Mazda’s R&D team is working on making the new car as light and compact as the original MX-5/Miata, which was launched 20 years ago. A Mazda source described the current car as “just too heavy”; with a 2.0 litre petrol engine, its kerb weight is 1,098kg, compared with the original’s 970kg. So engineers are targeting a kerb weight of 1,000kg, same as the current Mazda2. That would give the new car a figure similar to that of the recent 980kg MX-5 Superlight concept, the first of a series of design studies that will define the direction Mazda will take with the new car.
Much of this weight loss will be achieved through a smaller and lighter engine, likely to copy the original’s 1.6 litre capacity. “We are testing both 1.6 and 1.8 litre engines, which undercut our current 2.0 litre unit but deliver the same 160-170bhp power range,” said our source.
The dimensions of the car’s platform and wheelbase will stay much the same but Mazda is known to be looking at reducing the front and rear overhangs.
Lightweight construction techniques will also be used. Mazda is experimenting with using new steel construction methods that enable less metal to be used in its bodyshells. Mazda is also employing the chief engineer of the first MX-5, Takao Kijima, as a special advisor for the new car.
The new MX-5 is due to be unveiled in 2011, possibly at the Tokyo motorshow. Sources suggest that the price could come down, too, to reflect the new MX-5’s more simple appeal.
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