He's as approachable as any enthusiast, and happily answers any technical questions without that characteristic air of long-suffering patience affected by most company engineers, generously sharing information in easily digestible terms. Then, he's just as likely to whip out his iPhone to show you pictures of the "Project Miatabusa", a deliciously insane transformation of a mild-mannered Miata into a Suzuki Hayabusa-powered, fire-breathing, pint-sized dragon slayer.
With folks like these at the drawing board, it's less surprising that a small people mover can mimic the feel of their much-loved sports car. After one sweeping, downward mountain spiral, my driving partner remarked that he'd forgotten he was driving a crossover, so planted and focussed was its ride.
For the first part of our drive, we chose a pre-production tester equipped with a 6-speed automatic transmission. It claims to be more efficient than a dual-clutch transmission, with less friction, rev-matching downshifts and a torque converter that's only active below 5 mph. Although the shifts are indeed smooth and quick, the transmission works hard to keep the engine in its powerband on the steep mountain roads. The result is a fair bit of engine noise at high rpms – those 155 horses need a fair bit of flogging to maintain speed on the inclines.
We're forewarned that our prototype vehicles may exhibit less-than-perfect fit and finish than the final production models. Nonetheless, our first tester was well insulated and comfortable in black cushy leather. According to head designer Derek Jenkins, "years of research revealed that human beings like shiny bits." Thus, the soft-touch materials are complimented by touches of subtle, satin chrome. The rear seats fold down, origami style, in a process called "Karakuri" which loosely translates as "trick". The one-touch mechanism can drop either or both seats to increase cargo space from 966 to 1,852 litres.
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| For the first part of our drive, we chose a pre-production tester equipped with a 6-speed automatic transmission. (Photo: Lesley Wimbush/Auto123.com) |
With folks like these at the drawing board, it's less surprising that a small people mover can mimic the feel of their much-loved sports car. After one sweeping, downward mountain spiral, my driving partner remarked that he'd forgotten he was driving a crossover, so planted and focussed was its ride.
For the first part of our drive, we chose a pre-production tester equipped with a 6-speed automatic transmission. It claims to be more efficient than a dual-clutch transmission, with less friction, rev-matching downshifts and a torque converter that's only active below 5 mph. Although the shifts are indeed smooth and quick, the transmission works hard to keep the engine in its powerband on the steep mountain roads. The result is a fair bit of engine noise at high rpms – those 155 horses need a fair bit of flogging to maintain speed on the inclines.
We're forewarned that our prototype vehicles may exhibit less-than-perfect fit and finish than the final production models. Nonetheless, our first tester was well insulated and comfortable in black cushy leather. According to head designer Derek Jenkins, "years of research revealed that human beings like shiny bits." Thus, the soft-touch materials are complimented by touches of subtle, satin chrome. The rear seats fold down, origami style, in a process called "Karakuri" which loosely translates as "trick". The one-touch mechanism can drop either or both seats to increase cargo space from 966 to 1,852 litres.
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| The soft-touch materials are complimented by touches of subtle, satin chrome. (Photo: Mazda) |