos. When I fired up the 2002 Sport to go home that day (which is kept in factory condition) it felt like an overweight MGB by comparison for a few miles till my âinput brainâ dialled back into it. Thatâs how good they were and likely even more so now.
As a fixed income pensioner, my issue is one of any expensive repairs to reinstate the known potential misfortunes, which would probably not happen, would be funded out of lumps from a pension fundâŚwhich would be fiscal madness. If I was still earning, Iâd be chopping in the Sport and getting a safe history RF next week. Itâs just Mx5 roulette is not a game I can place bets on.
Iâve spent ÂŁ1000s over the last 10 years keeping both ours running and solidâŚit has to stop sometime!
But, equally I do not grudge a cent of it all. Iâve a jolly good Mk1 whose undercrackers are all less than 3 years old, a new hood, new manual box, new alloys, SS exhaust, paint sort of OK from 10 feet if I whip past you fast enoughâŚand itâs cheap fun.
Horsesâcourses.
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We have 2 NBâs and love them.
One is a Year 2000 Icon, the other same Year, basic model 1600cc (Wind up winows).
They both have very low mileages on them under 50k each and are lovely on a summerâs day, dry use only.
We love the sports car feel of the NB and the open top.
Good luck with whichever You choose.
Clive & Athena.
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Thank you . 
I am also on my 3rd ND, 1.5, 2.0 and guess what back in the 1.5. 2.0 great for MWay driving but I definitely prefer the 1.5 around the local back roads
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Iâm happy with the NC 3.75. It looks good in a purposeful way, the proportions are good and it drives enough like an NA. I wanted another NA but couldnât find one that wasnât rusted out and, by now, a lot of tedious mechanical stuff will also need doing (maybe for the second time) to most NA cars you find. I replaced all the hoses, door and windscreen seals and many other non-service items when the car was 12 years old, and now it would be 25 years old.
The NB is just an uglified NA in my book, sorry. It broke my heart when it came out in 1998.
I havenât driven an ND. I like the rear styling but not the front (the DRLs look like aftermarket jobs). Itâs a bit too wide to comfortably fit into my garage, too.
My NC is a 1.8 so doesnât have the exploding diff, and itâs plenty fast enough if you rev it properly.
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Too wide! It is only 15mm wider!!
Another search believes itâs only 10.4 mm (.4 inch) wider. 
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