@@genotsSnor heh I wanted an NB as my first car but my parents didn't want me getting one. They paid for my first car so they pretty much had full control over what I got. Ended up with a Camry. That said though, once I graduate college I'll get my ND2/ND3 :)
Another great video! Very glad that you’ve highlighted the excellent sound system in the Miata. It is a feature that few reviewers ever touch on and often overlooked, but is an important factor from an ownership’s perspective. We all know how fun it is to drive the ND, but the fact that Mazda integrated speakers into the headrests just demonstrates that they absolutely get it.
I got randomly upgraded to one of these for a rental on my vacation. A ND3 RF Grand Touring in white, sadly an auto, as it is a rental, but still. Took it 16 hours from Texas to Colorado, carved some mountain roads, took it up Pikes Peak and I have to say I loved it before and although it was the auto version, I just fell in love even more. I would love to own a manual one of those, they are just so lovely to drive.
Mazda has really struck a chord with me. I chose the CX-5 over its competitors because of its exceptional driving dynamics. Everything feels nearly perfect, from the steering feedback to the solid clunks when shifting into drive, and its lightweight agility. The braking has fantastic modulation too. I can only imagine the MX-5 Miata being even better-like a mini go-kart rocket ship. It's truly underrated; many people don't understand the brand and what it stands for. But for us car enthusiasts who still need to haul a family, the value for money is unbeatable. Great video, man. I appreciate the 4K POV-wonderful job! P.S IT STILL HAS A MANUAL E BRAKE
I have a 2021.5 CX5 and agree totally. My favourite is how in the snow it oversteers under braking and understeers a bit under throttle like and ND1/2 Miata, hahaha, excellently tuned chassi
@@chillphung8327 yes and not to mention a lot of people that get into my car they realize how great the suspension is. It’s just the right Balance in terms of sport and not having it be too floaty like just in between. The only thing about this car that I dislike is the lack of space and with the turbo model, it does take a lot of gas.
@@timothybracken1728 I have the naturally aspirated base 2.5L motor with front wheel drive and it sips less fuel than my 2nd gen Mazda 3. I think I'm averaging 28-32 MPG. The Turbo power must be nice on on-ramps though!
It seems like all 911 Targa or Mx5 RF would have the same loud buffing wind noise when put down the top. You could wind down the windows and it would reduce the buffing noise a lot . I agreed with you- if you enjoy topless ride frequently, go for soft top convertible. Honestly the Targa and RF looks simply awesome and a head turner for sure
Before I bought my ND soft top 7 months ago, I rented a RF and a soft top Miata from Turo and found the RF to be louder, not by much. It seemed to echo inside with the top up. Top up in the Soft top seemed to be more material absorbing the sound. Also the RF is not a convertible, it’s a Targa and has a lot of wind buffeting over 50mph. I also think it hurts the looks of the car.
I'm so mad why Mazda could make the NC Miata retractable hardtop go all the way down for the whole experience of a convertible but not with the ND? Big L, in my opinion, glad I didn't go with the RF because the look alone sold me, but after more research, it doesn't work for me at all. On the plus side of looks, a hard roll bar will match with the soft-top nicely too.
For a while I was considering getting an RF since I was only planning to have one car, but decided the soft top was the better choice since I was gonna be driving it with the roof down on the weekends and using something else as a daily driver. I do absolutely love how the RF looks with the roof up though compared to the soft top.
Those of us of a certain age hear you asking "Why do birds do that to me?" and our brains immediately remember Karen and Richard Carpenter's number 1 hit "Close To You" from 54 years ago. I like the RF Miata a lot. My brother drives one. But I do not fit well in it at 6'2" tall with fairly long legs, and about 240 pounds. Leg room is just not enough for me to be comfortable in an ND Miata for more than maybe 30 minutes. I could use another inch of hip room. I do have just enough headroom that the top won't bop me on the noggin, even if i am wearing a baseball cap. If the upcoming NE generation of the Miata / MX-5 has that necessary skosh more room and still offers a manual transmission, I'd be tempted!
I've found in the RF that with the top down, if you roll the windows down to make about a 1" gap at the top of the A-pillar, it reduces a lot of the wind noise to tolerable levels.
I have one of the last ND2 models. Mine is a soft top not RF, so I was very interested in your wind noise issue. The soft top with roof down has very little wind noise at any speed. You can easily hold a conversation with a passenger at 70MPH or more. The car is also quiet with the roof up.
it really surprised me how much louder the RF was than the soft top. I really like the sound of the Miata, and it comes through really clearly with the windows down. Sad that there's so much wind noise (but I guess that's to be expected on a hard-top)
9:50 I know that a lot of people love the RF looks but WOW it has some brutal visability in comparison too (and yes, the buffetting you pointed out.) The soft top feels infinitely more open. Top down experience, the ST is much better imo.
Hence why I see most RF drivers with the top up even on a nice day. :P Jokes aside, it definitely is a better top up experience. I like my soft top more though since I drive top down all the time.
My favourite time to drive my MX-5 in, the only problem is sunset backroads drives where I am in Australia are always so stressful because that's when kangaroos and wombats seem to like to jump across the road. I notice a lot more gear whine in this car compared to my ND2 as well, not that it's a bad thing, I like the subtle gear whine you get especially in third gear. The new intake/sound generator also sounds nicer. Someone has designed some 3d printed parts that you can adapt to the stock sound tube and replace a lot of it with some universal coolant hose/sump hose and get a really nice induction sound too.
There's something wrong with his car. Every other nd3 I've heard is not doing it this loud. But normally there is a lot and it sounds good (again, there's something wrong with this one though) @@Ben-bg2eg
i find myself not wanting to drive with top down on freeways anyways for safety purposes so wind buffeting hasn't been an issue for me.. there's no local roads 55mph speed limit or above around me
My 2010 Mazda 3 is the same way with the AC on, the revs drop a lot faster between shifts and you need to give more gas to blip, it almost feels like I've got a super light flywheel. It's always a bit jerky in the spring when I turn on AC for the first time in ages and have to relearn how to shift it properly with the AC on.
When you have to wear “ear muffs” to drive with the targa top down, there is a problem. That is not acceptable at 50 mph. Honestly it was loud at almost any speed.
Spent a week at TOTD with an ND2 Turo rental and uggggggggghhhhhhhhhh I want one so badly now 😩 Though I’d probably go for a Grand Touring in White or Aero Gray with the tan interior personally
22:50 I have this theory that everyone has extreme bad luck in one very specific aspect of driving. Yours is birds. Mine has been tire inflation. I have had more flat tires, leaky beads, sidewall punctures, etc than anyone else I know. And they are never from hitting a big pothole or off-roading. It's usually just a random nail or screw picked up, or tire manufacturing/mounting imperfections. My girlfriend has had at least one A/C failure in every car she's owned.
22 years driving and never had a flat or change a tire on the side of a road. 😂 Tons of different cars too. I will say that people I know who have SUVs with all terrain tires seem to get more flats driving on the road than passenger tires. Its counterintuitive.
@@sunnyvalentino out of 5 cars, only 1 has been an SUV and all grand touring/all season tires. Just horrible luck with road debris, I guess! I’ve had 4 sidewall punctures requiring replacement, and probably 5 or 6 tread punctures/bead leaks/etc requiring repair.
I’ve owned both. The S2000 is better but the ND2 is really good. I would say 85% as good. It has less weight and solidity than the S2000 shifter. The S2000 has more of a satisfying mechanical feeling when going into gear, ND2 is more “knife through butter” feeling. S2000 also has shorter throws and a little less slop. Won’t be disappointed with an ND2 shifter but if had to pick a winner it’s S2000 for sure.
ND1 accidentally gave access to a diagnostic screen where you could permanently allow it (until you passed a certain update version) ND2 No ND3 Yes just turn on the setting (not sure if default)
I'm considering trading in my FK8 Type R for a Miata. I spend too much time in LA traffic since moving out here to enjoy the power of the R, and the roads/highways are too bumpy for my stiff suspension. Plus I want to enjoy the sunshine. As someone who's driven both extensively, do you think that I'd be happy making the change?
Not silly at all although it may seem like it. It sort of creates a bubble of cold air inside the car and makes it somewhat livable even in summer temperatures with the sun beating down. Although I do prefer to put my roof up when the temperature gets above ~25°C (77°F).
They might just as well make a hatchback or shooting brake with this having too much wind noise. It would save weight and complexity, and add rigidity and cargo space.
Hey, if you can, I'm legally blind it? So if you can can you please add a better descriptions in your videos like more descriptive and also at the in-house navigation in the car to talk that way. I am more better included and also for other reviewers that are blind or have low vision. That would be nice. Thank you.
There are some of us around still, but I think the Americans who drive manuals are limited to enthusiasts. The average American driving an SUV probably won’t know how, and it’s not easy finding resources to learn unless there’s a car enthusiast in the family. Because of this, you have to make an effort to learn, and the only people who generally make that effort are enthusiasts.
@@no-one-kc3yd thanks. I spent $225 on lessons in SF to learn. The instructor had a car with two clutches to make sure we didn’t roll backwards on a hill into traffic. :)
@@no-one-kc3yd, yeah, I wouldn't say it was cheap. It is SF, after all, but I did take three lessons at $75 per lesson, just to be clear. I then leased a MX-5 and haven't looked back. I still recall how nervous I was driving that little convertible after three lessons. It was worth it, but as I said, I don't think most people would go to that much trouble and pay the money needed to drive a manual. Our standard driver education here is only for automatics.
