Mazda MX-5 Miata ND Japanese S Special Package

Identity and scope

S Special Package was a Japanese launch grade of the fourth-generation MX-5 Miata ND, sold domestically as the Mazda Roadster from 21 May 2015. It sat between S and S Leather Package. This record describes the Japanese launch specification, rather than an overseas model year. See Mazda’s launch announcement.

Body, engine and transmissions

The two-seat, rear-wheel-drive soft-top combined a direct-injection SKYACTIV-G 1.5-litre petrol engine with either a six-speed SKYACTIV-MT manual or six-speed automatic. Japanese launch prices including tax were ¥2,700,000 and ¥2,808,000 respectively, with the recycling fee additional. Mazda’s lineup documents both configurations.

Launch equipment

Mazda Connect was standard; navigation required a separately purchased SD card. Nine-speaker Bose audio was optional. The automatic included i-stop and i-ELOOP, while these systems were optional on the manual. Blind-spot monitoring, high-beam control, lane-departure warning, adaptive front lighting and rear cross-traffic alert were listed as options rather than standard equipment. These distinctions follow the May 2015 equipment announcement.

Production and development context

Mazda’s 5 March 2015 production announcement records the start of fourth-generation MX-5 production at Ujina Plant No. 1 in Hiroshima, Japan. The first cars were intended for the domestic market. This establishes the generation’s manufacturing context, not a separately documented first assembly date for S Special Package.

Development combined SKYACTIV engineering and KODO design with the aim of preserving the lightweight sports car’s driving appeal while meeting greater safety and environmental demands. S Special Package belongs to that original Japanese launch programme.

The production announcement initially anticipated Japanese sales around June. The subsequent May announcement confirmed 21 May as the sales date. Production commencement and retail introduction are distinct milestones.

Historical position and evidence limits

Its position in the launch catalogue makes S Special Package a useful reference for the equipment and transmission choices available between Japan’s basic and higher-priced grades. That is an interpretation of the documented lineup, rather than a claim about sales popularity or collector value.

The launch documents do not establish a grade-specific production total or discontinuation date. Equipment described here should not be assumed unchanged throughout the ND generation. The parent ND record provides broader development context; the separate Japanese S and S Leather Package records cover adjacent grades.

Sources and image credit

• Mazda Motor Corporation — All-new Mazda Roadster Goes on Sale in Japan, 20 May 2015.
• Mazda Motor Corporation — Mazda Starts Production of All-new Mazda MX-5, 5 March 2015.
• Tokumeigakarinoaoshima — Mazda Roadster S Special Package front photograph, 22 May 2015; CC0 1.0.

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• Mazda MX-5 Miata ND Japanese S Special Package SKYACTIV-G 1.5 Engine

  The SKYACTIV-G 1.5 powered Japan’s ND Roadster S Special Package with either a six-speed manual or six-speed automatic. Its development supported Mazda’s lightweight sports-car philosophy.

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