The MINI Cooper beat out the Mazda Miata in our comparision 03/04/2011
Comparing the 2011 MINI Cooper convertible and the '11 Mazda MX-5 Miata may seem like a strange idea at first, but they fall within the same price range, offer the same number of seats and both have alloy wheels.
Everything else, however, is fairly different. The Miata comes with a 2.0-liter 4-cylinder engine, while the MINI only gets a 1.6-liter 4-cylinder. Looking at the torque and the horsepower, the Cooper loses out, but it doesn't need as much power because it's smaller. Mazda's model gets 167 hp @ 7000 rpm, while MINI's only has 121 @ 6000 rpm.
The Mazda has a five-speed manual transmission, but the MINI has a 6-speed manual.
Fuel economy wise, the MINI is the big winner - it has 28/35 mpg city/highway, while the Miata only get 22/28 mpg city/highway. According to Edmunds.com, the average monthly fuel costs is $142 for the MINI Cooper, while the Mazda Miata costs around $176.
While the Mazda costs $23,1110, the MINI is almost $2,000 more at $24,850, but with the gas benefit and extra speed in the Cooper, we'd say the MINI is the better car here.