For years the internet begged Mazda for a factory turbo Miata. In 2004 it got one. 178 hp, a Bosch limited slip and two model years on sale.

Then the same people bought the naturally aspirated NB instead. And they had a point.

A stock Mazda Canada heritage car, driven on the right roads, plus what twenty years of owners know about the stock ECU and the parts that are drying up.

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A 2002 MINI Cooper cost $16,850. Adjusted for inflation that's $31,380, and a 2027 MINI Cooper C starts at $30,850.

MINI Canada lent me #1 of 500, the first new MINI on Canadian soil, to see what else 25 years changed.

The price stood still. The question is whether the way it drives made the trip.

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Most of what people call purity in a 1990 MX-5 is a list of things Mazda hadn't gotten around to adding yet.

That makes it the best Miata to drive and the worst one to romanticize.

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Toyota sells two electric crossovers with 338 hp and all wheel drive. The C-HR is the better looking one, and it starts $2,900 below the matching bZ. I went looking for what Toyota took out to get there, and whether you can find it from the driver's seat.

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Ford and RTR gave the 2026 Mustang a Dark Horse rear subframe, 72.5 mm of extra steering lock, an electric drift brake and anti-lag. Then they put it in an EcoBoost with a ten speed automatic and two pedals. I drove it on the road and at Thunderhill to find out whether a drift car works without a clutch.

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Ford's 795 hp Mustang Dark Horse SC Track Pack ships with its best aero configuration left to the owner. The splitter wickers come loose and marked track use only, and the high wing position is set with tools.

Ford's own engineers told me what that configuration is worth at track day speeds, which is a very different number from the one in the press kit.

First drive on the roads around Sonoma and on track at Sonoma Raceway.

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The 2027 MINI Cooper S Paul Smith Edition greets you with a handwritten hello on the pavement, a rabbit on the floor mat, a motto on the sill and a signature stripe on the steering wheel. All of it happens once per door opening.

Whether that $1,400 of charm still earns its keep in 18 months depends far less on the car than on how often you drive it.

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The last time I reviewed a Tacoma TRD Pro I crawled it up a hill in 4 low, which is where its FOX internal bypass shocks do the least work.

This time, it's a closed dirt course at Oro Station, room to carry speed, and both QS3 settings on the same section.

Somewhere around 40 mph the rear axle starts using its whole stroke, and the $67,000 starts to make sense.

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