2006 Mazda 3 Metallic Silver Clean Title 95k Miles Good Condition on 2040-cars

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The 2018 Mazda6 also snags top IIHS safety rating

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety is one of two organizations that issues important safety ratings. To get to IIHS's Top Safety Pick rating level, the 2018 Mazda6 not only had to ace a bunch of difficult crash tests, it also must have headlights that meet a strict test as well. Its stablemate, the CX-5 crossover just received the even higher Top Safety Pick+ rating. Both must be equipped with optional adaptive headlights to achieve these ratings. The rationale is, many crashes happen at dusk or in the dark, and an outsized number on unlit roads. While almost all modern headlights outperform the dim, unfocused sealed beams of the past, IIHS says that government regulations aren't doing a good enough job of ensuring real-world performance. Adaptive headlights turn with the front wheels, helping out a lot in IIHS's tests on illumination in sharp and gradual curves. Related: How the 2018 Mazda6 stacks up to its competitors in the midsize sedan segment The Adaptive Front-Lighting System is only available in the Grand Touring Reserve and Signature trim levels, meaning that you'll have to upgrade to those fancy versions to get it. It'd be nice if Mazda allowed even lower-trim buyers to add this as a stand-alone option, but for now that's not how it works. Fancy, safer headlights or no, we love the new Mazda6, especially the turbocharged version. It's one of the most fun sedans around. And, according to IIHS, now one of the safest. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Mitsuoka Rock Star is a Miata in a Chevy Corvette Sting Ray disguise

Mitsuoka is a famous (infamous?) Japanese custom car builder known for its absurd, and occasionally out-of-this-world vehicles. Its most iconic vehicle was the mid-engine Orochi, but its bread and butter are normal Japanese cars given front and rear styling from the past, usually sometime between the 1930s and 1950s. One of the more recent examples is the Mitsuoka Himiko, a Mazda Miata given a classic European roadster look. But the company has ventured a little further ahead in history with its latest model, the Mitsuoka Rock Star, which quite clearly is meant to be a C2 Chevy Corvette Sting Ray. The effect is actually pretty convincing, and as far as Mitusokas go, it looks smartly proportioned and a good fit for the base car. That base car is the current Mazda Miata, known as Roadster in Japan. It probably helps that the base Miata was designed with exaggerated fenders and creases from the get-go, so the even more exaggerated lines of the Corvette fit surprisingly well. Outside of the body, the car is pretty much identical to a regular Miata. It uses the same naturally aspirated 1.5-liter four-cylinder as all overseas examples. That means it makes just 129 horsepower and 111 pound-feet of torque, so this doesn't even come close to the fire-breathing power of real C2 Corvettes. Of course, that could be rectified with an LS V8 swap from Flyin' Miata. The engine is coupled to either a six-speed manual transmission or an automatic. The manual can also be had with a limited-slip differential. There are a number of available upgrades including custom colors for the body and the windshield surround. You can also add a custom leather interior with body-color coordinated panels. Mitsuoka will even provide retro-style wheels with white-letter BF Goodrich tires for the complete look. If you live in Japan and find this vehicle appealing, you'd better be ready to shell out plenty of cash. At current exchange rates, the base Rock Star starts at $41,636. The price goes up from there with options. In contrast, a base Mazda Miata here in the U.S. starts at $26,625, a little more than half that of the Mitsuoka. And of course, the U.S.-spec Miata is substantially more powerful. If you want the Mitsuoka, you'll also have to get in touch with the company quickly. There will only be 50 examples, and you have to apply for one. Related Video: News Source: MitsuokaImage Credit: Mitsuoka Mazda Convertible Performance mitsuoka

Mazda boss says no to new-generation Mazda3 hot hatch

Mazda offered a hot, turbocharged version of the Mazda3 model during the car's first two generations, badging it either the MPS or the Mazdaspeed 3 depending on the market. The third generation car didn't get a hot-hatch variant, and now Mazda is saying there won't be one for the freshly revealed fourth-gen car, either. Mazda's new global boss, Akira Marumoto, told Australian motor journalists at the Los Angeles show that there won't be an MPS in the cards. As Drive quotes Marumoto: "Mazda is a small player, and if [you are asking whether] that segment has a high particular priority for Mazda, my answer would be no. Therefore we not planning for MPS in the future." Marumoto stated that Mazda would rather establish itself as a genuine premium carmaker comparable to its European rivals, stressing that this would be achievable through quality, comfort and refinement improvements in the existing lineup rather than expanding into other segments. As well as nixing the Mazda3 MPS, Marumoto also said that despite repeated queries, the function of the 2015 Tokyo Motor Show car RX Vision was to preview the evolution of the Kodo design language and not to herald the arrival of a new rotary sportscar. So, it's time to cue the Mazda Kills Rotary Sports Car Again headlines. Marumoto also told journalists that there won't be an EV sports car or a completely driverless car from Mazda either: He said he prefers the smell of gasoline to full electric power, and that Mazda will never build a car without a steering wheel. For Mazda, autonomous capabilities would serve to bring the car to a safe halt in the case of an incapacitated driver, instead of doing the driving. However — and there is a strong "however" — Mazda did tell us that the turbocharged 2.5-liter engine does fit into the new 3. Mazda representatives said that the header on the naturally aspirated version is big enough as it is, making it easy to shoehorn in the 250-horsepower turbo version without issue. They also said that the company is closely monitoring buyer demand, which originally led to the turbo being available on the Mazda6 and CX-5, along with justifying the introduction of all-wheel-drive in the new Mazda3. So: if there is a case for it, the turbo might come — just don't call it a Mazdaspeed 3, or view it as an overt hot hatch. But the shoe fits.