James R. Healey

USAToday

Mazda showed its 2016 MX-5 Miata sports car Wednesday in California, Spain and Japan, but gave few key details.

The unveiling was intended as a "design study" to show how the new car will look, not a technical briefing, so a lot of questions remain.

That way it can make another splash when it provides a list of the car's specifications and features before the redesigned MX-5 goes on sale next summer.

But it's not an information black hole, so here are six important things we can tell you about the new Miata:

•It's still tiny, smaller, even, than the current model. Specifically, 3.2 inches shorter, an inche narrower, riding on a wheelbase 0.6 of an inch shorter. It is, Mazda says, "the most compact body size" in the model's history.

•The interior, already a tight fit, gets more so by design. Mazda says it has "a snug-feeling cockpit." because "that enables concentration on driving."

•It'll avoid odd-ball drivetrains. Mazda describes "direct-injection gasoline engines" (that's normal today) and conventional-sounding six-speed manual transmission. A mock-up of the chassis shows a four-cylinder engine.

•It's quite a bit lighter -- about 220 pounds -- because cutting weight is a key piece of Mazda's Skyactiv design philosophy.

•It'll get better mileage. Mazda hasn't said how much better, but improved mpg is another Skyactiv imperative.

•It will give rise to an Alfa Romeo two-seater. Mazda says it will yield "an open-top two-seater for Alfa Romeo based on the new MX-5 with Skyactiv." No timing on that one.