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Mazda reports strong Skyactiv sales, plans to boost output 25%

Mazda is set to expand production of its Skyactiv engines after critical and commercial acclaim for the fuel-sipping powerplants. The Japanese manufacturer has a number of plans in the works to bump up production, with the first being a 25-percent increase in output from its Hiroshima, Japan engine facility.
Besides adding a new line, Mazda will modify the line that built MZR engines, a family of mills that includes the 2.3-liter, turbocharged four-cylinder found in the Mazdaspeed3 and the 2.0-liter found in the MX-5 Miata. The bump in production is just part of Mazda's goal of selling 1.7 million vehicles globally by 2016, with 80 percent of those vehicles expected to wear a Skyactiv badge.
Mazda also builds Skyactiv engines at a joint-venture facility with Ford, in Changan, China, while a Mexican facility will go online by March of 2014. Skyactiv engines currently power the Mazda3, Mazda6 and CX-5.

Toyota, Honda, Mazda and Nissan recall 3.4 million vehicles for faulty airbags

Most vehicle recalls that take place these days are a result of some problem that happens during the manufacturing process by the automaker, but as we see here, parts suppliers can also factor in to problematic safety issues. Automotive News is reporting that a total of 3.4 million vehicles produced by Japanese automakers between 2000 and 2004 are being recalled globally due to faulty airbags produced by an outside supplier, Takata Corp.
According to the report, vehicles from Toyota, Honda, Nissan and Mazda are being recalled because of passenger front airbags that do not inflate properly. Globally, Toyota is said to be recalling around 1.73 million cars including 510,000 in the US composed of Toyota Corolla, Matrix, Sequoia and Tundra as well as the Lexus SC430 for the 2001 through 2003 model years; this is the second time this year the 2003 Corolla and Matrix have been recalled for an airbag problem. Honda is recalling 1.14 million models, Nissan another 480,000 and Mazda 45,463. The article says that Takata supplied faulty airbags to non-Japanese automakers, but it did not specify which ones.
Honda and Toyota have released information on their own websites about the recall, while Nissan and Mazda have not yet commented. Read official press releases from Honda and Toyota, below, and look for updates as we have word from the others.

More photos of the 2014 Mazda3 sedan

Thanks to the folks at Top Gear Russia, we got an early glimpse of the 2014 Mazda3 sedan. Now, Mazda has released more images of its sleek new four-door, and if you like what the Japanese automaker has done with the five-door hatchback, you won't find anything to complain about with the sedan.
Many would argue that the Mazda3 sedan looks like a scaled-down version of the new Mazda6, and in many cases, that's true. But there are subtle details about the Mazda3 that we really like, starting with the larger grille that makes for a slightly more aggressive front end. On the profile, we like how the strong arching character lines that flow over the front and rear wheel wells intersect in the middle of the car and then taper off. At the rear, a short decklid rounds off a very clean design with taillamps that are indeed reminiscent of the larger Mazda6.
We can't yet confirm powertrain details (or any other specifications, really), but we fully expect the same 2.0-liter and 2.5-liter Skyactiv-G engines to carry over from the hatchback, as well as the six-speed automatic and manual transmissions.