Mazda MX-5 25th Anniversary Edition | PH Fleet
The answer to everything - and a longheld dream for Ben - returns to the PistonHeads fleet
My first taste of MX-5 ownership was a little bittersweet. Like many a PHer, I had the romantic idea of buying one for the summer, enjoying some cheap topless fun and not losing much cash in the process. Problem was, I rushed in, bought the first NB I saw on a Shed budget, a short MOT and in need of a cambelt change. I like to think I’m a fairly well seasoned car buyer, so clearly I should have known better.
It turned out the sills had been stuffed with cardboard, covered in fibreglass and (convincingly) undersealed. Putting that right along with a few other things left me a little shorter financially than I was expecting. So a tip to anyone looking at an older MX-5 – take a magnet to hover around the corners of the sills. And do more research than I did.
I also bought one without air con and packed it so tightly for a holiday to Cornwall that we couldn’t drop the hood in searing heat as we crawled along the A303 past Stonehenge. My wife and I thought it best just to sit in silence for that hour…
But my word, these cars are just so much fun, aren’t they? Low output and (relatively) low weight means you really can extract every last horsepower through the gears without doing licence losing speeds. The gear shift is fantastic, the handling well balanced and driving with the roof down on a car is scientifically proven to make you happier and reduce stress. So while my NB ownership was a little tainted, it was largely a positive one and certainly didn’t put me off buying another.
Especially as, when I first clocked my eyes on the 25th Anniversary Edition at Goodwood Festival of Speed, I made a promise to myself that I’d own one someday. And a decade later, that day has finally arrived. The limited edition model was a run-out, last-of-the-line NC3.75 special. Mazda originally planned to make 1,000 but ended up making 1,100, with 750 coming to the UK - mine is #1020. We Brits do love a two-seat roadster. Let’s not forget the original MX-5 (or Miata) was modelled on the sixties Lotus Elan, after all.
Based on the 2.0-litre Sport Tech Nav the car is mechanically unchanged, which is no bad thing. The naturally aspirated 2.0-litre four-pot sends 160hp to the rear wheels through a limited-slip differential and that super-sweet six-speed gearbox. The changes then, were cosmetic, and would you just look at it? I absolutely adore the Soul Red paint that has ended up on so many others Mazdas since, matched with a black electrically folding hard top, gun metal 17-inch wheels, a new rear diffuser and a numbered badge on the front wing.
Inside, Mazda treated the 25AE to stone leather with embossed headrests sporting the 25th-anniversary logo to lighten the interior, a dark red dash strip and a now very dated 6.1-inch Alpine touchscreen that’ll probably get swapped out for something with smartphone pairing in due course. It’s the heaviest MX-5 ever made at 1,248kg, but it’s no slouch and some more power (in due course) will help offset the podginess.
I found PL64 EPU with just 12,000 miles on the clock and despite having a full Mazda service history, this was mostly just oil and filter services, so I booked it into BBR GTI straight away for a thorough going over. This time I spent hours researching the NC and, much to the seller’s delight I’m sure, spent a lot of time going over it with a fine tooth comb. But despite all that, it was reassuring to hear from BBR GTI that I’ve bought one that’s in really good condition, as you’d hope for given the mileage.
It’s been so seldom used, in fact, that the two front tyres were original, so they’ve been ditched for a fresh pair of Michelin Pilot Sport 4s. Now three weeks into ownership, I can finally start driving it properly. First impressions are very good, but more on that next time!
FACT SHEET
Car: 2014 Mazda MX-5 (NC) 25th Anniversary Edition
Run by: Ben Lowden
On fleet since: February 2024
Mileage: 12,532
Last month at a glance: Take two for Ben and MX-5 motoring - and would you just look at it?
Honestly, its such a huge, transformative change and how the car should have come from the factory. Don't put a backbox on first, dont buy an induction kit first... Just doing the manifold and map, nothing else, nothing before or nothing after, is the key to these NC cars. It should be in the user manual.
Lovely that.
Although I loved my old NB for an all around car the NC has to be choice for me now. I'm tempted to swap to scratch the honda itch but have no doubts I'll be back in an NC one day, ideally one exactly with the spec shown here. The power roof would help a lot for me being short I often have to get out and in to put the roof up and down so never tend to bother as much, especially on shorter journeys (to work etc).
I love my NA but keep having pangs about swapping it to an ND, with a possible BBR upgrade on top.
Only worry for me is that the NCs seem to be succumbing to rust now just as their ancestors did. Maybe not as bad, but whenever I look up the MOT history for a prospective purchase, its been welded.
People get sniffy about MX5s but they remain some of the best real world drivers cars out there in my opinion. The NC isn't bad out of the box either. Lot of testers complain about the body roll and being no good beyond 8/10ths blah blah, but some years ago I remember a track test in Car magazine where a NC 3.5 (is that what they call them?) beat a Clio 197 cup around the circuit they were using. Not bad considering the power deficit....
I had similar ideas to BBR it up. But I don't drive it a lot & standard is easier to use/maintain & sell on. Even as standard its still a much more intimate driving experience than most other cars.
The rust thing has been well covered with loads of people poking at undersides on YouTube. Mostly on cars nearing 20 years old. So should be no surprise. But when you buy an ultra low miles can that has hardly seen rain never mind salt the clock has not really started ticking. This was what mine looked like at 8 years old and just under 4k miles. Put 9k on it since then driving in all conditions but cleaning and garaging and a couple of squirts of Bilt Hamber Atom Mac on the underside. Still looks much the same.
I've had my 2018 ND2 Sport Nav+ with Eibachs for just over 3 and a half years, The MX-5 bug is one well worth buying into 
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