The US Mazda parts retailer in Raytown near Kansas City has compared the new 2016 Mazda Miata to a 2015 Porsche Boxster in a side-by-side format.
Comparing everything from horsepower and curb weight to 0-100kph times and prices, the comparison shows a high degree of similarity between the latest Miata and a current Boxster.
"In my opinion, a 2016 Miata offers about 90% of the performance of a new 2015 Porsche Boxster at less than 50% of the cost," said Frank Mitchell, parts manager of MazdaPartsUSA.com.
While the new Miata has a smaller 2.0L 4-cylinder engine than the Boxster's 2.7L flat six, the Miata only trails the Boxster by 0.3 seconds in a race from 0-60mph (100kph).
While the Miata's horsepower to weight ratio is considerably higher than the Boxster (14.9:1 vs 10.9:1), the Miata manages to run the quarter mile (400m) in 14.6 seconds, only 0.6 seconds slower than the Boxster.
The Miata can't match the Boxster's braking distance from 70mph (112kph) to 0 (158 feet/48m vs 145 feet/44m), but the Miata's curb weight is nearly 227kg lower, which keeps the brake distance within 10% of the Porsche's performance.
Price-wise, the Miata is of course much cheaper. In the US, the new Miata goes for US$24,915 (base price) versus US$52,395 of the 2015 Boxster. The Miata also boasts a higher fuel economy rating.
"Obviously, there's a lot to love about a brand new Porsche Boxster," said Mitchell, "but considering you can get 90-95% of the Boxter's performance in the 2016 Miata at less than half the price...let's just say I know where I'd spend my money."
