Toyota GR86 vs Hyundai i20N vs Caterham 170R vs Mazda MX-5 'Cheap' Road Trip

Sub-£30k cars, a £300 spending cap for food, bed and fuel – road trips needn’t cost the world... as Top Gear Magazine’s Ollie Marriage sets out to prove by pitting the new Toyota GR86 against the Hyundai i20N, Caterham 170R and Mazda MX-5 in a very wet Wales.

#topgear #toyota #hyundai #caterham #mazda

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This is a commercial channel from BBC Studios.

[Dejw_mx]

In 2022 I was shopping for a used affordable sportscar. My top contenders MX-5 G184 RF, GT86, and BRZ. Since my budget was around 25-26K EUR, the BRZ dropped out relatively quick :D. First I tried MX-5 with Sportspack (Bilstein, Recaro) and then on stock suspension with standard leather seats. The sports pack version was definitely better in handling, but I was not too fond of the Recaro seats, they were too stiff for me as I was planning to daily the car and also take it for longer road trips. So the version without the sports pack would be my go-to option. Then I tried the GT86 and it was a clear winner for me, car was handling as sharp as the MX-5 with the sports pack and the ride quality was great. Even though it's over 200kg heavier with more power 205hp it felt livelier than MX5. Just before I was about to buy the GT86 I met a guy who let me drive a slightly moded MX5. His MX-5 had a Bilstein\Eibach B12 sportline kit and thicker anti-rollbars from Whiteline. Immediately this car felt way sharper than the GT86, whilst keeping the ride quality great as well. The other great thing was his engine tune, his MX-5 had 210hp and revved to 8K, this mod was similar to BBR kit, but on a way cheaper side (around 2K EUR). You would not believe what can 30 more HP do to such a small car :D it became a bullet. In the end, I managed to find MX-5 G184 RF with 30K km on in for 24K EUR, and I Immediately installed Bilstein\Eibach B12 sportline kit and Whiteline anti-roll bars for 1, 5K EUR. So the total is still cheaper than the cheapest comparable GT86 I could find and I could not be happier. Planning to do the engine tune-up next year :)

[ajr]

Was this a toyota commercial? Ive never heard someone describe the ND2 miata as being “dull”.

[SrGoatie]

I was hoping Chris Harris would be in the video. That man keeps this show going

[veefource]

Odd the MX-5 was criticised for having a dull engine when nearly every other review say it's freer revving than the GR86 and does at least sound authentic unlike the (to my ears; subjectively awful) Nintendo sound augmentation in the latter. Unplugging it would be job 1 if I bought that car but then it would be too quiet and definitely wouldn't sound as good as the Mazda.

[spamansh]

If every person on earth drove a GR86 the world would be a happier place

[raketmakhim]

I had my i20n for 4 and a half months now and already done 7000 miles on it. I just keep wanting to drive it. so much fun!

[spraynpray]

That was the longest toyota commercial I've ever seen. Almost mentioned the other cars.

[Anamnesis]

As an owner of an MX-5 Club Edition with the BBS/Brembo/Recaro/Bilstein package, I'll testify that several of the nitpicks made here of the car being a bit soft are alleviated with that setup. Seems only fair that if you've got kitted out versions of all the other cars that you should also be running a kitted out MX-5 against them...

[Grudlin]

Why use MPG and then talk in litres used. Seriously commit to metric it just makes your life simpler 🤣

[skullft]

I love the MX5! It’s a proper twists and turns road kind of car, probably explains why I’ve never really seen any on a motorway

[jameswillard]

1:02 Jesus Christ…..who did the body work on the front bumper of the Miata 😳

[expert_procrastinator]

Agree the suspension and steering on the MX5 could be better, but calling the 2.0 litre engine dull, huh?!
It's a joy, right up to the 7, 500 rpm red line! 🔥 🔥

[davevan]

Driving beside the Caterham made the 86 look enormous.

[MISTERLeSkid]

I made it to almost 7 minutes. I have never seen ANY car show go on and on about vagueries and generic comments without a single specification or anything remotely specific or interesting for car enthusiasts.

[MFitz]

I did 9 days of solo camping in a Subaru BRZ last fall. All the kit and me fit, averaged near 35 mpg.

[Bmontepeque]

Light, Analog, Fun Affordable Sports Cars are the best cars out there at any price point 🧐❤️ (The GR 86 is my favorite of these 🥰)

[jimiverson]

With that fuel mileage, the Caterham is clearly the practical

[RRobbin]

Always fun to see these sort a budget cars

[dafiltafish]

The adjectives used to describe the Miata are like what I might use on a Chevrolet Malibu, seriously who at Mazda pissed in your oatmeal?

[TerribleUsernameAmirite]

3:15 oh my god, the sneaky Alfa Montreal there. Suddenly that museum is a bucket list item for me. Hopefully it’s a permanent part of the collection.