Once in a while it happens - a car that captures the heart and the imagination, a car that stands apart from the herd. It happened the other day.
Yet what we're talking about has been around before - it started in 1989 and already nearly 750,000 have been built worldwide.
The all-new Mazda MX-5 sports car, the third generation, seems set to maintain the iconic status of its predecessors. For the uninitiated, the original MX-5 came out at a time when smallish sports models were deemed to have no future, being viewed as unsafe.
Mazda went against the trend and discovered success. It was the sort of niche product that so many people still wanted, the sexiness of open top wind-in-the-hair motoring at an affordable price.
That essential attribute is there in the new model in abundance: the looks suggest fun and discovering the great outdoors, probably with a very agreeable partner. Predictably almost, the third generation is true to the design heritage of the earlier generations. Predictably, too, it's bigger, though that's not apparent.
The wheelbase is 65mm longer than that of the outgoing car, but that hasn't affected the new MX-5's ability to be hustled through the bends. The engineers cleverly have redistributed weight towards the centre of the car with the engine sitting 135mm further back. Other changes meant putting the radiator rearwards, the battery forward and lowering the fuel tank. All in all, a 50:50 weight distribution has been maintained.
The bigger profile does impact in a cabin area - it feels more spacious and welcoming, especially for those whose dimensions are far from svelte.
Chief designer Yasushi Nakamata explains that previous MX-5s had a coke bottle-shaped centre section, and now there's a new oval shape in which the seating area is the widest portion of the car.
What then of the driving? In a word, it's endearing. The MX-5 is not just amenable to the fast and spirited stuff on winding roads, but it's happy at more docile speeds where driver and passenger just might want to be viewed.
Our test model at the global launch in Hawaii came with a four-cylinder 2-litre with 170bhp, it having the American specification. The European 2-litre has 160bhp, while the 1.8-litre gives 126bhp.
The driving experience on the six-speed manual was enhanced by gear ratios that are purposely close for a more sporty sensation. The driving style of the car quickly became apparent and enjoyable, through short, quick shift strokes which teased out power and torque.
From the exhaust, a delightfully robust boom could be induced, the sort of defining sound that investment in a sports car demands.
All the elements of driving excitement were there as well, the reassurance of grip and balance and poise. Hawaii didn't provide us with bad or uneven surfaces, but somehow the car felt that it would have taken the rough with aplomb.
The Hawaii launch brought motoring journalists from all over, 80 of them from Europe. Most seemed happy that Mazda had done a good job with its latest offering.
Somebody asked what sort of people would buy the MX-5, expecting maybe lots of marketing guff about a 20-something with no kids and an affluent independent lifestyle. Mazda gave us none of that. "It's for everybody, all ages, people who like fun in their driving," said deputy programme manager Nobuhiro Yamamoto. Could this be a notable first, a car without a customer profile? Great!
The MX-5's catholic appeal has much to do with its affordability. The outgoing car that sold in Ireland was a modestly engined 1.6-litre with a €29,250 price tag. The 1.6 option is disappearing and the 1.8 will take over its role.
The third generation gets here in November, probably with prices starting somewhere under €40,000. That's hardly a giveaway, but it's about half the price of a Porsche Boxster.
Mazda may be an acolyte of Ford, but the MX-5 comes with an impeccable Japanese pedigree, exemplified by the design and engineering philosophy of Jinba Ittai - or "rider and horse as one". We have no doubt a driver will be at one with the new car.
Niggles? One is that the frontal area could have been a little more assertive. The rear end looks more harmoniously stylish, and with the hood down and passing out the everyday flotsam and jetsam, it creates a perfect sports car silhouette.
And, the seat recline mechanism is of a rather crude stepped type. There are no stowage pockets on the doors but surprisingly there are four cup holders, a bit of an overkill surely in a two seater.
Much more could be written about new MX-5, such as the painstaking efforts at weight reduction on items as inconsequential as a rear view mirror. In spite of a bigger body and extra equipment, the weight gain has been just 10 kilos.
Weight saving has also been achieved through the widespread use of aluminium, especially in bonnet and boot. Aluminium features strongly in the cabin, highlighting audio control on the steering wheel, and in the pedals.
The new MX-5 should be loads of fun and, for those who aren't of a sports car disposition, it has to be the one car that could win them over.
It's energetic and lively, with smart driving manners and yet it isn't wildly fast, getting from 0 to 100km/h in eight seconds.
It's also age friendly: drivers from 26 to 66 will equally enjoy the driving compatibility or the Jinba Ittai.