2021 Mazda MX-5 RF GT automatic review

The current ND-generation of the world’s most popular roadster, the Mazda MX-5, has been around for some time now.

It burst on to the scene in 2015, winning Wheels’ Car of the Year and making a strong impression at our own Bang For your Buck competition. It also carries one of the most compelling design philosophies of any modern car, with Mazda engineers defying the model’s generational size and weight creep and returning to the dimensions benchmarked by the original NA MX-5 of 1989.

Five years on, the ND MX-5 still maintains a strong presence on the sales charts, too. This year so far, it’s bested in volume by only the Ford Mustang in its own sub->$80k sports car segment.

But after over half a decade on the scene, has the game moved on?

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Indeed, while the Mazda MX-5 may have resisted bloating dimensions and weight, it hasn’t survived a significant price creep. While the Mazda has made great strides to reposition its brand and models upstream, the MX-5 may no longer be quite the same champion for affordable motoring it once was.

In fact, the cheapest MX-5 you could buy upon launch began at $31,990. But the high-spec automatic 2.0-litre MX-5 RF GT we have here today carries a list price of $50,100 (before on-roads).

For that money, you’re getting the ‘big-block’ 2.0-litre four-cylinder yielding 135kW and 205Nm, a six-speed automatic and a folding metal roof.

As the family’s most premium offering, the RF GT’s price tag significantly exceeds that of its closest natural rival, the naturally-aspirated rear-drive 2.0-litre flat-four Toyota 86/Subaru BRZ. You’d have your pick of the litter as well: from the base 86 GT, at $34,480 for the auto, to the fully-loaded BRZ tS which scores Brembo brakes and Sachs dampers for $43,190 in automatic configuration.

The MX-5 RF GT also encroaches on the territory of some seriously rapid hot hatches, like the Toyota GR Yaris ($49,500) and Hyundai i30 N ($41,400).

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In actuality, however, the prospective buyers of those cars likely aren’t looking at the MX-5 as the experience and ethos are entirely different.

The MX-5’s USP is steeped in its decidedly old-school charm, and it’s biggest drawcard is its ability to distil the very essence of motoring joy into such a simple and accessible package.

With a claimed 6.5 second 0-100km/h time, the MX-5 won’t be hoping to embarrass much of anything at the traffic lights, but the naturally-aspirated four-cylinder offers incredibly smooth and linear delivery makes relative ease of overtaking opportunities with peak torque delivered at 4000rpm.

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Around the bump and grind of metropolitan Melbourne (pre-lockdown, of course), the MX-5’s ultra-low seating position, diminutive dimensions, and spritely mid-range delivery made it an absolute hoot to zip through traffic.

The origami-like folding metal roof stows away in just 15 seconds, and is operational at up to 50km/h so you can avoid that red light anxiety.

The cabin itself is well presented with a graceful and minimal dashboard, 7-inch touch screen with familiar Mazda infotainment system, SatNav, Android Auto and, new for this year's update, wireless Apple CarPlay.

It’s a fairly snug setting however and, with the roof closed, there’s little headroom to spare for myself at 175cm. The closed cabin does feel a little claustrophobic, so all the more reason to drop the top at every opportunity. In fact, the RF’s targa configuration does seem to contain airflow within the cabin while the roof is down, far better than the open-air soft top, even at highway speeds.

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Also included is a full suite of active safety equipment, including: blind-spot monitoring, driver attention alert, emergency brake assist, lane-departure warning and rear cross-traffic alert.

Some ergonomics may seem a little counter intuitive upon first interaction: the cupholders are behind you, as is the ‘glove box’, and the main rotary dial can feel a little too far back. Upon further reflection, however, Mazda has made the most of the available space, and laid it out in a way that is unobtrusive and doesn’t distract from the driving experience.

And the driving experience is what the MX-5 is all about.

Not ‘speed’, per se. Not necessarily ‘performance’ in the traditional MOTOR sense, either. The MX-5 is an experiential machine, through and through.

It’s not very powerful, and it’s rather softly sprung with a lot of compliance; two features that would doom it in the eyes of many enthusiast motoring writers. But those are two features that, in this application, make the MX-5 the beautifully communicative thing that it is.

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On an uncharacteristically warm May Sunday morning, in the mountains north of Melbourne, the MX-5 – roof down, of course – was an absolute pleasure.

The RF GT automatic is the heaviest roadster in the family, at 1134kg. That’s tremendously petite by today’s standards, but it’s still a fair amount of mass to ask of just 135kW. Subsequently, you quickly learn that you can apply virtually full throttle, virtually, everywhere.

And with the soft and friendly suspension settings, you get tangible sensations of pitch under acceleration, dive under hard braking, and roll under lateral load; sensations that would otherwise be ironed out, or simply go by too fast, in a more rapid and powerful vehicle.

With much of the engine positioned behind the front axle, turn-in at speed is remarkably sharp; after which the MX-5 quickly settles on its front outside tyre. With modest grip levels, you get frequent hints of neutral and over steer without ever needing to reach truly consequential speeds.

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The fly-by-wire throttle is well calibrated, and sharpens in response nicely in Sport mode. My only real gripe was the steering which, while incredibly direct and precise, felt a little artificial and didn’t offer the same tactile delightfulness as the MX-5’s main rival, the Toyota 86/Subaru BRZ. The automatic gearbox is similarly well-judged and, in manual mode, was very accommodating of shift requests.

Not once, did the gearbox refuse to give me a downshift but it must be said that I wasn’t zinging the little four-pot off its head as there’s little reason with this powerplant to be hanging around high up in the rev range. The little MX-5 feels best when happily clicking up and down gears while zipping between corners.

And that brings our MX-5 under a more philosophical review.

Its strength of character is entrenched in its retro, almost classical, charm.

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And if the MX-5 is likened to the modern resurgence of the film camera or record player, the automatic gearbox and – to an extent – the RF’s folding metal roof, is a bit like a new brand-new digital Leica made to look like a vintage filmy.

Don’t fake the funk. If you’re buying an MX-5, buy the manual soft top and save your dollars.

In isolation and for what it is, I like the MX-5 RF GT a lot. But whether to recommend a $50k automatic Mazda MX-5 to the MOTOR readership is a tricky matter.

Put this ND MX-5 RF GT next to something like a cheaper Hyundai i30 N and of course, it looks tremendously expensive and outmoded for the level of practicality, technology, and performance on offer.

But an MX-5 is not bought for the same reason as an i30 N or even, to a lesser extent, the 86/BRZ.

Put that same $50k Mazda MX-5 next a $90k 1966 Austin-Healey MkIII? And well… that begins to look like the bargain of the century, doesn’t it?

Mazda MX-5 RF GT specs