On the latest episode of Zooming with DRIVEN (which you can watch here) David Linklater talks about the latest upgrade to one of the best cars ever - the Mazda MX-5.
This summer sees the release of the newly upgraded MX-5 GT, which is only available in soft top roadster form and packs 17-inch Gunmetal BBS forged alloy wheels with 205/45 tyres, Bilstein sports dampers, Brembo front brakes with red callipers, a front suspension tower brace and gloss black door mirrors.
Like the other model in the local MX-5 range - the RF hardtop - the GT is powered by Mazda's 135kW/205Nm Skyactiv-G 2.0-litre engine, but unlike the RF which can be had with a manual or automatic transmission, the GT is manual only.
READ MORE
But the biggest addition to the GT is the introduction of Mazda's new "Kinematic Posture Control" - a very clever system that uses the brakes to keep the car flatter through corners.
Unlike a lot of sporty cars, the MX-5 has quite noticeable body roll through corners. Mazda says this is because good roads are quite often bad roads, meaning that fantastically twisty back roads often aren't the best maintained, and the fun of the corners can easily be ruined by an overly firm ride.
This is where KPC comes in. Basically KPC reduces body roll without harming ride quality by using a very slight amount of braking on either of the rear wheels tuned to give a specific downward pull on the inside rear suspension which, in conjunction with the MX-5's anti-squat rear suspension geometry, works to keep the car flatter without affecting the ride.
The system works in a similar way to a typical a brake-torque vectoring system (like Mazda's own G-Vectoring Control Plus for its FWD cars) but only uses a tiny amount of braking to achieve its effect and isn't noticeable from the driver's seat.
According to Mazda North America vehicle dynamics engineer Dave Coleman in an interview with Road & Track, the system applies a maximum of 45 psi of braking pressure to the inside rear brake, while a typical a brake-torque vectoring system applies a minimum of about 450 psi of braking pressure to a single wheel.
Why has Mazda developed this system when a number of carmakers use active anti-roll systems to offer a combination of a smooth ride with sharp handling? Well, while these generally work excellently, they are also heavy, bulky and expensive, three things that fly directly in the face of Mazda's ethos for the MX-5.
You can read more about the new Mazda MX-5 here. You can also check out more DRIVEN videos on our YouTube channel or subscribe to the Zooming with DRIVEN podcast if you prefer your car-based entertainment in audio form over the summer break!
