does anyone who discovered it today actually like it?

That was my first reaction. I didn't grow up watching it on TV.

Now that I have seen it again, I enjoyed it. Although the final showdown ended too quickly. It does get slow after Max quits the force.

I first saw this movie way back in 1985 when I was in a dingy Air Force Barracks in the middle of nowhere, Missouri. I had a Kawasaki motorcycle so I thought this movie was really cool..But yeah in today's world I can easily see how this movie would be boring to anyone watching it for the first time.
Mad Max was really something special 40 years ago. It lives now, only in my memory.

I saw it for the first time in the recent years and while I don't hate, it is for me the weakest of the franchise. I feel like it lacks substance and drags on without not much interesting things happening. However, it does have some moments like the car chases.

But yeah, give me any other installment in the franchise before this one. It does set the whole story and introduces uus to the character of Max, so it has a purpose.

I agree. Saw it for the first time three weeks ago and thought it was awful. It may have been revolutionary to others when it was released but I am pretty sure if I had seen it in the 70's my opinion would remain the same. And like those other people you know, I do think that Road Warrior is exponentially superior.

While watching Mad Max I noticed that some guy's eyes actually pop out of his head just before he crashes head on into Max's truck. I couldn't believe what I saw, so I rewound and replayed frame-by-frame, and yup, the guy pulls his goggles off and his eyes literally pop out of his head just like a Looney Toons cartoon. I burst out laughing and declared this movie is a vastly overrated turkey.

This movie was never intended to be a block buster.
It was a low budget art house style movie that on release audiences flocked to it in Australia, possibly more so for the local content. Familiar accents, cars and scenery with an ages old proven formula of goodies v baddies.
It's disjointed in parts, but low budget movies often are.
Mad Max 2 was on a totally different level from the start production wise, but I have fond memories of Seeing Mad Max 1 at the drive in when it was first released and was totally blown away.
I get why someone seeing it today would see it as ordinary, although the car chases are still epic.

Yes I have, still a classic!

Symptomatic of how over the top things have become now.

I'm sure some will but of course most won't because they're too jaded by how over the top everything is nowadays, and that's a shame. On another note, one of the things that makes this movie extremely special is that it's the most profitable movie ever made. This movie has the highest budget to profit ratio of any movie ever. It made 245 times its budget (ticket sales and home movie releases). That's saying something.