First-generation Mazda MX-5 owners look for a power boost have always had plenty of options available to them, including throttle bodies, turbochargers, superchargers and engine swaps. But now a UK company has come up with a greener alternative in the form of a plug and play EV conversion.

You might have heard of UK-based Electrogenic’s previous projects. The Oxford company makes drop-in EV packages for the original Land Rover Series and Defender, classic Minis and Porsche 911s, the Jaguar E-type and DeLorean DMC-12. It also hit the headlines when movie star Jason Momoa contracted the firm to perform a bespoke electro-conversion on his 1929 Rolls Royce Phantom II.

Related: Electrogenic’s DeLorean DMC-12 EV Still Needs Roads, But Not Gas

Like the company’s other EV kits, the Miata package is designed to be relatively simple to install, CAD modelling being employed to slot all of the components into the existing engine bay and tunnel space so no cutting or drilling is required. Electrogenic says the swap can be done by a trained mechanic in only a few days, and the kit is also fully reversible should the owner have a change of heart.

But with the single motor cranking out 160 hp (120 kW / 163 PS) instead of the original 1.6-liter combustion engine’s 116 hp (87 kW / 118 hp) and the zero to 60 mph (97 kmh) tumbling by about 3 seconds to 6 seconds, those owners might be having too much fun to want to switch back.

Yes, the 115 mph (185 km/h) top speed sounds less impressive – and it’s very close to stock – but irrelevant in a car that has always been about cornering fun. And Electrogenic says there’s more of that to be had because the weight distribution is the same as on a donor MX-5, but a huge jump in torque from 100 lb-ft (136 Nm) to 229 lb-ft (310 Nm) gives you more opportunities to exploit the chassis.

Naturally there’s a weight penalty, even if the distribution is the same, but it’s not terrible. The EV swap adds 220 lbs (100 kg), though the resulting 2,425 lbs (1,100 kg) curb weight makes it 27 lbs (12kg) lighter than a 2025 Miata RF, and only 84 lbs (38 kg) porkier than the current rag-top.

You even get multiple driving modes with different torque and regeneration characteristics, and though the 150-mile (240 km) range is way off modern EV standards, it’s probably as far as anyone would want to go in an early MX-5 in one hit no matter what kind of powertrain is under the hood. The 42 kWh battery can also be charged in an hour.

As with all of these classic EV conversions, this is a niche proposition. Maybe more than the others because the cost of the kit (still TBC but sure to be north of $20k) is going to be harder to justify on a car that even in mint condition is only worth $15-20k than it is on a classic 911 worth $120k. Some potential buyers might also be put off by the loss of the MX-5’s manual shift action, always one of the joys of driving a Miata, although Electrogenic has done custom manual conversions for customers in the past, so we image the team would do it again if offered the right kind of financial encouragement.

With Porsche about to reveal its 718 EVs and Alpine’s boss this week claiming the upcoming electric A110 will weigh less than rival combustion sports cars, machines like Electrogenic’s MX-5 kit are highly topical, and we’re sure we’ll only be seeing more in the years to come. Would you EV swap your classic NA Miata?

About a year ago, Mazda turned heads with the unveiling of the Iconic SP concept, a gorgeous retro-futuristic coupe powered by an electric motor and a rotary range extender. Now, after months of speculation and rumor-mongering, we finally have official word: this isn’t just another flashy concept destined for obscurity, as it’s actually heading for production.

Masashi Nakayama, Mazda’s design chief, confirmed the news, stating, “This concept is not just one of those empty show cars. It has been designed with real intent to turn it into a production model in the not-so-distant future.”

More: Mazda’s Iconic SP Concept Looks Amazing Out In The Open

This is the first time we’ve heard Mazda commit to building the Iconic SP, along with a tentative timeline, though the signs were there The first hint came during the concept’s debut at the 2023 Japan Mobility Show, where Mazda President and CEO Masahiro Moro described it as a beacon of the brand’s “commitment to the future.” Then, in a later interview, Nakayama hinted that the Iconic SP was a project he’d love to see realized, stoking fires that had already started to smolder among Mazda enthusiasts. Now, with production confirmed, that vision is one step closer to reality.

The Iconic SP’s final form could evolve into a successor of the RX-7 and RX-8 sports cars, although Mazda has hinted that its footprint can also be shrunk down to the size of the MX-5 roadster. Ideally, the production version will hold on to the clean lines and seductive curves of the concept, along with those distinctive pop-up headlights. In a market flooded with overwrought designs, the Iconic SP stands out like a glass of neat scotch in a sea of sugary cocktails.

Naohito Saga, the Executive Officer at Mazda’s R&D Strategy Planning Division, emphasized the painstaking attention to detail in the Iconic SP’s design: “The more time you spend looking at it, the more the car will reveal to you”. The high-ranked official went on to mention that “everything from position of the doors and tyres, to the length of the vehicle, the seating position of the occupants and visibility was meticulously researched before reaching the final specifications”.

In other words, this isn’t some cobbled-together concept for auto shows; Mazda clearly invested serious resources into making this a viable production vehicle.

Range-Extender Rotary Engine

While Mazda hasn’t shared any details about what might power the production version, at the heart of the Iconic SP concept lies a compact dual-rotor rotary engine paired with an EV drivetrain. In that car, it produces a combined output of 365 hp (272 kW / 370 PS). The company claims that the range-extender can be adapted to run on any kind of carbon-neutral fuel, potentially reducing emissions by up to 90 percent.

According to Saga, “The rotary engine can be very compact and very powerful at the same time. That’s one advantage, but also it can be powered by various types of fuels, and that could give us an edge in the race to find a feasible solution for the future of mobility”.

Furthermore, Mazda is currently experimenting with a new technology that could capture CO2 from exhaust emissions. If the proof of concept goes to plan, the technology “could play a role in the development of Mazda’s future range of vehicles”.

Earlier this year, Mazda told Carscoops that a rotary-powered project would reach the market as soon as some “technical hurdles” were overcome. Hopefully, this coincides with the launch of the production version of the Iconic SP in the next few years.