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2016 Mazda MX-5 Miata battles Toyota GT86 on track

It's got two doors and a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine up front, driving the rear wheels. It's made in Japan, and as far as bang-for-your-buck goes, it's a downright bargain. So which are we talking about, the Mazda MX-5 Miata, or the Toyobaru coupe known alternately as the Subaru BRZ, Scion FR-S, or Toyota GT-86? The answer is "yes," and it just goes to show, roofs notwithstanding, how close these two vehicles really are to one another. Which one is your favorite may come down to a matter of personal taste, but for its latest video, Auto Express set out to find out which laps faster around the track. On paper at least, the Toyota's 200 horsepower will trump the Mazda's 155 any day of the week, and twice on Sunday. Then again, the Miata does weigh a good 400 pounds less, even with the 2.0-liter engine and despite its convertible bodystyle – but is that enough to make up the difference? You're going to have to just watch the video for yourself to find out. All we'll tell you is that the match is pretty darn close – what you might call a photo finish, if they were actually racing each other at the same time as opposed to each racing the clock separately. So watch the video above and voice your support for your favorite little Japanese sports car in the Comments section. Related Video:

Fourth-gen Mazda MX-5 Miata could get turbo power later in life

While there's a lot to love about the new Mazda MX-5 Miata, its debut was met by a vocal group of enthusiasts who derided the fourth-generation roadster's reduction in power output. The new model only puts out 155 horsepower, down from 167 in the NC. A report from Australia, though, claims Mazda may yet address the less potent output of the ND. Things started earlier this year, as Motoring.com.au tells it, when Mazda's global PR boss, Kudo Hidetoshi, hinted that a turbocharged or Mazdaspeed model "will definitely" be considered. Then last month at Goodwood, the ND's program manager, Nobuhiro Yamamoto, said complainers were welcome to get their thrills elsewhere. Recognizing this contradiction among Mazda's brass, Motoring asked Yamamoto-san again about his statements, which he seemed to walk back. "It's not a conflict [between statements made by Yamamoto and Hidetoshi]," Yamamoto said, indicating that his statements were made in relation to the new MX-5's launch. "Kudo-san talked about this in terms of a 10-year lifespan, but when I was asked the question right after the launching of the ND, I said 'we have no plan to have a turbo at that point in time.' That is what I meant." Seeking an opening, Motoring pushed the Japanese engineer on the chances of a more potent MX-5, perhaps without a turbocharger. "If you could achieve what we want, to which is great response, very light and powerful with great performance feel with natural aspiration, then we don't need a turbo," Yamamoto said. "But if we want more power because we don't get satisfied with natural aspiration then we may think about the turbo." Related Video:

Mazda pits 2016 MX-5 Miata against the original

Mazda has toiled admirably to keep the latest MX-5 Miata true to the spirit of the original. But just how close did the team come? To find out, the Japanese automaker brought two bookending examples of its iconic roadster down to a racetrack in Spain and put them in the hands of a couple of endurance racing drivers – Jade Paveley in the original, Owen Mildenhall in the new model. Whichever crossed the finish line first at the end of one lap would win. And because 25 years of progress wouldn't exactly make it a fair match, they gave the original a four-second head start. Watch the video above to see how it went down. Related Video: