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2018 Mazda MX-5 Miata finally has a great pair of seats

We all know the 2018 Mazda MX-5 Miata is a truly wonderful car. It takes everything delightful about cars and driving and distills it into a compact and lightweight package. It's a car anyone can enjoy. My wife, who until recently has shown no real interest in sports cars beyond their design, wants one. I want one, too, but I couldn't get past the Miata's terrible seats. For 2018, there's finally an alternative. The 2018 Miata got a number of minor updates. Most people I know were fawning over the new cherry-red top, but I was far more interested in the leather-wrapped Recaro seats. These are now included in the $3,770 Brembo/BBS package. Previously, that package just added a set of two-piston Brembo front brakes and black BBS wheels. Having put thousands and thousands of miles on various NDs, I didn't think it was really a worthwhile option unless you were planning to track the car regularly. These seats have changed my tune. The standard seats in the Miata are bad when new and get progressively worse as they break in. I'm a big guy (6-feet tall and about 220 lbs.), but I know I'm not alone in the assessment. They're thin, unsupportive and wrapped in some cheap fabric. Just look at this photo from our old long-termer. The seats kill any real desire to own one. These Recaros are different. Yes they're still thin, but they have bolstering and padding in all the right places. I no longer feel like I'm riding along on a cheap, worn-out couch. Plus, they're heated (though you can now get heated cloth seats), making the brisk Michigan-morning commute far more comfortable. Now all the Miata needs is a slight bump in power. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Design/Style Mazda Convertible Performance

Rumored Mazda CX-3 may not be for US

Mazda has used its Kodo design language to make some of the most attractive, affordable cars in the world right now, with the Mazda3, Mazda6 and CX-5 (pictured above), but it still lacks a crossover in the smaller class, which are becoming popular on the world market. It seems like a natural fit then, that the Japanese company would shrink its CUV design even smaller for a CX-3 to fill the gap. However, a rumor suggests that the compact might not make it to these shores.
The Mazda2-based crossover is due later this summer in Japan and is launching in Europe and emerging markets later, according to Automotive News citing a report in Japan's Nikkei newspaper. The little CUV would cost between 1.5 million yen and 2.0 million yen ($14,700-$19,500) in Japan and be available with diesel and petrol engine options. However, the report made no mention of selling it in North America. There is a glimmer of a chance for the CX-3 here. Mazda is upgrading its Mexican factory to 230,000 annual unit capacity by 2016, which gives it the room to add the new vehicle.
While the midsize CUVs are hugely popular in the US, compacts like the Buick Encore are still a small portion of things. If Mazda could time the CX-3's launch right here, it could take advantage of the lack of competition.

RC car drift video brings Fast and Furious style in 1:10 scale

Taking a cue from Lexus' 2015 Super Bowl ad Let's Play, Falken Tire is proving that RC cars can drift just as well, if not better, than their full-size counterparts. However, to make things four times as exciting, this clip eschews a single hopped-up model hanging its tail out in favor of a quartet of them sliding around together. Starring 1:10 RC versions of popular drift machines like the Nissan S15 Silvia, Mazda FD-chassis RX-7 and Initial D star Toyota Corolla AE86, these cars also get a suite of blinking LEDs to lend some extra color to all of the tire spinning. Plus, the use of well-positioned cameras and a scale model environment almost makes this group look like they're at work in the real world. News Source: Falken Tire via YouTube Motorsports Toys/Games Mazda Nissan Toyota Racing Vehicles Videos drifting drift rc car mazda rx-7 nissan silvia toyota ae86