Car of the year: Mazda MX-5

Mazda MX-5

Mazda's ability to maintain the lightweight tradition of its MX-5 sports car in the face of global safety and emission requirements that add weight to almost every component, is one of the reasons the roadster is the 2005 New Zealand Herald car of the year.

The third-generation two-seater is similar to the 1989 original and the 1998 second-generation model in appearance, performance and spirit. But it is marginally bigger all round: 20mm longer, 40mm wider and 20mm taller.

The front track has increased by 75mm and the rear by 55mm; weight distribution front and rear remains an ideal 50:50. Significantly, the body shell is about 20kg lighter than the outgoing car.

Mazda says it kept the weight in check by using its "gram strategy", pruning minute amounts of weight from components. The rear-view mirror, for example, is 84g lighter.

But modern equipment and safety requirements push the finished product up to 1128kg, about 10kg heavier than the outgoing car.

Now contrast the MX-5 with another outstanding car, the Volkswagen GTi Golf. The original 1974 Golf GTi weighed around 900kg. The bigger 2005 model weighs upwards of 1300kg.

VW engineers say they tried every trick in the book to keep the weight down, balancing this with safety and emission legislation requirements.

Okay, so the Golf GTi hatchback and the MX-5 are worlds apart. The GTi is bigger and has more of everything - sheetmetal, glass, seats, boot space, doors, roof. Also, the 1974 original was designed to be a go-fast hatchback with lightweight everything, back when there were no requirements like reinforced floors, doors and roofs and cleaner-burning exhausts.

But many of today's technological and safety musts - airbags, anti-lock brakes and so on - weren't in place 16 years ago when the first MX-5 appeared. That Mazda engineers have managed to keep the weight of their car near to that of the original, while adding components to meet modern legislation, is worthy of an award in itself.

Mazda New Zealand managing director Peter Aitken said winning the Herald award was a fantastic achievement.

"The award recognises the achievements of the MX-5 design team, which created a sports car to meet the needs of modern motoring without diluting the special factors that have made the MX-5 the world's best-selling soft top sports car.

"We are getting a lot of inquiries from people who want something a little bit special and the MX-5 certainly fulfils this criteria."

The MX-5 arrived in New Zealand a few months ago on a wave of Mazda momentum. Sales here have grown more than 60 per cent since 2000, thanks largely to refined products like the Mazda6 and Mazda3 and the carmaker's "zoom-zoom" catchcry - a marketing plan designed to turn around company fortunes. And sales worldwide have boomed.

"We remembered who we are supposed to be," said former international sales director Steve Odell, who helped put "zoom-zoom" in place. "A Japanese company that delivers cars with a twinkle in their eye."

The MX-5 chassis could easily cope with the demands an engine bigger and more powerful than its 2-litre, 4-cylinder unit would place on it. But beefing up its power would have compromised the essence of "Jinba Ittai", the spiritual basis of its being, says MX-5 programme manager Takao Kijima.

It would also have forced engineers to increase the height of the bonnet, in turn affecting pedestrian safety requirements. It would have been more expensive, too.

Jinba Ittai - the synergy of rider and horse moving as one - is the product of Kansei Engineering, a 30-year-old Japanese process where feelgood factors find their way into the design. It has been called "sensory engineering" and was used in the first-generation MX-5.

Kijima said the project team used the Japanese artistic ritual "yabusame" as the symbol of Jinba Ittai. Yabusame is the ceremonial warrior art of shooting arrows at a stationary target from the back of a galloping horse.

"To hit the bullseye," said Kijima, "the archer and horse must move as one. A natural two-way communication is essential. Updated to the 21st century, Jinba Ittai is similar to the bond between a Formula One driver and his car.

"Emotional values such as 'fun' and 'beauty' are a higher priority than the traditional engineering indices.

"All the senses are involved. Instead of zero-to-100km/h acceleration statistics, Kansei Engineering helps us understand how the car feels through the driver's sense of touch, how it sounds at speed, how it looks with the top folded, and what pleasant scents can be enjoyed during a spring drive.

"I decided that preserving the Jinba Ittai and fun-to-drive character was of the utmost importance in the development of the new MX-5.

The philosophy extends to the sounds the car makes. The noises of the engine components, the intake and exhaust systems were treated like brass, woodwind and percussion sections of an orchestra. Computers mapped the car's "voice" and settled on a harmony consistent with Jinba Ittai.

Kijima's team identified six categories - driving, braking, cornering, listening, touching, styling - in their search for a new "oneness" between car and driver.

Inside, there is more room for driver and passenger - between 50mm and 70mm in width - and the seats are more supportive. Fit and finish are high standard, as is the layout of instruments.

The 2-litre engine produces 118kW (160bhp) at 6700rpm and 188Nm of torque at 5000rpm. Top speed is around 210km/h and the sprint from zero to 100km/h takes around 7.5sec, roughly a second quicker than the old car.

It is more flexible through the gears than the old unit and benefits from the choice of gearboxes: 6-speed manual or 6-speed automatic with manual-mode paddles on the steering wheel.

The new MX-5 grips, rides and handles better, thanks largely to a considerably stiffer and stronger body, a new suspension arrangement - front double wishbones and a new five-link rear setup - and increased wheel travel, which irons out the bumps the old model felt. The steering - always an MX-5 strength - is more accurate, too. Nothing fancy about the rack, just an evolutionary tweak here and there.

The MX-5 and its standard 17-inch alloys and run-flat tyres costs $44,950 for the manual and $46,950 for the automatic.


The contenders
The MX-5 is one of 11 finalists in the NZ Motoring Writers Guild car of the year awards, due next month. Others are:
* BMW 3-Series
* Citroen C4
* Ford Focus
* Hyundai Sonata
* Land Rover Discovery 3
* Lexus GS
* Mercedes-Benz CLS
* Mitsubishi 380
* Nissan Murano
* Suzuki Swift