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Mazda shows lightweight MX-5 Spyder and Speedster at SEMA

Ever since Mazda dropped the first teaser on us last week, we've been looking forward to seeing what it had in store for us at SEMA this year. Now we've seen it what Mazda has dubbed the MX-5 Spyder and MX-5 Speedster, and they were worth the wait. The Spyder goes vintage with a silver paintjob and a brown top stretched overhead. It also has an aero kit, grille, and tonneau cover done up in carbon fiber, rides on 17-inch wheels, and features a natural leather interior. The blue Speedster, meanwhile, goes for the stripped-down, wind-in-your-hair experience. It has no roof or windshield, just a tiny deflector at the front of the dashboard. It's dropped an inch closer to the ground on an adjustable coilover suspension with 16-inch alloys, and features a center-exit exhaust. Carbon fiber helps trim 250 pounds from the curb weight, along with a stripped out interior trimmed in Alcantara. Both look pretty slick, and disappoint only in so far as they (like so many of their predecessor concepts) won't be heading for production. If they were, we'd be hard pressed to choose between the two. Which would you go for? Mazda Reveals Extreme Lightweight Design Concepts at 2015 SEMA MX-5 Concepts Display Two Different Takes on Staying True to Pure, Lightweight Sports Car Philosophy LAS VEGAS (November 3, 2015) – Mazda revealed two design concepts today at the SEMA Show in Las Vegas, based on its all-new 2016 MX-5 Miata—MX-5 Spyder and MX-5 Speedster—demonstrating two vastly different takes on lightweight, open-air performance. Lightweight. Fun-to-drive. Roadster. Those three tenets have served as the foundation for the Mazda MX-5 Miata since its 1989 introduction and continue to serve the new fourth-generation model. Focused, lightweight engineering is a guiding principle of every Mazda vehicle made with SKYACTIV Technology, allowing for greater efficiency, improved performance and agile handling dynamics. But what if that sense of lightweight performance were taken to the extreme? What if Mazda's North American designers harkened back to vintage roadsters to create thoroughly modern, bespoke concepts for what a lightweight performance car should be The results would be the MX-5 Spyder and MX-5 Speedster concepts. "Both MX-5 Spyder and MX-5 Speedster are uncompromising designs that highlight the core strengths of MX-5," said Ken Saward, design manager, Mazda North American Operations.

2021 Mazda CX-5 gains new infotainment, cheaper entry for the Turbo

Mazda has updated the 2021 Mazda CX-5 with a couple notable changes in the new model year. It’s the brandÂ’s best seller by a longshot, and we think buyers of the 2021 car will like what Mazda has done. The infotainment system is new this year, as Mazda has yanked its new screen and software out of the Mazda3 and CX-30 for duty in the CX-5. That means thereÂ’s a new 10.25-inch high-resolution widescreen sitting atop the dash, and the software itÂ’s running is much improved over the previous Mazda infotainment. ItÂ’s also the end of the touchscreen, because Mazda has designed this new system to be exclusively operated by a rotary dial. Previously, you could operate the CX-5Â’s screen via touch if the vehicle was stopped. We prefer the new system greatly over the old interface, so this is a big upgrade. The new screen comes standard on the base Sport trim, and both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are also standard. Secondly, Mazda has added availability of more safety systems this year. Both rear automatic emergency braking and a driver attention monitor (alerts the driver when it senses fatigue or inattentiveness at the wheel) come standard on the Signature trim. For those who buy the Signature (or any trim with the 2.5-liter turbo engine), Mazda has added a new “Turbo” badge to distinguish the cars with the more powerful engines. There are a couple trim/packaging changes for 2021, as well. The first weÂ’ve already covered: the Carbon Edition. Two Carbon Edition models will be available; one has the turbo engine, and the other has the standard 2.5-liter four-cylinder. You get Polymetal Gray paint, gloss black trim on the exterior, 19-inch black wheels, red leather seats, red stitching and black honeycomb patterned interior trim. The second new trim package is called the Touring Preferred SV Package, and it costs $1,445. It fills the small gulf between the Touring and Grand Touring trims by stealing some of the features from the Grand Touring and splitting the difference on price. This package adds the Bose 10-speaker audio, leather seats, power liftgate, power moonroof, auto-dimming rearview mirror with Homelink, six-way power passenger seat and eight-way power driverÂ’s seat with lumbar and memory. The 2021 CX-5 starts at $26,370, which amounts to an $80 increase over the 2020.

Five vehicles named Top Safety Pick+ including new Civic, MKZ

In an attempt to help push vehicle safety to a higher level, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety created a stricter Top Safety Pick+ rating last year, which incorporates a brutal small overlap test and requires cars to get Good ratings in four out of the five categories (and no less than Acceptable in the fifth). Joining the list of the safest cars of 2013, the 2013 Volvo XC60, Lincoln MKZ, Honda Civic (sedan and coupe) and the 2014 Mazda6 have all received the coveted TSP+ rating.
The Mazda6 and Lincoln MKZ have both been completely redesigned, and both received Acceptable ratings in the small overlap test. The Honda Civic, coming off its emergency refresh for 2013, is the first small car to be subjected to the small overlap test, and IIHS says that one of the car's many upgrades includes a stiffer front structure allowing it to receive Good ratings in all categories. Similarly, the XC60 gets all Good ratings thanks to, according to IIHS, Volvo updating the airbag software allowing the side airbags to inflate during the small overlap test.
The 2014 Subaru Forester has not yet been subjected to the small overlap test, so it must make do with just a Top Safety Pick rating until the IIHS tests small utility vehicles, which is expected to happen later in the spring.