2003 Mazda Mpv Lx Standard Passenger Van 3-door 3.0l on 2040-cars

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2020 Mazda MX-5 Miata RF Automatic Road Test | Cue the sad trombone

Somewhere in Hiroshima, a parade of nearly finished Miatas glides along a track waiting to receive their beating hearts, the powertrains that'll let them ply their road-carving talents the world over. One – let's call him Fred – is eager to begin his new life as a 2020 Mazda MX-5 Miata, bringing joy to his future owner and just generally being awesome, even if the RF power targa-ish roof that's already been applied to him is a tad dweeby. Visions of hairpins and power slides and expertly executed heal-toe downshifts dance in his head Â… and then it happens. He is given the one thing every new Miata dreads: an automatic transmission. Poor guy. This will not, entirely at least, be yet another diatribe in the ongoing Quixotic campaign to Save the Manuals(!). Automatic transmissions can be quite good and even beneficial in sports cars, especially on the track where removing the need to operate a clutch and expertly execute those heel-toe downshifts lets you better focus on the steering, what the chassis is doing and just going faster. That the computers can shift quicker than you can is another obvious advantage. The trouble with the Miata, and why Fred is now shuffling off the line like George Michael away from the Banana Stand, is that the Mazda six-speed automatic just isn't appropriate for a sports car. The automatics in the rest of Mazda's fleet are actually quite excellent, delivering superior response than rival transmissions, and delivering comparable fuel economy despite possessing fewer gears. However, what works well in a compact crossover like the CX-5 or CX-30 is not necessarily appropriate for a sports car like a Miata. Unlike the dual-clutch transmissions or even some sport-tuned conventional automatics of various performance-oriented cars, this one doesn't downshift adroitly when braking into a corner, anticipating your imminent need to get back on the power. The plastic paddle shifters lack the reassuring, mechanical feel of the best examples, and then don't produce quick-enough reactions from the transmission when up- or downshifting. I found using the shifter itself, which is at least oriented the correct way – with downshift forward and upshift rearward – to ultimately be more rewarding as it has a more involving action to it. Still, it's nothing compared to the solid, snick-snick action of the six-speed manual.

Cars most likely to be involved in accidents

Data from Insurify shows which models have the most accident-prone drivers behind the wheel. It also shows the proportion of the drivers of said vehicles with an at-fault accident on record in the past seven years, based on Insurify’s analysis of over 4 million car insurance applications. For reference, the national average is 10.78%, and each of these vehiclesÂ’ drivers represent a statistically significant increase over that. Now, it would be easy to infer that these cars are dangerous, but such is not necessarily the case. Remember, drivers cause accidents, not cars. These just happen to be the cars that accident-prone drivers drive. YouÂ’ll notice that many are mainstream, affordable cars, often with decent crash ratings. Also keep in mind that vehicle accidents are up since the beginning of the pandemic, so no matter what you drive, please drive safely. 10. Hyundai Ioniq This affordable, electrified vehicle platform sneaks into this list with 14.45% of drivers with a recent at-fault accident on record. 9. Lexus CT Another hybrid, this Prius-powered Lexus beats the national average at 14.57%. 8. Toyota Prius V Yet another hybrid, the larger but discontinued member of the Prius family sees 14.72% of its drivers with recent accidents. 7. Mazda CX-3 The Mazda CX-3, which is discontinued for the 2022 model year, sees the accident-prone making up 14.9% of its drivers. 6. Infiniti Q60 The second and final luxury car on this list has more accident-prone drivers than average, at 14.93%. 5. Subaru Impreza The first of two Subarus on this list has 15.1% of drivers with recent accidents on record. 4. Hyundai Genesis Coupe The Genesis Coupe was only on the market for a brief span before it was discontinued and Genesis spun off into its own luxury brand. That said, it too beats the national average for accidents, at 15.29%. 3. Subaru WRX Despite its standard all-wheel drive, the boy-racer WRX has 15.44% of drivers with a prior accident in the last seven years. 2. Kia Stinger We love the Kia Stinger, and had great luck with our long-termer that graced the Autoblog garage for a year. That said, 15.75% of its drivers represent have a recent accident on record. 1. Scion FR-S This fun two-seater attracts the most accident prone drivers, with 15.87% with recent at-fault crashes. Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Mazda Hazumi concept presages next Mazda2

Looks like Mazda's big Geneva Motor Show debut is actually something quite small. Teased here, the Hazumi concept "points the way to the future" for the brand's subcompact offering, the Mazda2. Details are slim as of this writing, but from what we can see in the image above, the Hazumi will use the same Kodo design language found on the Mazda3, Mazda6 and CX-5. We're big fans of this styling direction, so we fully expect the concept to be quite an attractive little number.
Hazumi means "bound" or "spring up" in Japanese, with Mazda saying this nomenclature is "particularly well-suited to a small car that appears to be bursting with energy." In other words, say goodbye to the friendly faced Mazda2 we've enjoyed since it launched in the United States in 2010. Instead, prepare for something decidedly more assertive, hopefully improving upon the already-great driving dynamics of the current subcompact. If we're honest, we can't wait.
Mazda will also use the Geneva show to debut its new small-displacement, 1.5-liter Skyactiv-D diesel engine. The automaker hasn't confirmed that this new fuel-efficient powerplant will be part of the Hazumi concept package, but considering the two are debuting alongside each other, it would seem to make sense. As for whether or not this engine could come stateside when the next Mazda2 launches, we're not holding our breath for that, especially considering the company's current woes with US-spec diesel engines.