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If that's not enough, the win for Mazda at the Le Mans 24 hour race in 1991, in their 787B driven by Johnny Herbert, Volker Weidler, and Bertrand Gachot , prompted the MX5 'Le Mans' (right).
This special edition was not only a stunning car to look at, but even though we already knew it was a pleasure to drive, they went and nailed a tubo to it.
The result was that its already responsive engine became a monster, with published BHP of about 150, which in a car the size of a box of Swan Vestas, that's pretty awesome.
To say that this motor is popular would be an understatement, because even though the MX5 has broken all records for a car of its type, there was yet another milestone that it achieved, which may not sit quite as high in the ranking for Mazda as the sales figures, but that is that Jeremy Clarkson of BBC's Top Gear likes it.
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Jeremy on why the MX5 is a British sports car |
Of the MX5, he said that the only reason he gave it five stars (cars being marked out of five) was because he couldn't give it fourteen.
Just because it's a sports car doesn't mean that it's not at home on a supermarket run either. Whilst its boot isn't big enough to stash a set of golf sticks, it's plenty big enough for a few bags of shopping. In fact, that's possibly the best part of an MX5: it's not a family runabout, so you've always got an excuse why you can't take the kids.
Despite the MX5's diminutive size, it's perfectly comfortable for people over six feet tall - which I am. Okay, I find it a little cramped behind the wheel, but as a passenger, it's no problem whatsoever. In fact, I did a fifty-seven mile commute each way to work and back for a whole year in my MX5 and thoroughly enjoyed it - rain and shine.
The point of this is to show that although the MX5 doesn't have 'Aston Martin' or 'Jaguar' on the front, or some other well-known British sporting marque, it was prototyped by IAD (International Automotive Design) in Worthing, West Sussex, who also did the crash tests. So not to try and copy Jeremy Clarkson (above), I suppose it is at least partly British.
Regardless of not being truly British, it's a part of the British landscape, part of our British way of life. We've taken the little two seater to our hearts and given it a real big hug, because we like seeing them on our streets.
But it doesn't stop there. One of the joys of motorcycling for me back in the day was the fact that other motorcyclists would nod at each other. No, it wasn't because my flies were undone or there were bits hanging off my bike, but because it's what we bikers did. It was a mark of respect.
You an imagine our shock to discover that MX5 owners did the same - no, not with bikes, but to other MX5 drivers. More than that; they wave, grin and generally look like schoolkids that are learning to ride a bicycle and have managed to get ten yards down the street without falling off.
Actually, our MX5's haven't been MX5's, but Eunos Roadsters or Jap imports. Since we've only ever bought second-hand or used Mazda's, ours have all been Japanese imports.
Frowned upon by the British insurers when we bought them, the Eunos Roadsters actually come with a higher spec than their British counterparts
It's a sad thing to know about the British market, since in our attempts to replace the current incarnation of our Eunos, all we've been able to find have been Mazda MX5's with manually operated windows, speakerless headrests and the only air conditioning comes from either dropping the hood or the windows. Sadder still, whilst all the Eunos packages we'd ever seen came with CD/Radio, one MX5 we went to see recently still only came with a radio casette.
Heinous.
Nevertheless, they're one of the only soft-tops that as small and 'pretty' as they are, are enjoyed by men and women alike - so they're not considered girly or 'hairdresser's' cars like the old Suzuki Vitara or the Cappuccino.
Not only that, but for a car of its size, it really packs a punch. Our last incarnation was an 1800 with limited slip rear diff that went like the proverbial pooh off a stick. However, had it not been for the first one Pen bought about six years ago, we'd probably have missed out of one of life's true pleasures.
The first one was bought on a whim and I would like to take credit for telling Pen that she didn't have to be the practical car owner - that if she wanted to, there was no reason I could think of that she shouldn't have an MX5, so off we went to see one.
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It was metallic silver with a spoiler on the back that didn't spoil but enhanced the little car no end and despite being nearly twenty years old, the fabled reliability of Japanese motor cars meant that we weren't scared.
I think Pen was in love with it before she'd even got her bum on the seat. We hared off up the road on our test run with the roof down and hadn't even got into third gear before we were both laughing like drains.
For a car of its age, it was superb and was a lot closer to the ground than anything we'd ever owned previously. This presented its own unique set of 'interesting' issues as where we lived, the road conditions were such that rolling a cigarette whilst moving was damned near impossible, and losing teeth as we drove down some of Dorset's backroads was entirely possible.
Speed humps and pot-holes made the journey anywhere a real interactive experience, often threatening to take the exhaust off the car no matter how careful you were, but you could put that to one side as when it was sunny and the roof went down, it was sublime.
We went to France in it once and whilst bringing anything back was a challenge, as the boot was filled with our luggage and about the only thing with any space was the ash tray, the quality of the roads there meant it was like driving down billiard tables - even though we were only about five millimetres above them.
When Pen first got hers, I thought It was truly stunning - so stunning, that I just had to get me one too.
I wasn't going to - honest. I mean, that sounds too much like matching jumpers, doesn't it?
No, I decided in my infinite wisdom, to get a real British sports car. A classic - an MGB.
I had been seduced by that idea of bugs-in-the-teeth convertible motoring that I had enjoyed only as a passenger in Pen's pride and joy.
However, there was a catch.
Despite the MGB being bigger, I couldn't get in.
Okay, so I did manage to get in one, but it was like being pinned into an aparatus of torture and made to feel like I was on a suicide mission. There was no leg room, no power steering, no 'zing' and perhaps most scary of all: no brakes - all of which is apparently normal.
Where the MX5 was point and shoot, the MGB was like a snail under a general anaesthetic. The steering was like trying to manoeuvre a beached whale and God alone knows how any of those death traps actually pass an MoT.
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So I relented and got myself a black Mk1 Eunos with gold BBS cross-spoke alloys and was really pleased that I did too.
I don't know whether the newer MX5's have been brought up to standard or whether the British motor industry still feels we'll make do with the shoddy half-baked crap they normally palm us off with, but certainly, if your passion is the Mk1 with its cute pop-up headlights and raw driving, then do yourselves a favour and go for a Eunos.
They're a joy to drive, reliable and not too thirsty either. I would definitely recommend you at least try one as they put the joy back into motoring, putting you in mind of all those sixties films where you see the pretty blonde and her boyfriend driving down sunlit, tree-lined avenues with the wind in their hair, while 'the girl from Ipanema' plays in the background...
Yummmm...
