Mazda MX-5 review

The MX-5 is a small car and feels like one on the inside. The driver can touch the opposite door without stretching, placing them in rather close proximity to the passenger, while taller drivers might feel that leg room is tight and the roof is a bit close when in place.

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Storage space is even more compromised; there are no door bins, so the only place to stow your paraphernalia is in the shallow central armrest cubby or a small tray at the base of the dash that’s conveniently sized for a phone.

The MX-5 is a two-seater and has no useable rear space, apart from a pair of removable cupholders that slot in between the two seat backs. 

There is no room for a bag hook, so you’ll struggle even to squeeze a jumper into the narrow gap between the rear wall and the seatbacks. However, there is a glovebox-sized cubby behind the seats, in which you can store items such as de-icer and a windscreen scraper.

The front passenger seat has a lever to control the backrest angle and to slide it forward and backwards, but you don’t get height or lumbar adjustment on any trim level. Likewise, electrically adjustable seats of the kind that more expensive convertibles offer aren’t available on the no-frills MX-5.

The boot is unaffected by the roof’s position, so you can drive with the top down and still have a reasonable amount of luggage space. Although the top-loading, oval-shaped opening has a fairly narrow aperture so loading chunky items might be a pain, It's big enough to take a couple of weekend bags and is capacious enough by the standards of two-seat sports cars. Your golf clubs will need to go inside the car, though – taking the place of your passenger.

The MX-5 RF, meanwhile, only loses one litre of boot space to its metal roof origami and 'fastback' shape.