Discussion
elvismiggell said:
dpop said:
SFO said:
correct. wonder whether the 2L Sport has anything else different from 2L SE-L apart from Bilsteins
I am under the impression that the only other differences are in terms of equipment/trim and safety nannies..Sport has lane departure warning system, auto dimming mirrors etc etc
According to the website the 2.0 Sport has the following over the SE-L: (SE-L equivalent in brackets)
Smart Keyless Entry
Bright Alloy Wheels (Gunmetal Alloy Wheels)
Adaptive Front Lighting System
Dusk Sensing Lights
Rain Sensing Front Wipers
Rear Parking Sensors
Additional 2 passenger headrest speakers
Premium Bose Sound System
Auto Dimming Rear View Mirror
Black Leather Seat Trim (Black cloth seat trim)
Heated Front Seats
Lane Departure Warning System
Sports Suspension featuring Bilstein Dampers
Smart Keyless Entry
Bright Alloy Wheels (Gunmetal Alloy Wheels)
Adaptive Front Lighting System
Dusk Sensing Lights
Rain Sensing Front Wipers
Rear Parking Sensors
Additional 2 passenger headrest speakers
Premium Bose Sound System
Auto Dimming Rear View Mirror
Black Leather Seat Trim (Black cloth seat trim)
Heated Front Seats
Lane Departure Warning System
Sports Suspension featuring Bilstein Dampers
garreth64 said:
According to the website the 2.0 Sport has the following over the SE-L: (SE-L equivalent in brackets)
Smart Keyless Entry
Bright Alloy Wheels (Gunmetal Alloy Wheels)
Adaptive Front Lighting System
Dusk Sensing Lights
Rain Sensing Front Wipers
Rear Parking Sensors
Additional 2 passenger headrest speakers
Premium Bose Sound System
Auto Dimming Rear View Mirror
Black Leather Seat Trim (Black cloth seat trim)
Heated Front Seats
Lane Departure Warning System
Sports Suspension featuring Bilstein Dampers
Hmm the 1.5 I was in had many of these features as well (Auto-dimming mirror and lane departure warning along with keyless entry and rear parking sensors as well for example)Smart Keyless Entry
Bright Alloy Wheels (Gunmetal Alloy Wheels)
Adaptive Front Lighting System
Dusk Sensing Lights
Rain Sensing Front Wipers
Rear Parking Sensors
Additional 2 passenger headrest speakers
Premium Bose Sound System
Auto Dimming Rear View Mirror
Black Leather Seat Trim (Black cloth seat trim)
Heated Front Seats
Lane Departure Warning System
Sports Suspension featuring Bilstein Dampers
Mannginger said:
Hmm the 1.5 I was in had many of these features as well (Auto-dimming mirror and lane departure warning along with keyless entry and rear parking sensors as well for example)
Is that because the 1.5 you were driving was also a sport?I was answering the question asked previously:
SFO said:
correct. wonder whether the 2L Sport has anything else different from 2L SE-L apart from Bilsteins
The differences between the 2.0 sport and the 1.5 sport are - The 2.0 has:
17" Bright Alloy Wheels (16" Gunmetal Alloy Wheels)
Strut Brace
Limited Slip Differential
Sports Suspension featuring Bilstein Dampers
garreth64 said:
Mannginger said:
Hmm the 1.5 I was in had many of these features as well (Auto-dimming mirror and lane departure warning along with keyless entry and rear parking sensors as well for example)
Is that because the 1.5 you were driving was also a sport?I was answering the question asked previously:
SFO said:
correct. wonder whether the 2L Sport has anything else different from 2L SE-L apart from Bilsteins
The differences between the 2.0 sport and the 1.5 sport are - The 2.0 has:
17" Bright Alloy Wheels (16" Gunmetal Alloy Wheels)
Strut Brace
Limited Slip Differential
Sports Suspension featuring Bilstein Dampers
Interesting, I need to look at the range in more detail (but not yet 'cos my missus would probably stab me!)
Rogue86 said:
I test drove a 1.5 Sport, absolutely loved it even having come from two modified MK1s and a modified RX7. In fact, I loved it so much I did a photoshoot on one!
Mazda MX5 ND by Graham Taylor, on Flickr
Mazda MX5 ND by Graham Taylor, on Flickr
Mazda MX5 ND by Graham Taylor, on Flickr
Mazda MX5 ND by Graham Taylor, on Flickr
Those pictures are making me seriously want one. In that colour.Mazda MX5 ND by Graham Taylor, on FlickrMazda MX5 ND by Graham Taylor, on FlickrMazda MX5 ND by Graham Taylor, on FlickrMazda MX5 ND by Graham Taylor, on FlickrHad a poke around a Sport Nav - even for my 6 foot two frame, riding position was very comfortable.
I must say what really impressed me was the roof. Not powered assisted, but finger light to put up and down, and a nice click lock mechanism to hold it tight when down.
On a nerdy note, I like how the engine blocks also looks like the MK1/2 block.
I must say what really impressed me was the roof. Not powered assisted, but finger light to put up and down, and a nice click lock mechanism to hold it tight when down.
On a nerdy note, I like how the engine blocks also looks like the MK1/2 block.
After trying out a 2.0 Sport last time, today I was out in a 1.5 Sport. Lucked in with the weather - the roof never went up once we left.
I agree that the 1.5 doesn't need gears thrown at it with such frequency as the 2.0 - in some ways a shame as the gearshift is a delight. The smaller unit definitely rewards being revved to the nines, and doesn't have the odd idle 'patter' exhaust note of the 2.0. The ride was definitely better without the Bilsteins, but a degree of sharpness in the steering and responses had definitely been lost. The car could still be busy at low speeds, but only on very poor roads, and never jarring or harsh. Whilst the 2.0 does offer acceleration that can amuse on its own, the 1.5 whilst not thrilling is no slouch. It had no trouble picking up from 60mph to 70 in 6th to overtake a lorry on a dual carriageway, and was very flexible and un-complaining when in traffic - I never seemed to wrong-foot it, quite unlike some petrol turbos I've recently experienced. I was surprised, stepping back in to a Fiesta, that the Ford's steering felt much heavier. Nothing wrong with the Mazda's controls mind, just the normal EPAS numbed steering.
Of the people I heard or spoke to, many preferred the 1.5 over the 2.0. One even placed his order for a 1.5, having had a 2.0 NC. For me, it's a very close call, I think I prefer the extra punch of the bigger engine, but I'm regularly spoilt with cars with 3-4x the power/torque of the little Mazda. Ultimately choosing one over the other is detail and circumstance - it's a great car to drive in either guise. A bit like choosing between 1.6 and 1.8 NA.
The Windmill archive was an incredible location - I could've stayed there for hours! A shame the sat-nav took me to Henley rail station... nevermind, the event was flawless otherwise. Oh, and they let you keep the picnic cool 'box' and rug (which I gave to my guest) - a very nice touch. Thoroughly enjoyed the event, and the ND is firmly on the wish-list. The limited colour palette, wheels included, is my biggest stumbling block - 3 shades of white? I'm still not sold on the rear styling, even if the rest of the range now have the afterburner lights. Bring on the facelift...
I agree that the 1.5 doesn't need gears thrown at it with such frequency as the 2.0 - in some ways a shame as the gearshift is a delight. The smaller unit definitely rewards being revved to the nines, and doesn't have the odd idle 'patter' exhaust note of the 2.0. The ride was definitely better without the Bilsteins, but a degree of sharpness in the steering and responses had definitely been lost. The car could still be busy at low speeds, but only on very poor roads, and never jarring or harsh. Whilst the 2.0 does offer acceleration that can amuse on its own, the 1.5 whilst not thrilling is no slouch. It had no trouble picking up from 60mph to 70 in 6th to overtake a lorry on a dual carriageway, and was very flexible and un-complaining when in traffic - I never seemed to wrong-foot it, quite unlike some petrol turbos I've recently experienced. I was surprised, stepping back in to a Fiesta, that the Ford's steering felt much heavier. Nothing wrong with the Mazda's controls mind, just the normal EPAS numbed steering.
Of the people I heard or spoke to, many preferred the 1.5 over the 2.0. One even placed his order for a 1.5, having had a 2.0 NC. For me, it's a very close call, I think I prefer the extra punch of the bigger engine, but I'm regularly spoilt with cars with 3-4x the power/torque of the little Mazda. Ultimately choosing one over the other is detail and circumstance - it's a great car to drive in either guise. A bit like choosing between 1.6 and 1.8 NA.
The Windmill archive was an incredible location - I could've stayed there for hours! A shame the sat-nav took me to Henley rail station... nevermind, the event was flawless otherwise. Oh, and they let you keep the picnic cool 'box' and rug (which I gave to my guest) - a very nice touch. Thoroughly enjoyed the event, and the ND is firmly on the wish-list. The limited colour palette, wheels included, is my biggest stumbling block - 3 shades of white? I'm still not sold on the rear styling, even if the rest of the range now have the afterburner lights. Bring on the facelift...
We went to the Windmill Hill event yesterday organised by Mazda, what a great day. The Windmill Hill Archives are a great location, and we used one of their pre-programmed Sat Nav destinations to drive to Broadway Tower in the Cotswolds to eat the provided free picnic. After a quick registration and coffee, one of the event hosts showed us over the car and we were ready to go.
We chose to drive the 2.0 Sport, as I am used to driving more powerful cars and my wife has a 2.0 Z4. I think we were lucky as they only had 2 left by the time we were ready, the remaining cars were all 1.5's. Of the various colours they had Soul Red, Reflex Blue, Meteor Grey, Jet Black, Crystal White and Solid White. I didn't see any Ceramic. Personally I'm not keen on the Blue, and the black hides the features of the car too much. They grey is ok but a little understated for a sports car, so my personal favourite was the soul red with a rich deep lustre in the sun, or the crystal white which also sparkles in the sun and seems to suit the car. Ours was crystal white. I also like the 17" bright alloy wheels and think they contrast well.
The car was clean, full of fuel, sun shining, roof down and off we went. The infotainment and sat nav seemed fairly easy to use, especially if you are familiar with idrive or MMI. You can use the touch screen when stationary, otherwise you use the idrive style controller. Once we had adjusted the settings, the Bose audio sounded ok even with the roof down, and the speakers in the headrests are a good idea. I paired my phone and bluetooth audio streaming worked fine.
The volume button behind the main controller is too far back though, and not within your natural reach when driving, whoever decided to put it there it was a bad idea. The cup holders are loose, and you can put them behind you, which blocks access to the cubby, or near the passenger if required.
Storage isn't great with no glovebox, but as to be expected in a small lightweight sportscar. As well as the rear cubby and centre console, there is also some storage behind the seats for items you don't need to access when driving. The boot is fine for two hand luggage style bags plus soft items around the edges.
I do have a bad back and some cars aggravate this, especially if I can't keep my legs straight, but even with the limited adjustability of the seat and steering wheel I was able to get comfortable and felt the leather seats were supportive. The heated seats worked great and are good for bad backs as well. I'm 5' 11' and was fine, but I can't help feeling that the steering wheel should adjust for reach as well as ideally I would have had it slightly closer, and my wife wanted the seat a little higher when she drove it which she also couldn't adjust.
The dials are clear and the dash seems well laid out. It seems generally well put together and of good quality. There are some hard cheaper plastics but I don't think it would bother me if I owned one.
The handbrake is quite high up when parked, and on the 'wrong' side, but once released it doesn't seem to get in the way when driving. I felt the 'lump' in the drivers footwell, but it didn't get in the way at all when driving as it is well behind my left foot, and there was also room to rest my left foot when not using the clutch.
I'm not really bothered about the keyless entry, but I guess it is nice having a start button.
On to driving, it is easy to feel at home in the car very quickly. The short snappy gear change is a delight to use and makes it a pleasure changing gear, the weight of the gear knob adding to the experience. The steering weight felt fine (in fact it made my Audi feel light afterwards) and the response from the 2.0 engine seems instant and it pulls well. I didn't get the feeling it was underpowered at all, though it would be good if it made a nicer noise and sounded a bit more sporty.
The Bilstein suspension was firm but felt ok for the first few miles, I'm used to cars with a fairly firm ride so was not concerned by this. However, there is a section on the A34 from the M40 where the car got into a very unpleasant bouncing rhythm almost enough to make you feel sick and I thought I'm not going to enjoy this. This continued for a few miles until we turned off, and then it settled again. I'm guessing it must be something to do with the road surface as I didn't feel that again all day. Yes it felt firm, but there was little body roll in corners and I thoroughly enjoyed driving on the smaller windy roads. When we swapped over, as a passenger the ride felt acceptable to me, after all it is a sports car, but if I was buying one I'd want to try the non Sport suspension as well.
The roof is a revelation, so simple and quick to put up and retract. I think I put it up at almost 60 when my wife was driving. Who needs a hardtop? However, when you put the roof up, the windows drop halfway, but don't go back up again when closed. Why? Only a minor niggle but would make sense if they did. Also there is no one-touch up on the windows which may be for the same reason.
All in all, this is an amazing little car for the money and brings back the enjoyment factor to driving. I'm used to 300bhp plus cars, but I had great fun driving it yesterday and I agree it doesn't need more power to be fun. There are a few little niggles with it that could be sorted/improved, but nothing serious and for a new RWD roadster at a little over £20k it really doesn't have any competition at all.
My wife really enjoyed it to, and agreed it was a fun car, though she still can't be tempted away from her Z4!
It would have been good to try the 1.5 as well to compare, but my main concern if buying one would be that suspension. It is a shame that Mazda don't make the car more configurable so you can pick and choose which engine, suspension and toys that you want independently of each other.
All in all, well done Mazda for building a great car, and for a great day out!
A few pics of the day below:
IMG_20150919_111644 by Mark Williams, on Flickr
IMG_20150919_174142 by Mark Williams, on Flickr
IMG_20150919_172935 by Mark Williams, on Flickr
IMG_20150919_173635 by Mark Williams, on Flickr
IMG_20150919_173803 by Mark Williams, on Flickr
IMG_20150919_172907 by Mark Williams, on Flickr
IMG_20150919_135424 by Mark Williams, on Flickr
IMG_20150919_135502 by Mark Williams, on Flickr
IMG_20150919_135247 by Mark Williams, on Flickr
IMG_20150919_135224 by Mark Williams, on Flickr
IMG_20150919_135257 by Mark Williams, on Flickr
IMG_20150919_135317 by Mark Williams, on Flickr
IMG_20150919_131220 by Mark Williams, on Flickr
We chose to drive the 2.0 Sport, as I am used to driving more powerful cars and my wife has a 2.0 Z4. I think we were lucky as they only had 2 left by the time we were ready, the remaining cars were all 1.5's. Of the various colours they had Soul Red, Reflex Blue, Meteor Grey, Jet Black, Crystal White and Solid White. I didn't see any Ceramic. Personally I'm not keen on the Blue, and the black hides the features of the car too much. They grey is ok but a little understated for a sports car, so my personal favourite was the soul red with a rich deep lustre in the sun, or the crystal white which also sparkles in the sun and seems to suit the car. Ours was crystal white. I also like the 17" bright alloy wheels and think they contrast well.
The car was clean, full of fuel, sun shining, roof down and off we went. The infotainment and sat nav seemed fairly easy to use, especially if you are familiar with idrive or MMI. You can use the touch screen when stationary, otherwise you use the idrive style controller. Once we had adjusted the settings, the Bose audio sounded ok even with the roof down, and the speakers in the headrests are a good idea. I paired my phone and bluetooth audio streaming worked fine.
The volume button behind the main controller is too far back though, and not within your natural reach when driving, whoever decided to put it there it was a bad idea. The cup holders are loose, and you can put them behind you, which blocks access to the cubby, or near the passenger if required.
Storage isn't great with no glovebox, but as to be expected in a small lightweight sportscar. As well as the rear cubby and centre console, there is also some storage behind the seats for items you don't need to access when driving. The boot is fine for two hand luggage style bags plus soft items around the edges.
I do have a bad back and some cars aggravate this, especially if I can't keep my legs straight, but even with the limited adjustability of the seat and steering wheel I was able to get comfortable and felt the leather seats were supportive. The heated seats worked great and are good for bad backs as well. I'm 5' 11' and was fine, but I can't help feeling that the steering wheel should adjust for reach as well as ideally I would have had it slightly closer, and my wife wanted the seat a little higher when she drove it which she also couldn't adjust.
The dials are clear and the dash seems well laid out. It seems generally well put together and of good quality. There are some hard cheaper plastics but I don't think it would bother me if I owned one.
The handbrake is quite high up when parked, and on the 'wrong' side, but once released it doesn't seem to get in the way when driving. I felt the 'lump' in the drivers footwell, but it didn't get in the way at all when driving as it is well behind my left foot, and there was also room to rest my left foot when not using the clutch.
I'm not really bothered about the keyless entry, but I guess it is nice having a start button.
On to driving, it is easy to feel at home in the car very quickly. The short snappy gear change is a delight to use and makes it a pleasure changing gear, the weight of the gear knob adding to the experience. The steering weight felt fine (in fact it made my Audi feel light afterwards) and the response from the 2.0 engine seems instant and it pulls well. I didn't get the feeling it was underpowered at all, though it would be good if it made a nicer noise and sounded a bit more sporty.
The Bilstein suspension was firm but felt ok for the first few miles, I'm used to cars with a fairly firm ride so was not concerned by this. However, there is a section on the A34 from the M40 where the car got into a very unpleasant bouncing rhythm almost enough to make you feel sick and I thought I'm not going to enjoy this. This continued for a few miles until we turned off, and then it settled again. I'm guessing it must be something to do with the road surface as I didn't feel that again all day. Yes it felt firm, but there was little body roll in corners and I thoroughly enjoyed driving on the smaller windy roads. When we swapped over, as a passenger the ride felt acceptable to me, after all it is a sports car, but if I was buying one I'd want to try the non Sport suspension as well.
The roof is a revelation, so simple and quick to put up and retract. I think I put it up at almost 60 when my wife was driving. Who needs a hardtop? However, when you put the roof up, the windows drop halfway, but don't go back up again when closed. Why? Only a minor niggle but would make sense if they did. Also there is no one-touch up on the windows which may be for the same reason.
All in all, this is an amazing little car for the money and brings back the enjoyment factor to driving. I'm used to 300bhp plus cars, but I had great fun driving it yesterday and I agree it doesn't need more power to be fun. There are a few little niggles with it that could be sorted/improved, but nothing serious and for a new RWD roadster at a little over £20k it really doesn't have any competition at all.
My wife really enjoyed it to, and agreed it was a fun car, though she still can't be tempted away from her Z4!
It would have been good to try the 1.5 as well to compare, but my main concern if buying one would be that suspension. It is a shame that Mazda don't make the car more configurable so you can pick and choose which engine, suspension and toys that you want independently of each other.
All in all, well done Mazda for building a great car, and for a great day out!
A few pics of the day below:
IMG_20150919_111644 by Mark Williams, on FlickrIMG_20150919_174142 by Mark Williams, on FlickrIMG_20150919_172935 by Mark Williams, on FlickrIMG_20150919_173635 by Mark Williams, on FlickrIMG_20150919_173803 by Mark Williams, on FlickrIMG_20150919_172907 by Mark Williams, on FlickrIMG_20150919_135424 by Mark Williams, on FlickrIMG_20150919_135502 by Mark Williams, on FlickrIMG_20150919_135247 by Mark Williams, on FlickrIMG_20150919_135224 by Mark Williams, on FlickrIMG_20150919_135257 by Mark Williams, on FlickrIMG_20150919_135317 by Mark Williams, on FlickrIMG_20150919_131220 by Mark Williams, on Flickr^^ +1 to Mazda and write up. We were there yesterday and a great day provided by them, really impressed. We too had the 2.0l Sport Nav and the heated seats were a god send as it was chilly and foggy first thing, our two NBs don't have such luxury. We were one of the first lot out so there was still plenty of engine/colour combinations to choose from; we got a meteor grey.
We set off for Bourton on the Water, but detoured via Burford and had a coffee there before heading to BotW for our picnic lunch. We then set off towards Chipping Norton and then cross country, stopping off at a nice little pub for a drink and then again just before we went back to Waddesdon - found a field with a great view over Oxfordshire and sat eating our cheese and biscuits. One of the problems I found with the satnav is that you couldn't set it to follow B/unnamed roads, it just seemed to follow the main A roads, which wasn't ideal for this test drive. It needs a 'scenic' setting. It handled well on the back roads and the ride was very smooth compared to a mk1 or mk2.
Having now driven the 1.5 and 2.0, personally, I would go for the extra grunt and go for the 2.0l. We really didn't want to hand it back at the end of the day.
We set off for Bourton on the Water, but detoured via Burford and had a coffee there before heading to BotW for our picnic lunch. We then set off towards Chipping Norton and then cross country, stopping off at a nice little pub for a drink and then again just before we went back to Waddesdon - found a field with a great view over Oxfordshire and sat eating our cheese and biscuits. One of the problems I found with the satnav is that you couldn't set it to follow B/unnamed roads, it just seemed to follow the main A roads, which wasn't ideal for this test drive. It needs a 'scenic' setting. It handled well on the back roads and the ride was very smooth compared to a mk1 or mk2.
Having now driven the 1.5 and 2.0, personally, I would go for the extra grunt and go for the 2.0l. We really didn't want to hand it back at the end of the day.
SFO said:
The Bilsteins are very poor at dealing with roads that have lots of ruts, bumps and rough surfaces which are like mini bumps .. it's as if the suspension cannot react quickly enough.
The 2.0 sport has (for uk roads) over damped suspension; this being the factor affecting how impacts are absorbed. Mazda would need to add either adjustable suspension or have options available. snotrag said:
I got the one I borrowed down to 26. You were! It's impressive though!
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