Mazda recently showed us some pictures of the new Japanese-domestic version of the Miata, every real man’s favourite car here in North America. Yes, we are talking about that very car that struggles to comfortably seat even a 6-foot individual, that very one that goes to 100 km/h in the time it takes the sun to rise and climb to reach its midday position.
How would Mazda have improved this admittedly heaven-sent design? Hit the jump to find out!
Well, they could have stretched it out and given the cabin a little more room. They could have added a significantly more powerful engine, something light and balanced… a straight six! That would keep the weight balanced, and sound nice to boot. They could have… wait, that’s the BMW Z-recipe I have here.
Still, more space, more power, and a convertible hardtop would be areas in which I would expect a redesigned Miata in 2009 to receive attention. Sadly, I appear to be drifting towards a delusional reality, because the “real” reality is that the awesome, redesigned Miata is about the same size, still has a 2.0-liter 4-cylinder engine and still has a soft top. Oh, and it still costs about the same, at $25,000-$29,000.
With every redesign of the Miata, we’ve seen Mazda proclaim,
“Its design is more masculine now. It’ll appeal to as many male buyers as it will to female ones.”
Yeah, I can see every Joe Molsonpack running out to trade in their Hemi-powered Chryslers and V8 trucks/SUVs to buy this, a 1:2 scale die-cast car, complete with working miniaturized engine and all! 
Seriously, they’ve again tried to play the masculinity card… but it looks exactly the same! Have a look yourself, the red Miata pictured on the right is the current model. A hood bulge is about all that separates this one from the last in terms of looks.
Oh, and the car now revs to 7,500 rpm instead of 7,000. Wait, wait… stop downing those shots in celebration. Do you understand what this means? It means that on every stoplight, where you’d usually rev to 7,000 rpm (not only because of the lack of power, but also involuntarily because you can’t bend your leg due to the lack of room), you’ll just keep revving for another split second. Even though you’ll be redlining each gear, you’ll still be passed by your aunt in her (insert model here), because 2.0 liters only takes you so far in terms of torque.
Well, even with home-country examples like the GT-R and 370Z from Nissan, and upcoming sports car from Lexus and the NSX from Acura, Mazda wants to zoom-zoom its own way. That’s fine, I guess, but then Mazda, don’t expect any fanfare.