Car, Distilled
by Donny Nordlicht
I didn’t realize how small the MX-5 was when it sat in my driveway. It wasn’t until I slipped into the driver’s seat and found myself looking up at my Mazdaspeed3, a car that is classified as a compact hatch. But as soon as you start moving, it hits you. It’s not that this car is small, it’s that everyone else has extra car and you have just the right amount.
I’ve always said, “Cars before boys,” and people usually don’t believe me (especially those who know how boy-crazy I can be), but the MX-5 really does prove that adage. If I could trade my boyfriend in for some cash-monies to put toward an MX-5, I would in a heartbeat. I kid you not. This car has such a neutral chassis and handling dynamic, paired with a perfectly balanced and light transmission, and just-heavy-enough steering.
Once you get past the driving experience, the car makes little sense. It’s miniscule dimensions are more than apparent inside, and there are some questionable ergonomics that force you to use your right hand for things on your left. But then you live with it for a day. And one of two things happens: either you stop caring because you’re smiling too much from your heavy right foot, or it all starts to make sense in some twisted sense (pun intended). Best part, for about two grand more, and no performance penalty, you get the extra security and ease of a power retractable hard top; hence the PRHT initials tacked on the end of the MX-5’s name.
I love it. It is the best car I have ever driven; hands down. Involving to drive, good-looking, and – most of all – buckets of fun. Now, anyone want to get me one for my birthday?
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