Don’t Worry. Mazda Has No Plans to Ruin the MX-5 Miata Anytime Soon

Like every manufacturer, Mazda is pivoting toward battery-electric and hybrid vehicles. The brand has a sustainable Zoom Zoom 2030 plan in place. And even cars launching now without electrified power — like the super-cool new CX-50 off-road SUV — will get it shortly.

One outlier to Mazda’s plans is maybe its most iconic, the MX-5 Miata. Its raison d’être is providing a pure driving experience with rear-wheel drive, a manual transmission, light weight and a naturally-aspirated engine. It’s pretty much antithetical to everything Mazda is doing elsewhere. And it appears the brand intends to keep it that way.

Mazda’s European product development and engineering head Joachim Kunz told the U.K. website Autocar to not expect significant changes for the MX-5 anytime soon.

«It’s our brand icon and it is always treated very specially,» Kunz told Autocar. «At the moment, it looks like we will have this car forever, with this size and concept and combustion engine. Of course, some day, we will have to electrify it, but we want to keep this pure concept.»

The current ND generation Miata went into production seven years ago. But Kunz suggested it could hang on for a few more years, noting that a 10-year model run would not be a problem. Per Autocar, the next-gen Miata could get the new and more efficient Skyactiv-X combustion 2.0-liter powertrain used in the CX-30 and Mazda 3.

2030 is probably the timeframe to look at for significant Miata powertrain changes. That will be the year many brands will go electric and markets like Britain will outlaw new combustion engine vehicles. And by then, Mazda should have access to improved technology like lighter and more compact solid-state batteries or even an EV-compatible manual transmission, which could clarify how the brand builds an electric MX-5.

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