Improvements introduced for 2009 still seem fresh, and largely welcome.   Those upgrades include better seats, new colors and new graphics for the gauges.   The center console has been redesigned for more flexible storage and better comfort, with a padded armrest behind the gear shift.  

Fit and finish is tight and smooth, and materials are richer than they've ever been.   Trim panels on the center stack fit flush and look expensively made.   The base cloth upholstery is nice, with lightly woven, smooth-finish bolsters and waffle-weave insets.   Depending on the weather, the cloth upholstery can be more comfortable than leather, which comes standard in the Grand Touring models.   The hardtop roof's headliner is finished in a hard, flat-black textured covering that, if not luxurious, is certainly tidy.   Overall, interior quality and appearance are way better than old-time Miata faithful will expect.  

The MX-5 is roomier than it looks, too.   The current generation grew in all dimensions, and it's more accommodating than ever, even if it can still be a snug fit for full-figured or really tall drivers.   Rearward seat travel has extended by about an inch, and you can feel it.   In older MX-5s a six-foot driver would adjust the driver's seat all the way back.   Now there's a notch or two left in the travel.   The car's expanded girth yields an additional 1.4 inches in hip room, and it too makes a difference.  

Seats are neither overly firm nor too plush, but they are properly bolstered for the type of driving the Miata invites.   The seat shape has been refined for better lower-body comfort, while the backrest still delivers body-hugging lateral support.   For taller drivers, thigh support is acceptable at best, and there is still no lumbar adjustment.   The tilt steering wheel helps at least a little, and the seat-height adjustment is a welcome addition.   The properly stubby shift lever is where it should be.   The hand brake sits on the passenger side of the drive tunnel.  

A single set of power window buttons is located on the center console aft of the shift boot.   The center stack hosts intuitively positioned stereo and air conditioning knobs, buttons and recessed toggles that are easy to grasp and manipulate.   A power outlet conveniently placed at the base of the center stack waits for a radar detector or cell phone.   Four air registers are spaced across the dash in a dark silver panel.   They swivel with a surprisingly expensive feel.  

All gauges are analog, with a large, round tachometer and matching speedometer straddling the steering column, shaded from all but trailing sunlight by an arched hood.   Fuel level is reported in a small circle to the lower left, coolant temperature to the lower right, and oil pressure (thank you very much!) by a matching triplet positioned top center between the tach and speedo.   It's the kind of engine monitoring sports car drivers love.  

Headlights are managed by a stalk on the left side of the steering column, windshield wipers and washer by a stalk on the right.   On the Touring model and above, the horizontal steering wheel spokes have cruise and secondary audio controls.  

The premium sound system has a function Bose calls Audiopilot.   It goes beyond simple speed-sensing volume control by actually re-mixing the sound coming out of the speakers to help the stereo punch through the ambient wind and road noise that accompanies open-air motoring.   Oversize speakers dominate the forward part of the door panels.  

Water bottle holders are molded into the space between the speakers and the door pulls/armrests.   There's a decent amount of storage for a small, two-seat car: A lockable glove box that's surprisingly roomy, storage in the center console, and bins behind each of the seats with the soft top (they're sacrificed in Hard Top models).  

Neither the soft top nor the retractable hard top impact trunk room.   With the hard top, a rear panel aft of the front seats raises to allow the top to drop into the well, and covers it back up once it's snuggled in place.   That's a blessing because the MX-5 has little trunk space to begin with.   That's not unusual with cars of this type, of course, and many luxury brand sports cars have tops that fold into the trunk, further exacerbating the problem.  

The trunk's 5.3-cubic-foot capacity is shaped for a few small, soft bags.   It's just enough to get a couple traveling light through a weekend trip, and it takes a decent load of groceries.   Mazda says the floor is deep enough for a case of tall, 1.5-liter beverage bottles.   The spare tire was left out more to save weight than to add space for golf clubs.