Click here for a gallery of the MX-5's ins and outs.

Legend has it that the MX-5 was a response to a journalist's quip to Mazda's head of research and development that a "simple, bugs-in-the-teeth, wind-in-the-hair, classically-British sports car doesn't exist anymore".

Three generations of MX-5s later and the Japanese car manufacturer has unveiled a car that is the epitomy of that statement.

The MX-5 Superlight was rolled out at Frankfurt; a showcase of a superb effort to create a car that embodies pure driving enjoyment. The machine is as close to a bare-bones sportster as is possible, without sacrificing looks and style.

Sadly, there are for now no plans to mass-produce this sub-1000kg, two-seater, which Mazda Europe's chief designer Peter Birtwhistle says has been a dream of his "for a long time".

Mazda says that aesthetics were not the ultimate goal for the cabin, but it was instead "conceived to contribute to reducing vehicle weight". They managed to achieve that and still create a flowing, radical style that smacks more of luxury than of the carbon fibre that fills so much of the interior.

The MX-5 Superlight is no cardboard model. It's a "fully-drivable" version powered by a 1.8-litre, four-cylinder engine with power of 93kW at 6500rpm. Not an astonishing amount of power – but then it has very little weight to propel.

Page two ... Specs

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