Mazda Blogger Retreat
I just got back from a great trip to Monterey and Carmel California, courtesy of my new best friends at Mazda. They and their PR experts are realizing the great reach from the “underground” world we bloggers really have. Mazda invited a handful of “lifestyle” bloggers for the weekend to experience their automobiles, hospitality and their awesome Mazda Laguna Seca race track first hand. That handful included golf bloggers, food bloggers, travel bloggers and fashion bloggers. I’m going to do a feature post on each of these new blogger friends soon.
Mazda IS Zoom Zoom
Mazda is one hip company. Mazda really is “zoom zoom” in not only their automobiles, but in the way they run their company and with the types of people that work for them. You’d have to be “zoom zoom” to think of a blogger retreat like we had, knowing the bloggers would be writing about the great experiences they had.
Mazda MX-5 Miata Overview
I’ve reviewed dozens of golf courses, hundreds of golf accessories and clubs, training aids and web sites. But I have yet to review a vehicle until now. My review of the MX-5 (Miata) will be from a golfer’s perspective.
The MX-5 is a two seat, convertible sports car. The MX-5 is very cool looking and sporty on the outside. On the inside is an amazingly powerful 2.0 liter, 16 valve, 166 horsepower, four cylinder motor. 166 horses may not sound like a lot, but consider that the car is very small and light. Any more horses than that and the engine may fly out of the chassis, leaving the shell behind!
Mazda MX-5 Cool Features
Aside from the sporty speed and handling of the MX-5, the obvious coolest feature is the convertible hard top. With the click of a button (see videos below), the top retracts or goes back up in less than 15 seconds!
The Grand Touring model MX-5 I tested had all the bells and whistles: 7 speaker Bose sound system with steering wheel controls, leather heated seats, power everything, air dam, cruise control, window de-misters (didn’t even know those existed), xenon headlights, sport suspension and more.
The advanced keyless entry was very “zoom zoom.” You have this credit card sized plastic remote on your key chain and you don’t actually use a “key” in the ignition to start the car. With the key you can unlock, pop the trunk, roll the windows down etc.
My MX-5 also had the very hip six speed automatic transmission. If I wanted to get sporty, I switched the tranny to manual mode and controlled when the car shifted.
On The Road
The MX-5 is a BLAST to drive! This car is SO fast. In fact it’s way faster than my BMW. Correction… It’s faster than my X-wife’s BMW. 🙂 I was blowing cars away on the curvy mountain roads of Carmel California. I left a Jaguar in the dust.
The MX-5 is amazing on corners as well, with the sport suspension and the near 50/50 weight ratio.
Mazda’s designers did a terrific job handling the wind with the top down. While flying down the winding mountain roads, my dad called me to give me updates of my college football team (Utah) as it was blowing out #11 UCLA. Even though I was flying down these roads at crazy speeds with the top down, the wind noise was quiet enough in the cockpit for me to hear my pop’s updates on the cell phone with no problems. Final score: Utah 44 – UCLA 6.
Golfer’s Perspective
You can’t go to Monterey and be a golfer without driving down the shoreline and checking out Spyglass and Pebble Beach. Having taken the MX-5 down the shoreline and the famous “17 Mile Drive” I can attest that there’s no better car for cruising California’s shore lines than an MX-5. I never could figure out how long the 17 Mile Drive was though…
When it came time to golf I had a blast driving to the course obviously. But the trunk of the MX-5 isn’t exactly what I’d call “roomy.” In order for me to fit my clubs in the trunk, I had to take all the clubs out of the bag first. I just settled on letting my clubs ride shotgun to the course.
Conclusion
You can get a maxed out MX-5 like the one I drove for about $25K. Maxed out! Lesser models start around $21K. What a bargain.
The MX-5 is “zoom zoom” to the max. Lock yourself into the driver’s seat, put away anything that will blow out of the cockpit and tighten down your hat. The Mazda MX-5 is FAST, fun, fashionable, flirtatious and frisky (just like I like my women).
HOGWire – Golf Industry News
What a cool car! Once you’ve driven a convertible like that you can never go back.
Bummer about the trunk space though – was it a width issue? Trunk lid too skinny for the driver? Would the clubs fit if the top was still up?
WAIT… Top down – junk in the trunk – Hey sounds just like you like your women -hahaHA! FAST, fun, fashionable, flirtatious and frisky; ZOOM ZOOM ZOOM
🙂
Bummer about the clubs! I don’t think I could stand having them in my passenger seat!
[…] read more | digg story […]
[…] I go on a great golf blog trip to Monterey and visit Pebble Beach. I get to review the Mazda MX-5 Miata! […]
Wel een erg mooie mazda en nog super snel ook!