It was 1989 when the Japanese company Mazda would decide to do something reckless: Revive the classic roadster class, following the engineering standards of lightweight construction and affordable driving pleasure. Immediately, the affordable two-seat roadster called the MX-5 would become a hit, continually breaking production and sales records,
winning 100s of international awards, and creating an extremely dynamic fan base.
In 2000, the MX-5 would officially enter the Guinness Book of World Records as the best-selling two-seater sports car in history. At the time, it had sales that reached 532,000 units and, from then until today, it continues to hold that title (having passed the million mark very quickly). Many other Guinness World Records have been broken by the MX-5, such as that of driving on the most winding road (2,900 bends in 12 hours, in the Austrian Alps), the largest parade of cars (459 MX-5s in 2010 in Essen, Germany and 683 MX-5s, in 2013, in Lelystadt, the Netherlands) and, records are about to be broken.
The new Guinness
The owners and fanatics of the Mazda MX-5 have done it again! With 707 cars, the MX-5 Rally of Records, held on September 18, 2022, at the Modena Circuit, enters the GUINNESS WORLD RECORD™ book and officially becomes the largest Mazda MX-5 rally in the world. It surpasses the Dutch record set in 2013, which, with 683 cars, held the record for almost a decade.
All four generations of the iconic MX-5 were on parade together. They made the circuit around the famous track under the supervision of the Guinness World Record adjudicator, who at 18:00 made the record official, bringing joy to thousands of MX-5 fans from all over Italy and Europe. This unique rally gave the Mazda Italy team the opportunity to add an important chapter to the history of the world's best-selling roadster.
During the event, the public had the opportunity to participate in many other Mazda activities, such as the presentation "Fun to drive will never die", with Japanese engineer Nobuhiro Yamamoto, Program Manager of the third and fourth generation Mazda MX-5, Elisa Artioli, automotive enthusiast and granddaughter of Romano Artioli, former Lotus supporter (Elisa is the one who "gave" her name to the Lotus Elise), and Andrea Levy, President of MI.Mo Milano Monza Motor Show. The speakers presented a variety of stories to explain what triggers their passion for motoring and driving pleasure, known in the Japanese company as "Jinba Ittai", i.e. the intuitive connection between a Mazda and its driver.
In another presentation, "Mazda MX-5 - Stories of an icon", Nobuhiro Yamamoto, Andrea Mancini, owner of "Miataland", a luxury resort in the hills of Umbria, where he keeps his MX-5 collection, David Giudici, director of Ruoteclassiche, Youngtimer and AutoItaliana and other guest speakers, discussed their love of the MX-5 through the stories of those who designed it, who own it, and who drive it every day.
There are cars that span decades and evolve from generation to generation, always remaining true to themselves. Such is the case with the MX-5, a timeless symbol and the ultimate expression of "Jinba Ittai" driving pleasure, which unsurprisingly is the best-selling roadster of all time!
