2013 Mazda 5 Sport - 3rd Row - $248 P/mo, $200 Down! on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Evo pits Toyota GT86 vs. Mazda MX-5 Miata

The latest Deadly Rivals episode from Evo gets the Mazda MX-5 Miata and Toyota GT86 (our Scion FR-S) on track for a shakedown and a whole lot of drifting with Dan Prosser behind the wheel. The UK-spec coupes have slightly different power ratings than ours, but it's all close enough to be comparable. Their Miata has 158 horsepower (ours has 155), 148 pound-feet of torque, takes 7.3 seconds to run from naught to 60 62, and costs 22,695 pounds. The GT86, on the other hand, lists a 7.6-second dash to 60 62, and a base price of 25,000 pounds. The GT86 also weighs 400 pounds more than the Mazda. That's true in the States, too – curb weight for our MX-5 is 2,332 pounds, whereas the Scion FR-S comes in at 2,758 pounds. Both cars lauded for excellent shifting, but one of them has a better front end, a sweeter engine note, more controllable cornering behavior, and is faster by a tenth of a second around the test track. And Prosser doesn't mention it, but one has a lot more body roll. But it takes more than all that to make a winner, so check out the video above to see which is which. News Source: Evo via YouTube Mazda Scion Toyota Convertible Coupe Performance Videos toyota gt86 evo

Mazda to relocate its US offices into Irvine's tallest building

Mazda is the latest foreign automaker to be moving its North American headquarters. Only this time, it's not moving further south. Instead, the Japanese automaker is simply relocating to another facility in Irvine, CA. In a little over a year from now, Mazda North American Operations will move to 200 Spectrum Center Drive (pictured in the rendering at right), taking up five of the 21 floors in Orange County's tallest building for a total of over 100,000 square feet of office space. It'll also take up half the lobby with vehicles on display and the exclusive naming rights on the top of the building. The facility, designed by Pei Cobb Freed & Partners, boasts full glass walls from floor to ten-foot ceiling for uninterrupted 360-degree views. Mazda has been in its current US headquarters at 7755 Irvine Center Drive (pictured above) since 1987. The five-story building was specifically constructed for the purpose and was the tallest in Irvine at the time. Prior to that it was based in Compton from 1970. The move to the new facility is scheduled to take place in February, 2017. Mazda's announcement marks only the most recent of foreign automakers to relocate their North American headquarters. Toyota is moving to Texas, Subaru to Camden, Lotus to Ann Arbor, Daimler to Farmington Hills, and Mercedes-Benz to Atlanta (where Porsche recently relocated, as well). Cadillac also recently moved from GM's Renaissance Center in downtown Detroit to its new headquarters in New York. Hyundai and Kia also quarter their North American operations in Irvine, as does Aston Martin. Meanwhile Honda and Toyota (for the time being) are based less than an hour away in Torrance, and Mitsubishi halfway in between in Cypress. Though they no longer sell passenger cars in North America, Isuzu and Suzuki still operate their US bases in SoCal as well, in Anaheim and Brea, respectively – all municipalities located just south of Los Angeles. Nissan and Subaru also base their US operations outside of California, with head offices in Tennessee and New Jersey, respectively. Related Video: Mazda Set To Relocate North American Headquarters in 2017 - With 50 years of roots in Southern Calif., Irvine will remain 'home' for Mazda - IRVINE, Calif., Jan. 11, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Mazda North American Operations (MNAO) has spent the last three years bringing all-new, upscale vehicles to the U.S. and earning outstanding critical acclaim in the process.

Mazda considers expanding Takata recall nationwide

Vehicle recalls have come in force recently. Honda expanded its front driver's side Takata airbag inflator recall nationwide to cover an estimated 5.4-million vehicles, and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration added 19 notices to its database covering safety campaigns dating back to October. It looks like there could be one more to add to the list soon because Mazda is considering a possible nationwide expansion of its own inflator repairs. A company spokesperson tells Reuters that there is no decision yet when to actually make this nationwide expansion of the driver's side inflator recall official, and the company isn't sure how many vehicles may be affected. Mazda just expanded the scope of its Takata inflator recalls to additional regions earlier in December. The move took its total number of units in need of repair from around 65,000 under the earlier NHTSA estimate to 86,773, according to the company. So far, the automaker's US campaign has included the 2003-2007 Mazda6, 2006-2007 MazdaSpeed6, 2004-2008 Mazda RX-8, 2004-2005 MPV and 2004 B-Series pickup.