2010 Mazda MX-5 Grand Touring

Two-seat roadster makes sport of the daily commute

By Nina Russin

2010 Mazda MX-5

Webster’s dictionary defines a sports car as “a small, high-powered automobile with long, low lines, usually seating two persons.” The dictionary is wrong. A car’s design and the size of its engine don’t necessarily qualify it as a sports car.

I mean no offense here to Noah Webster. But to be honest, Webster lived in the mid-1800s, when there were very few automobiles: none of which could be construed as sports cars.

Very simply, a sports car makes a sport of driving. While the Mazda MX-5 may not be the most expensive or most powerful sports car on the market, it is as pure an embodiment of the breed as anything on the road today. For over twenty years, Mazda has celebrated the pure joy of getting behind the wheel with a two-seat roadster that offers exceptional handling for an affordable price.

Last year, designers introduced a new-generation MX-5 Miata with fresh styling and enhanced performance. Power comes from a two-liter four-cylinder engine, mated to a five or six-speed manual transmission. A composite intake manifold is tuned to produce sound akin to classic British roadsters: the original inspiration for the car.

Base price for the Grand Touring model is $28,400, not including the $750 delivery charge. A premium package on the test car adds keyless entry and start, Bluetooth interface, xenon headlamps, electronic stability control and satellite radio ($1650). A limited-slip differential costs $500, bringing the price as tested to $31,300. Read the rest of this entry »