Mazda is poised to completely reinvent itself by launching a new multi-purpose platform, a new chassis and suspension set-up, an advanced six-speed automatic ’box and a pair of uniquely engineered ‘Sky’ petrol and diesel engines. These should be among the most fuel-efficient engines on sale.
The aim is to allow the company to prosper as a full-range, independent global car maker, while selling just 1.2 million cars per year.
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Mazda 6 mules using all the new technology are currently on test in Europe, with sales of the all-new model expected in early 2012. Company sources say the new 2.2-litre Sky diesel-equipped 6 will be good for 105g/km of CO2, while the 2.0-litre petrol engine should manage 130g/km.
Seita Kanai, Mazda’s R&D supremo, says the new corporate platform and engines are legislatively future-proofed for a decade. These new four-cylinder engines will form the basis of Mazda’s global powertrain strategy and both feature highly unusual engineering solutions.
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The diesel unit has a low 14:1 compression ratio plus trick injection and exhaust valve timing. It already meets 2013 Euro 6 emissions regulations without expensive NOx traps and is cheaper to build than today’s Euro 5 diesels.
The petrol engine is normally aspirated but has a high 14:1 compression ratio and much-improved low-end torque. One of the key design features is a large 4-2-1 manifold, which required extra packaging space behind the front wheels.
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The new platform is made from simple box sections that fit together to create a kind of steel spaceframe. This can be chopped to allow it to underpin everything from the next Mazda 3 to the next CX-7.
It’s lighter then the current Mazda 6 structure and 30 per cent torsionally stiffer. The platform could be used for 800,000 vehicles a year. Mazda is even looking hard at adapting it for the new 2.
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Re: Mazda's radical new future
When the Honda CR-V came top of the US J.D.Power survey a few years ago, the cars made in Swindon and shipped to the East coast scored identically to the Japan-made cars shipped to the West coast. It's not where they're made, it's how they're made.
But the strength of the Yen is nobbling anything Made In Japan right now, and Mazda still make more than most in their own back yard.
Re: Mazda's radical new future
Have you tried putting your right foot on the bathroom scales ?
Re: Mazda's radical new future
What would be the point of buying a Japanese car that was not made in Japan ? It would be hardly any better than a German car that isn't made in Germany.