First Look: Millionth Mazda MX-5 Miata Kicks Off Its Cross-Country Tour in Monterey

The Mazda MX-5 Miata changed the motoring world when it arrived 1989, and since then, more than a million MX-5 Miatas have been made, a huge feat by any standard.

To celebrate this milestone, Mazda is taking its Millionth Miata on an epic cross-country road trip, and has just kicked off its tour at the Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca during 2016 Monterey Car Week. The Millionth Miata will be at the Historic Motorsports Reunion all weekend, and will actually end its tour here in October as well. ( For a full list of stops, click here).

This Millionth Miata is a right-hand drive Japanese-spec model that rolled off the assembly line in Hiroshima on April 22, 2016. It’s powered by a 1.5-liter four-cylinder engine, but MX-5 Miatas sold in North America come with a more powerful 2.0-liter unit. Of course, this model also has a six-speed manual transmission.

ALSO SEE: AutoGuide to Celebrate Millionth Miata Milestone with Exclusive Content Hub

This Millionth Miata will be travelling across the states in tandem with the 15th Miata ever built, a 27-year-old model that debuted at the 1989 Chicago Auto Show. Even though the two roadsters may look wildly different, they adhere to the exact same formula, a huge reason why there have been a million of them.

One of the coolest things about this Millionth Miata is that at each stop on its tour, 240 MX-5 Miata fans and owners will get the chance to sign the car, putting their mark on this historic roadster, which will surely be put in the Mazda museum in Hiroshima one day.

But why have there been a million Miatas? The little roadster has always been the torchbearer for simple driving joy, and it captures exactly how a sports car should feel: it’s light, engaging, fun and uncomplicated, which is really refreshing these days of over-horsepowered, numb computers on wheels.

When you drive an MX-5 Miata, you get this really special sensation that you’re connected to the car, and although there are sports car that are faster and more powerful, few are as intimate or as fun.

The car has also always been attainable and proved that you don’t have to be rolling in money to afford a fun sports car.

Surely, a million Miatas can’t be wrong, and we have no doubts that it will be easy for Mazda to sell a million more.

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