| Mazda MX-5 | |
|---|---|
_by_Negawa_Bridge_(cropped).jpg) | |
| Overview | |
| Manufacturer | Mazda |
| Also called | Mazda Roadster (Japan) Eunos Roadster (Japan) Mazda MX-5 Miata (North America) Mazda Miata (United States) |
| Production | 1989–present |
| Assembly | Japan: Hiroshima (Hiroshima Plant) |
| Body and chassis | |
| Class | Roadster, sports car (S) |
| Layout | Front mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive |
| Platform | Mazda N platform |
The Mazda MX-5 is a lightweight two-person sports car manufactured and marketed by Mazda with a front mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout. The convertible is marketed as the Mazda Roadster (マツダ・ロードスター, Matsuda Rōdosutā) or Eunos Roadster (ユーノス・ロードスター, Yūnosu Rōdosutā) in Japan, and as the Mazda Miata (/miˈɑːtə/) in the United States, and formerly in Canada, where it is now marketed as the MX-5 but is still commonly referred to as Miata.
Manufactured at Mazda's Hiroshima plant, the MX-5 debuted in 1989 at the Chicago Auto Show and was created under the design credo Jinba ittai (人馬一体), meaning "oneness of horse and rider". Noted for its small, light, balanced and minimalist design, the MX-5 has been called a successor to 1950s and '60s Italian and British roadster sports cars. The Lotus Elan was used as a design benchmark.
Each generation is designated by a two-letter code beginning with the first generation NA. The second generation (NB) launched in 1998 for MY 1999, followed by the third generation (NC) in 2005 for MY 2006, and the fourth generation (ND) in 2015 for MY 2016.
More than 1 million MX-5s have been sold, making it the best-selling two-seat convertible sports car in history.[1][2][needs update] The name miata derives from Old High German for "reward".[3][4][N 1]
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
Guinness2011was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "Mazda builds 1 millionth MX-5" (Press release). Autoblog. 2016-04-25. Retrieved 2016-04-25.
- ^ "The Meaning of Miata". Miata.net. Retrieved 2009-05-09.
Rod Bymaster, Mazda's head of product planning and marketing for the Miata project back in the early days, claims his "biggest contribution to the project was to have found the word miata in Webster's Dictionary, which is defined as 'reward' in Old High German."
- ^ Collins, Andrew P. (2018-06-18). "So The Word 'Miata' Actually Means Something". US: jalopnik. Retrieved 2024-05-03.
Cite error: There are <ref group=N> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=N}} template (see the help page).