My two cents on the ND...

Went by the Miata stealer the other night when the doors were closed, see if I could find an ND on the lot to spy up close.

I will say the shape has grown on me since I saw the race car model in Vegas a while back, at the time feeling something about it just was off a little (yes, I know, y'all think it's the best Miata design ever...). Being able to walk around one a full rotation gave me more of an appreciation for what Mazda has done.

BUT, I always felt the design was a compromise, and having looked at the ND and upon getting home and poking my head in the garage at the NB, I'm sure of it. The door/body sides of the ND are taller by a fairly noticeable amount, and as a result the fender design slopes down and out to mitigate how tall it is. The rear of the car is also "angled and chopped" in similar fashion to give the car the appearance of looking smaller.

For a car that is pretty close to the ultimate in form following function, I think the new car had some functions the designers of the original didn't have to contend with - i.e. the stoopid pedistrian safety regs and the "modern" crash safety elements where everybody has to hit five stars or the world at large won't buy it.

It makes my appreciation for the new car all the greater, since they managed to make it look pretty small (and, to be fair, it is) given what I would consider design restraints, to make it lighter than my NB by, what, 15 or 25 lbs? I really want to go test drive one now.

But my NB is still a better looking car.

I saw my first one in the wild today. It was on the corner waiting to turn as I turned past it. Soul red, of course.

It looked less striking in person than it seems to in photos, but maybe it was just that I didn't get a long look at it.

The driver (an older gent with a curly Q waxed mustache, kudos) had the top down so I gave him a thumbs up and shouted "nice ride." He thanked me and looked very proud, as he should.

Is posting dislikes about a Miata considered an "intentionally inflammatory post" on this forum?

If I had to pick nits with the stellar new ND I have only a couple I can think of:

1) the trunk is smaller than the NA. No chance a set of golf clubs will fit there. (a small bag fits in the N/A) I know most of you don't care, but well....I golf.....so this actually is kind of a bummer.

2) The horrid screen on the dash clutters the interior styling

3) The interior is tight....maybe tighter than the N/A. This isn't a problem for me....but larger guys may want to try it on before taking the leap.

That's about it......pretty amazing car, and easy to root for something designed to be fun, light and easy to live with.

My clubs don't fit in my NB (it's a tour sized bag),so they go in the passenger seat. I found the ND trunk opening small, but the trunk looked significantly deeper than either an NB or NA. I sat in one at the local dealer recently. It's a nice car , but didn't really push any of my buttons. I found the door top too high to rest my arm comfortably. I'm sorry, but that's a mortal sin in a sports car for me.I'll take a low mileage NA or NB first.

I've seen a few in the wild. I've never really liked how Miatas look but this one actually looks pretty good. The one thing I always notice and shake my head at is the skinny tires with wheels that have seemingly too much offset, as if they just borrowed some from a Mazda2 or something. They look so much better with tires that actually fill the wheel wells IMO.

My only real complaint remains that they can't be had in a fastback for those of us who have no interest in top-down driving, but that ship has sailed long ago I suppose.

I don't play golf, but I do seem to remember the NA's trunk being smaller in volume than the ND's. It's still not exactly a big trunk.

The screen - well. I have other issues with the entertainment system as it seems to be a bit of a crapshoot if it works with one's iPhone or not for music playback and I've got a few other issues with it.

As to the interior space, it's tight but I find it a more comfortable place to be in than an NA. The way the doors are sculpted help with the feeling of space.

Goodwin Racing was running there ND at the San Diego Region Championship yesterday. Good looking car throwing down good times in XP.

I think the ND looks much better in person than in pictures.

A thought on the door height. One thing I dislike about the NA and NB is that I feel like I am sitting on top of the car rather than in it, I do like that the ND has changed that somewhat. It is still higher than most other sports cars, but at least I don't want to immediately saw half the seat off.

I will say that I was following a nice NA with a hardtop down the road the other day, and it is one of the best looking small sports car ever built. It looks purposeful without a lot of fluff. It didn't hurt that this one was lowered a little and on Panasports. The ND had a lot to live up to, and I think Mazda pulled it off much better than I had anticipated. They deserve a lot of kudos.

BoxheadTim wrote: As to the interior space, it's tight but I find it a more comfortable place to be in than an NA. The way the doors are sculpted help with the feeling of space.

+1 on this. The interior feels much roomier than the NA or NB with the top down. You actually have some elbow room in the ND and your feet don't feel as cramped in the wheel well. I don't feel comfortable in an NA or NB with an interior. I did in the ND and NC.