Vehicle Overview

Ever since Mazda introduced the Miata as an early 1990 model, it's officially been known as the MX-5 Miata. Anyone who has known the model, however, has known it as the Miata. Mazda discarded the Miata designation upon the model's 2006 redesign. Officially, the two-seater is dubbed MX-5, but if you refer to it that way, expect a blank stare.

Changes for 2008 include the car's first-ever driver's seat height adjustment, a standard tire pressure monitoring system and, in the Touring and Grand Touring trim levels, a six-CD changer.

Now in its second year, the optional power-retractable hardtop gives the car greater four-season appeal, though it wouldn't be our first choice for winter driving (or even our 100th). A manual vinyl top is standard, and a cloth soft-top comes in the higher trim levels. The retractable hardtop takes up no trunk space.

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    Second & Third Rows
    The second row is pretty easy to get into, and the seats slide forward and back independent of each other. With these seats in their rearmost position, my knees didn't touch the driver's backrest, ...

    Jump-Starting
    Jump-starting is dangerous if done incorrectly. So follow the procedure carefully. If you feel unsure about jump-starting, we strongly recommend that you have a competent service technician do t ...

    Tire Pressure Monitoring System
    The tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS) monitors the pressure for each tire. If tire pressure is too low in one or more tires, the system will inform the driver via the warning light in the ...