2015 Mazda MX-5 2.0 Sport Nav | PH Fleet

If you were bored enough to read my last update in December, you may recall I’d tucked the MX-5 up in the garage and declared it SORN. That lasted all of about three weeks. With milder conditions, no salt on the road and the sun shining on Christmas Day, it would have been rude not to take GY65 GMO out for a spin. As much as I enjoy driving with the roof down in the summer in T-shirt and shorts, having it down in the winter with the heated seats, a warm coat and a beanie on is just as enjoyable.

I failed to pull my finger out and find a solution for retrofitting Apple Carplay over the winter so that’s still on the shortlist, but I did at least get the steering wheel retrimmed by Royal Steering Wheels. I went for slightly thicker Alcantara, chunkier thumb grips, red stitching and a red leather band at 12 o’clock, which set me back £220. But it was worth every penny, and coupled with the heavier IL Motorsport gearknob, it really makes the MX-5 feel much more purposeful to drive. It’s a perfect match for all the OEM Alcantara trimmings I’ve been adding too.

Of course, the really exciting bit arrived with a visit to Performance Link in Gloucestershire for an exhaust manifold and remap. The OEM manifold really restricts the airflow, and the factory mapping has further restrictions that are all cheerfully eliminated as part of the remap process. Mazda couldn’t have too many hairdressers ending up sideways into hedges now.

A manifold and remap for an ND1 at Performance Link is £1,299 with a decat race manifold, or £1,349 with a sports catted manifold. My car achieved a mighty 185bhp and 178 ft lb of torque (up from 160 and 148 respectively), with the rev limiter raised up to a sweet 7,300rpm. If you own an ND2, you can expect over 200bhp. Which may not sound like a huge amount, but for a car that weighs just over a tonne, it’s the sweet spot for putting a huge smile on your face, without constantly risking losing your licence.

I’ve had plenty of experience with having turbocharged cars remapped, but this was my first time with something naturally aspirated. It wasn’t long ago that I had my Ford Fiesta ST mapped, adding circa 15% more horsepower winding up the boost on the turbo. The gains on the MX-5 aren’t too dissimilar but are very different in feel. The ST was night and day different, with power delivery much more aggressive thanks to a greater gain in torque.

Pinning the throttle in a straight line in the MX-5 isn’t quite as transformative, yet if you dig a little deeper, the power gains become more obvious. It now pulls harder through the rev range right up to the limiter. The back end is keener to step out under heavy acceleration, and it generally feels more eager to pick up speed at any time. Worth the wait then? Absolutely. It feels like the MX-5 is becoming more of my own, and is now even more entertaining to drive.

The next step in power would be to add cams that could see another 10-15bhp added, but at a greater cost (£1,750) for less of a gain, comparatively speaking. It’s tempting but for now, I’m just going to enjoy the extra power I now have in GY65 GMO and this lovely spring weather while it lasts. I’m tempted to tighten up the suspension with some lowering springs or coilovers later in the year, but I don’t want to compromise the ride quality with my local roads in such a dire state. Any tips or shared experiences are very welcome in the comments!

Car: 2015 Mazda MX-5 2.0 Sport Nav
Run by: Ben Lowden
On fleet since: July 2025
Mileage: 6,766
Modifications: Performance Link remap (185bhp), SPS exhaust manifold, EBC Yellow Stuff brake pads, HEL braided brake lines, Motul RBF660 brake fluid, IL Motorsport gearknob, Fyralip boot spoiler, Abarth 124 Spider speedometer