[Auto/Moto] The Mazda Miata RF Is a Surprisingly Great Road Trip Car

[-_-Moltres-_-]

 

The Mazda MX-5 Miata is a dream on curvy country back roads. Everyone knows it’s great on a track. But did you know it inhales long stretches of the Ohio Turnpike like a tiny, Japanese black hole? Floor it on the entrance ramp, smile as you wring out the 181-horsepower four-pot, then exit said highway. Time doesn’t matter. Road conditions don’t matter. When it comes to road-tripping an ND3, five hours feels like five minutes. I swear Mazda hid a Flux Capacitor somewhere in this thing. I conquered all of the above and more on a recent 800-mile trip to the suburbs of Akron, Ohio, piloting a new MX-5 RF Club with a six-speed stick and the Brembo/BBS Recaro package. 2024 marks the first year for the updated ND3 model, which Motor1’s self-proclaimed Hardtop Sports Car Man Chris Rosales recently exercised to considerable praise. But my aging (and not so outstanding) backside was hoping I’d survive 800 miles in the stiff little Miata. So yeah, my review is a little different.Full disclosure—this trip marked my first ND experience and only my second time in an MX-5, the first came many moons ago in a mostly stock second-gen NB. I have no illusions that the hard roof and Recaros helped make this road trip an unexpected pleasure. But before I go further, some exposition.My destination was classified, the endpoint of a mission to check out another legendary Japanese vehicle, one with three times as many cylinders that you'll hear about later this year. Unfortunately, I only had two days to make the trip happen. Leaving my northern Michigan home on a Wednesday, I had to trek 400 miles southeast, spend a few hours getting photos and interviews, then have the Miata back in Detroit by 1:30 PM the next day. The Mazda is supremely small. Big shocker, I know, but consider these specs. The wheelbase is 90.9 inches, which is shorter than a two-door Jeep Wrangler. You're barely five inches off the road, about the same as a Lotus Elise. At 49.0 inches tall, the roof reaches just halfway up the side of most pickups and SUVs.

https://www.motor1.com/reviews/722936/2024-mazda-miata-rf-review/