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Mazda6 sees gains in ugly month for midsize sedans

Though June overall wasn't a terrible month for automaker sales, at least for the most part, it was pretty hideous for midsize family sedans. Basically every single model in the segment saw declining numbers including the Subaru Legacy, Nissan Altima, Ford Fusion, Volkswagen Passat, and even perennial volume sellers such as the Honda Accord and Toyota Camry. All of these cars are down in year-to-date numbers, too. But there's one bright spot, and it comes from Mazda. Mazda reports that the Mazda6 actually had a really good month. It sold 3,204 examples of the family sedan in June 2018, compared with 2,360 in June of last year. That's a nearly 36 percent increase month-over-month. It was also enough to bump Mazda6 sales for 2018 ahead of 2017's numbers through June. Those numbers also put the Mazda6 ahead of the Volkswagen Passat for June, and just 20 vehicles shy of the Subaru Legacy. Admittedly, these are still small numbers all around. In the same month, Honda sold over 26,000 Accords, and Toyota sold about 27,000 Camrys. Sales of Mazda's other vehicles also indicate that crossovers really are the new hotness. The CX-5 sold a whopping (relatively) 12,710 units. The CX-3 and CX-9 sold about 2,300 examples each, which is below both Mazda3 and Mazda6, but both crossovers gained more this month and over the year than both cars. Mazda3 is actually down this month and overall. All of this also seems to give some credence to Ford's decision to move away from traditional sedans. Still, for fans of more conventional cars, it's a bit heartening to see that more niche players can find some success with the design. We're also pleased to see such an excellent sedan recognized with actual buyers. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Featured Gallery 2018 Mazda6 Signature View 17 Photos Image Credit: Mazda By the Numbers Mazda Sedan

Tougher than steel: Wood pulp could make lighter auto parts

KYOTO, Japan — The global push among carmakers to make ever lighter vehicles is leading some auto suppliers in Japan to turn to what seems like an unlikely steel substitute — wood pulp. Japanese researchers and auto component makers say a material made from wood pulp weighs just one-fifth of steel and can be five times stronger. The material - cellulose nanofibers — could become a viable alternative to steel in the decades ahead, they say, although it faces competition from carbon-based materials, and remains a long way from being commercially viable.> Related: Jay Leno drives the Renew cannabis car — hemp you can't dent Reducing the weight of a vehicle will be critical as manufacturers move to bring electric cars into the mainstream. Batteries are an expensive but vital component, so a reduction in car weight will mean fewer batteries will be needed to power the vehicle, saving on costs. "Lightweighting is a constant issue for us," said Masanori Matsushiro, a project manager overseeing body design at Toyota. "But we also have to resolve the issue of high manufacturing costs before we see an increased use of new, lighter-weight materials in mass-volume cars."A NEW PROCESS Researchers at Kyoto University and major parts suppliers such as Denso Corp, Toyota's biggest supplier, and DaikyoNishikawa Corp, are working with plastics incorporated with cellulose nanofibers — made by breaking down wood pulp fibers into several hundredths of a micron (one thousandth of a millimeter). Cellulose nanofibers have been used in a variety of products ranging from ink to transparent displays, but their potential use in cars has been enabled by the "Kyoto Process," under which chemically treated wood fibers are kneaded into plastics while simultaneously being broken down into nanofibers, slashing the cost of production to roughly one-fifth that of other processes. "This is the lowest-cost, highest-performance application for cellulose nanofibers, and that's why we're focusing on its use in auto and aircraft parts," Kyoto University Professor Hiroaki Yano, who is leading the research, told Reuters in an interview. The university, along with auto parts suppliers, are currently developing a prototype car using cellulose nanofiber-based parts to be completed in 2020.

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.