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Mazda on sales upswing in Europe but won't build there

Auto sales in Europe have been a tricky proposition for some years, but Mazda has seen some success on the backs of the CX-5 and new Mazda6. According to a report form Automotive News Europe, though, that doesn't mean we should be looking for the Japanese manufacturer to set up production operations there.
Mazda's European CEO, Jeff Guyton, explained to AN that "Our intention is to have manufacturing scale. That gives you scale economy and quality through repeatability." In other words, a big honking plant in one part of the world is preferable to a half dozen small factories building the same vehicles.
European sales for Mazda are up 5.4 percent in the first half of 2013, with 74,000 units sold. That kicked the Zoom-Zoom brand's market share up from one to 1.2 percent. Small gains, but gains nonetheless. According to Guyton, Mazda would need to sell 200,000 units of just one model in Europe for local production to make sense. Mazda's best European year saw 320,000 units sold across the entire range.

2020 Mazda6 starts at $24,920, $200 more than 2019 model year

Mazda increased the price of all five trims of the 2020 Mazda6 by $200. The entry-level Mazda6 Sport starts at $24,000 before $920 destination charge ($965 in Alaska), for a total of $24,920. The only changes for next year are a new key fob likely copying the black and shiny metal unit from the Mazda3, and a new Signature badge likely in the form of the elemental "Sg" pulled from the CX-5 Signature model. The three Premium Paint choices carry over, with the same prices: Snowflake White Pearl Mica for $200, Machine Gray Metallic for $300, and Soul Red Crystal Metallic for $595. Prices of the other four trims run:  Mazda6 Touring $27,580 Mazda6 Grand Touring $30,620 Mazda6 Grand Touring Reserve $33,120 Mazda6 Signature $36,220 We're awaiting word on the arrival of all-wheel drive and the 2.2.-liter turbodiesel fitted to the CX-5. In the CX-5, that engine makes 168 horsepower and 290 pound-feet of torque. An AWD Mazda6 showed up in paperwork filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in January 2018, spy shots of a diesel-powered sedan followed in May that year, and Mazda mentioned the oil-burner again in April this year. For the time being, power for the 2020 Mazda6 will continue to be sent to the front axle through a six-speed automatic — Mazda eliminated the six-speed manual for the 2019 model year. The Sport and Touring trims come with a 2.5-liter four-cylinder that makes 187 hp and 186 lb-ft. The Grand Touring, Grand Touring Reserve and Signature raise that to a turbocharged 2.5-liter four-cylinder with 227 hp on 87 octane gas, or 250 hp on 93 octane, and 310 lb-ft.

Junkyard Gem: 1991 Mercury Capri XR2

Just a year after the Mazda MX-5 Miata first went on sale in the United States, Ford's Mercury Division began selling a similarly-priced two-seat convertible here. This was the 1991-1994 Mercury Capri, and I've found an example of the hot-rod turbocharged version in a northeastern Colorado car graveyard. The Capri name has an illustrious history within the Ford Empire. First used on a Lincoln in 1952, it went on to serve as the name for a hardtop version of the early-1960s Ford Consul in the UK, then as the designation for a low-end trim level on the 1966-1967 Mercury Comet. Starting in the 1969 model year in Europe (1970 in North America), Ford began selling the best-known Capri of all: a sporty coupe based on the Cortina, sold through Mercury dealers in the United States but never badged as a Mercury here. Sales of that Capri halted here after 1978 (they continued through 1986 in Europe), but the Mercury Division then moved the name over to its version of the 1979-1986 Ford Mustang. After that, Ford Australia took the Capri name for a new Mazda 323-based sports car beginning in 1989. Then Dearborn decided that an Americanized version of the Australian Capri would be a success on this side of the Pacific, and left-hand-drive Capris began showing up in American Mercury showrooms in late 1990. Today's Junkyard Gem is one of those first-model-year cars, and it's the very rare turbocharged XR2 version. While this car was intended to be a competitor for the Miata, it's really that car's Mazda cousin. Both cars got their power from 1.6-liter versions of Mazda's versatile B engine, though the Capri had the same front-wheel-drive setup as its 323/Protege (and Escort/Tracer) platform siblings. At the same time, Ford was selling Kia-built Mazdas with Festiva (and, a bit later, Aspire) badging, alongside Mazda MX-6s with Probe badges. Just to make things interesting, American Mazda dealers were selling Ford Explorers as Mazda Navajos, while Rangers with Mazda badges followed starting in 1994. The 1990s were Mazda-riffic times at Ford! This car wasn't the first Australian-designed, Mazda-based Ford product sold in the United States. That honor belongs to the 1988-1989 Mercury Tracer, which was based on the same Mazda 323 platform as the Capri and built in Mexico. Later on, the Tracer remained a member of the 323 chassis family but was a nearly identical twin to its Ford Escort sibling.