Petrol Mazda MX-5 Mk3 cars for sale

If you count all the model generations, Mazda’s reinterpretation of the classic British sports car has been around significantly longer than the most notable example of the original genre - the MGB. And for the third generation of the MX-5 (known as the NC), Mazda stuck with the tried-and-tested formula of naturally aspirated four-cylinder engines and rear-wheel drive.

It was bigger and heavier than before, but larger, more powerful engines in the form of a 128hp 1.8 and a 160hp 2.0 litre ensured performance remained peppy (if not mind-blowing).

The styling, the work of Jaguar chief designer Ian Callum’s younger brother Moray, gave the MX-5 a bit of a friendlier vibe, with its lozenge-shaped front and rear lights and pronounced geometric wheel arches, but it was still very much a trad two-seat roadster. In the cabin, the larger body afforded you a greater sense of space and, in 2006, the Roadster Coupe brought about the extraordinary luxury of a retractable hardtop (for a modest weight gain of 36 kilos).

There are far more special editions than we have space to write about here, but all of them share one thing in common – beautifully balanced handling and the ability to put a huge smile on your face even at legal speeds.