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Mazda goes on engineer hiring binge as recovery picks up speed

Japan's larger automakers - companies like Toyota, Honda and Nissan - have tremendous engineering talent at their disposal. That's largely because, selling as many cars as they do, they've got more revenues to tap into. Logic might dictate, then, that smaller automakers like Mazda, which no longer has the deep pockets afforded to it by its former partnership with Ford, might have less of a budget and workforce for engineering. But Mazda has been raking in record profits, and it plans on cashing those revenues in by hiring a substantial new pool of engineers.
According to Automotive News, Mazda is preparing to hire as many as 185 new engineers over the next two years - almost four times as many as the 50 engineers it previously targeted. Many of those engineers will be put to work developing the second-generation, Skyactiv 2 technologies that are on the drawing board while the first round of Skyactiv features are still being rolled out.
The boost in recruitment is enabled by a positive fiscal year that ended last March, marking the first profits Mazda had logged in four years. Sources anticipate that the fiscal year culminating at the end of this month will mark the company's most profitable yet, netting over a billion dollars to eclipse the fiscal year that ended in 2008 when it recorded $872.5 million in profits.

Autoblog readers meet the 2016 Mazda MX-5 Miata [w/video]

Mazda dropped off a 2016 MX-5 Miata at our office this week with only two stipulations: don't break it, and don't talk about driving impressions until 3:01 AM Eastern on Monday, June 1. Easy enough. But rather than hold our notes until the embargo lifts, we decided to do something different. By now, you've no doubt read all there is to know about the 2016 Miata, including our review of the Japanese-spec car with the 1.5-liter engine that isn't coming to North America. You know it's smaller than the outgoing NC model. And you know that, at 2,332 pounds, it's nearly as light as the original. But what you, and we, didn't know, is what Miata owners think about the 2016 model. The MX-5 group is incredibly enthusiastic, and they love their cars. Hell, they love each other's cars. So we gave them an opportunity to not only get together, but to get an up-close, informal look at the ND Miata outside of an auto show, several months before it officially goes on sale. Here's what we did. Cars And Coneys Anyone who's familiar with the Woodward Dream Cruise in metro Detroit has no doubt heard of Athens Coney Island in Royal Oak, MI. It's an iconic place, known for its top-notch coney dogs, quick service, and the fact that, on pretty much any warm-weather weekend, you can find cool cars in the parking lot. We called the folks at Athens, told them about our Miata meet-up, and they were immediately on board with coneys, soda, and coffee for our gathering. We first published our meet-up info late last week, and sent the details out on our social media channels, as well. But without any formal RSVP system, we had no idea how many people would show up. And since Mother Nature decided to provide us with gray skies and chilly temperatures, we figured a lot of would-be attendees opted to bail at the last minute. Needless to say, we were surprised to see several Miatas already lined up in the Athens parking lot when we arrived with the ND at 4:40 PM, 20 minutes before the listed 5:00 start time. No one kept a formal count, but our best guess is that something like 50 or 60 cars showed up over the course of three hours. Some folks stayed the whole time, some people only stopped by for a quick cup of coffee. A couple people drove long distances to attend – a few Miatas hailing from southern Ohio, and many from western Michigan. We had a huge mix of cars, too.

Mazda and Fiat finalize deal for Alfa roadster, next-gen MX-5 Miata

Although a little bit later than expected, Mazda and Fiat have signed a final agreement that will bring a next-generation MX-5 Miata to the Japanese automaker and a new roadster to Alfa Romeo. When the proposed arrangement was announced back in May, the two automakers had hoped to seal the deal last year, but it doesn't appear that the production timeline for these cars has slipped any, with both expected to start rolling off assembly lines in 2015.
Other than a shared chassis with a rear-wheel-drive layout, it sounds like the two cars are still planned to be distinct in their own ways from their styling right down to their engines. Mazda will produce both cars at a plant in Hiroshima, Japan, but it isn't clear what role each automaker will play in the cars' developmental process. The big question, of course, is what clever portmanteau name we can come up with, like Toyobaru. Mazda Romeo is the easy choice, but Alfazda might roll off the tongue a little better.
Scroll down for a brief press release from both automakers.