2020 Mazda MX-5 Miata RF

The RF range starts with the Club trim at an MSRP of $33,045, increasing to $34,425 for the Grand Touring. These prices are exclusive of tax, licensing, and registration. Mazda has also announced a revised destination and handling charge of $945 (up by $25) this year for all regions besides Alaska, which is subject to a charge of $990. Both trims are fitted with a manual transmission but an automatic is an option on each and will cost $600 extra on the Club and $325 on the Grand Touring.

Being the lightest and most compact Miata since the original, there are obvious merits to the ND generation. With more power and less weight it feels more potent than it is, and with a near-perfect 51/49 weight balance front/rear, the RF was made to handle. The RF also benefits from the hard-top roof, which, when closed, adds more rigidity to the chassis, but unfortunately counters this by adding the 100-pound weight gain high up on the body, raising the center of gravity. It's not vastly noticeable compared to the soft-top, but the RF lacks the fluidity and predictability of the Roadster.

Balance the car right coming into a turn and you'll feel supernaturally talented - it'll carry speed and deliver a little bit of slip on corner exit just like a good sports car should. But the margin for error is slim and the tolerances of the chassis form a narrow window of operation. Come in slightly too heavy on the brakes and the suspension dips too much, the rear becomes too light, and you oversteer on corner entry. Jump on the throttle too early and the nose lifts, pushing the front end wide with understeer. The line is too fine for a sports car supposed to be enjoyed by the layman, and the unpredictability of it means you can never dive headlong into a corner with complete trust in the machine.

Contrary to this lack of trustability, the steering is sublimely weighted. There's also a surprisingly large amount of feedback from the road surface, with dimples delivered to your fingertips. But when pushing on at eight-tenths or more, there's very little communication as to where the front tires are in terms of their limits. The same can be said of the brakes, which feel great under general use but tend to lose their luster when pushing on too much. There is an available Brembo brake package to improve this, though, and with a manual gearbox, the added limited slip differential improves handling slightly.

It's a strange combination of traits endowed upon the Miata RF, and it stands at odds with the original ethos. Yes, it's enjoyable - but only to a point, and the lack of predictability is at odds with the firm suspension that seems to ride a little too harshly over broken surfaces. Old MX-5s had a bit of bounce and were a lot more forgiving; the ND takes itself too seriously, losing the whimsicality of the old cars but without having the raw talent at full blast to back up the seriousness.

The MX-5 Miata has grown up; despite being smaller and lighter than it's been in decades. In no model is this more apparent than the RF, which adds the tranquility of a coupe roof and sells nearly half of all units with an automatic gearbox. In its newly-found middle-age, the Miata has lost the whimsicality that made more than a million people love it over the last three decades - it's become more focused and less playful, and yet the seriousness is belied by a lack of consistency when pushing its limits. It's more refined than before, and lack of storage space aside, more practical to live with on a daily basis, but we can't help but feel the RF loses some of the magic of the soft-top Miata Roadster. Don't get us wrong - there are few cars that will have you smiling this much after a stretch of twisting road is left in your rearview mirror, but you'd have more fun in the soft-top, and for the love of the car gods, make sure you don't get the automatic.

We still stand by the assertion that you should get an MX-5 Miata Roadster rather than the RF, but if those stylish lines and the allure of a tin-top coupe are irresistible to you, then we'd look no further than the Club specification.

Technically forming the middle-ground of the Miata lineup, the Club is well-specified with a range of updated safety features for 2020 as well as a comprehensive infotainment suite including Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, and a nine-speaker Bose sound system. It misses out on items like navigation, adaptive front lighting, and traffic sign recognition, but in our opinion, these are frivolities that aren't necessary. We'd also be happy without the leather upholstery. However, certain options are must-haves for the Miata RF. These include the six-speed manual gearbox, not just for the enjoyment of rowing your own gears but for the limited slip differential, Bilstein dampers, sports suspension, and shock tower braces that make it a better car to drive. We'd also opt for the Brembo/BBS Recaro Package, adding better brakes, stylish 17-inch BBS wheels, Recaro sports seats, and striking black aero addenda to the exterior. Finish it off with the $595 Soul Red Crystal Metallic paint and it's the best RF you can lay your hands on.

The soft-top may be the default choice, but does that mean it's still better than the RF? It's certainly the more affordable option since the base Sport trim isn't available on the RF. This means that you can get into an MX-5 soft-top for as little as $26,580, whereas the cheapest RF is the manual Club variant at $33,045. In the RF's defense, the roof has no discernible impact on performance and handling, yet offers extra refinement when closed, along with even sportier styling. With the roof up, the RF is more refined, but the Roadster has a little more storage on the rear parcel shelf. With the roof down, the Roadster is vastly more refined, and there's less weight carried high up. While the RF looks spectacular, we'd still recommend the soft-top, not just for better visibility and a little more practicality, but because it stays truest to the Miata formula.

Like the Miata, the Toyota 86 aims to offer RWD thrills in an affordable package. The 86 also uses a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine with 205 hp, a solid 24 hp up on the Mazda's output. The MX-5 fights back with a lighter weight, though, so the two end up being similarly matched in a straight line. There's no drop-top 86, so the Mazda adds a bit more glamor to its sporty dynamics, but the Toyota does have a more accommodating 2+2 interior layout and trunk that make it the more versatile choice. If you aren't too tall and you can actually fit into the Mazda, you'll find that its cabin is more elegant than the Toyota's, with a nicer layout and a better infotainment system. Despite its downscale interior and lack of a convertible roof, we'd pick the 86 this time out as a purer RWD sports car, but it's a close call between these two Japanese rivals, and on any other day we might feel differently about it.