New MX-5 from under $40K

Mazda took the wraps off its fourth-generation MX-5 in simulcast events in Japan, Spain and the United States today, but Australians will need to wait until this time next year to get behind the wheel of the all-new compact roadster.

Speaking at the global unveiling in Monterey, California, Mazda Australia Managing Director Martin Benders told motoring.com.au the much-anticipated new model will be priced from under $40,000.

“We should be able to get one under $40,000," he said. "It'll be soft-top and obviously a 16-inch option on the wheels."

A sub-$40,000 starting price will be significantly lower than that of the hard-top Roadster Coupe ($47,280 plus on-road costs), which opens the outgoing MX-5 range.

Benders said it would also attract younger customers back to the world's top-selling two-seat sports car, but he stressed there will be a number of more highly-specified variants -- likely to include a folding hard-top successor in 2016.

"There'll be different grades," he said. "And while we don't see this as a direct competitor to the [Toyota] 86 or the [Subaru] BRZ -- certainly not to the 86 which is most aggressively priced [from under $30,000] -- we did see that car drag a lot more younger people back in.

“We certainly had a big younger person group and an older person group with the original cars, and that drifted towards only the older group as we moved to the hard-top only… so this is our chance to go back in and grab a few of those younger people [again].

“If we can package it right and get the right goodies in there, I think it'll be very attractive [to younger buyers],” said Benders.

The new model will give Mazda a much needed boost in convertible sales. Year-to-date sales of the current NC MX-5 have slowed almost to a stop. Just 53 examples of the hard-top-only model have been registered since January 1, including only nine in July. The numbers represent a 50 per cent fall on this time last year.

While winter may be one reason for slow sales, the more likely explanation is that buyers are awaiting the arrival of the all-new model. Convertible models including the ageing Volkswagen Eos and newer Volkswagen Golf Cabrio are still selling in strong numbers (with YTD sales of 238 and 218 respectively), as is the newly released Audi A3 Cabriolet (totalling 101 sales since its July debut).

The US reveal gave us only a little insight into the new MX-5's mechanical package, with engine details still under wraps.

Assuming the MX-5 was to receive the direct-injected 114kW/200Nm 2.0-litre SKYACTIV-G engine from the Mazda3, fuel consumption and CO2 emissions figures could be expected to come in at around 5.7L/100km and 134g/km.

If an entry-level MX-5 variant was fitted with the direct-injected 88kW/144Nm 1.5-litre four-cylinder from the upcoming Mazda2, those numbers would fall to below 5.5L/100km and 130g/km.

Mazda could offer both engine varieties in an effort to approach the price of the 86 coupe ($29,990 plus on-road costs), but higher-output 2.0-litre versions are expected to be priced nearer to the current 2.0-litre  model, which costs more than $50,000 in top-spec Coupe Sports form.

Either way, the new SKYACTIV 2.0-litre direct-injection engine will better the 118kW/188Nm outputs of the current MX-5's MZR S-VT multipoint-injected engine, which consumes 8.1L/100km on the ADR Combined cycle emits 192g/km of CO2.

And being 100kg lighter, the new MX-5 is also expected to better the third-generation's 0-100km/h acceleration time of 7.8 seconds (manual).

Expect more details about engine options at the Paris motor show in October, with full specifications to follow at the global launch early next year and local pricing before the MX-5's Australian launch in the second half of 2015.