No matter what color you choose, the new Mazda MX-5 captures the essence of the "little red convertible." Better built and safer than the cars that provided the inspiration, the MX-5 zooms, darts and swerves like a true sports car.

Every move feels honest and instinctive, far more so than you would expect in a car at this price. My favorite touch is the small oil-pressure gauge mounted high in the middle of the instrument cluster. (In this age of "idiot lights," this is a bit of retro fun.) It's always in view, wagging up and down in time with the happily revving engine.

-- Peter Valdes-Dapena, CNNMoney.com
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