In Canada, 2021 Will Go Down As Mazda's Year Of The MX-5 Miata
August 11 2021, Centennial Mazda
Should we be surprised that as the sports car/convertible business bounces back during a pandemic, the world's all-time best-selling roadster is at the forefront? The Mazda MX-5 (which you may know it as the Miata) is generating some huge sales numbers in Canada as more and more people are reminded of how nice it is to spend time travelling the roads around home.
Here are the key metrics.
- Compared with last year, Canadian sales of the Mazda MX-5 have more than doubled through the first seven months of 2021 – they're up 111%.
- 2021 appears to be on pace to be the best year for Mazda MX-5 Miata sales in 13 years, if not 14.
- Since the recession of 2008/2009, Mazda Canada has averaged 722 MX-5 sales per year. At the current pace, 2021 MX-5 volume is 51% stronger.
Beyond the circumstances that reignited interest in sports cars such as the MX-5, there are all kinds of reasons for the smallest Mazda's renewed success. For one thing, the MX-5 has, by and large, always been a hit, ever since it's 1990 introduction. But why is it so beloved?
"When it comes to driving dynamics, dollar for dollar, this car can't be beat," says CNET's Road Show.
We especially enjoy the light, tactile steering; it responds immediately and keeps the driver informed of what the front tires are doing," writes Car And Driver. "This is a fun car, plain and simple."
Cars are heavier than ever, working harder and harder to insulate drivers from the road," Travis Okulski writes for Road & Track. "Even performance cars embrace aids to a point that makes the driver feel irrelevant. But the Miata needs the driver more than any other car, someone to grab the wheel and direct its destiny."
Top Gear says, "The MX-5 dishes out fizzy fun at entirely legal speeds and costs peanuts to run." In the words of The Drive, "The Miata wants the human doing the driving, not the car." Motor Trend says, "By merit of both the Miata's lightweight construction and its elemental approach to driving, all inputs are anachronistically delicate and simply a joy to execute."
Why is the Mazda MX-5 such a hot ticket? Well, is perfect too strong a word to describe this car?