MAZDA has produced nearly a million MX-5s since the car arrived on the market in 1989, making it the most popular roadster of all time (the MG MGB is a distant second at 386,961, according to Hemmings).

You don’t know what an MX-5 is? In the United States the car is known as the Miata, a name unique to our country and officially dropped by Mazda nearly 10 years ago. That is like trying to rename the Mustang. The Miata’s fans simply ignored the name change. Though the new fourth generation version wears only an MX-5 badge, Mazda often slips “Miata” into its American marketing.

Full disclosure: I bought a new original year Miata back in the day and still own that 1990 model. Cars have changed a lot in 26 years, but the MX-5 remains remarkably true to its original mission of maximum fun with minimum bloat. The 2016 car is better in every way, though I would argue that the original has a cleaner and more elegant design.

Modern Miatas — I mean, MX-5s — have four airbags, traction and stability control, anti-lock brakes and a stout structure, stuff that owners of the first-generation Miata could only dream about. Powerful headlights are LED. At 2,332 pounds, it is 150 pounds lighter than the departing model — important because the 2-liter, 4-cylinder engine makes only 155 horsepower and 148 pound-feet of torque. The automatic and terrific manual transmissions channel six forward speeds to the rear wheels.