1996 Mazda B4000 Se Extended Cab Pickup 2-door 4.0l on 2040-cars

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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.

Mazda just restored the 787B's forgotten older brother

Among Mazda's many racecars, none is as famous as the 787B, and for good reason. The 787B remains the only Japanese car and the only rotary-powered car to win overall at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. It wasn't Mazda's only successful endurance racer, though. Before the 787B, there was the 767B. Mazda's 767B racecars competed in the IMSA GTP class at endurance races throughout 1989. They featured 630-horsepower four-rotor engines and were very successful in their class. This newly restored car took first and second place class finishes in five of the six races it participated in, and each finish was in the overall top ten. The one exception was a DNF in which the transmission failed. Twenty-five years after the 767B's glory days, Mazda initiated a complete teardown and restoration of the aged car. The work was done by Downing Atlanta and supervised by former Mazda racers Rick Engman and Jim Downing. (Fun fact: Downing was one of the designers of the HANS device.) The shop has also restored other racecars for Mazda, including one of the 787Bs. The car went through a two-year rehab and will make its track re-debut at the Monterey Motorsports Reunion. The event takes place next weekend at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca where the track will once again feature the angry shriek of a competition-grade rotary engine. Related Video: Image Credit: Mazda North American Operations Motorsports Mazda Automotive History Racing Vehicles Pebble Beach

Miata buyers prefer a manual gearbox, says Mazda

Earlier, we wrote about Toyota's underwhelming 2018 manual transmission sales figures. To recap – as Toyota's representatives told CarBuzz – the automatic Corolla outsold its manual equivalent to a ratio of 100 to 1, and just one in three Toyota 86 buyers picked a manual version of the rear-drive coupe. What about the other famous rear-wheel-drive offering from Japan, Mazda's MX-5 Miata? A case can be made that an 86 buyer cross-shops the Miata, and vice-versa, but what kind of split do Mazda's sales figures reflect in comparison? We reached out to Mazda for some sales data, and PR program manager Tim Olson told us 76 percent of Miata soft-top buyers go for the classic stick-shift option, leaving just 24 percent of buyers preferring the automatic. Both transmission options for the Miata are six-speed. The figures are based on year-to-date sales data for the 181-hp 2019 Miata, from July 2018 through April 2019. Interestingly, the more coupe or targa-like, retractable hardtop RF variant takes a step towards the 86 when it comes to transmission choices. While RF buyers still preferred the manual, the split was far closer to half and half: 52% went for the manual, and 48% chose the automatic. Perhaps this reflects the RF's more grand tourer-like image, and it might also be indicative of the RF's higher pricing. If you're going to spend nearly $34,000 for a Miata, another $600 for an autobox doesn't necessarily mean that much – choosing the auto on the base, Sport trim level soft top roadster is a $1,350 bump instead. While the $26,650 base Sport isn't exactly spartan, on a roadster it's fine to have less cushiness. With the higher-specced Club trim level, the auto's price tag shrinks to the aforementioned $600, as it is on the RF Club. There's no base Sport for the RF, as the cheapest RF is the $33,865 Club. But still, the manual shifter's snick-snack feel is one of the Miata's classic traits that has been with it since its inception 30 years ago. Sources say fewer than 5% of the original first generation Miatas were made with an automatic gearbox, but it's obvious trends and tastes are changing – although to be fair, automatics are getting much better as well.