Mazda MX-5 NA (Mk1) Eunos Roadster S-Special (Japan)

The Eunos Roadster S-Special is one of the more easily misunderstood Japanese-market versions of the first-generation Mazda MX-5. The name appeared during the 1.6-litre NA6CE period, but it did not disappear when the Japanese Roadster moved to the 1.8-litre NA8C specification in 1993.

That matters because a search for “S-Special specification” often produces two apparently conflicting answers. One source describes a 1.6-litre NA6CE; another describes a 1.8-litre NA8C. Both can be describing genuine S-Specials from different points in the model's life.

The safest way to understand one is therefore to establish when it was built and which chassis family it belongs to before applying engine, differential or equipment claims.

What was the Eunos Roadster S-Special?

In Japan, Mazda sold the first-generation MX-5 as the Eunos Roadster. Mazda's own current history confirms that Japanese sales began under that name, so Eunos Roadster S-Special is more precise for the home-market grade than simply calling every car a Mazda MX-5 S Special.

Mazda's current Classic parts-information service also names S-Special directly in its NA6CE table. In that service table Mazda separates regular models from limited cars; S-Special appears on the limited-car side alongside J-Limited and S-Limited, while V-Special appears with the regular grades.

That is useful evidence that S-Special is a real Mazda-recognised grade, not a later importer nickname. It should not, however, be read as a complete factory production ledger. The page is describing eligibility for Mazda's current parts/restoration service, not every combination Mazda ever built.

When did the S-Special start?

The best evidence available here points to 1992, but the exact month depends on what a source is dating.

Atelier Nii's archive of period Roadster literature lists a dedicated S-SPECIAL brochure in July 1992 and a full-line Japanese brochure in August 1992 marked around the addition of S-SPECIAL. Its model chronology places the late NA6CE phase from August 1992 and says the S-Special was added with that update.

A modern Japanese specification database instead labels an NA6CE S-Special as a September 1992 release.

Those dates are close enough that forcing one into a supposedly exact universal launch day would add false precision. The practical point is clearer: S-Special belongs to the late 1.6-litre NA6CE period from 1992, before continuing into the 1.8-litre era.

The early 1.6-litre NA6CE S-Special

For the early phase, a surviving 1992 Japanese Mazda S-Special brochure is much stronger evidence than later equipment folklore. Mazda presents the S-Special as a handling-focused version and explicitly names jointly developed Bilstein dampers within dedicated suspension tuning, a front suspension-tower brace, lightweight BBS alloy wheels and a rear spoiler. The same brochure identifies Nardi leather steering-wheel and shift-knob trim, while power steering and power windows are also described as part of the package.

That changes how those familiar cues should be treated. BBS wheels, Bilstein dampers and Nardi controls are not merely accessories enthusiasts later came to associate with the model: they were part of Mazda's period S-Special presentation. The brochure also describes tuning to the rear coil-spring rate, rear stabiliser diameter and bump-stop characteristics, which makes the derivative's purpose clearer—it was a chassis-and-handling package rather than an engine-output special.

Separate Japanese catalogue data identifies an early E-NA6CE S-Special with the 1,597 cc B6-series engine and five-speed manual transmission. Those figures remain phase-specific rather than universal S-Special facts because the name continued into NA8C.

They are useful clues, but they are not authentication on their own. Wheels, dampers, braces, steering wheels and shift knobs are all replaceable. Thirty-plus years of repairs and upgrades mean an apparently perfect equipment checklist can be assembled on the wrong car, while a genuine S-Special may have lost original components long ago.

For a serious originality check, the chassis identity and period paperwork should come first.

Did Mazda make a 1.8-litre S-Special?

Yes. Japanese catalogue evidence shows S-Special continuing after the Roadster changed to the NA8C platform and 1.8-litre engine.

Goo-net's September 1993 Japanese model catalogue describes the Roadster range changing from the earlier 1.6 to a 1.8-litre inline-four producing 130 PS, alongside body and suspension revisions. Its grade table explicitly includes an E-NA8C 1.8 S-Special Type I, with 1,839 cc, five-speed manual, rear-wheel drive and a listed 990 kg kerb weight.

This is an important distinction for UK buyers because many Japanese-market cars arrived here years later and are advertised simply as “S-Special”. A 1993 1.8-litre car is not automatically misbadged just because earlier references describe a 1.6.

At the same time, the later 1.8 specification must not be projected backwards onto every S-Special. The NA6CE and NA8C phases differ in engine, chassis code and other mechanical details.

What changed with the NA8C 1.8 cars?

The Japanese September 1993 catalogue material describes the wider Roadster update as more than an engine-capacity increase. It records changes to body rigidity and suspension and says the range moved from a viscous limited-slip differential to a Torsen-type unit.

That context helps explain why a later S-Special can feel materially different from a 1992 NA6CE car even though the grade name is shared.

It also means phrases such as “the S-Special has a Torsen LSD” need a build-period qualifier. They can be appropriate to later NA8C examples but are too broad when applied to the whole S-Special name from 1992 onward.

What do S-Special Type I and Type II mean?

The 1.8-litre era adds another naming wrinkle. Type II is a later S-Special derivative, not another name for every NA8C S-Special.

Specialist Roadster chronology keeps S SPECIAL in the first two NA8C phases from 1993 through mid-1995. When the Japanese-market NA8C moved into its later Series 2 phase in August 1995, the same chronology lists both S SPECIAL and a newly added S SPECIAL Type II. Japanese historical catalogue records independently show Type I and Type II side by side in the later range.

CarSensor's historical Japanese catalogue, for example, records an E-NA8C 1.8 S-Special Type II in the August 1995-November 1996 phase with a five-speed manual gearbox. That is useful identification evidence for the late derivative, but it should not be used to rewrite an earlier car.

A 1993 1.8 S-Special such as the TMJC-associated L943XLO belongs to the earlier NA8C phase. Seeing a later Type II advert with different details does not make the 1993 car contradictory, and fitting a late car's equipment to an earlier shell would not change its original grade identity.

The exact factory equipment delta between Type I and Type II still needs a directly readable period Mazda Japanese specification table before it should be stated as a definitive checklist. The surviving October 1995 Mazda brochure is archived, but its large PDF could not be reliably rendered in this research pass, so no unseen brochure detail is promoted here.

S-Special is not the same as S-Limited

The similar names invite confusion.

S-Special is the sporty grade introduced during the late NA6CE period and carried into NA8C. S-Limited is a separate late-1992 NA6CE limited series with its own identity. They are separate variants, and the distinction matters because their originality and specification questions are different.

The same applies to V-Special. Mazda's current service table actually places V-Special with the regular-model columns while S-Special and S-Limited sit in its limited-car grouping. Whatever shorthand appears in adverts, they should not be collapsed into one generic “Japanese special edition” specification.

Later R-Limited cars are different again. They belong to the 1.8-litre era and have their own factory-supported package and production story.

A real TMJC-associated 1993 1.8 S-Special

The Matt Johnston Collection's historical Car & Classic dealer inventory includes a sold 1993 1.8 S Special Eunos Roadster, registration L943XLO.

The surviving advert records the car as right-hand drive, five-speed manual, black and showing about 73,000 miles. The seller describes it as a 1.8-litre S-Special and lists a Torsen differential, electric windows and mirrors, BBS wheels, Bilstein suspension, a yellow strut brace, Nardi steering wheel and other equipment.

That car is useful because it demonstrates the exact problem this page is meant to solve: a real 1993 1.8 S-Special sits outside the simplified picture created by reading only early 1.6-litre references.

It is not used here to define every 1.8 S-Special. The advert also describes later suspension replacement, wheel refurbishment, sill work and other maintenance. Those details belong to L943XLO's own history.

The Car & Classic dealer syndication is the surviving TMJC-associated record cited here; no first-party TMJC listing for L943XLO is cited.

How can you tell whether an S-Special is genuine?

Start with the Japanese chassis identity and build period, not the accessories.

For an early car, establish whether the chassis belongs to the NA6CE phase. For a later 1.8 car, establish the NA8C identity and make sure its date is consistent with the 1.8-litre transition. Original Japanese paperwork, export/import records, service records and any period sales documentation are more valuable than an advert's equipment list.

Then compare the car's equipment with evidence applicable to that exact phase. For an early 1992 NA6CE car, the period Mazda brochure gives unusually strong support for Bilstein, BBS, Nardi and tower-brace equipment—but every one of those components is replaceable. Braces, wheels, dampers, steering wheels, shift knobs, stereos and spoilers can all move between cars.

A convincing car is one where identity, chronology, documentation and physical specification all tell the same story.

What should you check on a UK-imported example?

The S-Special-specific question is identity; the physical-condition questions are largely the same ones that matter on any first-generation Roadster.

Inspect the rear sill and arch areas carefully, particularly where previous repairs or underseal may hide work. Check drainage and the cabin for signs of water ingress. Look beneath the car rather than relying on a tidy upper body, and examine any welding invoices or photographs if structural repairs have been carried out.

On the mechanical side, verify what engine and differential are actually fitted before ordering parts or comparing specifications. Service invoices should identify the work done rather than relying on phrases such as “fully serviced”. If a car has replacement Bilsteins, refurbished BBS wheels or an aftermarket exhaust, record those changes rather than assuming they either prove or disprove S-Special identity.

For imports, continuity matters: Japanese records followed by coherent export, UK registration and later service history are much more useful than a claim that the car is “rare”.

Why the 1.6-versus-1.8 distinction matters when comparing cars

Two S-Specials can share a badge and still be poor direct comparators.

A late-1992 NA6CE car and a late-1993 NA8C car differ in displacement and chassis family, while the wider 1993 update brought meaningful mechanical changes. Values, replacement parts and originality expectations should therefore be compared with cars from the same phase whenever possible.

For the same reason, no single displacement, power figure or chassis code safely describes every S-Special; the correct figures depend on its build period and chassis family.

The short version

The Eunos Roadster S-Special arrived in 1992 during the 1.6-litre NA6CE period and later continued into the 1.8-litre NA8C range.

Mazda's current Classic material directly recognises S-Special in the NA6CE family. Specialist period-literature archives place its introduction around the July-August 1992 update, while modern Japanese catalogue data records a September 1992 NA6CE entry and, crucially, a September 1993 1.8 S-Special in the NA8C range.

So the right question is not simply “what is the S-Special specification?” It is which S-Special, from which build period? Establish that first, then judge equipment and originality against the correct phase.

Sources and further reading

• Mazda — 1992 Eunos Roadster S-Special brochure scan (archived by Atelier Nii)
• Mazda Classic — NA Roadster parts information service
• Mazda — MX-5 history and the Eunos Roadster name
• Atelier Nii — Roadster model history
• Atelier Nii — Roadster/MX-5 catalogue archive
• Goo-net — Eunos Roadster E-NA8C catalogue
• CarSensor — late NA8C S-Special Type II catalogue
• JapaneseCarTrade — E-NA6CE S-Special specifications
• Car & Classic — TMJC-associated 1993 1.8 S-Special L943XLO