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100th Anniversary 2020 Mazda MX-5 Miata announced for sale in the U.S.

The 100th Anniversary Special Edition Mazda MX-5 Miata will be sold in the U.S. When Mazda initially announced all of its 100th Anniversary vehicles, U.S. availability was still questionable for Mazda’s roadster. ThatÂ’s no longer the case, as the company announced all the details on the car today. ItÂ’s going to be based off the Grand Touring trim, so itÂ’s outfitted with the maximum amount of equipment. Those that purchase one will be able to choose from either the traditional soft top or an RF version. The soft top is red, while the RF gets a black-painted roof. Every last one of them will be painted in Snowflake White Pearl Mica and feature red accents throughout. Mazda plans on making them with both manual and automatic transmissions. We asked how many will be available, but Mazda told us it isn't sharing that information yet — limited edition Miatas tend to sell out quick. On the exterior, the front fender gets a “100 Years 1920-2020” badge. Wheel center caps for the 17-inch dark-silver wheels also have the 100th Anniversary logo on them, but thatÂ’s it for the exterior. The inside is where Mazda really had its fun. Full red leather seats and red carpeting pop and make this interior unlike any other Miata on sale today. Both the headrests and the floor mats feature 100th Anniversary logos, and as a finishing touch, Mazda put together a special 100th Anniversary key fob that is embossed with the same logo and comes presented in a special edition box. Since this car is based on the Grand Touring, you get performance goodies like Bilstein dampers, limited-slip differential, front shock tower brace and sport-tuned suspension. Of course, it needs the proper six-speed manual transmission to get all of that. From a cost perspective, you only pay a small price for the special edition car. With the soft top and six-speed manual, it totals $33,615. ThatÂ’s just $1,000 more than an identically-equipped regular MX-5 Grand Touring. An RF with the manual totals $36,370, which again, is just $1,000 more than the standard RF. The difference is the same with the automatic transmission Miatas. A soft top auto costs $34,140, while an automatic RF costs $35,695. Mazda says the special edition Miatas will be arriving in dealerships “later this year.” Related Video:

Toyota, Honda, Mazda and Nissan recall 3.4 million vehicles for faulty airbags

Most vehicle recalls that take place these days are a result of some problem that happens during the manufacturing process by the automaker, but as we see here, parts suppliers can also factor in to problematic safety issues. Automotive News is reporting that a total of 3.4 million vehicles produced by Japanese automakers between 2000 and 2004 are being recalled globally due to faulty airbags produced by an outside supplier, Takata Corp.
According to the report, vehicles from Toyota, Honda, Nissan and Mazda are being recalled because of passenger front airbags that do not inflate properly. Globally, Toyota is said to be recalling around 1.73 million cars including 510,000 in the US composed of Toyota Corolla, Matrix, Sequoia and Tundra as well as the Lexus SC430 for the 2001 through 2003 model years; this is the second time this year the 2003 Corolla and Matrix have been recalled for an airbag problem. Honda is recalling 1.14 million models, Nissan another 480,000 and Mazda 45,463. The article says that Takata supplied faulty airbags to non-Japanese automakers, but it did not specify which ones.
Honda and Toyota have released information on their own websites about the recall, while Nissan and Mazda have not yet commented. Read official press releases from Honda and Toyota, below, and look for updates as we have word from the others.

10 automakers shack up in Detroit hotel to talk Takata airbags

Since Takata has decided not to take the lead concerning potential issues with its airbag inflators, the automakers have. Perhaps that's unsurprising, since it's the automakers, not Takata, that will take a beating on the dealership floor if consumers decide its models are a health hazards. The Detroit News reports that Toyota, Honda, General Motors, Ford, Chrysler, Mazda, BMW, Nissan, Mitsubishi and Subaru met in a hotel conference room near the Detroit Metropolitan Airport last week to sort out a way to understand the technical issues involved. So far, faulty airbag inflators have been ruled the cause of five deaths and 50 injuries around the world, but neither Takata nor investigators understands exactly why the inflators are malfunctioning. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration recently asked Takata to issue a national recall, Takata declined, citing a minuscule failure rate and the fact that it's still investigating the issue. Toyota and Honda then made an industry-wide appeal for "a coordinated, comprehensive testing program" that would pinpoint the problem inflators and get them replaced, and that's what the Detroit meeting was about. Numerous issues, however, will make this a long row to hoe: simply getting the parts to replace the nearly 20 million inflators in cars recalled around the world so far - even working with other suppliers - will take a years, but more importantly, no one knows if the replacement inflators currently being installed will suffer the same issue. Answers will hopefully come quickly with Takata, the ten automakers and NHTSA all independently investigating the problem.