2010 Mazda I Touring on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Mazda keeping non-hybrid, non-electric Skyactiv strategy

Mazda still thinks that it can buck the trend of adding those fancy batteries and electric motors to its cars. At least for a little while longer. Hopefully. Speaking to Auto Express recently, Mazda's European boss, Jeff Guyton, said that he expects his company's cars to be able to get a lot more efficient without resorting to any of that fancy electrification stuff. "I think there's at least 20-30 percent better fuel economy by the end of the decade," he said. He said that he expected to get to Europe's low target of 95 grams of CO2 per kilometer, "without any significant deployment of electrical drive." This part is all in line with Mazda's long-term Skyactiv strategy, as laid out back in 2011 and first mentioned publicly in 2010. Remember, this is the company that once proudly proclaimed, "Not Electric. Not Hybrid. Not A Drag To Drive." As explained back in 2011, Mazda hopes to wait until other automakers have done all of the heavy lifting on developing plug-in and hybrid tech so that when Mazda enters the market, things will be cheaper. Of course, Mazda has been quietly testing all-electric vehicles and Guyton said that there may be an Mazda EV at some point. "We are interested in electric technology and it will be in the distant future when it will be quite important," he told AE. "But we think it will take some time to be commercially attractive without tax payer-funded incentives." How much of a delay? Well, there is a gas-electric Mazda 3 hybrid available in Japan that uses some powertrain parts from the Toyota Prius, and we all know that the Prius has been around for ages. Maybe in 2025, Mazda will come out with a Leaf-based Mazda 2. Related Video: Green Mazda Fuel Efficiency Electric Hybrid skyactiv mazda skyactiv

Mazda refurbishing this NFL running back's 22-year-old daily driver

I don't actually care for the Washington Redskins (which is a good thing, considering the start to their season this year), but I love their running back, Alfred Morris. Why? Well, to start with, Morris helped deliver a dominating 10-3 season for my fantasy football team last year after a flash of prescience saw me pick him up off the waiver wire in Week 1 (hit me up on Twitter if you need fantasy sports insight, guys, I'm sort of like the Ruxin of Autoblog).
Morris is also pretty endearing because of his loyalty to his car, Bentley. Hold up - that's not to say the running back has splashed out on a Continental GT or a Flying Spur. No, Morris gave his much-loved 1991 Mazda 626 the tongue-in-cheek name "Bentley" while he was still a student at Florida Atlantic. One 1,613-rushing-yard rookie season and a $2.2-million contract later, and Morris is still using his Mazda as his daily driver. It might be easy to assume that the young player is simply being really prudent with all of his newfound wealth, but the guy really just has a thing for his five-speed-manual 626.
And Mazda, of course, loves the story of Morris' affection. In an effort to keep his 626 running strong and looking good, the company's Washington D.C.-area dealers have agreed to refurbish Bentley back to its original showroom freshness. Rather than spoil the classic (?) lines of the 626, the Mazda folks are essentially restoring the car for Morris. The cracked dash will be swapped out for a factory replacement, the engine and transmission given a thorough going-over and the whole vehicle generally made as fresh as Will Smith circa 1991. Bentley is expected to be completed and rolling through the capitol city by October 15, and in the meantime, Morris has been driving around in a new 2014 Mazda6 loaner car.

Mazda says 83 percent of new cars bear Skyactiv moniker

Mazda's US sales are down a little bit but the company's fuel economy is almost assuredly up. That's because its fuel-saving Skyactiv drivetrain technology is essentially taking over US vehicles sales. To the tune of about five out of every six vehicles sold, at least. While the Japanese automaker's US sales in February fell 2.4 percent from a year earlier, Skyactiv accounted for 83 percent of its sales last month. Most notably, Mazda6 sales jumped 46 percent from a year earlier, while Mazda CX-5 sales were up 72 percent. The company also celebrated the opening of its factory in Salamanca, Mexico, where it will make models such as the Mazda2 and Mazda3. The company is not resting on its fuel-economy laurels either, apparently. In January, it was reported the company is hard at work on its next-generation Skyactiv technology, which will boost fuel efficiency by as much as 30 percent by using diesel-like high compression. As it is, Mazda had the highest fleetwide fuel economy of any major automaker in the US for the 2013 model year with a 27.5 mile per gallon average, according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Honda came in second with 27 mpg. Check out Mazda's press release below. MAZDA SKYACTIV® TECHNOLOGY SETS RECORDS IN FEBRUARY - Mazda Celebrates Grand Opening of All-New Production Facility in Salamanca, Mexico - IRVINE, Calif., March 3, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Mazda North American Operations (MNAO) today reported February U.S. sales of 24,431 vehicles, representing a decrease of 2.4 percent versus last year. Year-to-date sales through February are down 6.7 percent versus last year, with 43,155 vehicles sold. Key February sales notes: Mazda's SKYACTIV® TECHNOLOGY accounted for 83.2 percent of all vehicle sales during the month of February. This is the largest percentage of Mazdas equipped with SKYACTIV TECHNOLOGY sold in one month, and second-best month of total volume ever with 20,245 vehicles sold. Mazda6 experienced its second-best February since 2008 with 3,945 vehicles sold, representing an increase of 46.0 percent, year-over-year (YOY). February 2014 was CX-5's best month ever with 9,353 vehicles sold, good for an increase of 71.6 percent, YOY. February was one of the most historic months for Mazda as it celebrated the grand opening of its all-new engine and vehicle assembly plant in Salamanca, Mexico.