2017 Mazda MX-5 RF hardtop has recently repeated the same result as its soft-top sibling – five-star ANCAP rating which just goes to show that the Mazda definitely has great status out there and that is – the best-performing sports cars in crash tests. But that is not all, the company decided to make the entire range even safer by adding the blind-spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alert to base variants in both body styles plus they added the GT’s adaptive LED headlights that swivel into corners. Impressive!
But since we are on the topic of ANCAP testing we must say that, according to ANCAP, Mazda MX-5 has more pedestrian protection than any other tested vehicle (33.72 points out of 36). This is partly thanks to an active bonnet that pops up when an accident is detected, and the second part is thanks to energy-absorbing foam in the front bumper beam, which is combined with the lower stiffener to prevent a pedestrian’s legs from sliding under the car. But this is all, of course, aided greatly by the overall weight that Mazda has, which is as much as a piece of paper when compared to others in its segment.
Now, the overall results that this famous two-seater received are 35.20 out of 37, with 16 out of 16 and 2 out of 2 for the respective occupant protection side impact and pole tests, and 14.2 out of 16 for the frontal offset test. The five-star ANCAP score comes with a 2016 date stamp, and that is mainly because the score that RF received is derived from the soft top’s test that was conducted in late 2015. On the other hand, the two-star ANCAP record for the Ford Mustang, which was revealed a few weeks ago, was date stamped to 2017.
The other, related news, regarding the Mazda MX-5 range, is that the soft-top now starts at $33,340 plus the on-road cost for the 1.5-liter engine. The reason behind this slight price adjustment (launch price was $31,990) is the fact that Mazda made the MZD Connect touchscreen with satellite navigation standard rather than an optional extra. The MX-5 1.5 GT held its price – $37,990, the 2.0 is $34,490 and the 2.0 GT is offered at $39,550. The 2.0 L only RF model kicks off at $38,500, climbing to $43,890 for the RF GT, and the good thing to know is that all prices listed are for versions with a six-speed manual gearbox, while a six-speed automatic is a $2,000 optional equipment.
