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Mazda ad showing Facebook updates while driving criticized by Senate committee [w/video]

Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller, D-WV, held an all-day summit on Thursday to discuss the dangers of using modern technology while driving, during which an ad that Mazda aired during the Super Bowl was used as an example of the worrisome future towards which we're headed. While seemingly innocuous at first glance, the ad, which can be seen below, shows a brief glimpse of a driver using the Mazda Connect infotainment system in a Mazda3 to check/update his Facebook page while driving down the road.
Officials from major communications companies like Samsung, Google and Apple attended the summit, as well as representatives from automakers including General Motors and Toyota. A representative from Mazda was not present despite the company's own currently available technology being used as the poster child for the issues being discussed.
According to Automotive News, Senator Rockefeller warned the automaker and communication execs on hand that he will propose legislation to regulate the use of technology while driving if they don't work together to implement their own standards more quickly. Michael Robinson, GM's vice president of sustainability and global regulatory affairs, argued that his company has had distracted driving guidelines in place for 15 years since the advent of its OnStar system, noting that the technology in question has also helped the automaker save lives through automatic crash detection and calls to 911.

30th Anniversary Mazda MX-5 Miata sells out immediately

Remember back in 2014, when Mazda released the 25th Anniversary Mazda MX-5 Miata and it sold out in 10 minutes? Now, just hours ago at the Chicago Auto Show, Mazda opened the books for the 30th Anniversary model — and you guessed right, it's now sold out as well. This time around, it took four hours, but there's a difference: in 2014, there only were 100 25th Anniversary cars to pre-order, and for the big 3-0, Mazda allocated 500 U.S. cars. We're expecting the 2,500 rest-of-the-world cars will also sell out rather quickly. The 25th Anniversary model was Soul Red, but in the lighting seen in the 2014 article it rather reminds us of the "Sunkist" orange of the original NA generation Miata color test car, the orange one out of six one-off special paint cars. This year's model is more clearly orange, a hue Mazda calls "Racing Orange" and says it's inspired by the 1989 Club Racer concept's ... bright yellow. In any case, it's a good match with the ND's swoopy flanks. There is — we mean, was — a choice of regular Roadster from $34,995 and the folding top RF version from $37,995, and a choice of manual or automatic transmission. It took a refundable $500 deposit to secure one of the 500 cars. Chicago Auto Show Mazda

Why you absolutely need to take your Miata to a track

Our long-term 2016 Mazda MX-5 Miata entertained us all summer, but we couldn't let the good weather pass without taking a trip to a race track. So we headed to GingerMan Raceway on the other side of Michigan to give it some exercise. It's there that I fell deeper in love with our little silver-white Club and immediately regretted not taking it to the track every single weekend prior. I make a very simple case in the video above: Miatas belong on the track. They're made for it, especially our ND Club, the most track-friendly version Mazda currently makes. The Miata is also a wonderful tool for those learning to drive in these conditions. It gives you good feedback, there isn't too much power available, but the engine's output is plenty to make things entertaining. It's also one of the more balanced performance cars you can buy today and doesn't rely on fancy electronics to go faster – it's a nearly direct connection between you and the car, with no weird intermediaries or adjustable elements. This is really the simplest form of fun. To sum up: If you have a Miata, take it to a track. If you don't have a Miata, go buy one. Watch the video again if you're not convinced. Related Video: