Here's How One Button Makes The Mazda MX-5 RF Both A Convertible And Fastback

7 years, 5 months ago - 23 October 2016, Carbuzz
Mazda MX-5 RF
Mazda MX-5 RF
Turning the Miata into a sports car with mild touches of luxury ups the ante considerably.

Convertibles are the preferred mode of transportation for both attention lovers and road going nature enthusiasts, but sometimes, it’s nice to have the luxury of a theft resistant and noise insulating hard top and the sloping roofline of a fastback coupe. For Mazda to prove that it takes its customer’s demands seriously, and because it’s trying its best to swim upmarket (where it deserves to be with recent quality improvements) Mazda got to work on the RF, becoming the first retractable fastback in MX-5 history.

It’s a genius idea too, even though previous generation Miatas have power retractable hardtop roofs, none looked as good as this.

If Ford added this option to the Mustang, we’d be sure to see sales from interested parties that liked the coupe silhouette and the open air ride of a convertible. With the MX-5 RF, Mazda is going after this very group, one that previously had the Porsche 911 Targa to count on.

Given that the MX-5 Miata is the perfect enthusiast’s car for those that fall outside of a Porsche budget, the new RF should sell decently well as a separate option. To help prove its point, Mazda decided to reconstruct the RF’s roof operation to show us how it manages to keep its clean fastback coupe lines while allowing the sky to be the limit. The complex-looking mechanism makes the ordeal look easy while keeping weight gain to only 110 pounds.