Small or compact cars have established a good number of followers. Automakers, like Mazda, saw this as a good opportunity to increase sales. In fact, Mazda has already jumped into the booming market and has a new product to offer that is christened as the Mazda 2.

Mazda 2, which will only measure at 168-inch long and 67-inch wide, will surely boast of well-crafted Mazda Parts. This compact car from the Japanese automaker has the standard fog lamps for safety during foggy nights and sturdy fenders for those front and rear slow-speed collisions, among others. To complete this small car’s air and look of elegance, quality alloy wheels and leather upholstered seats are used.

Introduced in the media today at the 5th China (Guangzhou) International Automobile Exhibition, the Mazda 2 or Demio in Japan is set to be available first in China by the first quarter of 2008. This compact car, which will be assembled in the Nanjing Plant of Ford Mazda Automobile Company, is going to be one of the five models that the Japanese company is relying on to really boost its sales and market share worldwide.

Details from Auto123.

Carrying precision-engineered Mazda Parts, the Mazda 2 Supermini exceeded its Japanese automaker’s expectations as the new car hit it big in the United Kingdom.

According to Mazda UK, sales of the Mazda 2 Supermini shoot up the ceiling with a total of 1,600 vehicles that translates to more than a hundred percent from the company’s seen numbers.

During the media launch of the Mazda 6, James Hopkins, who is fleet and remarketing director of Mazda in the UK, revealed to Motor Trader that the Supermini has really went beyond what is expected from them in the United Kingdom. Moreover, Hopkins said that the car company no longer pushed through with the Mazda 2 Supermini’s fleet presence as it is not necessary anymore.

“Our order take is very strong and the future looks very rosy for this car,” said Hopkins.

At present, Mazda is prepping up for the unveiling of its Mazda 6, which is laden with high-end Mazda Parts, in time for the holidays.

Details from Motor Trader.

Mazda, which is one of the established automakers in Japan, is very keen in coming out with new products in China in the next few years as the company sees this as an opportunity for bigger earnings in the republic as well as globally.

Three years from now, Mazda, which is behind the Supermini and Mazda 3, aims to triple its sales to a whopping 300,000 cars from this year’s decent 100,000 units. Such goal has really to be realized as the Republic of China comprises almost a fifth of Mazda’s sales worldwide. If things go as planned, the Japanese car company is set to enjoy about $1.6 million from its worldwide profit in 2010.

“China plays a vital role in boosting Mazda’s global sales not only because of its huge market potential but also because big markets such as Japan, European and United States have matured,” said Ozaki Kiyoshi, who is Mazda’s director and senior executive officer for businesses in China.

To date, sales of Mazda vehicles in China is doing very well. In fact, for the first six months of this year, revenues went as high as 78 percent that translates to already 41,000 vehicles.

To further establish the company’s future goals, it just gave a sneak peek to the media its new offering dubbed as the Mazda 2 sedan at the 5th China (Guangzhou) International Automobile Exhibition this month. Mazda 2, which will be made at the Ford Mazda Automobile Company’s Nanjing plant, is slated to be officially introduced in the first quarter of 2008. Moreover, this latest sedan is going to be one of the five vehicles that are set to come out in the market by 2010.

“With the launch of Mazda 2 sedan, we have broadened our product mix with a strong presence covering China’s mid-to-high class, economy cars and compact car segments,” said Yamada Noriaki, who is Mazda’s president and chief operating officer for operations in China.

Details from Shanghai Daily.

As the CX-9 is Mazda’s first SUV, it paved the way for Mazda to have enter the full size SUV market. Some say that the CX-9 is like an inflated version of the ingenious CX-7. In reality, the design of the CX-9 can be traced to the architectural design of the Mazda 6 sedan. If one will give a long look at the CX-9, one will see that it is really similar to the CX-7 but for obvious reasons, the original design was stretched in order to come up with a bigger and larger vehicle. As for the works when it comes to the engineering of the CX-9, it can be observed that it has a unibody that is undoubtedly the best among its kind when it comes to rigidity of structure.

Some say that it is the “Soul of a Sports Car” and the “Zoom Zoom” or what they call athletic dynamism is what distinguishes Mazda vehicles from the rest. On the other hand, there are some speculations on the agility of the CX-9. The said vehicle measures for 4400 pounds. Unlike the GMC Acadia, Saturn Outlook, or the Buick Enclave, the CX-9 has a good footwork. This gives the said vehicle a step higher when it comes to safety.

Another feature of the CX-9 is that it does not seem to need a lot of fuel. Other sport utility vehicles tend to be thirsty for fuel all the time. For this reason, many are expected to have their eyes on the CX-9. It features an EPA fuel-economy rating of 16 mpg in the city and of 22 mpg on the highway. Aside from the agility of the CX-9, fuel economy, as well as increased hustle, it features good interior furnishings. It has a DVD entertainment system, a premium Bose audio, a nav system for the DVD, power sunroof, among other features. Safety features of the CX-9 include the ABS, stability control that comes with roll stability control, traction control, and air bags. It has a camera that helps minimize blind spots. It flashes a warning in the vehicle’s mirrors when a vehicle is hovering near the rear areas of the vehicle.

Every designer dreams of having the freedom to fashion designs without having to think of so many factors such as economics, etc. This year, Mazda was able to pave the way for designers to do this with a contest tagged as the Mazda Design Challenge. The said contest is made possible with a partnership with Facebook, an online social networking giant. Participants of the Mazda Design Challenge get to pass their vision of how the 2018 Mazda 3 should or would look like. Every entry must come with a description of the design that won’t be less than 150 words. Aside from the description, participants may also include an illustration of their design but this is not a requirement.

There are many who joined the said contest and after so much deliberation and thinking, the engineers of Mazda and members of Facebook have agreed to declare Mallory McMorrow as the winner. McMorrow lives on the South Bend, IN. This lucky winner has already been paired with one of the top Mazda designer who is Jacques Flynn. Together, they drafted the ideas to reality and came up with an actual sketch of it. The design resembles the Mazda Ryuga concept in more ways than one. McMorrow’s 2018 vision of the Mazda 3 merges the recent Mazda styling cues with her own. When asked on it, Mallory says that her vision is a meeting between sports car qualities and everyday use, which is, in her belief what a Mazda vehicle of the future must be. In her words, “I was thrilled when I opened up the images of the final renderings. I’m proud to say that the end design was still definitely my car and I can’t wait to see it come to fruition on the show floor.”

As this competition is able to prove its success, Mazda has decided to take it a step further by having a prototype of McMorrow’s winning design and have it on display at the Los Angeles Auto Show. For the span of ten days, McMorrow will work with Franz von Holzhausen, the director of design at the Mazda North American Operations. Holzhausen’s team is the one tasked to put McMorrow’s design in tangible form. The sculpture of the vehicle will be available for viewing starting Nov. 24.

The sole distributor of Mazda vehicles in UAE, Galadari Automobiles, has already released a statement that the Mazda CX-9 will be launched. What makes the CX-9 particularly special is that it is the first 3 rows, 7-seater crossover sport utility vehicle that is created by Mazda. This vehicle already made its debut in Dubai. Its unveiling made noise among auto enthusiasts and was able to be voted for the SUV of the year by Motor Trends magazine. The Mazda CX-9 has a 6-cylinder V-6 engine that is geared with 24 valves that represents Mazda’s Zoom concept of family cars that are stylish, spirited, and insightful.

The Mazda CX-9 is designed especially for young couples as well as modern families that are fond of adventure. This vehicle is perfect for any family who are intact with their sense of adventure and other high-intensity leisure activities. It has sufficient space for an outgoing family to haul all their stuffs. It is also ideal for families with children who have an active lifestyle.

At the launching ceremony of the CX-9, Mr. G. A Kazmi, who is the General Manager of Galadari Automobiles said, “[w]e are delighted to bring the latest 7-seater Mazda CX-9 to the UAE market. The Mazda CX-9 will be marketed to families that want to live life in style, luxury, and are passionate about what they drive. While all other conventional 3-row SUVs offer functionality and focus only on the family, the CX-9 offers emotional appeal, pride of ownership and a sense of satisfaction to the driver. As a leading automobile company in the UAE, it is our endeavor to provide best-in-class cars to our discerning customers.”

As for the time that the new Mazda CX-9 was released, Mr. Keizo Okue, the General Manager of the Middle East and Africa Sales Division of Mazda Motor Corporation, made mention that “Mazda is committed to the UAE market and the launch of CX-9 is in line with our regional strategy to offer best-in-class transportation solutions. 3-row SUV offers overwhelmingly athletic styling, dynamic performance and high quality luxury craftsmanship at an attractive price… We are very confident that Mazda CX-9 will emerge as the car of choice for connoisseurs and lead the 3-row 7-seater segment.”

According to the statement made by Mazda Motor Corporation last November 2, 2007, the company was able to remain on track for yet another year. This is good news for Mazda. Word has it that the weakened yen has managed to lift the corporation’s net profit by around 6.8 percent. This is in lieu of six months to the month of September. Nowadays, the Mazda Motor Corporation is considered to be the fifth among the largest Japanese automakers.

Mazda is an affiliate of the Ford Motor and it also came as a good news for Ford that Mazda was able to post a net profit of 29.05 billion yen, which when converted amounts to 253 million dollars. This earning is despite the fact that Mazda suffered a 62.5 percent plunge on sales as far as the fiscal first quarter is concerned.

According to the Hiroshima-based group, as for Mazda’s first-half operating profit, it was able to gain around 4.8 percent last year to 73.08 billion yen. This is an “all-time high” as revenue continue to rise up to 8.9 percent to 1.66 trillion yen. Cheaper yen is profitable for those who are doing exports. Since Mazda is among those who do, they were able to profit from their export earnings. Apart from this, they were also able to employ their cost-cutting efforts that really came well to counter the heightened costs of raw materials.

According to reports, Mazda has a 0.9 percent increase in its global sales. In the 0.9 percent, 659,000 vehicles were sold in the first half. This was considerably dragged down when there was an overall decline in Japan’s auto market by 5.8 percent. Afterwards, the sales were able to pick up again as it rose to 7.1 percent increase in the United States. At this time, Mazda vehicle sales in Europe remained flat and unfortunately, it dropped by 32.6 percent in China. This is primarily caused by the termination in the production of two Mazda models.

If one can recall, Mazda has forecasted that it will yet have another year of record earnings. According to their forecast, they will have a 15.3 percent increase in terms of net profit. This roughly translates to about 85 billion yen. Recently, Mazda has been experiencing an operating profit increase of 0.9 percent to 160 billion yen. On their record revenue, 3.32 trillion yen is up by 2.2 percent.

The first Mazda 2 was originally introduced in 2003. As the years went by, however, Mazda has decided to do some modifications to further improve the Mazda 2. It is for this reason that Mazda has altered the Mazda 2 to have it carry on a more definitive look. The renewed Mazda 2 is nowhere near the one that was released in 2003 as far as looks are concerned. It was able to take on a more functional design that is more in line with the modern life. Come to think of it, only four years has passed since the initial Mazda 2 was released. But although this is the case, it is not reason enough to not improve on it especially when Mazda itself realized that something can be done to bring it a notch higher. This is an attempt to up the ante.

With the modifications done on the façade of Mazda 2, the said vehicle was able to acquire a more captivating shape. As with the changes done in the Mazda 2’s looks, it has noticeable grains on the hood that stems from the radiator grill and all over the sides that creates a rather dynamic effect. It also gives the vehicle a modern feel to it. When it comes to the powertrain, rumor has it that three engines will be made available for the Mazda 2. These are the 1.3 liter that can produce 75 horsepower and two 1.5 liter of 84 and 103 horsepower. Apart from these three engines, a fourth engine is rumored to follow shortly. This is the gas turbo unit of 1.4 liter.

At the time of the Mazda 2’s launching, two engines will be available. These are the 1.300 cc of 75 and 84hp as well as the 1500 cc of 103 hp. These two engines are both characterized with pioneering technical solutions. This is the reason why these engines can guarantee a considerable reduction when it comes to fuel consumption. Basing from the estimates, the 1.3 cc consumers something around 5.4 liters of fuel for every 100 km run. Not bad.

When infomotori.co.uk tested the Mazda 2 with the 1.5 engine, it was able to have a horsepower output of 104 hp. Apart from this, the general quality of the vehicle was rated to be very good and of high quality. The main feature came from the exceptional powertrain. It was able to satisfy quite well the taste of those who judged it.

As Mazda is being encouraged more and more by Ford to improve on its reputation and sales, Mazda is now exerting extra effort in order to put itself a notch higher than where is actually is. Among their efforts, the one on the limelight nowadays is the Mazda 5. It is a small minivan but features a rather roomy interior. From the outside, one may not think that the Mazda 5 possesses this much space in the inside for it has seemingly small outside dimensions. As proof of its spacey-ness, it can conveniently carry six people. Even though it carries six people, these passengers can comfortably stretch every once in a while and they have ample room to move and relax.

It has heated front seats. These are, in reality, leather “captain’s chairs.” When it comes to the driver’s seat, its height can be adjusted to suit the driver. This enables the driver to be more comfortable since he or she could adjust the seat in the best position to compliment his or her size. As for the second row of the Mazda 5, it also features “captain’s chairs.” It has sliding doors that not only saves space—say, you can park close to a vehicle since there is no allowance needed for the door. One can conveniently open and close it without needing so much space. It also makes way for easy entry and exit of the vehicle. In other words, easy access.

It has power moonroof that enables one to see what’s above the vehicle. One can look at the sky or open the moonroof to let the sunlight in when one wants to read or something. When it comes to the Mazda 5’s rear part, it has a hatch that easily opens. When opened, it discloses the luggage space. According to some owners of the Mazda 5, the vehicle’s rigid body gives a rather European feel and air to it. One of the best features of the vehicle is that it has been altered from being sports-oriented to a family one.

On the dash, one will notice that it has analog gauges. These gauges monitor the 2.3 L and the 153 horsepower of the vehicle. Aside from this, the vehicle is furnished with storage nooks, cup holders for convenience, four-wheel disc anti-lock brakes, emergency brake assist, xenon headlights, electronic brake force as well as a burglar alarm.

Many find it hard to come up with the right words to describe the Mazda CX-7. This is because this particular vehicle of Mazda could fit one’s needs. It is especially designed to be able to provide almost anything one needs it to be. It is just so many things that are put together that one will have a hard time saying exactly what makes it so great. According to the people in Mazda, the CX-7 is a sports car. Although this is the case, they cannot simply limit the CX-7 to that definition. The CX-7 can be whatever it can be for a person. There are limits to the power of the creator in its creation. Upon being created, the CX-7 has its own existence. It can already allow others to give definition to it.

The CX-7 has a turbo-charged engine that can generate 258 bhp. At its finest, it can generate up to 380Nm. This roughly translates to a top rated speed of 130 mph. It features four-wheel drive system that makes the CX-7 a rather capable vehicle. It can generate sufficient amount of power and can be used as a tow car. The CX-7’s wide body is also a good factor in using the vehicle for towing. With more space, more can be hauled on it. This vehicle is a good testimony of Mazda’s extraordinary towing capacity.

Apart from capacity, the vehicle is well-designed. One can say that it was designed to get a shot at perfection. The whole architecture of the vehicle seems to say a lot about the vehicle itself. It is equipped with climate-control air-conditioning, leather upholstery, heated front seats, BOSE Premium audio system that comes with a 6-CD changer. It has a privacy glass, self-cleaning Xenon headlamps, as well as air bags all round the vehicle. For further comfort in driving, there’s a traction and stability control topped with an Active Torque four-wheel-drive system.