It seems to me that certain manufacturers are competing to see which can think of the most ridiculous place to launch a car.

Bentley got the show going in typically magnificent style, introducing us to its Flying Spur in Venice, the only city in the world without roads. But it ruined a potentially unassailable opening bid by thereafter letting us into the mountains and some of the best driving in Europe.

That left the field open for Alfa Romeo which, for its recent 159 launch, eschewed the beautiful open spaces of its native Italy for the middle of Munich to take an early lead. This was particularly adroit as Munich is the home of BMW, whose 3-series is perhaps the only executive saloon in the world capable of making the 159 pale by comparison.

But then Mazda played its hand.

It would introduce its new MX-5 to the world’s press in — can anyone guess? — Hawaii.

Don’t misunderstand me, I’m delighted to be here watching the sun sink gently over the Pacific, but of all the places Mazda could have chosen, it plumped for an island 30 hours from London with a speed limit of 55mph and a greater concentration of police cars than anywhere else I have been. That’s going to take some beating.

And so will the car, although the replacement is nothing like the work of genius the original seemed in 1989. After driving that first MX-5, I can remember sitting at the side of the road thinking: “Well, this changes everything.”

The only bad news about this new car is that it changes nothing. It is new, its side indicator lights being the only components to have survived, but conceptually it is the same: a simple front-engined, rear-drive, two-seat roadster that’s as easy to live with and dependable as a Japanese hatchback and as thrilling on the right road as anything this side of a Lotus Elise.

As I loafed through Hawaii’s extraordinary volcanic scenery, certain things became apparent. I’d decided already that I liked the looks of this third-generation MX-5 — it appears as it is: more powerful and more grown-up. A commitment to keeping weight down has meant that despite the fact that this is a bigger, more sophisticated MX-5, it still feels light and easy to handle. The cockpit is smarter but has less character and I’m told there’s more room, although I could not get my 6ft 3in frame truly comfortable.

Sales start in November and the car is predicted to cost about £1,000 more than the outgoing model. There are still two engine sizes, but now the 1.8 is the smaller rather than the larger; there is a new 2 litre. Expect to spend about £16,000 on a basic 1.8 and nearly £20,000 for a 2 litre with all the trimmings, including a six-speed gearbox.

Mazda had brought only the bigger-engined cars to Hawaii but I suspect, as was the case with the previous generation, it will be the cheaper, lighter and simpler models that prove the more pleasing.

When I finally discovered a stretch of open road I found the 2 litre good but not great to drive. The car is more sophisticated and comfortable, but that great MX-5 character seemed slightly dulled. It felt less than sabre-sharp in its steering and gearing, not as quick as its 158bhp power output would suggest and a shade too grown-up for its own good.

It will still perform most of its old tricks, but I had to push it to get it to reveal this side to its character: in the old car its relentless enthusiasm was there from the first turn of the key.

Then again, I’d rather live with this new MX-5 than any other. I remember driving an original from Oban in western Scotland to London and wanting to kill it by the time I got out. This new car would be a quieter, vastly better companion on that and almost every other journey.

I stepped from the new MX-5 impressed but feeling mildly deflated. I’d spent 30 hours’ travelling looking forward to an epic drive and it had not been delivered. Mostly that was down to Hawaii, but the MX-5 played a small part, too. For all its newfound practicality, quality and sophistication, it is at best no more fun to drive than the car it replaces.

And then I started to think about what car in the class I’d rather have and discovered none exists: the Toyota MR2 and MG TF have ceased production as, shortly, will Fiat’s delightful Barchetta. In 1989 the MX-5 was in a class of its own and so it is again today. It’s seen off all-comers in the past 16 years and now nobody wants to take it on. Having driven the new one, I can’t say I blame them.

The opposition

Model Mini Cooper S Convertible £17,600
For Charming, quick and massively fashionable
Against Very expensive for what it is

Model Vauxhall Tigra 1.8i Sport £15,350
For Good looking, folding steel roof, value for money
Against Dowdy cabin, not enough fun to drive