27 years after the first generation (NA) production launch, Mazda is finally celebrating the first millionth Mazda MX-5, which, it should be recalled, is in its fourth generation (ND). A figure that the Hiroshima firm has built little by little, without getting impatient and without ever outbidding.
Big news now for the MX-5: elected world car of the year last month and presentation of the RF version (Retractable Fastback). To make matters worse, Mazda announced that the millionth model had been released the day before yesterday. The opportunity was too good to take pictures of the four generations together!
We will not go back over the history of the famous roadster. Nor the fact that everyone had a good laugh in 1989 when Mazda took the risk of producing this type of obsolete vehicle. Despite the various crises, the Japanese brand has always kept the MX-5 in the range, whereas it would have been easy to abandon what remains a niche vehicle with little volume. The MX-5 has never been offered in multiple versions or, despite demand, with powerful engines. The range has always been small and not excessive. As a result, what should have been a fashion phenomenon is still present 27 years later. Let's go back to the big dates:
- 1989, February: the first generation (NA) is presented in the United States, in Chicago
- 1997, October: the second generation (NB) is presented in Japan, in Tokyo
- 2000, May: with 531,890 copies, the MX-5 enters the record book and finally surpasses the one that held the previous record: the MG-B.
- 2005, March: the third generation (NC) is presented in Switzerland, in Geneva
- 2006, July, for the first time, a retractable hardtop version is offered on the NC, in addition to the soft top version.
- 2014, September: the current fourth generation (ND) is presented in France, in Paris
- 2016, March: for the first time, presentation of an RF version (Retractable Fastback), a very original Coupé-Targa version.