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Leaked images show digital gauge cluster for Mazda3

Most everything divulged about the 2019 Mazda3 so far has focused on the trick Spark Controlled Compression Ignition (SPCCI) Skyactiv-X engine. If a series of photos posted on a Chinese website are accurate, it looks like Mazda has novel plans for the cockpit as well. The three images show a three-color, all-digital gauge cluster in two different configurations. The first configuration places a three-digit speedo in the center of a blue-ringed tachometer, with gear indicator and water temp displays on the left, fuel range calculator and what appears to be a funky clock on the right. The second configuration splits the tachometer to the left and the speedo to the right. In between them is what looks like a road surface display for automatic cruise control. Trip info lies just under the blue-banded road, while water temp, fuel gauge, gear indicator and range info line up across the bottom. A swath of empty space on the left could be where Mazda's relocated the current car's passel of warning signals. Of note: Everything around the digital gauges appears to come straight from the current Mazda3. The instrument panel surround, the steering wheel and buttons, the stalks, all of it is lifted from today's car. If the photos are what's headed our way on some trim of the 2019 Mazda3, though, they show a clean, handsome evolution of the no-nonsense cluster in the current compact hatch. Mazda's worked up a head of good press on the run-up to the Mazda3 launch for both the engine and the dynamics. We're told we'll get between 10 and 30 percent more torque from the 2.0-liter SPCCI Skyactiv-X, and about 25 percent better fuel economy compared to today's 2.0-liter Skyactiv-G. Handling-wise, the jinba ittai philosophy — horse and rider as one — has led to engineers reworking everything from tire sidewall stiffness to multi-contoured torsion elements and the mounting and shape of the seats. The hatchback's torsional stiffness climbs by 30 percent, any excess rigidity countered by 7.5 meters of "matrix resin material" applied in 16 places on the body "to absorb vibration and dissipate it as heat." The point has been to eliminate dynamic static between the driver and the road, and then to give the driver the best natural seating position to take advantage of the body's reflexes to dynamic input. At the same time, this digital gauge cluster might also give that driver something tasty to look at. Related Video:

Weekly Recap: Mazda's rotary revival ignites Tokyo Motor Show

Forty-eight years ago Mazda pioneered rotary engines in the Cosmo Sport. Mazda then honed the technology, won with it on the racetrack, and made it one of its signature features. If you're an enthusiast, rotary was a reason you like Mazda. It's a great part of the company's past. But until this week, that's exactly what we thought it was. History. That all changed with the reveal of the RX-Vision concept at the Tokyo Motor Show, which reignited the passions of the Mazda faithful. Suddenly, rotary was no longer a relic. The rotary concept shown in Japan was a front-engine, rear-wheel-drive sports car wrapped in the company's latest Kodo design language. It's powered by a Skyactiv-R unit (R for rotary), though specs were not disclosed. Mass production is "currently on hold," Mazda said, maintaining it never stopped development of rotary technology, even after the demise of the RX-8. Beyond that, we know nothing, other than the optimistic statement Mazda offered that: the "RX-Vision represents a vision of the future that Mazda hopes to one day make into reality." Put simply: we agree. OTHER NEWS & NOTES: Subaru previews next-gen Impreza While the Mazda concept was the headliner from Tokyo, Subaru's Impreza design study also stood out. The five-door concept is a signpost for the look of next-generation Impreza. It blends sportiness with functionality, and it's wrapped in a striking shade of 'high-luminance silver.' The fenders are flared to signal Subaru's all-wheel-drive capability, and the front has futuristic headlights that look like something from an Audi E-Tron concept. While most of this will be toned down in production, the concept suggests an elevated style for the Impreza, which is due as a 2017 model. Porsche adds potent GTS model to 2017 Macan line Porsche is giving the Macan crossover the GTS treatment, which will start at $68,195 when it goes on sale in March. GTS translates to more power, a sportier suspension, and interior and exterior design cues that sharpen the looks and reflexes of one of the most athletic SUVs on the market. Porsche recalibrated the 3.0-liter twin-turbo V6 from the Macan S to make 360 hp and 369 lb-ft, (up from 340 hp and 339 lb-ft in the S). It teams with a seven-speed PDK gearbox and all-wheel drive. An air suspension is standard. The body features a slew of black accents, and the standard 20-inch RS Spyder wheels are done up in a shade of satin black. The cabin gets leather, Alcantara, and GTS logos.

Mazda and Clemson collaborate on Deep Orange 3 concept

There are school projects, and then there's the Mazda Deep Orange 3 Concept Car, a one-off built by Clemson University automotive engineering students and designed by Frederick Naaman from the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena. Clemson students unveiled the chassis at the 2012 SEMA show in Las Vegas, although this is the first showing of the car fully clothed.
Sporting a unique hybrid powertrain that can automatically switch between front-, rear-, and all-wheel drive. A gas-powered engine handles the fronts, while the rears are powered by an electric motor and a battery pack. The Deep Orange 3 also has an unusual three-plus-three layout, making it a much cooler version of your parent's old Vista Cruiser. The exterior sheetmetal clearly follows Mazda's established design language, and looks like it could easily pass for a five-door version of the Shinari Concept. It really is a great looking vehicle.
The Deep Orange 3 was part of Clemson's graduate-level auto engineering program, and is a regular partnership between the east coast school and the Pasadena-based design college's students. Clemson, Art Center and Mazda will be showing the Deep Orange 3 at the Center for Automotive Research Management Briefing Seminars in Traverse City, MI, from August 5 to August 8. Click through for a press release from Clemson University.