Drive Flashback: 1996 Mazda Miata M Coupe - RoadandTrack.com (blog)
And Mazda, fully realizing this, pulled an ace from its sleeve at the New York auto show this past April, where it unveiled the Miata M Coupe, an enclosed version of the phenomenally successful roadster. I promptly called the folks at Mazda and asked if I could take it for a spin. Take one look at the Miata M Coupe and its lineage to the RX-7 is clear—from its subtle double-bubble roof to its dynamic swooping door line. For added aggressiveness, Mazda designers also gave the car low-profile 205/55R-16 tires wrapped around 16-inch, five-spoke alloy wheels and slimmer headlights. But Tom Matano, executive vice president of Mazda R&D of North America, insists that the M Coupe was never intended to fill the void left by the RX-7. "The Miata M Coupe was purely meant as a styling exercise. In the spirit of past sports cars that began life as convertibles and then were later changed to coupes—cars such as the Triumph GT-6—we wanted to see how the Miata design would lend itself to this new format," Matano explained. And to us, it made great sense because we would virtually be creating a new model without the costs of creating an all-new car. Matano added that the M Coupe serves as a tool to keep the Miata image fresh—something that many feel is necessary, because the car has hardly seen any change since its introduction more than six years ago. Source: www.roadandtrack.com
