Mazda MX-5

Why can't anyone else - other than Mercedes - do this? It's at this point that I feel I should confess to a slight prejudicial tinge I had before this first drive. To be honest, I thought the MX-5 would be afflicted with the same baggy gene that seems to have knobbled most other CCs to be launched in the last couple of years.

The risk was that customers would demand more refinement and security from their MX-5, Mazda would deliver, but, in the meantime, make the thing hugely cumbersome and ungainly.

Purists already broadcast that the current MX-5 isn't quite so sharp as the original, so it looked like being more cause for concern, notwithstanding the composite roof.

How wrong can you be - MK II? My parents warned me to never leap to conclusions, but it seems I didn't listen well enough. To cope with the extra weight of the hardtop at the back, Mazda has tuned the rear springs and dampers.

Something must have been done correctly because the RC feels exactly the same as the soft-top. Roof up or down, you can't sense the extra weight - there's no increase in body roll and the rear is still well tied down; the added bulk behind the driver certainly hasn't caused anything to feel loose at the back. Plus, of course, there's no scuttle shake here, just like with the soft-top.

As such, the MX-5 Roadster Coupe still flows through the corners. You can carry plenty of speed because it's so secure and flat - there are no issues which cause a lack of confidence. That's helped by the steering, which gives you just the right levels of information without too much kickback, but enough to let you know what's going on.

The Roadster Coupe is also just as precise when you turn-in as the soft-top. There's still an issue with the engine though. The launch was in the Austrian Alps, where there are plenty of long climbs from slow corners. Oh dear, these really reveal the flaws in the two-litre unit. Namely that it lacks torque much below 3,000rpm and gets a bit gruff at anything approaching motorway cruising speed.

Plus, photographer Jonathan Bushell isn't the smallest chap in the world at six foot five, and the RC was reluctant to haul us both up some hills - you've got to really work hard to keep the motor singing in its powerband.

So, just as the engineers put the new MX-5's roof on a diet before fitting it, so the car's potential new owners may want to think Atkins.

The real bonus with the RC is the extra refinement. The intrusive engine note hasn't been knocked back, but wind noise has really been reduced. This can get tiring on long journeys in the soft-top, so the RC is the better GT car. There are no problems conversing with a passenger at speed here.

As such, this version ($44,730) is more rounded and complete. Those purists will probably have a duck-fit, but the RC is the MX-5 to have, despite the extra $2,000 you'll have to find. More importantly, it will simply expand the MX-5's already impressive appeal.

Piers Ward