Spent an hour after supper this evening flogging my Miata and an ND GT over some tight backroads near my 'burb. I chased the ND on the way out to, we switched cars and I led us back driving the ND. It's not the first time I've driven the new car, but the first time I've had a chance to drive it hard. My impressions...
The car FEELS light. It IS light, and feels it. It's nimble in a way most modern cars are not. The suspension allows some body roll, but it sure didn't feel like grip was compromised because of it. It's got a lot more grip than the NA thanks to more tire and better suspension. Even though it's limits are much higher than my old car, it retains a lot of the playfulness of the original Miata.
The front axle has a LOT more grip than the NA. This car has ZERO understeer on public roads. You might be able to push the nose with some goofy moves on a racetrack, but the chassis is set up for throttle steering. To scrub the front you'd have to consciously want to. Why, I'm not sure!
The steering on the NA is fun but FAR FAR from the precision laser-guided-weapon-steering of the ND. The shifter of the ND is amazing - as close to an S2K as I've driven - maybe as good depending on your criteria - the Miata has slightly (and I mean slightly) longer throws, but I found gear-skipping shifts a little easier in the Miata compared to Dad's AP1 S2K. Maybe I'll call it a tie.
The ND doesn't have much more overall power than the NA (155 vs 128hp) but pulls away with authority from the NA. When I was driving my car, I just watched the ND open up a good sized gap when there was a straight. The ND makes power down lower and has perfect gearing to use all of it. The NA isn't a VTEC Honda or anything, but feels much flatter below 4000rpm than the new car.
What I love about the new car is that it retains all of the playful feeling of the original car thanks to it's light weight and incredibly small size, but has a TON more capability when you want to use it. The chassis is modern and even with some body roll, the tires feel completely planted until you want the car to do something different.
In terms of non-driving stuff, of course, the NA Miata feels like it's from the 1800s in comparison to the new car. The new car is a completely modern car with all the things you'd expect in a modern roadster EXCEPT the fat. I'm still amazed that Mazda built this car with all these features and it weighs so little.
The new Miata (sorry, I'll always go with Miata, not MX-5) is one of the best enthusiast cars sold. Period. There's faster cars and more luxurious cars, but I'm not sure there's anything more fun.
My perfect stable for the summer would be an ND and a 1LE.
