2009 Mazda 5 4dr Wgn Auto Grand Touring, 3rd Row, Alloy Wheels. on 2040-cars

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First 2014 Mazda3 ad appears

If we judge by your comments on our recent announcement post about the new Mazad3, you Autoblog readers approve, pretty wholeheartedly, about the redesign efforts happening over at Mazda. Pressed for an opinion, we'd be forced to admit that we find the new 3 quite fetching our own selves.
To add fuel to the fast-burning fire then, Mazda has gone ahead and dropped a 15-second pseudo commercial on YouTube, showing a very rendered Mazda3 in a very rendered driving environment. The short spot is really just slightly more dynamic than the images of the car, but there is a spot of mystery to it, as well.
Right at the start of the video, an interior shot of the car shows a transparent display screen of some kind, rising from the top of the 3's dash. An interesting choice, considering Mazda has bestowed an actual center-mounted display in on the hatchback's dash-top - albeit one that doesn't look like a clear piece of glass. Take a look below, and while you're there, check out a just-released official video of the Mazda3's reveal in New York.

2020 Mazda MX-5 Miata RF Automatic Road Test | Cue the sad trombone

Somewhere in Hiroshima, a parade of nearly finished Miatas glides along a track waiting to receive their beating hearts, the powertrains that'll let them ply their road-carving talents the world over. One – let's call him Fred – is eager to begin his new life as a 2020 Mazda MX-5 Miata, bringing joy to his future owner and just generally being awesome, even if the RF power targa-ish roof that's already been applied to him is a tad dweeby. Visions of hairpins and power slides and expertly executed heal-toe downshifts dance in his head Â… and then it happens. He is given the one thing every new Miata dreads: an automatic transmission. Poor guy. This will not, entirely at least, be yet another diatribe in the ongoing Quixotic campaign to Save the Manuals(!). Automatic transmissions can be quite good and even beneficial in sports cars, especially on the track where removing the need to operate a clutch and expertly execute those heel-toe downshifts lets you better focus on the steering, what the chassis is doing and just going faster. That the computers can shift quicker than you can is another obvious advantage. The trouble with the Miata, and why Fred is now shuffling off the line like George Michael away from the Banana Stand, is that the Mazda six-speed automatic just isn't appropriate for a sports car. The automatics in the rest of Mazda's fleet are actually quite excellent, delivering superior response than rival transmissions, and delivering comparable fuel economy despite possessing fewer gears. However, what works well in a compact crossover like the CX-5 or CX-30 is not necessarily appropriate for a sports car like a Miata. Unlike the dual-clutch transmissions or even some sport-tuned conventional automatics of various performance-oriented cars, this one doesn't downshift adroitly when braking into a corner, anticipating your imminent need to get back on the power. The plastic paddle shifters lack the reassuring, mechanical feel of the best examples, and then don't produce quick-enough reactions from the transmission when up- or downshifting. I found using the shifter itself, which is at least oriented the correct way – with downshift forward and upshift rearward – to ultimately be more rewarding as it has a more involving action to it. Still, it's nothing compared to the solid, snick-snick action of the six-speed manual.

Asian automakers still reluctant to use more aluminum

There's a logical progression of technology in the auto industry. We've seen it with things like carbon-ceramic brakes, which use to be the sole domain of six-figure sports cars, where they often cost as much as an entry level Toyota Corolla. Now, you can get them on a BMW M3 (they're still pricey, at $8,150). Who knows, maybe in the next four a five years, they'll be available on something like a muscle car or hot hatchback. Aluminum has had a similar progression, although it's further along, moving from the realm of Audi and Jaguar luxury sedans to Ford's most important product, the F-150. With the stuff set to arrive in such a big way on the market, we should logically expect an all-aluminum Toyota Camry or Honda Accord soon, right? Um, wrong. Reuters has a great report on what's keeping Asian manufacturers away from aluminum, and it demonstrates yet another stark philosophical difference between automakers in the east and those in the west. Of course, there's a pricing argument at play. But it's more than just the cost of aluminum sheet (shown above) versus steel. Manufacturing an aluminum car requires extensive retooling of existing factories, not to mention new relationships with suppliers and other logistical and financial nightmares. Factor that in with what Reuters calls Asian automaker's preference towards "evolutionary upgrades," and the case for an all-aluminum Accord is a difficult one. Instead, manufacturers in the east are focusing on developing even stronger steel as a means of trimming fat, although analysts question how long that practice can continue. Jeff Wang, the automotive sales director for aluminum supplier Novelis, predicts that we'll see a bump in aluminum usage from Japanese and Korean brands in the next two to three years, and that it will be driven by an influx of aluminum-based vehicles from western automakers into China. Only time will tell if he's proven right. News Source: ReutersImage Credit: Sean Gallup / Getty Images Plants/Manufacturing Honda Hyundai Mazda Nissan Toyota Technology aluminum