2011 Mazda MX-5 Miata Review

The 2011 Mazda MX-5 Miata Grand Touring PRHT.

A sure-fire smile inducer at TireKicker is to toss us the keys to a Mazda MX-5 Miata. Tight, quick, fun...everything the MGs, Triumphs and Healys of the 60s were aiming for, but could never quite get that quality thing down.

It's been about a year and a half since Mazda put one in the press fleet, and it's a scientific fact that your body never outgrows its need for a week in a primal roots sporting machine, so we borrowed one from Chapman Mazda in Phoenix. And the one we got was the least primal of the bunch...the Grand Touring PRHT.



What's that? Well, it's an MX-5 Miata loaded with just about everything you can get...including a retractable hardtop.  Modern retractables (the first ones from Ford in the late 50s were engineering and electrical nightmares) are simple, slick and for the most part, the best of both worlds...the sun and wind in your hair when you want it, protection from the elements, prying eyes and sticky fingers when you don't (all a thief needs to get into your ragtop when it's parked is a good knife).

The only real downsides are weight and cost. Mazda's kept the weight penalty under a hundred pounds, which is a good thing. The base price of the Grand Touring PRHT (Power Retractable Hard Top) is $5.570 more than your base MX-5 Miata...go for the 6-speed automatic instead of the 6-speed manual and it's $6,570.

The 2011 Mazda Miata MX-5 Grand Touring PRHT. Zoom-Zoom and a smile.

Choosing the automatic also costs you 9 horsepower...down to 158 from 167 with the stick. That's how ours was equipped.

If you're thinking the base price is getting up there, you're right. $29,650 is where ours started. The good news is that besides the retractable, you're getting a lot of nice equipment for your money. Automatic climate control, leather-trimmed seats (heated with 5 settings), a leather-wrapped parking brake and a Bose audio system with AudioPilot 2.

The 2011 Mazda MX-5 Miata gauge cluster.

Fold in the one and only option on our car, the Premium Package (anti-theft alarm, advanced keyless entry system, Bluetooth, Xenon headlights, dynamic stability and traction control and Sirius Satellite Radio) for $1,650 and $795 delivery, processing and handling fee, and the sticker reads:

$32,095.

Yeah, you can get a base MX5 Miata for about $23,000 or anywhere between $23,000 and $32,000. But there's nothing wrong with this approach either...it's the Uber-Miata.


2011 Mazda Miata MX-5 Grand Touring PRHT

Base price: $29,650

As tested: $32.095

Likes: Styling, character, handling, drivability, overall fun factor.

Dislikes: The retractable hardtop isn't insulated...on a 105-degree day, the A/C is barely able to counteract the heat seeping into the cockpit.

EPA Estimate: 21 mpg city/28 mpg highway.

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2012 Mazda 3 Review

The 2012 Mazda 3.

A truly great small car is a wonderful thing. For a long, long time, my vote for best ever went to the 1984 Honda Civic I bought brand new and kept for 14 years and 144,000 trouble-free miles.

But some time back, the old Civic got passed by a small car with all of its virtues (compact size, good interior space, fuel economy and a bigger dose of fun-to-drive than anything else in the class) and all the improvements more than a quarter-century can bring: The Mazda 3.

We've driven and raved about Mazda 3s before. In fact, the 2008 Mazda 3 was one of the first TireKicker reviews, on our third day of existence.  And a little over a year and a half ago, we sampled the new-gen 2010. 

But a year and a half is a long time not to be driving and talking about one of the best buys in all autodom, so we arranged with Chapman Mazda in Phoenix to borrow a just-arrived 2012 Mazda 3 for a week.

Rear view of the 2012 Mazda 3 5-Door

This time, we drew the Mazda 3 S 5-Door Touring model. There are only two flavors of the Mazda 3 5-door...Touring and Grand Touring. The difference between the two cars? $1,570, which buys a power moonroof, dual-zone automatic climate control, leather-trimmed sport seats, heated front seats with 5 settings, an 8-way power driver's seat and a 6-CD, 10-speaker Bose Centerpoint Surround Sound system.

Which is one serious value for $1,570.

But sticking with the S is by no means roughing it. Both cars have the same 2.5 liter DOHC 4 with 167 horsepower that feels like a good 90 more. Both come standard with a 6-speed manual transmission and an EPA mileage estimate of 20 city/28 highway.

Ours had the 5-speed automatic, and in testament to how good the computer progamming behind modern automatics has become, the automatic gets better mileage than the stick...bumping up to 22 city/29 highway.

The automatic was the only option...putting the base price at $22,000 even, plus $795 delivery, processing and handling. So $22,795. For that  you get 4-wheel disc brakes, electronic power assisted rack and pinion steering, front and rear stabilizer bars, 17 inch alloy wheels, and the most fun you've had while driving in a long, long time.

Simply put (and we've said this before), Mazdas love to run. They're happy machines. The smiley face front ends are no coincidence. They handle like they're on rails. They live up to the corporate motto "Always The Soul of a Sports Car".

2012 Mazda 3 interior

Look at the instrument panel in the picture above. Everything simple, direct and right where your hand expects it to be. Not to mention tastefully designed and of very good materials and craftsmanship...way beyond what $22,000 normally buys.

The Mazda 3 spent many months on the TireKicker Top 10 Cars (So Far) list early on. With the 2012 Mazda 3, it's back. If you're looking for a small car that you'll love to drive, you've just found it.


UPDATE: If the five-door is so good, how's the 2012 Mazda 3 four-door?

The 2012 Mazda 3 4-Door Sport.

Surprisingly good. Now, you may wonder why there'd be a surprise when all that's different is the number of doors...but that's the thing...the Mazda 3 5-door and 4-door have three big differences beyond the roofline.

One, the Mazda 3 i Sport 4-door (also borrowed from Chapman Mazda in Phoenix)  packs a bit less power...148 horses instead of the 167 in the 5-door (you can get the hotter engine by stepping up to the S model four-door).

Two...that difference in power makes a significant difference in mileage: The EPA says the 4-door should get 24 city/33 highway as opposed to the 22/29 in the five-door (both those figures are for the automatic versions...the stick in the four-door bumps it up to 25/33).

And three...price. The Mazda 3 i Sport 4-door starts at $17,555 with the automatic transmission, $2,445 less than the 5-door tested above. Want one for even less? Go with the stick and the base price for the 4-door drops to $16,845.  And, if you live in a place where you can live without air conditioning and an outside temperature display, there's the Mazda 3 i SV 4-door at a mere $15,200.

Apart from those three things, everything we said about the 5-door goes for the 4-door. It's a truly terrific small sedan. Once again, we got one without options and the final cost (including delivery) was $18,350...making it the second lowest-priced (as tested) car we've driven this year. The lowest? The 3's baby brother...the Mazda 2.

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2012 Mazda 5 Sport Review

The 2012 Mazda 5. The last "mini" minivan?

You've probably noticed, but the "mini" has been gone from most minivans for a decade or more now. The Honda Odyssey is only 7 inches shorter than a 1964 Chevrolet Impala...and those were big cars.

Mazda's been bucking the trend all along...the vehicle once called the MPV and now the Mazda 5 has never suffered from mission creep. Sales, however, have suffered, as buyers shell out for the ever-bigger not-so-minivans.

For 2012, there's an all-new Mazda 5 and....Mazda's stuck to its guns. The 5 is 22 inches...almost two feet....shorter than the Odyssey...20 inches trimmer than the Toyota Sienna.

The 2012 Mazda 5 has smoothly flowing lines that look even better in person.

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Now, don't get us wrong. We love the Sienna (the Odyssey? Beats us. Honda hasn't put one in our hands in three years of TireKicker). But not everybody needs that much minivan.

The 2012 Mazda 5 is about the size of the minivan as it's known in Europe. How well does that work here? Well, we arranged to borrow one for a week from Chapman Mazda in Phoenix so we could see for ourselves.

The answer? It's terrific. Small size and lighter weight help make the new 5 a joy to maneuver in city traffic...and Mazda's commitment to building vehicles that are fun to drive doesn't have an asterisk after it that says "except for minivans".

157 horsepower from a 16-valve DOHC four is more than adequate to move this lighter machine, and even with a 5-speed automatic (as opposed to 6 or more), the mileage estimates are very good for a minivan (EPA says 21 city/28 highway).

The styling? Love it. There's character, fluidity, a sense of playfulness merged with purpose that promises you will have fun driving it. Take a glance at the picture below. That's a six-speed manual gearbox sticking out of the console. Yes, a minivan with a manual.  Just order the Sport model. It'll cost you $1,000 less than the automatic.

Oh, yeah....price.

The 2012 Mazda 5 minivan interior with 6-speed manual transmission.

The big minivans start within a stone's throw of $30,000. The top-of-the-line Sienna we tested last year topped out at $45,000 and change.

The Mazda 5 Sport?

$20,195. That's with the automatic. $19,195 with the six-speed.

That's for three rows of seats (two seats per row...total of six), 16-inch alloy wheels, power mirrors, halogen headlights, rear wiper with washer, captains chairs, a fold-out table for the second row, automatic climate control, a 6-speaker audio system, tilt & telescoping steering column, power windows and locks and remote keyless entry.

$795 for delivery and handling and the one we borrowed from Chapman rang in at $20,990. It was absolutely stock...zero options. And it was terrific. If it had been a stick, it would have stopped ten bucks shy of 20 grand.

There are people who need every inch of room in the sumo-class minivans. But you might not be one of them. The Mazda 5 is the first of a new wave of smaller minivans (Ford's on the way with the C-Max, though that will be sold in hybrid and plug-in hybrid versions only, and there will be others), but there's no need to wait. The 5 is here now and it's very, very good.

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2011 Mazda CX-9 Review

The 2011 Mazda CX-9. Crossover or sport sedan with a whole lotta cargo space?

Oh, man, am I glad we made this editorial decision. Upon returning the Mazda CX-7 we liked so much we asked Chapman Mazda in Phoenix if we could do a review of its bigger brother, the CX-9. They graciously agreed.

It's been a while since we've been in a CX-9, and the memory cells were saying "like the CX-7, just bigger". That's how most small crossover/large crossover teams usually work out, and the CX-7 is so good, that wouldn't be a bad thing.

But driving the CX-9 immediately after the CX-7 revealed that we are talking about two entirely different vehicles here...in ways that go beyond size and price.

The 2011 Mazda CX-9. Strong, chiseled good looks.

All Mazdas are driver's cars. Handling, balance and acceleration are always a big part of the package (the company's motto is "Always the Soul of a Sports Car"), and the CX-9 is no exception. What's remarkable is how present they are in a large crossover...it's a trick the competition hasn't pulled off yet.

In truth, the CX-9 is a fast, comfortable, brilliant-handling sports sedan that just happens to seat seven.  And what you get for your money is simply amazing.

The "base" CX-9 is the Sport. MSRP is $29,135, and for that you get a 3.7-liter V6 with 273 horsepower and 270 pounds per foot of torque connected to a six-speed sport automatic transmission with a manual mode. There are also halogen headlights, power side mirrors, 18-inch aluminum-alloy wheels, a three-zone (driver, front passenger and rear) climate control system, power windows and door locks, remote keyless entry, cloth-trimmed seats, an AM/FM/CD/mp3 audio system with 6 speakers, Bluetooth, front side-impact airbags and side-impact air curtains with rollover protection, Dynamic Stability Control and the Traction Control System.

The stylish and comfortable 2011 Mazda CX-9 interior.

Step up one level and you're in the one Chapman Mazda lent us for the week, the CX-9 Touring. Base price goes up to $31,055 and you get all the goodies in the Sport plus leather seating in the first two rows, heated front seats and side mirrors, an 8-way power driver's seat with adjustable lumbar support , a 4-way power passenger seat and auto-off headlights (ours didn't have the nav system pictured above...in fact, it had no factory options whatsoever...and I'd call it brilliantly equipped).

And you can go one step further with the CX-9 Grand Touring....everything the Touring has plus Xenon HID low-beam headlights, halogen fog lights, rain-sensing windshield wipers, power side mirrors with turn-signal lights, 20-inch aluminum alloy wheels, driver's seat memory, Mazda's advanced keyless entry and start system, an auto-dimming rear view mirror with HomeLink, dark silver and wood-tone interior trim, electroluminescent gauges, a blind spot monitoring system and an anti-theft alarm system. And that's $33,145.

Any of the three trim levels qualifies for bargain of the year. The Touring model we drove topped out at $31,850 with delivery charges. Load up any of the directly competing crossovers and you're past $35,000 minimum and might even get within walking distance of $40,000. And you won't have the performance and the handling you get in the CX-9.

EPA mileage estimate: 17 city/24 highway.

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2011 Mazda CX-7 Review

The crossover segment is so thick with vehicles that it's all becoming a blur. Time for a drive in one that breaks through the clutter and clears the head...the Mazda CX-7.

Loyal TireKicker readers know we've driven...and raved about...the CX-7 before. It's always been a great way to move 5 people in comfort and economy for not a lot of money but with a substantial amount of fun for the lucky driver behind the wheel.

As with all Mazdas, the focus is on driving...and the CX-7 Sport model we just finished a week in (courtesy Chapman Mazda in Phoenix) bears that out.

For $22, 795, you get a 2.5-liter DOHC 16-valve four cylinder making 161 horsepower and a 5-speed automatic transmission with manual shift mode...all more than enough to move the CX-7 with some urgency. You also have front and rear stabilizer bars, 17-inch alloy wheels, power mirrors, rear privacy glass, ventilated 4-wheel disc brakes, dynamic stability control and traction control system.

Inside?  It's all good there, too, with crisp design, logical layout and comfortable seats. And the standard equipment list includes a tilt/telescoping steering column, power locks and windows, a six-way adjustable manual driver's seat, air conditioning, Bluetooth, an AM/FM/CD/mp3 audio system and remote keyless entry.

Again, that's all standard at $22,795. The one we drove had two factory options: Wheel locks for $50 and a convenience package (heated front seats, power moonroof with sunshade, a color multi-information display with rear camera, power driver seat and automatic climate control) for $1,750.

That takes the bottom line to $24,595 plus $795 delivery charge for a grand total of $25,390.

And that is an amazing bargain for any vehicle in its class...much less with the level of equipment and the sheer driving fun that Mazda bakes into every vehicle they make.

Mileage? The good news continues there, too...EPA estimate 20 city/28 highway.  This is a must-drive if you're in the market for a crossover or even a small to midsize sedan. The CX-7 is that good.

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