2013 Mazda MX-5 Miata Review By Larry Nutson
2013 Mazda MX-5 Miata Club PRHT
By Larry Nutson
Senior Editor, New York Bureau
The Auto Channel
Drive the Mazda Miata MX-5 for a short thirty-minute stint and you quickly conclude that it is indeed a fun little car. My last Miata drive over a year ago quickly took me back to my younger years and my ’67 Triumph TR-4A. My TR was red with black interior and top just like this MX-5 Miata Club tester.
There are so many similarities between that old Triumph and today’s Miata, but then again after about 46 years of auto industry development there are so many dissimilarities too. I think about the Triumph’s manual folding soft-top, twin carburetors with a hand choke, AM radio to which I added an FM converter, no air conditioning, manual steering, 4-speed tranny with a hydraulic clutch, and crank operated side windows. And, no cup holders and no place to put a mobile phone, which of course we didn’t have back then.
And the MX-5 Miata, now more than 20 years on the market, is still as uncomplicated as my ’67 Triumph but also brings many 21st Century features that make driving a lot more enjoyable. And features that make the MX-5 a bit more versatile, too.
A lot of folks around the globe like the Miata and now with more than 900,000 units sold, the MX-5 is by far still the best-selling two-seat roadster in the world, and with the Guinness World Records to prove it.
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All Miatas are powered by a 167hp, 2.0-L, 4-cylinder, MZR engine. Curb weight depending on trim is in the 2500 to 2600 lb range, and the 167hp moves the nibble Miata quite quickly. Zero to sixty is in the low six-second range. The Club is fitted with a slick-shifting six-speed manual transmission and EPA fuel economy is rated at 21 city mpg and 28 highway mpg. If you choose the Club with the six-speed automatic transmission fuel economy ratings are the same, 21 city/28 highway.
A shock tower brace is on manual transmission Club models. And the now-standard Suspension Package (MT only) includes a sport-tuned suspension, Bilstein shocks and a limited slip differential.
Now here’s some equipment that my Triumph didn’t have 46 years ago. All models of the 2013 MX-5 Miata include advanced safety features such as dual front airbags with a passenger deactivation switch, side impact airbags, side impact door beams, three-point safety belts with pretensioners and force limiters, an Anti-lock Brake System (ABS) with Electronic Brake Distribution (EBD), Dynamic Stability Control (DSC), a Traction Control System (TCS) and a Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS).
The Club trim has four exterior color choices, namely white, black, red and silver.
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If you want to compare the Miata to all other two-seaters sold in North America (of a very wide price range) you can do that right HERE on TheAutoChannel.com. For more detailed information and specs on the Miata MX-5 Club as well as the Sport and Grand Touring models see links to the 2013 10 Mazda MX-5 Miata Trim Levels below, or visit www.mazdausa.com.
So go find those back country roads and have a happy road trip!
© Larry Nutson