Review: Mazda MX-5 Sport Recaro 2016
This fourth-generation Mazda MX-5 is stunning, and we're huge fans of it in every guise.
Few cars have elicited as many smiles from the ContractHireAndLeasing.com staff as the Mazda MX-5. Capable of enlivening the dullest of commutes and extracting every last drop from the country's greatest roads, Mazda's two-seat drop-top sports car is undoubtedly a gem.
Many believe that this expression of pure driving pleasure is best sampled in its entry level 1.5-litre SE guise – and they have a point – but we think that adding more kit and the larger 2.0-litre engine simply serves to make the '5' more versatile.
So for those who, like us, believe that less is not necessarily more, Mazda has brought out this Sport Recaro Edition.
See more Mazda MX-5 leasing deals here: Business / Personal
Great, but what is it?
In simple terms, it's an expensive version of the top-of-the-range MX-5 2.0 Sport Nav with a few Recaro-branded goodies and a limited production run.
Just 600 Sport Recaros will be shipped to the UK, all with an asking price of £24,295.
For that, though, you lose some of the leather on the seats and dashboard and have it replaced with Alcantara. Oh, and the seats themselves are a little more figure-hugging.
You also get some very subtle styling tweaks, a limited choice of paint colours and some red stitching, not to mention a small dollop of exclusivity.
And because this is a top-of-the-range model, you also get air conditioning, satellite navigation, and a Bose sound system.
It’s like every other top-spec MX-5 under the skin, too, which means you get the top-of-the-range 158bhp four-cylinder petrol engine, as well as Bilstein shock absorbers, a limited-slip differential and a strut brace to add torsional rigidity.
So what’s it like?
Combined with the beautifully engineered six-speed manual gearbox, the lightweight design and the 50/50 weight distribution, the Sport Recaro’s generous spec makes for a scintillating drive.
Even on the commute, the MX-5 will put a smile on your face. With the roof down, the wind in your hair and the raspy exhaust note filling your ears, this is driving at its purest.
The accurate and well-weighted steering has bags of feel, and you can position the car exactly the way you want to. It’s very easy to drive near the limit, and the rear-drive layout means tail-happy punters will have no trouble getting the back end out when they find a race track.
Read our Mazda MX-5 first drive review here
The Sport Recaro’s big advantage here is the seats. The racing buckets clamp you in place no matter how spiritedly you drive, keeping the wheel, gear lever and pedals all within easy reach and allowing you to enjoy the MX-5’s precision.
You do, though, pay a price for this. Although the 1.5-litre MX-5 is quite supple, the 2.0-litre’s tuned-up suspension makes it a firmer ride, and that’s bad news for the Sport Recaro. The bucket seats are supportive but firm, and the bolsters that hold you in place through the bends simply add to your discomfort in traffic.
What will it cost me?
Buying one of these would set you back a fairly hefty £24,295 – or £600 more than the top-of-the-range Sport Nav – and that is reflected in the lease rates.
The average three-year personal lease will cost about £400 per month*, but you’ll find plenty of deals cheaper than that if you shop around.
Once the car’s on the road, it will actually be fairly affordable to run. According to the official figures, it returns 40.9mpg, and even when undergoing notoriously thirsty road testing during its time with us, the ‘5’ still averaged more than 34mpg.
Road tax is, of course, included in the lease rate, but 161g/km emissions slot the MX-5 into the £185-per-year bracket. For those lucky enough to be offered one of these as a company car, BIK tax will be 27%.
The verdict
This fourth-generation Mazda MX-5 is stunning, and we're huge fans of it in every guise.
If you’re just going to use it as a fun car for track days and B-road blasts on summery Sundays, the Sport Recaro is the best of the bunch, but if you’re after a car you’ll use every day, the lesser models will be better suited, not to mention cheaper.
Mazda MX-5 Sport Recaro
Length: 3,915mm
Width: 1,735mm
Height: 1,225
Wheelbase: 2,310
Boot space: 130 litres
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylinder petrol (158bhp)
Transmission: Six-speed manual
0-62mph: 7.3s
Top speed: 133mph
Fuel economy: 40.9
CO2 emissions: 161g/km
*Average lease rates based on typical 6+35 10k deals and calculated using ContractHireAndLeasing.com data. Correct at time of writing.